NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES : 365 PEOPLE WHO DIED-----AND LIVED TO TELL ABOUT IT!

NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES
365 PEOPLE DIED-----BUT LIVED TO TELL ABOUT IT!

COLLECTED FROM THE INTERNET BY BCG

COVER

1TABLE OF CONTENTS

16INTRODUCTION

22MY SUMMARY OF THE CONTENTS OF NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES

26Dr. Joyce H’s NDE--- an honored biophysicist and cell-biologist who had no religious beliefs

30Destiny C’s NDE in July 2016--- an ICU nurse

34NDE from abuse---NDEs Are A Bit Different From Each Other, And I Think I Know Why.

39Andy P’s NDE from his book---and an emailed question I asked Andy.

46Karen T’s NDE in 1982---Karen and I swap emails occasionally.

57Jean R’s NDEs in 1981---her two NDEs that revealed a lot about the meaning of life

62Judy G’s NDE in 1967---Life After Life

65Chamisa H’s NDE in 1982---told by a retired ICU nurse.

68Howard’s NDE---as told by the emergency room physician

72DD M’s NDE in 2010---severe car accident

79Dr. Robert C’s NDE in 1960— Medical doctor seeks a scientific explanation for his NDE

85Two NDEs reported by people BLIND FROM BIRTH – Vicki Umipeg and Brad Barrows

91Oldest medical description of a near death experience (NDE), France, 1740 CE

92Arthur’s EXCEPTIONAL NDE in 1988

94Cherie B's NDE---AN INCREDIBLE NDE JOURNEY

101Dr. Eben A’s NDE in 2008---taught at Harvard Medical School

109Dr. Gillian M’s NDE in 2013---dissecting aortic aneurysm.

113Marion R’s NDE in 2011---“walking skeleton”, amazing awareness of others’ thoughts

125Viola H’s NDE from 1971---containing verified evidence related by her film producer

136Gulden’s NDE ---From Turkey. Translated from Turkish

138Michael J’s NDE in 1966---crushed by a huge limestone boulder

149Bolette L’s NDE in 1996---from Denmark

154LARRY’S NDE in 2001---Old Country Boy, heart attack had him “flopping all over” in his truck

163Mary Jo R’s NDE in 2003---cerebral aneurysm

166Patrick G’s NDE in 1976---A cultural anthropologist

175DR. R. P’S NDE---A no-nonsense anaesthetist dismissed patients with NDEs until he went under the knife!

187Giselle RV’s NDE in 1978---from Costa Rica. Original in Spanish.

191Graça P’s NDE in 1980--from Portugal in Portuguese

198Katherine L’s NDE in 2001---We have the freedom to choose aspects of our reality on the Other Side!

202Halil T’s NDE in March of 2017—From Turkey

206Romy’s NDE in 1996---From Australia, but she was originally from Israel.

211Xue-Mei C’s NDE in 1995--From China--Original in Chinese

217Chen C’s NDE---From China--Translated from Chinese

218Dr. Dennis M’s NDE---blown up in Vietnam

225NDE And Life Review: Exchanging Loving Kindness With All

231Mohammad Z’s NDE from Iran---Translated from Farsi

240MARK J’s NDE in 1979---Jeep accident in the snow

246Nancy R’s Near-Death Experience in 2014---scientific, atheist, bicycle vs truck

254Kathie B’s NDE in 1972---The light adapts to Kathie’s communication preferences.

261John S's NDE---drowned

265Dr. John’s NDE---as told from his hospital bed to the ICU physician

270Marlene’s NDE---as told by Marlene, a Native American, and her doctor.

275Naomi’s NDE---told by Naomi and her doctor.

280Rachel F’s Wonderful NDE in 2006---bled out after birth

280Martin J’s NDE in 2013---unbelievable series of medical errors

286NDE from August, 2020---The Love we share is all that truly matters

296Brian S’s NDE in 1989---car accident

303Roger C’s NDE in 1990---from Canada, head-on collision

308Here Is An Amazing NDE From The Journal Of An Eighteenth Century Sea Captain!

311Colonel Fahad’s NDE in 1966 from IRAQ---suicide overdose in military prison

317Pia H’s NDE in 2006---From Belgium. Original in Dutch

318John S’s NDE in 1974---Playing baseball, brought his jaw down on an onrushing runner’s head!

319Leonard’s NDE in 2009---heart attack with cardiac arrest

322Lynne S’s NDE in 1970---a cardiac nurse

324Duane F S’s NDE---description of our multiple lives

333Lonny F’s NDE in 1988---He chose how the Presence manifested itself, and his NDE saved his life!

339Michael O’s NDE in 2010---internal bleeding after surgery

341Wayne M’s NDE IN 1972---accidental overdose

346Glenda G’s Father's NDE (Sherman G) in 2004

349Ron K’S LONG AND COMPLEX NDE in 1962---death by car accident

364Chantal L’s NDE in 1991---cyst the size of a grapefruit ruptured in her abdomen

368Josef P’s NDE in 1990 from the Czech Republic---beaten to death by the police for political reasons

372Tyrone’s NDE in 2011---former pro football player

375Dr. Bell C’s NDE in 2004---Cognitive Psychologist from Hong Kong

383Multiple NDEs during the 1976 Tang Shan Earthquake---from China. Original in Chinese

385Victor Philip DP’s NDE in 1973---hit by a minibus taxi while crossing the street

389Laurie L NDE in 1986---kayaking accident

394Melinda G’s NDE in 1990---bleeding out from her uterus

398Bill V’s NDE in 1968---shot to death in Vietnam.

405Tricia B’s NDE in 1995---senior at THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS in Austin

410NDE in 2014---The void, my grandmother, and a changed life.

417Pamela K’s NDE in 1993---apnea respiratory arrest

420Benny M’s NDE in 2006---cardiac arrest

423Amro’s NDE in 2003 from Egypt in Arabic---death by diabetic coma

427Chen M’S NDE IN 1999---from a woman in China. original in Chinese.

430Thomas M’s NDE in 1984---head-on collision

434Stacy S’s NDE in 1987--- grand mal epileptic seizure

438Tom N’s Veridical OBE in 1968

440Therese B’s NDE in 1998—from Sweden. Original in Swedish

442Arshan’s NDE in 1996 from Iran---Original in Farsi

446Ana Cecilia G’s NDE in 1989 from Mexico---Original in Spanish

453Heather V’s NDE in 2016---medication error

456Jeffrey C’s NDE in 1985---motorcycle vs truck

460Anita M’s Near-Death Experience--- Hodgkin's Lymphoma

465Anna G’s NDE in 2011---Ford Expedition vs truck

470Ashley M’s NDE in 1989---accidentally hung by a rope

472Augustin’s NDE---from Spanish city in North Africa

476Austin T’s NDE in 1976---fell into corrosive chemicals

477Barbara T’s NDEs from Poland---Translated from Polish

482Benny G’S WONDERFUL NDE in 2004

485Beverly B’s NDE in 1970---from a Jewish family

489Bonita E’s NDE in 1969---bled out after C-section

492Bonnie C’s NDE in 1975

495Chris B’s NDE in 2008---heartblock

497Chuck M’s NDEs in 1969, 1978, and 2002

500Colleen R’s NDE in 2012---Be prepared for horror!!

503Crystal M’s NDE in 2009---Quite An NDE, With Remarkable Effects On Crystal's Life.

506Dale B’s NDE in 1992---I could be anywhere, any place, and at any time I wanted!

507David G’s amazing NDE---Bike vs concrete truck

515Deborah K’s NDE in 1979---van accident

519Deborah W’s NDE in 1984---A profound experience, resulting from a suicide attempt

527Esteban FR’s NDE in 1995--Original in Spanish

530Jack’s NDE in 1963---AMAZING EXPERIENCE!

534Jang’s NDE in 2013---an atheist, raised in India as a Hindu

540Jayne S's near-death experience---There are no sins!

546Jacky C NDE from Taiwan---Translated (with errors) from Chinese into English.

549Hera A’s NDE in 1997---A nurse meets her patients again!

552Mark W’s NDE in 1985--- an Oxford student

555Motorcyclist NDE in 1980

557Paul’s NDE in 1970--- A Vietnam Soldier’s Remarkable Near-Death Experience.

561Virginie R’s NDE in 1989 from France---Original in French

563Marlin C’s NDE in 2000---massive heart attack

564Marta Y’s NDE in 1985---From Mexico. Original in Spanish

570Mary’s NDE from London, England---after an attempted abortion

575Matt H’s NDE in 2001---died from severe cuts and blood loss

580Michael G’s NDE in 1994---homosexual with appendicitis

582Michele’s NDE in 2000---died from ruptured appendix, septic shock, and medication error

586Charles H’s NDE in 1987---truck fell on his stomach!

587David R’s NDE in 2019---heart attack

590David’s NDE in 2011---devoted atheist, heart arrhythmia

591Diana R’s NDE---kidney failure

594Dual-Consciousness In A Woman’s Out-Of-Body Experience

599Firefighters with a Group NDE

602Francisco R’S NDE IN 1988 from Columbia---Original in Spanish

606Gary J’s NDE in 1991---death during surgery

610Julia M’s NDE in 1965—Original in Spanish

611Hailey M’s NDE in 2007---death during spinal surgery

614Holly G’s NDE in 1995---planning our own lives before we are born

617Diane G’s NDE in 1971---drowning in river during filming of “Deliverance”

623Greg R’s NDE in 2003--from the United Kingdom

627Robin G's NDE---OUT OF BODY ONLY

628Don S's NDE---OBE ONLY

630Grace C's NDE---OBE ONLY

631Duane’s NDE in 1990---drowning

637Jerry B’s NDE in 1991---heart attack

644Larry L’s NDE in 1985---death during a fight over a promotion not given

647Michelle M’s NDE in 1991---accident

650 Rena P’s NDE in 1975---hit by high-speed taxi in Greece

655Sameer’s NDE in 1979---From a Palestinian man in Jerusalem, Israel. Original in Arabic.

656Barbara S’s NDE in 1962---drowned in river

659Brian T’s NDE in 1978---drowned in Comal River

664Patsy D’s NDE in 1965---phlebotomy during extreme dieting, discovered her religion was all wrong

669Viva T’s NDE in 1979--- by a nurse with a PhD

672Christian D’s NDE in 2004---from New Zealand

675Julia M’s NDE in 2000 from France---Original in French

678Robyn O’s NDE in 1985 from New Zealand

680Mohammad Z’S NDE IN 1977---Although from Iran, this NDE is like all other NDEs.

686Jeff H’s NDE in 1978---severe asthma attack

689An Intense NDE in February 2007---with Life Review from moment of birth to hitting the windshield

691Laetitia V’s NDE in 2003---from France in French

695Laura L’s NDE in 1996---would not consent to necessary blood transfusions

696Laura M’s NDE in 1979---doctor would not believe she had begun hemorrhaging again

701NDE in 1973 from Madras, India---Don’t take life so seriously!

706Mary C’s NDE in 1969---from Canada

709Mayumi T’s NDE in 1993---from Japan

710Mike M’s NDE in 1982---collapsed while running

713Nancy H’s NDE in 1980---suffocated with nitric oxide by a dentist with a cocaine problem

717Patrick H’S NDE IN 1983 from Luxembourg---Original in French

720Philip’s NDE in 1995---prisoner

722NDE in 2017---“Your heart stopped for a minute there, but we got you back!”

725Alan P’s NDE in 1971---suffocated by sand

729Anabela Maria C’s NDE in 1989 from Portugal---Original in Portuguese

731Angela S’s NDE---respiratory arrest

735Anna A’s Fascinating NDE in 2003 from GREECE

740Anne S’s NDE in 1980 from the United Kingdom

742Arvind B’s NDE in 2012 from India

744Brian J’s NDE---“every word of this story is true”

748Bridget F’s NDE in 1995---rollover accident, you are forgiven for being human

753Bruce’s NDE in 1978---conservative fundamentalist background

756Carl Jung’s NDE in 1944—famous psychiatrist and psychoanalyst has heart attack

758Carol’s NDE in 1980---aplastic anemia

761Chen C’s NDE from China---Translated from Chinese

763Cynthia Y’s NDE in 2007---stopped breathing

766Dan BC’s NDE in 1992---plane crash, shared NDE

768Jaime G”S NDE IN 2001--- tonsillitis infection and blocked tracheotomy tube

773James’ Grandfather’s NDE in 1985

774John B’s NDE in 1978---T-boned by a high-speed car

777John R’s NDE in 1972---asthmatic death

779Johnathon’s NDE---U.K. soldier in Land Rover rollover

783Joschua B’s NDE in 1995---drowned

786Joseph G’s NDE in 1957---policeman dies after injections, his atheistic doctor radically changed

787Josh W’s NDE in 2000---death by snowboarding

790Joshua C’s NDE in 1980---a sailor with a veridical OBE (“out of body experience”)

792Karen M’s NDE---death from a ruptured appendix

795Karen’s NDE in 2010--- respiratory failure, major organ failure, and systemic blood infection

797Kathleen D’s NDE---Lupus

800Katie T’s NDE in 1992---bleeding after lung surgery

804Kelly K’s NDE in 1961---death during childbirth

807Lois M’s NDE in 1964---one of very few NDEs that shows the body acting independently of the “soul”

809Lori K’s NDE in 2006---truck accident, detailed life review, interprets light as Jesus

814Maria C’s NDE in 1986---stabbed to death by a paranoid schizophrenic

816Michelle P’s NDE in 1984---died by firearm

819Mike I. Jr.’s NDE in 2005---death by car collision

824Mike’s NDE in 2016---cardiac arrest and detailed life review

826Missy B’s NDE in 1994---death in car accident

827Monika’s NDE in 1999 from Czech Republic---Original in Czech

831Nancy M’s NDE in 2005---Myasthenia Gravis and respiratory arrest

834NDE--- When Time Stood Still, May, 1969. Death by a Large Anti-tank mine.

838Oliver V’s NDE in 1992 from France---Original in French

841Pat’s NDE in 1994---death from car accident in northern Spain

842Philip S’s NDE in 1986---death during long-distance bicycle ride

847Randall M’s NDE in 1968---death from a criminal attack

849Randi S’s NDE in 1976---beaten to death by a criminal with a blackjack

854Randy K’s NDE in 1974---unconscious from high fever and clot in lung

855Ray K’s NDE in 1966---death from a Judo accident

858Regina’s NDE in 1993---strange happenings

860Renee G’s NDE in 1979---death by smoke asphyxiation

861Renee M’s NDE in 2003---death by motorcycle accident

863Rhonda J’s NDE---stunned her surgeon

866Richard H’s NDE in 1968---death by unexploded bomb in Viet Nam

868Isabelle M’s NDE in 1993 from France---Translated from French

869Marsha B’s NDE in 1985---epileptic seizures

871Rick R’s NDE in 1982---fell over a cliff 80 feet high onto boulders below

878Paul B’s NDE in 1963---Results of crash; difficult to read the details!

883Wesley W’s NDE in 1991---went to sleep while driving a truck

886Stella’s NDE IN 1972 from Italy---Original in Italian

889Doctor J relates his Patient’s NDE in 1997

892Bobbi D’s NDE in 1976---infectious illness and surgery

897Robert L’s NDE in 2008---dead from alcohol and cocaine

899Tom C’s NDE in 2003---another horrible accident

900Sandra B’s NDE in 2001---brain aneurysm and cardiac arrest

903Sylvia R’s NDE in 1975---complications after hysterectomy

904Louise S’s NDE in 2008 from Scotland

908Ray S’s NDE in 1965---carbon monoxide

910Brice W’s NDE in 1972---systemic infection from a ruptured intestinal abscess

912Denise’s NDE in 1995---miracle that she survived

916Lael’s NDE in 1968---eclampsia

918Rob N’s NDE in 2005---heart attack

922Sarah’s NDE in 1989---pickup truck vs bicycle collision and a “hellish” experience

927Wayne H’s NDE in 1996---complex

931Caan S’s NDE in 2001---a Muslim experience

932Carson D’s NDE in 1978---pneumonia

935Dan’s NDE in 2002---car accident and reaction to penicillin

937Deborah D’s NDE in 2002--- thirteen gallons of fluid in her chest!

938Debra C’s NDE in 1980---drinking liquor and smoking pot

941Ginny R’s NDE in 1986---viral pneumonia

946Glauco S’s NDE in 1970---drowning

951Glen D’s NDE in 2001---osteomyelitis and anaphylactic shock, veridical OBE

955JoAnn M’s NDE in 1994---respiratory collapse

959Jodi S’s NDE in 1996---auto crash at an intersection

962Lauren K’s NDE in 1978---death from a sledding accident

967Linda R’s NDE in 1979---horrible bleeding after her second birth

970Roberto P’s NDE in 1986---from Italy

972Irene O’s Out of Body Experience in 1983

974Jim T’s PARTIAL NDE in 2000

975Juanita M’s NDE---bleeding after childbirth

976Cyril C’s NDE in 1971 from the United Kingdom

980Katie W’s NDE in 2016---Unlike most NDErs, Katie identifies her greeter as Jesus.

983Mary J’s NDE in 2008---medicine error causing respiratory arrest

986Muriel N’s NDE in 2009 from France---Original in French

989Rick M’s NDE in 2009---Native American

991Adria B’s NDE IN 2018 from Canada

993Andrew G’s NDE in 1976---thrown from kayak into a cold, choppy Lake Tahoe

996Annalise E’s NDE---anesthesia death during surgery

998Annette Q’s NDE in 1986---seizures following medication for tetanus

999Arthur B’s NDE in 1984---breathing cessation following chemotherapy for testicular cancer

1002Austin T’s NDE in 1976---falling into chemical vat

1003Barbara J’s NDE in 2004---fundamentalist Christian

1007Benjamin H’s NDE in 2008---IED explosion

1008Bob L’s NDE and C.D.’s NDE in 1978

1010Carlos V’s NDE in 1995 from Venezuela---Original in Spanish

1014Catherine M’s NDE---dog attack

1017Christopher M’s NDE in 1996---veridical

1018Cindy D’s NDE in 1976---horseback riding accident

1020Claud H’s NDE in 1986---burst appendix

1024Corina’s NDE in 1989---a woman with white hair

1029Cynthia DM’s NDE in 1965---short, but interesting

1030Darlene M’s NDE in 1977 from France---Original in French

1032Debbie B’s NDE in 2001---revealing that her mother died!

1035Demi B’s NDE in 1962---drowning

1037Dianne H’s NDE in 2008

1039Dr. George R’s NDE in 1976---neuropathology MD and PhD

1040Dr. R’s NDE--- car accident, pronounced dead, taken to the morgue, left there for three days!

1042Drew B’s NDE in 2012---moped vs Cadillac

1044Duane’s NDE in 1991---short, veridical

1044DW'S NDE in 1984---Suicide: Make the Pain Stop

1052Ellen K’s NDE--- excruciating pain

1054Eric S’s NDE in 1987---kidnap and torture

1056Erik C’s NDE in 2015---hospitalized after being poisoned

1058Evan D’s NDE in 1975---speeding at night on a rainy road

1059Evelyn’s NDE in 1973---From Denmark

1061EVERYTHING IS LIFE--- strangled by her abusive boyfriend

1063Francis G’s NDE in 1976---free-spirited motorcyclist

1064Francisco GV’s NDE in 2004---from Mexico. Original in Spanish.

1068Frederick F’s NDE in 1984---surgery after a tractor accident

1069GaeLawree C's NDE in 1968---motorcycle accident

1071Geri R’s NDE in 2011---reaction to a dental anesthesia

1073Ginny H’s NDE in 1995---asthmatic attack

1075Guittard’s NDE in 1981--From Switzerland. Original in French.

1077Hannah’s NDE in 1996---From Belgium---Original in Dutch.

1079I Am The Only God And My Name Means Love

1080Jack M’s NDE---drowning

1083Jesse N’s NDE in 2001---From London, UK

1085Jessie S’s NDE in 2013---a long struggle

1091John B’s NDE---angioplasty, heart attack

1094John F’s NDE in 1957---choking, speaks with Jesus (unusual)

1099Sharon V NDE---shotgun death

1101Joseph L’s NDE in 1967---a dentist has an OBE.

1103Kate B’s NDE in 1997---asthmatic death

1105Kathleen S’s NDE in 2003---death by insulin overdose

1106Kathy R’s NDE in 1979---reaction to alcohol and marijuana

1109Kendra’s NDE in 1999---death from excessive medication

1110Kimberly HA’s NDE in 1980---death by hypocalcemic seizure

1114Kerryanne M’s (Incomplete) NDE in 1983---from Australia

1115Kristy C’s NDE in 2000---death during gallbladder surgery

1117Lacee T’s NDE in 2017---motorcycle accident from France. Original in French

1119Zenaida’s NDE in 1976---from the Dominican Republic

1120Roland B’s NDE in 1960---electrocuted

1121Ruth’s NDE in 1965---terminal cervical cancer

1123Betty J’s NDEs in 1951 and 1959

1125Samantha H’s NDE in 1968---bleeding after giving birth

1126Sandra K’s NDE in 1980---car vs telephone pole

1127Shalom G’s NDE---car collision

1131Sheba M’s NDE in 1992---from Australia

1134Sheila B’s NDE in 2000--- lacerated aorta in surgery

1136Sheila EP’s NDE in 1975---car accident

1141Shelby M’s NDE in 1977---cardiac arrest

1146Sheri G’s NDE---stabbed by her husband

1148Stacy K’s NDE from 2015---stroke

1151Steve M’s NDE in 2007---snake bite

1153Steven L’s NDE in 2000---traffic accident

1156Susan R’s NDE in 1973---death from bleeding while pregnant

1160Susannah W’s NDE in 1971---From the U.K., accidental fall

1161Teenager’s NDE---skied into a tree

1163Teri R’s NDE in 1973---car wreck

1166Terry E’s NDE in 1970---anaphylactic shock after difficult birth

1170Thelma S’s NDE in 1989---assaulted with brass knuckles

1173Horseback Accident NDE In 1985, Leaves Young Woman With Pain And Insight

1176Tim B’s NDE in 1983---flipped his Corvette end over end 7 times

1179Tim’s NDE in 1993---diverticulitis surgery

1180Tracy D’s NDE in 2009---abdominal pain then cardiac arrest

1185Trisha H’s NDE in 1997---HELLP Syndrome

1186Two NDEs Of A Man With A Bad Heart But A Good Family!

1191Vadra P’s NDE in 1994---choked to death by an acquaintance

1193Valerie H’s NDE in 1977---surgical accident during Cesarean

1195Veronica W’s NDE in 1995---anaphylactic shock

1198Walter R’s PARTIAL NDE--- FROM ITALY. ORIGINAL IN ITALIAN.

1201Wan Fu’s Suicide and NDE---from China. Original in Chinese

1204Wayne R’s NDE---car accident

1206Wendy G’s NDE in 1982---from Canada

1209William L’s NDE 1991---“knockout game”

1210Young Mother Drowns in Sailing Accident

1212NDE from heart attack, told by the physician

1214DKG’s NDE in 2017---This woman told me her NDE at a quilt show!

1217Bob R’s NDE in 1955---drowned

1218Brigitte B’s NDE in 1988 from Italy. Original in Italian---strangled

1222Cindy S’s NDE in 1969---tubing in a river but going over a dam

1223Dr Sandrine B’s NDE in 1985---falling on a stairway

1225Todd N’s NDE in 1990---killed by a choke hold

1227William H’s NDE in 2003---cardiac arrest

1231Nichole BD’s NDE in 1994---routine surgery

1234Kristin K’s NDE---from Germany. Translated from German.

1236Estelle D’s NDE---hit by a car

1239Kerry B’s NDE---gay, dead from anaphylactic shock

1246 Anni S’s NDE in 1974 from Denmark--- in Danish. Complex, including details about previous lives

1254Sandra M’s NDE in 1976---drowning

1257Barbara D’s NDE in 1967---like a few other NDErs, she mentions cords connecting her to the earth.

1259Tina G’s NDE in 2012---death from burst aneurysm

1260Gi Dies, Has Painful Life Review And Flies Around The World

1266John S’s OBE in 2016--“Let me tell you a story, a true story.” Bible scholar on his last world tour at age 87

1268Nurse’s NDE in 1989---dead for 20 minutes, sees God. but told to go back

1270Christian’s Near-Death Experience

1273 Sheila’s NDE---severe allergic reaction to a medication during an operation

1275I Felt Like I Was Who I Was Always Supposed To Be

1279The Case of Pam Reynolds---a famous veridical NDE, completely monitored

1279A Report from a Dutch Nurse---another famous veridical NDE

1280Maria’s Shoe---the most famous veridical NDE

1281Nevie G’s NDE in 1973---Summarizes the meaning of life discovered by many NDErs

1285RESEARCH by Dr Michael Sabom, cardiologist

1287Dr. MC’s NDE in 1999---drowning in Chile

1293Brian M’s NDE---a trucker dies from a heart attack

1297A RADIATION ONCOLOGIST, SUMMARIZES 9 LINES OF EVIDENCE FOR THE REALITY OF THE AFTERLIFE.

EVIDENCE TOWARD THE MEANING OF LIFE! by BCG

Most of us do not think much about “the meaning of life” or even our own death. However, I am convinced that what I am going to show you is TRUE and could change your life, as it has mine, for the better---if you will just consider it with an open mind! By the way, by “dead,” I mean the heart has stopped beating; thus the brain has ceased to function.

AS A SCIENTIST, I AM MAINLY INTERESTED IN PHENOMENA THAT OFFER SIGNIFICANT VERIDICAL EVIDENCE, i.e. testimony by many independent witnesses that corroborate each others' similar stories of events they have personally witnessed and which include details which have been verified by outside observers. [Since I have not personally seen a sufficient amount of compelling evidence for many other paranormal phenomena (like ghosts, psychokinesis, vampires, werewolves, "fear-death experiences," etc), I do not have an opinion about whether or not they are real. Nor am I focused on these phenomena.]

The first time I heard about “near death experiences” (NDEs) was in 1970, when NBC Nightly News anchor John Chancellor told his national audience about an ambulance driver’s NDE. The driver was on his way to pick up an injured person from an accident when he himself had an accident and was thrown from his ambulance. He then described “leaving his dead body” on the side of the road and having a wonderful “near-death experience” that was very real to him.

Later on I read about another NDE in Guidepost Magazine, told by a pilot who had “died” and then been resuscitated after a small plane crash. After being revived, the pilot described having had an “out-of-body” experience while he was in cardiac arrest. Again I was impressed with the story, but I did not get too excited about it, since I am very skeptical. Soon after this, in 1975, I read Life after Life by Raymond Moody, a book describing many similar NDE experiences. This book got my full attention!

In spite of being raised in a Christian church, my scientific education (at MIT) has always made me wish for more solid evidence that I really live on after my death on earth. After retiring, I began to see NDEs on the internet. As a trained scientist, I realized that these NDEs are anecdotal evidence, which, though not considered as reliable as the usual scientific evidence read from measuring devices, still serve as impressive, independent experiences reported by a worldwide group from different ethnic, religious, gender, and age backgrounds.

After watching a large number of these YouTube videos which describe the “near death experiences” (NDEs) of many people of different ages, genders, ethnicities, and religions, as well as those of agnostics and atheists, I now find myself persuaded that they point to the actual reality of life after death! This completely surprised me, because I had never expected to find such evidence! You can see some of these NDE videos for yourself at this link:

“Near-Death NDEs: 160 People Who Died---But Lived to Tell About It!” https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaOgXbrKlR18wO7HnEogf2uugRhS5LXOM

Most of the “near-death experiences” I have viewed are not “religious”. Although the NDEs sound impressively similar, they are not identical; they each have elements unique to the particular person reporting the experience. For example, Christians are more apt to identify the loving white Light they encounter in their NDEs as Jesus or Mary or God; NDErs raised in other religions are more likely to identify the Light as someone from their religion.

Furthermore, I do not believe that we can fully trust every detail that each “NDEr” reports. They each have their own interpretation of what they are seeing. Simply having such an experience does not suddenly make a person infallible! On the other hand, our being suspicious about some of the details reported does not necessarily invalidate the whole experience! You have to see a large number of them for yourself (as I have done) to see if they have the “ring of truth” for you. What I find amazing is how often newly-reported NDEs keep showing up in reputable news sources! In 2012, ABC News reported an amazing NDE by a brain surgeon trained at Duke Medical School who was later on the faculty at Harvard Medical School!

There are even people who have had “near-death experiences” who were born blind, never having had any visual experience whatsoever, even in their dreams, but, nevertheless, have had completely visual NDEs! (One of these cases is included in the list of NDE videos linked above. Others are described in Mindsight by K. Ring and S. Cooper).

Additionally, there are many cases of people who have had veridical NDEs, i.e.“seeing” things during their NDEs that can then be independently verified as having actually happened during their NDE out-of-body experiences that they should not have been able to see.

It must be said that there seems to be no rational physical explanation of NDEs at this time. That is, an experiencer’s “consciousness” appears to be separate from the brain/nervous system. (In the Playlist linked above, Dr. Anthony Cicoria is especially observant of this fact during his NDE.) Thus, in NDEs, we are likely talking about a “spiritual reality” which, so far, is unknown (and perhaps unknowable) to science. In fact, many scientists are actively searching for answers to this question.

I have been searching for possible alternate explanations of these NDEs--- like the effects of oxygen-deprivation on the brain, the release of natural opioids in the brain during stress, (like the neural polypeptides, endorphins and enkephalins) I first read about in 1970, the chemicals that can supposedly mimic NDEs (like ketamines or DMT), and other human activities that are said to "cause" NDEs (like the pilots spinning in giant centrifuges or the "God helmet" being researched in Toronto). So far, none of these supposed “causes” comes close to explaining actual NDEs!
I also read Carl Sagan's past speculations about possible causes (like near-death evoking the brain's earliest memories, e.g. traveling through the birth canal or "dark tunnel" toward the delivery room light or “brilliant white light”). Sagan concluded by admitting the inadequacy of his speculations to explain the richness and complexity of the reported NDEs.
In like manner, Dr. Karl L. R. Jansen changed his mind on the effect of ketamines on the brain [“I am no longer as opposed to spiritual explanations of these phenomena (NDEs) ..... Over the past two years I have moved more towards the view that drugs like ketamine may render certain 'states' more accessible but not actually produce these states."]

I suggest you first watch the videos of the NDEs reported at

“Near-Death NDEs: 160 People Who Died---But Lived to Tell About It!” https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaOgXbrKlR18wO7HnEogf2uugRhS5LXOM

Then you should read all the Death Experiences in this eBook. Note that I have kept these NDErs and the internet sources where I found their NDEs private, as they wished. But I also believe they want to share their experiences of the unconditional love they received on the Other Side as widely as possible, as expressions of their love for others. As a scientist, I consider each of these NDEs a new “data point” that adds to the rapidly accumulating evidence for the reality of the Other Side of death.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

EVERYDAY WE SEE FICTIONAL STORIES ON TELEVISION AND ELSEWHERE. SO, IT’S EASY TO THINK OF EACH NDE IN THIS DIGITAL BOOK AS JUST ANOTHER FICTIONAL STORY. THERE ARE SOME DIFFERENCES, HOWEVER. PEOPLE WHO DESCRIBE THEIR NDEs ARE PRESENTING THEM AS FACTUAL, TRUTHFUL REPRESENTATIONS OF THEIR OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCES.

CONSIDER SEVERAL FACTS: MOST NDErs MAKE NO MONEY FOR DESCRIBING THEIR EXPERIENCES; MANY OF THEIR NDEs CONTAIN EMBARRASSING OR UNFLATTERING DESCRIPTIONS OF THE NDErs THEMSELVES; MOST OF THEM SHOW CONVICTION, ENTHUSIASM, AND EVEN PASSION, AS THEY RELATE THEIR NDEs; AND MOST NDEs CONTAIN SIMILAR, THOUGH NOT IDENTICAL, ELEMENTS. THESE FACTS, ALONE, CAUSE ME TO BELIEVE WE ARE LIKELY ENCOUNTERING AT LEAST A CORE OF TRUTH IN NDEs.

HOWEVER, GIVEN HUMAN NATURE, IT IS FAIRLY LIKELY THAT SOME NDEs ARE JUST “FAIRY TALES” CONCOCTED FOR VARIOUS REASONS. AND, AT LEAST SOME NDEs CONTAIN ERRONEOUS INTERPRETATIONS OF WHAT WAS ENCOUNTERED OR UNSUPPORTED PERSONAL OPINIONS OR DUBIOUS CONCLUSIONS, ALL OF WHICH SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED AS SUCH. BUT, AS A SCIENTIST LOOKING FOR TRUTH, I PLUNGE INTO EACH NEW NDE CAREFULLY AND CAUTIOUSLY. AND, I LOOK FOR AN UNMISTAKABLE “RING OF TRUTH”.

Having watched and read hundreds of NDEs, here is my consensus summary of what they tell us. –- BCG

Most NDEs are completely positive, wonderful, life-changing experiences, although maybe 1 in 25 reports some scary elements in their NDE. Often these scary elements are simply a fear of the dark or a negative interpretation of something they see but do not understand.
Many NDErs first find themselves wrapped in a velvety blackness and feel no fear.
The identity of the brilliant Light they meet --- often at the end of a “tunnel”--- is not clear, so each “NDEr” has their own interpretation of who or what the Light is.
Their entry into the presence of the Light seems familiar---and they feel they’ve returned Home.
The Light sometimes shows a wonderful sense of humor and always an unconditional love for them.
The most consistent and impressive thing reported by the NDErs is the overwhelming love and acceptance they experience in the presence of the Light. They do not feel judged for what they have done in their lives (“no judgment or condemnation, no blaming or shame”).
They often have a “life review”, rapidly re-experiencing their own lives, and they judge themselves as they experience the joy or pain or disappointment they have caused others by their behavior during their lives.
Time loses its earthly meaning in “the eternal now” of the Other Side. Time does not seem to “pass” like it does in our earthly lives.
Many NDErs receive vast amounts of knowledge that answers all of their questions about life and the universe, although most forget much of what they have learned when they are sent back.
NDErs sometimes joyously meet dead relatives and friends that have previously died.
Some of them can see that they have lived “many previous lives”, and they sometimes can even re-enter these lives and re-live parts of them.
Leaving their bodies behind at death is a most wonderful, freeing experience (“filled with unconditional love and peace and unconditional forgiveness”), and they usually do not want to return to their “heavy, pain-ladened” bodies, although they are willing to return because others need them, or because they have an unfinished mission on earth.
The process of re-entering their body is sometimes painful and unpleasant.
They often remain conscious during the whole experience of dying and coming back.
The whole experience is more vivid and real to them than any they’ve had during their earthly lives---and are not experienced as dreams or hallucinations. They remember their NDEs clearly for many years afterward.
Most NDErs no longer fear death, and they often have a new, loving approach to life that involves helping others, although a very few have difficulty assimilating their NDEs and getting on with their earthly lives.
Some of them see that we take life too seriously, instead of just enjoying it and learning from it. They often remark that death is an easy passage into a wonderful “Other Side” where we are lovingly greeted. They often say that they can travel anywhere they desire at the speed of thought!---and that all of their questions are answered quickly and completely.
The variations reported in NDEs----one person traveling through a beautiful green meadow, another traveling through space and gazing back on a beautiful earth, another moving along a path toward a magnificent edifice with unknown but loving friends, and so forth----might well be variations individually chosen and tailored for each particular person by the Light, so that each NDE might be the most comforting possible for each experiencer! Some NDErs are even told as much.
Most NDEs are not “religious”, although some interviewers ask leading questions or otherwise pressure NDErs into identifying “religious elements” in their experiences. Some NDErs appear to have a religious agenda as they tell their stories, thus casting doubt on their authenticity. On the other hand, perhaps the Light reassures “religious NDErs” by including elements of their particular religious understanding within their NDEs! A few people report having NDEs that sound nothing like most NDEs; these may just be attention-seekers.
In her post-NDE life, one woman said, “I am busy sharing a good laugh with my best friend, making pancakes for my neighbor, cheering someone up who is going through a hard time, actively trying to make the poor and underprivileged parts of this world into better places to live, and wondering why people worry so much. Any gesture -- small or large – which can bring happiness into another's existence is what I live for. I encourage you to do the same. Spread the joy and love as much as you can, instead of just talking about it.”
My conclusion after watching many NDEs is that they give us a true look into the Other Side and that what matters in life is NOT “what you believe”, but only “how you treat others with Love.”

FIRST, WATCH AT LEAST A DOZEN OF THE VIDEOCLIPS IN MY YOUTUBE PLAYLIST OF NDErs TELLING THEIR ACTUAL EXPERIENCES:

“Near-Death NDEs: 160 People Who Died---But Lived to Tell About It!” https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaOgXbrKlR18wO7HnEogf2uugRhS5LXOM

THE FOLLOWING 365 DEATH EXPERIENCES HAVE BEEN REPORTED BY PEOPLE WHO HAVE DIED, BUT THEN HAVE LIVED TO TELL ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED TO THEM WHILE THEY WERE DEAD! THEY BELIEVE THEIR NDEs ARE REAL, NOT JUST DREAMS OR HALLUCINATIONS! YOU BE THE JUDGE.

Dr. Joyce H’s NDE

NOTE: Joyce has her PhD and is a biophysicist and cell-biologist. She has been honored with a National Achievement Award for her work with the effects of environmental pollutants, a post-doctoral Fellow with National Institutes of Health, and was elected to the position of Fellow in the American Association for Advancement of Science for her research work.

Her NDE: “While I was cleaning the house, a stained glass window set in an oak frame fell from the mantel and crashed on my head. I remember catching a glimpse of it as it came towards me, and the impact brought me down to my knees. For a moment, there was an incredible pain and then no more pain as I separated from my body!

Well, I was a Ph D., in the research of Biophysics and Electron Microscopy, fully immersed in science and exploring the ultrastructure of the pathology of cells in organisms that have been exposed to environmental pollution. I had no spiritual beliefs, no belief in a hereafter, God, or any religion. I had never heard of near-death experiences, nor had any interest in what I would have called fantasy.

I thought of none of that as I darted through a long dark tunnel toward a light that was attracting me. I thought of nothing, nor was I scared. I was just there, because everything happened so fast.

I remember that I did not slow down of my own volition at the entrance to an illuminated place, and was amazed to see my mother and grandmother standing on the right and they greeted me with so much love. They communicated with me in some way, certainly without words or hearing, but clear in my mind. I was amazed to see her healthy and middle-aged, happy and so full of love and appreciation for me. I would have taken every blow on the head to gain the certainty of their awareness. What a gift.

Then I went on to the place of light: gently rolling hills, grass, flowers, blue sky and vibrant colors. What astonished me was the intensity, the radiance, and the clarity of the colors, and that they seemed to radiate from every aspect of the landscape. The grass was green. It was so nice. It was so wonderful.

Suddenly, I was in the presence of a being of light. I could not see the face, but I could communicate, not in words or even in pictures - but in a kind of union of oneness. It goes beyond words and other kinds of experiences. The emotions are always stronger. I feel the joy so deep that my whole self leaps in gratitude; I feel peace; I feel awe and belonging. I felt that everything about me and my life was known, understood and not judged. I was loved completely. It seemed like I had been there in this Light forever.

Without discussion or warning, I was suddenly back in my body with a sore head. A layer of dried blood was everywhere in my hair, and I was dizzy. My doctor's office asked if I had lost consciousness and I said no. How stupid! So I went to bed, supported by many pillows, because it was too painful to lie flat. That was Friday night.

On Monday, when I came back to work in the lab, a colleague glanced at me quickly and hurried me to his doctor. I was not in Seattle that long, so I only had one gynecologist, but no family doctor. After a CT scan, and neurological tests (I had no toe reflex on one side, and was very shaky) I was sent home to bed and asked not to go to work for several weeks. The hematoma in my brain was small enough that it did not require surgery; The wound on my skull had closed in the meantime. As the doctor said: 'We would have sewn you if you had come earlier'.

So for the first time in my life, I had time for myself without out-of-town business. The pictures and feelings of the NDE came back to me.

When I recovered and was on my feet again, I went to Elliott Bay Bookstore. Raymond Moody's first book on near-death experiences, 'Life after Life,' seemed to jump from the shelf into my hand. I read a lot of the book, maybe even everything, and stood there, amazed. He described one case after another of similar experiences.

I could not disregard what had happened to me, the visions I saw. Then I plunged into the exploration of consciousness and augmented reality that continues to this day. I know that everything is fine; the entire universe is in God's hands. To relive this NDE brings me to a place of reverence and humility, gratitude and longing.

NOTE: A CARDIOLOGIST IN THE NETHERLANDS SUGGESTS, IN CONTRAST TO THE VIEWS OF MOST NEUROSCIENTISTS, THAT HUMAN CONSCIOUSNESS IS NOT PRODUCED BY THE BRAIN. HE FOUND IN THE HUNDREDS OF HEART ATTACK PATIENTS WHO CAME INTO HIS HOSPITAL MANY WHO CLAIMED THEY CAME OUT OF THEIR BODY WHILE THEY WERE UNCONSCIOUS AND RESUSCITATION EFFORTS WERE UNDERWAY. ALTHOUGH THEIR BRAINS WERE NOT FUNCTIONING (BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT RECEIVING ANY BLOOD FLOW DURING THEIR HEART STOPPAGE) THEY STILL EXPERIENCED AN ENHANCED CONSCIOUSNESS FROM OUTSIDE THEIR BODIES!! DR. PIM VAN LOMMEL DEDUCED THAT THEIR CONSCIOUSNESS THUS DID NOT DEPEND UPON A FUNCTIONING BRAIN!! MANY OTHER NEUROSCIENTISTS NOW SUPPORT HIS VIEWS. IT IS, HOWEVER, NOT A MAJORITY VIEW!

Destiny C’s NDE in July 2016--- an ICU nurse

I am an ICU (intensive care unit) nurse. I was working the night shift 3 weeks ago in the ICU as an emergency responder nurse and CPR nurse. I had been having chest 'twinges' for months, but was not really concerned. Our ICU is large, and I was walking down a deserted hallway toward our break room when I had severe chest pain. I really couldn't breathe. My thought was that if I could make it to the break room and lie down on the couch, maybe I could catch my breath. I opened the break room door with my badge, took a couple steps, and collapsed.

I was lying on the floor, completely aware, and realized that I was gurgling with the old death gurgle for those in the medical profession. I was so sad, thinking of my husband and children. Still aware, I then realized that I had stopped breathing, and just laid there for quite some time staring at the floor and grieving for my family. I knew I was dying and that I was the only one in the break room. I did not have a patient assignment, and knew nobody was likely to find me to render help. After some time, I was aware of nothing.

A coworker who happened to pop into the break room found me. These next events were told to me and I don't recall them. Coworkers found me not breathing and in cardiac arrest. I am white, but my skin color was purple and black from lack of oxygen. They gave me chest compressions while an ICU doctor intubated me by having to lie down on his stomach on the floor. Apparently, they placed me on a backboard and ran with me to an ICU room.

That's when I popped out of my body and watched EVERY single CPR and medical procedure done to me. I had two emergency beepers in my nursing scrub pocket. One was the CPR beeper. I remember hearing it going off as my CPR was being called overhead. As they were cutting off my scrub top, I remember thinking, 'Well I'm not responding to this one.' I heard and saw it ALL. I could see the whole room without turning my head! It was a distinctive 'pop' that I felt when I left my body. I was on the ceiling watching it all. I didn't really feel disturbed to see my body on the bed. I just thought that I looked terrible and 'no way am I going back into that!' I watched coworkers do chest compressions and cut off my clothes and thought, 'Dammit, that was my best Victoria's Secret bra.'

I heard staff members calling out my labs, and thinking, 'Hmmm, that's not good, she's not gonna make it.' I watched blood being drawn and a central line being inserted into my groin. I saw my blood splash all over the doctor, which I did feel badly about. I saw coworkers checking my pupils, saying they were fixed and dilated. I could see from the ceiling that they were correct. I watched the whole CPR medication protocol followed, and so much more. I have a VERY expensive 5-carat diamond ring from my husband, which a nurse removed for safekeeping. I remember thinking, 'The only way that's coming off is off my cold dead hand.' Then realizing, 'Oh yeah, I am dead, so......'

At that point, I saw my two dead sisters and mother. I also saw a lady I did not immediately recognize. Now, I was very close to these family members in life, and we all enjoyed a good sense of humor. All four ladies appeared to be in their 30s, even though they were older when they died. I later found out that, one of my sons was praying with the chaplain and that these four family members came to protect me.

My sister Sandy was a very beautiful, slender woman in life. My sister Cindy was short, like me, but about a size 18. My sisters immediately started joking with me about the dress in which Sandy was buried. They reminded me of a Vegas trip that we sisters had taken. Cindy borrowed a dress from Sandy without permission. She was stuffed in that dress like a sausage, and Sandy was shocked our sister was wearing it. Well, guess what, that dress is what Sandy's son chose to bury her in, and they were laughing like crazy about it. I remember Sandy laughing, saying, 'Really, it had to be THAT dress?' Cindy was saying 'I made that dress look good.' The lady I didn't know addressed me, and I realized from her voice that it was my husband's grandmother, who I adored in life, but only knew her when she was in her 70s. She now appeared in her 30s, and was beautiful. She started telling me my husband needed me, and was shaking her finger at me to go back. I'm sad to say I argued, because no way was I going back into that mess of a body.

I could see the IV pumps, I am familiar with the medications, and I was on 20 micrograms of levophed, with a blood pressure of 50. [Levophed (norepinephrine bitartrate) is a vasoconstrictor, similar to adrenaline.] No way was I going to chance going back to a probable anoxic brain-injured body. My husband's grandma was a tough lady and was getting aggressive with me. The next thing I knew, I was back in my body. It didn't feel good, let me tell you. Out of my body was pure peace, no pain, and no worries.

From my medical records, I had 10 minutes of no heartbeat or spontaneous respirations after I was found. Who knows how long I was down on the floor before CPR was started? By the next morning, I was awake and alert enough, on the ventilator, to write notes to anyone who would listen about my NDE. I have complete and total recall of it all. The things coworkers said while I was dead, I repeated it back to them word for word. I was diagnosed with sudden cardiac death from Takotsobos cardiomyopathy. (Basically, stress-induced cardiomyopathy that led to my death.)

Although I now have occasional anxiety, panic attacks, and nightmares about it all, I still think I'm much more relaxed. I'm no longer such a control-driven, type A personality. Before my experience I was an atheist. Now I am not sure what I believe; I still do not practice any religion. I do think that there is an afterlife, so I no longer fear death. I did have the sense that I would be going to heaven. Even before I was off the ventilator, I wrote notes to everyone and told them all about my experience. I have absolute total recall of everything. My doctor says I have changed his life. All of my coworkers believe me also because there is no way I could have the knowledge I do about my resuscitation! The experience was definitely real. I know what I saw. I did not imagine it, and I was clinically dead during the procedures that I now remember in detail!

NDE from abuse---NDEs ARE A BIT DIFFERENT FROM EACH OTHER, AND I THINK I KNOW WHY.

My NDE was at age 14, while away at camp in a small town in northeastern Massachusetts. My church had arranged this trip, and had the bunch of us staying in a giant old cabin, which had a walk-in attic with plenty of sleeping space.

For the 7 years prior to this, I had been bullied every day of school. I would continue to be bullied for an additional nearly 3 years, until my family moved from MA to NC in 1987. I sustained 15 head injuries, among many other injuries, during that span, all due to the bullying (12 concussions, 3 skull fractures).

At the camp one afternoon, a fellow camper started bullying me in this attic space and shoved me backwards very hard into a wooden beam. From the hospital description, which I found out later, the blow directly impacted my brain stem, which controls most basic functions, including breathing and heart rate. In a daze, I stumbled downstairs and collapsed on the floor. My breathing and heartbeat had stopped. Camp counselors were immediately called, and one of them--thankfully--knew CPR.

He performed CPR for nearly 4 minutes, until the ambulance arrived, at which point the paramedics took over. They managed to revive me in the ambulance, but I was still unconscious. I arrived at the hospital with my heart beating but irregularly, and my breathing shallow. The ER doctor worked on me for nearly 20 minutes before he was able to get a response out of me.

While all this happened, I was aware that I had left my body; but when I looked down at my body, I noticed the same physical features I was used to. Then I experienced being in a place of some sort. Not a room, because it didn't feel closed-in or limited, but definitely a sensation of a physical place. I felt, rather than saw, beings around me, which comforted me and projected peaceful thoughts into my mind. In this realm, talking without speaking seemed perfectly natural to me, as if I'd always done it but was just now remembering how.

I experienced what some have termed a "life review." I got to see good and bad things I had done. I say good and bad, despite the fact that there was absolutely NO JUDGMENT there. It was more like these beings wanted to show me the path in life that I had chosen, and based on what I wanted to be, how my actions or words had either helped me along that path or hindered me. This review was not from my perspective, but rather from the perspective of those my words or actions had affected. I experienced how I made others feel, or think about me, as if I were them.

Let me stress here that there was none of the Heaven-or-Hell experience for me. No Jesus, or angels, or choirs in clouds. No judgment, no punishment, no fear. Also, no religious overtones at all.

I felt the presence of other souls nearby, those who--like me--had recently died and found themselves in this new reality. I know we conversed, but I couldn't tell you the substance of those conversations. In this place, conversation happened spontaneously and without verbalization. It's difficult to put into words, because it's like trying to capture a cloud with your hands.

Several of us went together on a tour of sorts. We flew at speeds beyond imagining through the universe. We were unbound by the laws of Physics or any limitation. If we thought about something, we were there, instantly. This journey through space was, in a word, freeing. I felt exhilaration, excitement, wonder, awe, like a kid who just got to go to all of his favorite places in the world all at once. I never wanted it to end.

Colors were so much more vivid, blending together like Van Gogh's Starry Night painting. And mixed with the colors were sounds and music. It was the most incredible thing I have ever experienced, bar none.

I felt connection to everything, all at once. There was no sense of separation, no division between here and there, between me and other beings. My awe was their awe, and their awe was mine.

Unfortunately, the journey came to an end. I was by myself again, but I continued to feel the comfort and overwhelming love of others all around me. Love was what everything was made of, came from, and returned to. All-encompassing, unconditional love. It enveloped me like a warm blanket on a chilly day, and I just wanted to stay inside that love forever.

Then, a voice told me that I had to go back. Upon hearing that, I felt cold and alone. The other voices tried to comfort me, and they told me that I would remember this experience, and that just recalling it would bring it all back to me. They also stressed to me that one day, my day would come, and that it would be no more than the blink of an eye there.

I didn't want to leave, but the more I tried to stay, the "heavier" I felt, like I was under water and being dragged down by an anchor. I could sense my body, somewhere else, but it felt like an alien to me. I couldn't imagine ever going back to being so limited again.

The next thing I knew, I was waking up in the emergency room. I felt pain from my head injury, but in a disconnected sort of way, like it was happening to someone else, but I was feeling it with them.

I came out with a much more focused mind, a deeper connection to the world around me, and a deep sense of justice and morality that has only gotten stronger in the years since. I became an activist and advocate, first against drunk driving after my best friend was killed by a drunk driver, then later against bullying because of my experiences with it. During my life, I have championed many social and political issues and causes, and continue to do so today. But I also came out with a heightened sense of curiosity, especially about the universe, our connections to each other, and about NDEs.

Now to explain the lack of religious overtones in my NDE: Some NDEs have religious overtones, but others have a distinct absence of them. As I looked into the backgrounds of those who had different experiences, I saw a correlation. Those with a strong religious background and faith had more religious experiences. Those who had a more scientific view, or for whom religion didn't play a large role in their lives, had a more nonreligious experience.

While I had been raised going to church, my parents always made it clear that I was free to make up my own mind with regards to religion. I never felt at home in church, even while I was going every Sunday for years. Later, I would stop going altogether, after an exhaustive but vain search for someplace that felt like the home I felt during my NDE. The more research I did, the more I realized that NDEs are as varied as those who experience them. And I believe that I know why.

As I already said before, I felt an overwhelming sense of love and acceptance, and a complete lack of fear or judgment. I was made to feel completely at ease and comfortable, to make the transition between the physical world and this other realm easier for me to both handle and accept.

Well, I believe that's the same thing that happens with all of us. But what makes one person feel comforted and accepted might not work for another. So I think each of us is presented with a scenario that fits our mindset, a scenario that makes sense to us, doesn't scare us, and puts our minds at ease. Some want or feel the need for judgment, so they experience that, but only in a way that guides them back to the right path.

My life is far different now, so far removed from the one I lived before my experience. In fact, I believe wholeheartedly that many of my choices would never have been made without the influence of my NDE. I'm not afraid anymore. I don't fear death, so I've started sharing my experiences, first with close like-minded friends, then with a wider audience on Facebook. I want others to know that they're not alone, and that there's no such thing as a wrong experience. Mostly, I want those like me to see that there's nothing to fear.

ANDY P’S NDE FROM HIS BOOK---AND AN EMAILED QUESTION I ASKED ANDY.

A FEW DAYS BEFORE my high school graduation, in the summer of 1955, I experienced an unusual, frightening, and incredible event. The memory of this event is not only crystal clear, but it remains intact, exactly as it happened. Every thought, word, image, action, and feeling of this memory abides unchanged in my mind, thoughts, and soul. I have spent years trying to forget, but I always remember, and I always remember the event as if it happened today.

I am filled with joy and excitement. In a few days I will finally graduate from high school and move forward with my life. Our class decided to have a picnic at a nearby lake as our final outing before graduation, and I’m excited about going.

I arrive at the lake and it is a great day for a picnic. The sun is shining and the sky is painted a beautiful shade of blue, dotted with perfect cotton-ball clouds. A warm breeze blows the fresh smell of the trees, sand, and lake everywhere.

I change into my swimsuit and begin the party with some beach games before lunch. After I eat, some of my friends swim out to a floating platform about one hundred yards off shore. Once they get to the platform, they wave and yell for me to join them. The water is much too cold for me to ease in slowly, so from 20 feet back I take a running leap and hit the water in a gigantic belly flop. My body warms a bit as I get into my swimming rhythm. Then, about halfway to the floating platform, I feel the first cramping pains in my stomach and groin. The cramps aren’t that bad, I tell myself, and besides, I’m almost halfway there. I can make it.

With every stroke the cramps and pain increase, and my knees buckle into my stomach. I can no longer kick my legs or straighten my body. I’m terrified! My arms move, and I don’t go anywhere but down. As I struggle beneath the surface I start gagging on the water. It’s in my nose, down my windpipe, and in my lungs… I’m sinking.

As I struggle, I finally get my head up out of the water. Frantically, I search the water’s surface for the platform and my friends. No one recognizes my dilemma. Down I go again, deeper than before. My arms feel frozen in place and every muscle in my body screams with pain. I never imagined I could experience such unbearable pain. I sink deeper as the beautiful June sunlight fades to blackness. Oh my God, it’s all black, I can’t see anything! A loud, painful, ringing sound is in my head. It feels as if someone is sticking an ice pick in my ears. I’m convinced my brain will explode any second. I’m falling endlessly down this freezing black hole. My body trembles uncontrollably in the frigid water.

I continue to sink into this ice-cold black hole; it seems to last forever. Wait, I feel something. It’s the slimy, cold weeds at the bottom of the lake. Struggling in this tangle of weeds feels like I’m falling into an arctic snake pit. Finally I hit the bottom. I try to push myself up with trembling, numb hands, but the goo at the lake bottom holds me down and sucks me deeper into the mud. Then I hear a strange voice inside my head say, Andy, rest for just a moment; you need to let go. I reply, No, I can’t, I have to get to the surface for some air. Then the voice says again, If you let go for just a moment, then I promise that you can return to the struggle. I respond, Do you promise? And the voice answers back, Yes, I promise.

In my frozen panic state I say to myself, All right then, okay then, I’ll stop for just a moment of rest.

I stop struggling. I let go…

The very instant I let go, I am hurled into a dark, black tunnel. I look back and, somehow, I can see my body stuck in the weeds at the bottom of the lake. I look forward and see a brilliant Light shining at the end of the tunnel.

Instantly, the freezing cold is gone; I feel warm. The horrible pain in my body is gone and I feel peaceful, calm, and very, very happy. The ringing in my ears and head is gone, replaced by a gentle silence, as if I were in the middle of a redwood forest with a gentle breeze blowing through the tops of the trees. The radiant Light, which looks like a thousand exploding suns, overtakes the blackness. My retinas should be burned out by its brightness, but I can stare into the Light and it doesn’t hurt; it feels wonderful. Again, I realize that all of the pain that consumed me an instant ago is completely gone. Warmth, joy, and an indescribable feeling of love replace the cold, terror, panic, and fear that enveloped me.

For some unknown reason, this dramatic rush toward the Light causes me no concern. I have no fear of the Light. I’m pulled closer and closer, as if I’m drawn into the Light by a giant, gentle magnet.

Then, in the next instant, I’m suspended inside the center of an immense sphere, bigger than our high school gymnasium. The inside of the sphere looks like an enormous series of unending movie screens, with hundreds of movies playing in every direction, all at the same time. I am completely surrounded by images of my experiences. Wherever I look in the sphere, I see all the events of my lives; and I can hear, feel, touch, and smell the exact experience of living those lives. In this place there is no beginning; there is no end. I observe all of the moments of my lives all at the same time, all around me. My lifetimes are somehow mystically connected to each other. Strange, I sense no fear or judgments, no guilt or accountability, and absolutely no blame or shame. I re-experience every thought, word, and action of each life experience whenever I focus on one. I am suspended in a world of unlimited dimensions.

After what seems like hours in the sphere, I am instantly back in the tunnel again, drawn toward the Light. I can actually feel its brightness, warmth, and love. As I get closer to the Light, I am absorbed by its brilliance and perfect love.

I am in the Light! Oh my God, I am actually in the Light. I am the Light!

I look directly into the source of the Light and it appears to me in a human-like form. It looks like a massive, human silhouette radiating with the brightness of thousands of suns. Although I can’t remember seeing its form before, somehow I recognize it. The Light speaks to me. Andy, do not be afraid. Andy, I love you. Andy, we love you.

The Light actually knows me. The Light knows my name. The Light called me Andy. Surrounding the central Light form are millions and millions of other Lights welcoming me back home. I know them all and they know me; we are all pieces of the same Light. I hear myself say, It’s good to be back home. We are all together again.

Although I am in the Light, and the Light is in me, I am still Andy. I’m everywhere and I am in the Light at the same time. I see me as a person and I see me in the infinite, warm, and loving Light. I become the Light. The Light has a voice that I have never heard before, but it is not strange to me. The Light has a smile that is indescribably beautiful, and I recognize that too. The Light has an incredible sense of humor and an infectious laugh, and we talk and laugh together. The Light knows everything in the universe— and I don’t have any questions, because I know everything that the Light knows, and that is everything!

The Light also knows every decision that I have ever made or will make, and the Light loves me without conditions. The Light loves me because of who I am— Andy, a piece of the Light. There is no fear. No judgment. No punishment. No blame. No shame. No ledger of good and bad deeds. Only warmth, peace, joy, happiness, and love in the Light. I am one with the unconditionally loving Light.

I’m back home. I am home forever.

And then I am startled! The Light says, Andy, you must go back. And I say, No, I’m not going back, I’m not leaving… I’m never, ever going back. The Light says, for a second time, Andy, you must go back. I repeat my first response. No, I’m not going back… ever! Just the thought of returning to my body back on earth is repulsive to me. I felt like I would be trying to force the universe into a tiny, brittle bottle. Then the Light says the third time, Andy, you must go back. The next instant, without pause or delay of the smallest increment of time, I am back on Earth… stuffed back into a cold, shivering, aching body now lying on the beach. I open my eyes and tears roll down my cheeks. The Light is gone. Oh my God, the Light is gone! I am so sad, so mournful. I am back in this tired, achy, and nearly frozen body. How sad… how very, very sad I am. And I don’t know why!

I am lying on my stomach on the sand. One of my friends pushes the rest of the water out of my lungs. I cough out the water, but the intense pain remains. This time the pain is different and permanent. It’s the pain of being separated from the Light. I don’t know why I’m so sad. I don’t even know what I’ve just experienced. But I do know that I can no longer feel all of the warmth, beauty, and love that was infused in my soul. The Light has played a devious trick on me. The Light allowed me to expand and become one with the Universe, and then rammed me back into my frail, earthly body. At the time, it seemed like a very cruel experience to put me through. I was very angry at the Light.

All my classmates stand around me, glad that I’ve been revived. Someone says, Andy, you don’t seem very happy about being dragged from the bottom of the lake. Are you still in a daze, or what? How was it? Were you afraid? I answer with a lie. I say that I can’t remember anything. I tell them that the entire episode is a complete blank. I have to lie to my friends, I have to lie to my family, and I have to lie to myself. I can’t tell anyone about the Light. How can I expect them to understand what I just experienced if I don’t understand any of it myself?

I tell myself that maybe it was just a hallucination or some bizarre connection of synapses inside my brain from the lack of oxygen, or something like that. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just plain crazy. Oh well, I’ll probably forget all about it in a little while.

It’s been many, many years since my drowning and death, and I have forgotten thousands of experiences. Thousands of other experiences have faded and dimmed with the passing of time. Many traumatic memories have been embellished or partially forgotten. I have only one life and death experience that has remained clear and unchanged over my lifetime and this is it.

The moment that I entered the Light, to become one with the Light, is a moment that has no other parallel in my life. It is a feeling of inexpressible, unconditional love, peace, and joy. It is a love that I cannot adequately describe with words; it’s a love that can only be experienced. And I experienced it… I am in the Light, the Light is in me, and we are all One.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Email From: Andrew P. To: meSubject: Personal Letter from me, August 24, 2014

I asked Andy: Is your NDE absolutely true---or is it kind of a “good lie” intended to help others not fear death? Please give me an honest answer which will let me know if I should continue to show it to others.

Andy’s answer: “Yes. It is the truest and most honest experience I have had during my 76 years on planet earth. I think about it constantly and it brings me peace and joy on a daily basis.”

Karen T’s NDE in 1982---Karen and I swap emails occasionally.

I was a physical therapist employed at Alaska Hospital and Medical Center in Anchorage, Alaska and had suffered a ruptured disc in my low back.

For a number of weeks, I was treated conservatively with therapy and injections without improvement. During this treatment time, I spent a lot of my time in prayer and bible study. I had previously had back surgery for a ruptured disc in 1977 before moving to Alaska and the doctor I was seeing in Alaska had advised me that surgery might be needed for this ruptured disc since it wasn’t responding to conservative treatment. He wasn’t certain whether another laminectomy would be all I would need or whether it might require a spinal fusion, which would mean a much longer recovery period and the likely possibility that I might no longer be able to work as a physical therapist. Once the decision was reached that surgery was needed and it was scheduled, I began reaching out to members of my church as well as family and friends back in New York State asking for their prayers and telling them the date of my surgery. I asked that they pray that only a laminectomy would be needed.

The morning of my surgery, I remember the nurse who was prepping me for surgery commenting that I was the most relaxed person she had seen getting ready to go into surgery. My husband Bruce and 2 small children, Krista age 9 and Bryan age 6, were in my hospital room with me when they brought the stretcher to take me to surgery. They walked with me for a while and then they were given directions for the waiting room that they should go to while I was in surgery, so they kissed me and left. Once in the operating room, I remember moving over onto the OR table and having the IV in my arm through which they then administered my anesthesia.

The next thing I was aware of, I found myself very near the ceiling in the corner of the room – so high that I was within inches of the ceiling tiles. I became aware of the doctor swearing angrily and ordering nurses to get more bags of blood. I looked back toward the sound and saw my body being flipped from face down to face up on the table. There was quite a commotion of people rushing out and back in and I remember how pale my face looked. I knew it was my body I was looking at, but felt no alarm or concern. I remember moving effortlessly through the wall of the room and down a hallway out through the double doors of the operating suite. I couldn’t feel any resistance or sense of touch when passing through the wall or doors at all.

As I drifted down the hallway, I noticed an elevator door opening and a man that I didn’t know came rushing past the open elevator door. Something about how he was rushing and his obvious high anxiety drew my attention, so I watched him, noticing that he was wearing a brownish jacket of some kind and that he seemed to be carrying a bag of some sort. He was hurrying toward the doors to the operating suite and slowed near a man by the entry to the operating suite. I don’t recall the words of each of them, but I knew the man who had come past the elevator was a surgeon and he was irritated at having to take time to slow down while the other man didn’t think that this man in street clothes had any right to enter the OR suite. I didn’t hear the sound of their voices, but I was telepathically aware of each man’s thoughts, unlike in the OR where I heard the sound of the doctor swearing. Once the surgeon passed into the operating suite, I no longer watched him.

At this point, I began rising through the ceilings of each floor in the hospital as though I was being pulled by some force outside my own volition until I passed through the roof itself and found myself in the sky above the hospital. Once outside the hospital, I began to move much more quickly past the mountain range near the hospital and over the city of Anchorage itself at the height of an airplane. It was at this point that I realized that if I was moving so quickly, I should feel wind rushing past me and should notice a difference in the temperature of the air, but I felt none of this. I remember rushing into a dark, cave like area where I continued at high speed for some time before I became aware of a small bright light in the distance in the direction that I was headed.

I quickly emerged into this intense light and looked down at rocky ground below me where my feet should be and a rugged, rocky incline to my left. As I looked up the incline, I saw the back of a man proceeding up the incline and telepathically knew that I was to follow him. I examined his back and noticed long dark hair tied back with a leather tie, a short toga like garment in rough, off-white material and sandals on his feet with leather ties wrapping up around his calves. I remember thinking, "That’s not Jesus!" We reached a ledge which opened onto a gorgeous pastoral scene of vivid green grass studded with vibrant colored flowers unlike any I have ever seen. There were enormous shade trees scattered around and beyond the field was a small river about 30 feet across.

We came to the bank of the river and on the opposite bank gathered in a big group were all my loved ones who had passed away. I saw my father and my brother first. They were as thrilled to see me as I was to see them. Then I noticed various Aunts, Uncles and cousins in the group. Finally, I realized that a few people that I didn’t immediately recognize were my grandparents who had all died before I was born, so I had never met them. Still, I knew who they were and could telepathically hear them saying how much they loved me. I don’t remember what any of them were wearing or even what they looked like, but it was definitely their spirits and there was no doubt in my mind who they all were.

Before I could go to them and embrace them, my guide who had led me up the incline communicated to me telepathically that I had to go somewhere else first and that I must follow him. So I again followed him around a bend in the river until I could see in the distance a beautiful Greek style building that was vibrantly white with many steps leading up to it and huge columns in front. Lots of spiritual beings dressed in vibrant white robes were milling around outside, going in and coming out. My guide took me inside where it opened into an enormous library full of tables and lined with books. Many spirits were studying different books and my guide communicated that this hall held the Book of Life, described in the Bible.

We continued to a back room where some spiritual beings were sitting in chairs that circled around a screen in the floor that was like a glass bottomed boat. They communicated that I was to watch my life and then scenes like a 3D hologram appeared. I was able to re-experience myself in all these events in my life, but just as importantly, I was able to experience the impact of my actions and words on those other people with whom I had interacted. Not one of the spirits condemned me for those painful things I had done or not done, but I felt so very sorry and sad about them within my own heart. It all seemed to happen very quickly, but had a tremendous impact on me. I got the impression that these spirit beings had been with me and had helped me plan my life before I was born. They let me know that I would be able to return to my life, if I chose to do so, and then they showed me through the same screen some future events in my life if I chose to return to it – some that would definitely occur and some that were possible but not definite.

At this point, there is a gap in my memory of what took place next and the next thing I was aware of was being shown by my guide the back doctor who had operated on me standing in the waiting room in all his green surgical garb except his mask and talking to my husband while the kids sat behind my husband on a couch. I wasn’t able to hear any words said, only saw the scene. And then I was shown the image of all the prayers being said by my family and friends – each one appearing like a musical note and linking one to another reaching up toward where I was. Lastly, I saw my daughter’s prayer forming the last link to reach us.

Suddenly, all the emotional ties to my husband and children rushed back into me and I remembered being a little girl myself, when at the age of 7, I had prayed so urgently that my father wouldn’t die, but it seemed that my prayer wasn’t answered and my father died. I knew I couldn’t let my children grow up without their mother as I had grown up without my father. Hard as it was to leave this place of overwhelming unconditional love and indescribable peace, I knew I had to return to my life. I was told that the future things in my life that I had been shown would be removed from my memory as well as some other things I had been shown during my experience because the choices I would make in my future life would be tainted and not truly legitimate choices if I were allowed to retain those memories, but that I would be granted enough memories to convince my logical mind of the reality of my experience and I would be given an unmistakable sign that would be proof of where I truly had been.

With that, the next awareness I had was waking in the recovery room with my husband and children standing around me. Everything that I have written here was fully in my mind and heart immediately as I greeted my loved ones and my sign was there, too. My sign was not an object, it was the fact that I was completely enveloped in the "peace that passeth all understanding" and the amazing unconditional love of God, like an invisible bubble of protection! This amazing sensation, this sign, stayed with me at a tremendous intensity for about 3 weeks to come before gradually fading away. After it was gone, I knew, more than I have ever known anything in my life, that my experience was completely real and that the gift of God’s love and peace that was with me for all those weeks was the perfect proof and confirmation to my heart that I truly had been in the spiritual realm with God because it was exactly how I had felt during the entire experience. I know the absolute truth of it to this day.

I remained in the hospital for 12 days following my surgery, first in intensive care and later in a regular hospital room. It was touch and go for a while, but I had complete confidence that I would recover because I knew that I had come back to my life for a reason and was here to stay. At first, I didn’t tell my family about my experience. I remember how surprised I was the first time that the surgeon who had saved my life came to my bedside for a visit. His name was Dr. Gower and we had never met before that time, but he was the same man that I had seen rushing into the operating suite! He had been called to operate on me. Unlike the surgeon who had done my back surgery who barely came in my room and, even then, wouldn’t look me in the eye, THIS surgeon was warm and kind. He clearly cared about me and was pleased that I was recovering well.

About a week after I was home, I had to go to Dr. Gower’s office to have staples removed. My incision ran from by breast bone to my pubic bone and it had been stapled together. Not long after I was home but before the visit to Dr. Gower, I had shared with my husband about my Near Death Experience and wondered out loud about the message I had been given about memories that would ‘convince my logical mind’ of the truth of my experience. I remembered that my experience had included seeing Dr. Gower arriving the day of my surgery and that if he could confirm what I had seen when he arrived that day, then it would, indeed, convince my logical mind of the validity of the experience. Although I already knew it was ‘real’ because of my sign, I also wanted my husband to have no doubt about it either. So, after Dr. Gower had completed my examination and expressed how pleased he was with my healing so far, I said that I wanted to ask him something about the day of my surgery.

I told him that during my surgery on my back, after my artery had been cut and I was bleeding out, that my spirit had left my body and traveled out of the operating room. I told him that I had seen him arriving that day, although I hadn’t known who he was or why he was coming there at the time. I told him about how he was rushing toward the operating room suite and was wearing street clothes – a brown jacket of some kind and carrying a bag. I saw his being annoyed to be slowed down near the doors to the operating room suite, when he was clearly anxious to get into the operating suite. Then, I asked him if what I saw is what actually happened that day. His response was, “How did you know that? I had been at my office when I was paged to come to the OR stat -- that I was needed to do emergency exploratory surgery to locate and stop the bleeding from a vessel that had been cut during a back surgery.” I can’t remember for certain, but I think he may have asked me what else I had seen and experienced. I believe that I shared a bit about seeing my deceased loved ones and a little about my experience, but I don’t remember any details I told him. Dr. Gower never clearly said that he was actually wearing what I described, he only said, “How did you know that?” He was clearly blown away, though, and I think he would have said he wasn’t wearing that or that he didn’t remember it happening that way, if in fact, it hadn’t happened the way I described. I came away convinced that he had confirmed to me the validity of what I had seen. Just the fact that he had come to the hospital in street clothes, rather than having been a surgeon on call already at the hospital in scrubs was an unusual circumstance and he did confirm that much. It was enough to convince my logical mind – and my husband’s as well.

During the surgery, it had been discovered that I had endometriosis so I also visited a gynecologist for follow up. During that visit, he asked about my recent abdominal scar and when I explained what had happened, he exclaimed, “ Oh, that was YOU! I was in the adjacent operating room that day and heard all hell breaking loose in there. The air was blue for a while, I can tell you that!” I didn’t share my NDE with him that day, but it confirmed to me what I had seen in the OR and the swearing I heard taking place there. That was unusual behavior for an operating room, for sure.

After all these years, I have joined IANDS and shared my story in public for the first time. I was inspired to find Dr. Gower, who is still practicing in Alaska, and I wrote to thank him and ask if he remembered my case and my telling him about my NDE back then. He replied that he did remember me and remembered my sharing my NDE with him. Thinking deeply about what I had seen during my near death experience and what might be confirmed by someone besides me, I spoke to my daughter who was 9 then and is 43 now and asked what she remembered of that day. She said that they had waited long past when the doctor had told them he would be out to talk to them and that she was getting very worried. She said that she heard some noise and saw a man come rushing past the waiting room acting like something bad had happened. The man rushed toward the elevators. She said that it was the same man later introduced to her as Dr. Gower. She was more worried later on when no one had come to talk to them yet. Then, the surgeon who had done my back surgery finally came to the door of the waiting room and Dad went over to speak to him. They were so serious that she was convinced that I must be dying and she prayed for me, she said. Before I talked to my daughter, I had asked my husband if he remembered seeing a man coming past the door to the waiting room that day. He then remembered a man rushing past, but said he wasn’t directly facing the doorway at the time. My husband had told me shortly after my surgery that the back doctor had come to talk to him in the waiting room, but I had never confirmed what that doctor had been wearing. I knew from what my husband had told me at the time that the back doctor had asked my husband for permission to have Dr. Gower do the additional surgery to save my life. Until recently, I had never discussed with my husband what I saw the back doctor wearing that day and that I saw him standing in the doorway of the waiting room. So I just recently asked him if he was all dressed in green surgical garb including a hair net type hat on his head, but no mask and he confirmed that yes, he had stood in the doorway and was dressed just like that.

Dr. Gower recently emailed me confirming that he had come to the hospital the day of my surgery from his office and was dressed in street clothes, though he couldn’t remember all these years later what he had been wearing that day or whether he was carrying anything. He did say that he came out of the staircase as he had rushed down the stairs and that he had to slow to press a button to open automatic doors to the OR suite. He didn’t recall another man being present near the entry to the OR suite. I have since concluded that they may not have spoken to each other at all and I was ‘hearing’ both their thoughts at once – Dr. Gower’s anxious thoughts to get into the OR quickly and the other man’s thoughts worried that a person in street clothes shouldn’t be allowed into the OR.

Jean R’s NDEs in 1981---her two NDEs that revealed a lot about the meaning of life

I woke up lying in my hospital bed but unable to breathe. Every joint in my body was in excruciating pain. I was panicky; I knew I was in trouble. I couldn't find the button to call a nurse. I thought 'I am just a bother and they hid the buzzer for the nurse. They want me to die.” My panic rose and my thoughts were irrational. I had to talk myself down from this and apply some logic. I told myself, 'I am in a hospital. They have put the call button somewhere and probably close. Stay calm and look.' I found it at my upper right, wound around the bed rail. I remember such pain as I finally found the button and pushed it. The nurse answered and asked what I needed. I told her I felt panic and could not breathe.   She came to my room and talked to me soothingly, while she took my blood pressure. It was way too low at 0/30, and thus my long journey through near death began.

In the days that followed, I had Toxic Shock Syndrome and my heart stopped beating on FOUR different occasions!   My family was told I most likely would not make it. This time for me is blurry, and I had two near death experiences, but I do not know at which times they happened.

The first time, I went through a light (it is the only way I can describe it), and I was totally saturated in unconditional love. It was the most wonderful experience I have ever had. Unconditional love saturated me and it was so filling!   I then went through a life review. It was all about my relationships with others. During this review, I felt the feelings they felt in my relationship with them. I felt their love or their pain or their hurt, by things I had done or said to them. Their hurt or pain made me cringe, and I found myself thinking, 'Oooh, I could have done better there.'   But most of what I felt was love, so it was not too bad.   No one was judging me during this process.   I felt no disapproval from anyone else, only my own reactions to it all.   That feeling of unconditional love saturating me continued to be there

I was then asked if I wanted to come “home” (the Other Side) or wanted to go back to my life on Earth. I told them that my two sons needed me and I had to go back. I was suddenly in my body again, feeling my achy joints flaring in pain. I really don't remember what was going on around me at that point, just that I hurt. I still felt that love though and could rest.

In my second near death, I found myself in a city and was told that this was the City of God. I was at a water fountain with a man in a long white linen robe tied around the waist with a cord. He told me I could ask any question I wanted and said he would then take me on a tour. Because I had been raised at a time when Catholics were taught that to even go into another Christian church was a mortal sin, and Lutherans said that those Catholics were going to go Hell because they had statuary in their churches and prayed to saints, I had a very pressing question. 'What is the right religion?'

I was told, 'They all are. Each religion is a pathway trying to reach the same place.' I was shown a mountain, with each religious group trying to reach the top, separated from each other by distance, but each one was trying to get to the same place. I was then told that people choose to be born into whichever religion or group that would help them achieve the lessons they are sent here to learn. I was told that the Earth is like a big school, a place where you can apply spiritual lessons learned and test yourself, under pressure, to see if you can actually 'live' what you already know you should do.

Basically, the Earth is an opportunity to walk the walk and literally live the way it should be done. It was made clear to me that some people come to the Earth to work on only one aspect of themselves, while others come to work on several aspects. Then there are others who come to not only work on their own nature, but also to help the world as a whole. From what I was shown, we may have many lifetimes on earth. (Note: While on the Other Side, I saw some family members, but did not get to speak to them.)

The Other Side does not have the physical pressures that having a body involves. Here on Earth, you must feed and clothe that body and provide shelter for it from the elements. You are under continual pressure of some sort to make decisions that have a spiritual base. You are taught on the Other Side what you are supposed to do; but, can you LIVE it under these pressures on Earth? From what I saw and heard there, on the Other Side, it is all about relationships and taking care of each other. Perfection is not expected of people, but we should all learn how to live better.

All of our experiences in a lifetime tend to follow some sort of pattern and often will recreate the same lessons only in a different way and under various circumstances. This is how you know what you are here to learn and test. If you examine the patterns, certain themes will become clear.

I was shown a library filled with gold-covered books. These are the lives of people on Earth, where their life plan is laid out, and what they hope to achieve through certain key experiences. From what I was shown, people have free choice as to how to get to these preset key experiences. They can take a meandering path of experiences or a more direct route, but there are certain events that are preset and will happen no matter what. Those key events are benchmarks, and one's reaction to them will show how much you have learned and what more needs to be learned.

The economic turmoil we are now going through is one of those 'world events' that was preset. People have a choice as to how to react to these events. From what I was shown, the spiritual way is to help each other and help those in need. This is the ultimate act of love.

But there is also the choice of becoming more protective and self-centered; less sharing and keeping one's own possessions as primary. This is a materialistic way of viewing it all, as if the material world is more important than the connections among people. So what choices will the majority make? It is still to be seen.

I was shown other parts of the city as well, where souls were working with people on Earth, with scientists, artists, and more, to 'inspire' those on Earth to create beneficial things for mankind in every area. There was so much more, too. But, more than anything, this place was filled with love: love of mankind, love of everyone on Earth, and of the Earth itself. Communications were transparent here; thoughts shared in direct conversation between minds. The people I saw were all working, happily so, and in great joy.

This city had many different places, all geared to a different need. There was a place of rest where souls could recover from traumatic lives on Earth. There were libraries, theaters, and schools. There was a sense of complete security and safety, difficult to describe visually. And there was also the Temple of God.

I was taken into this large hall and before me were beings of pure light. One was sitting directly in front of me on a chair or throne. These beings did not have human shape but were more like pure energy. The love that emanated from them, particularly the one in the center, was overwhelming. I felt this great, great honor to be there. I was embraced by this entity in the center and told, 'You have done well, My Child, and I am pleased.' The love that came flowing through me and the approval made me weep.
Loving and caring for each other is the most important mission we have. Religion has its place, but it is not ultimate in any way. I no longer fear death.

Judy G’s NDE in 1967---Life After Life

I was a passenger in a head-on auto collision and went through the windshield. I required a complete blood transfusion. This resulted in a traumatic premature birth (7 and a half months), as I was pregnant at the time. The NDE happened during the childbirth.
I was on the stretcher going down the hallway of the hospital. I was being rushed into the emergency room. I heard the doctor say, “Look at her! Give her oxygen!”

Instantly, I was in a dark void in space. I lost awareness of my body.   I did not know that I had left my body. I felt like me and was holding on. I felt that I was spiraling in a tunnel-like space. At first I was spinning more slowly, with the speed rapidly increasing as I came closer to an immense, unusually bright Light at the end of the tunnel. As I got close to the Light, I began to feel unconditional LOVE. The spiral movement and all feeling of time had stopped.
The only vision I remember was the Light.   WOW!!! What is real changed forever for me. Seeing God included feeling and knowing His complete LOVE. The LIGHT had Presence, Intelligence, and complete, pure, powerful LOVE. I knew this was “God”, the unnamable.   I find it difficult to explain the intensity and wonder and peace of God’s Love and Presence.
There were Beings around me. Then I thought, “What about the baby?” The Beings answered in my mind, “It is his time to be born again (meaning he had many lives and was about to have another).    If not to you, then to someone else.”   I instantly knew that reincarnation was real. Even though ultrasounds were not used at that time, I knew that this birth was a male.

I had other questions that were also answered by the Beings. I KNEW those answers were TRUTH.   They answered almost at the same instant that I asked them. I have forgotten the other questions and answers now, except for the last question. I was asked, “Do you want to continue this life, or die?”   I thought, “What’s death?”

The Light began to show me. I learned without a doubt that death was not an ending, but a wonderful opening to my real life. I would be more knowledgeable and live in unconditional completeness and love. I remember feeling almost unworthy of such an indescribable, unconditional love. I was in awe of how much love was enveloping me.

My next thought was, “I have not been in this life that long and have not shared very much love yet.” In that instant, I reentered my earthly body. I was shaking uncontrollably with joy, to the point that my teeth were even chattering.

ADDED COMMENTS:
Prior to my experience I had no affiliation with religion. I had gone to Christian Protestant Sunday School and Church during Elementary School. I was baptized at age 14. I rarely attended church in High School and not at all after High School.

Now I know that God is real and universal, an afterlife exists, reincarnation is real, and we are so loved. God is mercy and love. God is more than all earthly religious dogma, which often misrepresents God. There is no hell which we do not create ourselves. Church is not necessary, although it awakens spirit in some people. Now I can accept challenges and hardships (and we all have them) on Earth with less resistance, believing there may be some “greater good” behind what will be learned. All life requires love/caring. Fear is illusionary. Only love is real and is the purpose of life.

When I had the experience, I had never heard of an NDE. Yet, I still immediately told what had happened when I returned to my body. I told my new husband, who was by my stretcher at the hospital after I had returned from giving birth. My husband thought perhaps that I had been given drugs that caused me to hallucinate. I insisted to him that there had been no time for drugs to be given. I explained that what I had just experienced had been “more real” than “this” (meaning the earth-body experience).

I also told my mother and her friend when they arrived at the hospital. I was surprised to find that my mother’s friend had had a similar NDE. One difference was that my mother’s friend had spoken with her mother, who had passed on. I had not had family members that I knew pass on yet. Then I was told that my own mother’s mother had had an NDE during a childhood illness. Both my mother and her friend accepted and believed my NDE experience, and it was the first time I learned that others had experienced life beyond this one.

Chamisa H’s NDE in 1982---told by a retired ICU nurse.

I was in an accident. My family had no idea that it had happened to me. Hemorrhaging badly, vomiting blood. Taken to surgery, I suddenly became aware of slipping out of my body from my feet up through the top of my head, as if I were the inside of a Concord grape and was squeezed out of my skin, watching from above the operating table and observing everything with greater clarity than if I were doing the surgery myself.

I watched everything that was going on below me in a completely detached mode. The tools looked like a carpenter's shop. I heard the music, the buzz of saws, and I could read the minds and futures of the people there, including my own. I saw the reason for my life and what I needed to work out. I saw through walls. I saw my husband at home, chopping wood. I saw my kids in school, and I knew what they were doing. I could instantly read the minds of those in the surgery room and what they would do next. I also knew that one physician’s brother had cancer and didn't know it. He would die the following year (and did). The other physician was having an affair with the attending nurse that would end up badly (and did).

[After my experience I told my physician about what I had seen, but he was so scared by what I saw in his future and that I'd 'seen' his affair going on, that he cut me off directly. After that, I kept everything to myself. (By the way, his affair broke up his family and caused a suicide.) I have ten siblings I wish I could share this with, but their religious belief gets in the way.] I was aware of a whole list of details, all too trivial to write about here, but which, when I verified them, confirmed to me that what I had seen was real. Unlike dreams, I still remember everything as if it just happened yesterday. It changed the direction of my life and the way I took care of my body, my life, my family and patients forever after.

While still watching the surgery from up above, I noticed that all my feelings, emotions, personality and knowledge were still with me and that I carried a large amount of anger toward certain people, especially my parents and the religion they used against me. I'd been an agnostic for years.

Next, I observed a Being of Light and was filled with a flood of love and forgiveness for everyone and everything. I even loved the earth and all its beauty, including all life on our planet, and 'felt' the spiritual process we are all in, and how we are literally tied together as brothers and sisters needing to be unified in love and care.

My past flashed before me, out of my control. I understood why my parents had rejected me. I understood the part of my childhood religion that was definitely man-made and ego-centered. I no longer believe in that religion or any religion, but I believe in God and eternal life, but no religious affiliation. Before, I studied Eastern religions and felt that all knowledge is relative and, like the adage of the 'Six Blind Men and the Elephant’, everyone has a different handle on truth. After my experience, I changed this perception. Now, I do feel there is an absolute Truth, but so complex and eternal we will never understand it in this dimension and simply don't have the tools for such knowing. But it doesn't matter. Everything is simply love. Jesus was right, ‘Love yourself; love your neighbor.' (Matt 22:37-39). I also understood that our identity, our personality, including our knowledge and emotions, always go with us wherever we are, in this life or another.

This experience totally changed my life and the direction of my life. I never drank another alcoholic drink or used another chemical. I reunited with my estranged family. I wrote a letter of forgiveness to my ex-husband, and he wrote back expressing the same, something neither of us could do before this. Many other impressions came to me that were very personal. I went to sleep as one person and woke up quite another. I am now seventy years old and no longer fear death. This experience seems as if it just happened recently, and all of the images are deeply impressed upon my mind, even though it happened in 1982.

My NDE gave me a greater awareness that we are spiritual beings having a mortal experience, and when it comes to 'God,' the tools of science don't apply. The spiritual realm cannot be explained using physical tools to measure spiritual concepts. Science can't explain God because it can't explain a puzzle, a paradox, a mystery. The multiple dimensions of the afterlife are neither explainable nor something we need to explain. We barely understand our human life! We need to take one dimension at a time and realize that life is eternal and we'll always have what we need ‘when we get there,' to deal with each dimension. Having said that, I'm deeply grateful that NDEs are becoming acceptable. I met many such people during my own practice in medicine, including confirming NDE experiences, while I worked in an intensive care unit.

Howard’s NDE---as told by the emergency room physician

Early one bright, autumn morning, I was walking the hall from the doctor’s lounge to the ICU to start my morning rounds when I heard a Code Blue announced overhead. It was the signal that someone was in trouble and that death, if medical intervention did not alter the course, was likely imminent. Glancing up at the monitor I could see that the continuous EKG showed a dangerous heart rhythm. I grabbed the paddles from their holders when the charge was complete and, per protocol, firmly stated “everyone clear” so that our staff could step back from the bed and avoid being electrocuted. I delivered the shock. We all watched the monitor to see if our intervention had worked. It hadn’t, so right away I said, “Let’s turn up the juice,” meaning we’d try a higher voltage this time. “Charging,” the nurse replied, and I shocked him again, then again a third time, and finally a fourth. On the fourth time it took, and he was back in a normal rhythm. I moved back into my previous place at the side of the bed, carefully stepping over and under tubing and wires that connected the patient to various life-sustaining drugs and devices. Once clear, I pivoted around to get a look at the monitor. The heart rate seemed steady and his oxygen levels were normal. He was heading in the right direction. So I moved to the head of the bed and prepared to intubate the patient, meaning I would be putting a flexible tube into his throat to connect him to the ventilator. “Whoa, it’s really sticky! It’s fighting me a bit,” I exclaimed. After I had successfully cleared it away, I said, “Tube, please.” I passed the tube through the vocal cords into position in his trachea.

The patient’s nurse and I remained at his bedside, and the nurse started telling me the patient’s story. Since my first introduction to this patient was his cardiac arrest, I didn’t know anything about him. He first told me the patient’s name (Howard) and how he had come in two days earlier to the emergency room with severe belly pain. He was discovered to have a segment of dead gut, probably due to diseased and clogged arteries. The blood supply had been cut off to that part of the bowel and it had to be removed. This had been the cause of his pain – much like blocked arteries in a heart would cause a heart attack, or in the head, a stroke. He was taken to the operating room and the damaged segment of intestine was removed. By all accounts, the surgery was a success and he was sent back to the intensive care unit to recover.

When the day came that we could successfully remove him from the vent and he was finally able to talk, what he shared surprised us. Struggling for words to explain his experience, all he could say at first was, “Something happened to me.” “What do you mean?” I asked. “What happened to you?” I had no idea what Howard was going to say. I had not really thought much about his cardiac arrest since it happened. I had been more focused on his day-to-day clinical progress, but what followed as he began to share his experience brought me right back to the ICU that previous morning. Howard not only remembered the events of his cardiac arrest –- what was said, what people were wearing, who was present –- but he recounted it in such detail that it was clear he was a witness to his own event, even though he was completely unconscious at the time. Howard started from the beginning and gave us a play-by-play of his experience. He recounted that at some point, he didn’t know when, he felt more than heard an intense, escalating buzzing. Not long afterward he experienced the sensation of shooting out of the top of his head with incredible speed.

“Next thing I know,” he said, “I’m looking down on my body and it feels like I’m bobbing and bouncing against the ceiling. I was too shocked to be scared! It occurred to me I might be dead, so I started to panic and, as crazy as it sounds, I tried swimming through the air to get back to my body. It didn’t work. That convinced me I must be dead, so I just watched and listened. I started thinking that maybe I was supposed to go somewhere or maybe someone was supposed to come get me. With that thought, I felt myself rising up through the ceiling and it was like I was going through the structure of the building. I could feel the different densities of passing through insulation. I saw wiring, some pipes and then I was in this other room. “It looked like a hospital but it was different,” he said pensively. “It was very quiet and it seemed like no one was there. There were individual rooms all around the edge and people were on some of the beds, except they were not people, exactly. They looked like mannequins and they had IVs hooked up to them, but they didn’t look real. In the center room was an open area that looked like a collection of work stations with computers,” he said. That’s when my jaw really dropped. I stole a look at the nurse who looked equally surprised.

What we knew, that Howard didn’t, is that right above the ICU is a nurse-training center where new hires spend a few days rotating through different scenarios. There are simulated hospital rooms around the perimeter with medical mannequins on some of the beds. In the center there is indeed a collection of workspaces with computers.

“I wasn’t there long before I got jerked back to my body with a jolt and then floated up again. As I floated up this time I heard someone say, ‘Turn up the juice’ and then, ‘Okay, charge.’ Howard went on to relate how he had watched me step carefully over wires and under tubing to get to the head of the bed and then back out again after I had intubated him. He also told me how he watched a “hose” being put into his throat right after he heard the comments of there being “mucus in his throat that was really sticky and fighting me.” But what he remembered most was my shirt. I have a lime-green blouse that I had apparently worn the day Howard’s heart stopped. That he would comment on that specifically, when I knew with certainty that he was unconscious, was remarkable.

We continued talking for the next half hour or so, pondering what had occurred and what it could mean. Nothing like that had ever happened to Howard or to anyone he knew. Being a very practical man with a distinct, earthbound philosophy and a literal interpretation of the world, he had not even heard about near-death or out-of-body experiences during moments of physical crisis, but I had. I told him there are documented accounts of other patients who have had similar experiences and that he was not alone. Howard was not only fascinated by what had happened to him, he was transformed. What he experienced so vividly on the day his heart stopped, affected him in a powerful and lasting way. I was able to see him in follow-up for his newly diagnosed emphysema some months after his cardiac arrest and he still maintained his abstinence from alcohol and tobacco. The pivotal event of a near-death experience during extreme illness had motivated him to make immediate and lasting changes in his lifestyle.

D.D. M’s NDE in 2010

For the past thirteen years, I have made my home in the small, remote, and breathtakingly beautiful mountain town of Salida, Colorado. I moved across the country from South Florida with my husband Dan and son Brendan to this rural hideaway just east of the Continental Divide. At the same time my only sibling, Sandy, also brought her husband and two sons to this quaint little mountain town. We all seemed to be longing to make mid-life changes; we liked the idea of starting our new lives in a new location.

After college at Parson’s School of Design in New York City, I left my chosen field of fashion design and operated, along with husband Dan, our own commercial design studio for almost fourteen years in my hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

I was not a religious person before my NDE adventure, nor am I now. I am just an ordinary woman, who had an extraordinary journey into a place beyond this earthly realm that changed her soul forever. And today, well, today I have “God”—who would have thought? No religion—just God, in the wonderful essence of pure Love. I walk nowhere now without God.

The story I share is of an experience that came from out of the blue—an adventure for which I was not prepared, to say the least. On an ordinary day in the natural course of living, a near-fatal car accident became the turning point of my world.

When I was ten years old my father died before my eyes. He had cancer and it was feared it had gone to his brain. He took his life with a shotgun. As he died, I cradled his head on my lap. I watched as the life drained from his eyes He died within minutes. I was told it was “God’s way” that my dad died as he did, and that God would help me understand it, but He certainly didn’t.

At the age of fifty-six, I was a happy woman. Tuesday, November 18th, dawned bright and clear. The day saw me energized and ready to immerse myself in hours of perusing the many stores on my shopping agenda. When I finished, I left the city and was a short way out of town when I crossed a small bridge before starting up a hill. Just past that bridge, the road on my side opened up from one lane into two. I edged my car over to the slower right lane to let the cars behind me pass as we climbed that hill. What transpired next was so quick I didn’t have time to think about what was happening. My right front tire went off the pavement onto the right shoulder and I heard a fairly loud bang. Had I experienced a blow out? Steering the vehicle back on to the roadway, my car was now fishtailing wildly. I looked up and saw that I was headed in the direction of oncoming traffic.

I overcorrected and turned over into a sideways roll. There were crazy topsy-turvy motions as my vision swirled, and then a very loud thud. Within a blink of an eye, it was all over. In reconstructing the accident, the EMTs believed that the car rolled two and a half times before slamming into the hill. I don’t know how long it took me to collect my thoughts, but I know I did not lose consciousness. I was upside down and could not get a mental handle on what was happening to me. After hearing many voices and much commotion, the door swung open and my body was slid out gently onto the roadway, and freedom.

The emergency crew slid me into the ambulance. The ride to the hospital seemed to be over in a flash. The paramedics slid me out of the ambulance, and I watched, looking straight up, as they wheeled me into the hospital and down the corridor to the emergency room. A doctor came and told me that I would need to be put to sleep for a while. Apparently I was bleeding into my lungs.

Later I opened my eyes and was surprised to see myself encompassed by a breathtakingly beautiful, bright, yellow-gold light. It was very intense yet very soothing. Finding I could see 360 degrees in all directions was when I had the realization I really wasn’t attached to my body. My mind was transfixed in total fascination. Being encircled by this radiant yellow seemed to bring me restful peace. I felt that this color was there to calm me and so it did. It flowed over me, through me and around what I knew to be the essence of me. This is so hard to explain because I have been attached to my physical body my whole life. Feeling the ability to exist without a body is quite difficult to describe. There was just this incredible color that became such peace within me, washing over my soul. This experience was outside of time. It makes no sense to say the experience was of a certain length, because for me, it was eternal.

During my calm state, there was a point that I was gently pulled or guided through what I perceived to be many thousands of colors. I heard sounds too, and I became aware that I was hearing some type of music. Certainly both the colors and the music were quite different from anything I had experienced in my lifetime, The experience was indescribable. Like a small trusting child, I watched and listened with great awe. I felt safe, utterly loved, and completely at peace with these surroundings.

I was enjoying my ride. I felt I was being taken through the whole color spectrum of the universe—the dazzling yellows, vibrant pinks, magentas, rubies, scarlets, rich crimsons, sapphires, and a zillion shades of blues whirling into purples and greens. These deeply rich colors also transformed into unique patterns. They were much like complex computer designs, and as enticing as intricate designs within a kaleidoscope. I could see these patterns as a whole, or focus in on small, detailed parts of them.

When I made an effort to analyze or understand what I was experiencing—as I searched for meaning—it was as if a soft, gentle hand, like that of a loving parent, would stroke the left side of my soul and whisper to me, “Let go… Just Be.” I saw and felt the wonders of the cosmos. I could see into eternity, see the entire universe. The past, present, and future were all one.

It is so difficult for me to accurately convey the understanding that I was being allowed to know. If I could have written what I felt I knew in those moments, it would have filled volumes. Yet as quickly as one truth flowed though me there was another insight. I knew I was drifting through the cosmos, seeing the infinite as it is. I understood it All. I was connected to it All, while myself was still completely intact.

Throughout all of these happenings I never once doubted my existence or that I was alive, yet the self I had known in this world was gone and not a part of my thoughts. The body I had lived in for more than fifty years—I easily left behind. I did not worry about dying, because I now understood that there was no death—there just IS. The most awesome fact was that at the core of this feeling, knowing, and understanding was a great Love. Greater and brighter than the heat of a million suns was the magnitude of its being—Amazing! I saw that life never ends; it only moves on. I was somehow allowed to see Me as I am seen by the Creator. Even now tears find their way down my face each time I recall how in that experience, I saw the beauty of my soul, I saw the beauty of all human souls. Lost was any notion of myself as unloved or less than perfect. Like the small trusting child I had become, I reached up to take the hand of the loving universe surrounding me. I seemed to understand that this ultimate love that was being given to me came without judgment of any kind. It didn’t matter what I had ever done, said, or been in the earthly world. I was still worthy of this indescribable love. Love was the Creator’s gift to me. I was made aware that each person is free to choose the life they will live. I am certain that everyone will have their own unique experience of going home to the Other Side. During the entire time that I was out of my body, I did not see other earthly figures,

At last I knew what it was like to be Loved unconditionally—the way that the One who created us Loves. I felt the love we should all have for other life forms of any kind, knowing that all has its place, all is loved, and all is perfect no matter what. There was no judgment, only unconditional love. I was being reborn with the knowledge that I already had existed, would always exist, and would, with certainty, never end. It was as if I were being cradled in the arms of that loving parent who loved me beyond measure and who withheld any judgmental thoughts toward me. I knew then that the God I was searching for does exist, and we are all a part of him. I knew that I was treasured, just as I am. I felt that I could have stayed there forever.

When I first started to come back to consciousness, I struggled to return to the other realm. It wasn’t until I saw a smile that the knowledge of humanness came back to me. Just the vision of his smile ignited my memory, and I then recognized my son, Brendan! It was like a lightning bolt hitting my heart. He squeezed my hand and I knew I was back on this side of the looking glass. Now I was truly returning to earthly reality. I had been in a coma for twelve days. It would be awhile before I could tell anyone, without feeling guilty, that I had not remembered loved ones, that I had had no thoughts about them while I was “away.”

Out the left side of our car window, to the east, the cloudless sky shone a most awesome aqua blue melting into a deep turquoise. To the right and toward the mountains, unfolding before us was one of the most beautiful sunsets that I have ever seen in my lifetime. There were such glowing and dramatic oranges, pinks and red colors all over that part of the western sky. Without hesitation I burst into silent tears as I saw this. I sat in silence, tears streaming down my face as I watched all the glorious and majestic colors. I knew one adventure was over, and a new one was just beginning.

A MEDICAL DOCTOR SHARES HIS EXPERIENCE---AND LOOKS FOR A POSSIBLE SCIENTIFIC EXPLANATION FOR IT.

Dr. Robert C’s NDE in 1960

The last I remembered, I was going into the hospital for a c2-c7 laminectomy and fusion to repair damages of a skiing accident in March 1968 at Killington Mountain in Vermont---which had intermittently caused me pain but had recently been causing problems in using my right arm---so I thought it was probably prudent to finally have the surgery which had long ago been recommended.

I remembered the pre-op procedures prior to intubation. I was told –- much later-- that I had been walking down the hall with a nurse the day after successful laminectomy and fusion and uneventful extubation, and that I suddenly slumped to the floor, unable to breathe. Fortunately, a Neurosurgeon was in the next room and was able to perform an emergency cricothyroidotomy on me, because I could not be intubated while unconscious.

My throat had swollen greatly after being extubated the day before. I have since obtained the hospital records, which showed indeed that at 10:30 am on that date that I had had a respiratory arrest, that my pO2 had fallen to 60% but rose quickly to normal once I was tracheotomized. I do not know the precise length of time between my respiratory arrest and the successful placing of the tracheostomy, but do know that normal intubation was attempted and was unsuccessful.

During the time I was not breathing, I had a wonderful experience. At first, it was Light, a brilliant, white light, without reflection and without glare.   Then, the feeling... of quiet jubilation, of peace and incredible serenity enveloping me.   It was not a feeling I could identify, except perhaps “glory” in the warmest, most positive sense of the word.   It was not at all similar to what I had experienced as an Air Force Medical Officer taking the USAF Physiological Training Program for flight officers on the 5th of May 1960 at Lackland Air Force Base, where I deliberately hyperventilated to see how that felt---and then, later deliberately took off my Oxygen mask at a simulated low oxygen, high altitude (20,000 feet) in a flight chamber to experience the exhilaration of mild hypoxia as well as the other symptoms which occur physiologically during hypoxia. We did this to learn how to differentiate hyperventilation from hypoxia, which is obviously important if you are flying at high altitudes or landing a plane.

During this time of jubilation and peace and serenity, I had the “feeling” that I was conversing with God and that I was being given important insights and facts about the nature of our being and the reasons for our existence that I must not forget and which I must communicate to others because of their incredible importance. I was given the impression that there is a God, a loving God, and that it was the same God for all people.
There was more, I know that was communicated, but I have little memory of anything specific. I do remember that somehow it was conveyed to me that it was not my time yet, and I had to return, that there was more for me "to be" and this was differentiated from anything I had to do.

I then started hearing very loud and unpleasant sounds---of paper ripping (in retrospect, possibly sterile envelopes of gauze pads) and then voices, men and women speaking in low murmurs---and then a voice saying “it’s almost time for lunch” and then another saying “he’s had a respiratory arrest.”   I was still not feeling any pain and not seeing anything at all.

I awakened some time later, in a hospital bed on the Neurosurgery Critical Care Unit with tracheostomy in place, my arms and legs tied to a bed, IV tubes as well as urinary catheter in place, and hearing the sounds of a busy critical care unit. I knew I had had a respiratory arrest but didn’t know why or when.

I told no one initially what I had experienced---I could not have spoken anyway with the tracheostomy tube in place. My recuperation was slow and I spent about 4 weeks in the hospital and then 4 weeks in a rehab hospital. While in the hospital ICU, I attempted to “check” myself out to see if, indeed, my “experience”, which I recalled immediately, was because I was brain damaged, secondary to hypoxia. (I am a physician with formal training in neurology and psychiatry).
I remember that my thinking initially was confused, that I could not remember the last six presidents, or subtract 7’s from 100 or spell “world” backwards. Finally, however, I had the wits to ask what pills they were giving me and realized I had the right to refuse the haloperidol and other sedating pills they were giving me. After that, I was able to remember the past 6 presidents, to subtract 7’s from 100, spell “world” backwards, and I did not feel I was hearing or seeing things that were not actually there, but I still remained reluctant to share my “experience” until I was safely home, and only then with those I trusted and whom I trusted would tell me if what I was saying seemed psychotic or brain damaged or if I was behaving in a peculiar manner.

Since my “white light experience” (or Near-Death-Experience), I have read accounts of many hundreds of reported NDEs and subscribed to the monthly “Journal of Near Death Studies”' which tries very hard to be even-handed in its editorial approach.

I have read the writings of Elizabeth Kubler-Ross M.D., Dr. PMH Atwater, Kenneth Ring M.D., Michael Sabom M.D., and many others and the more recent research by Bruce Greyson, M.D, Melvin Morse, M.D., Sam Parnia, M.D. and Peter Fenwick, M.D, and the evidence-based medical literature is currently increasing in scope.

What I have gleaned from what I have read is that many others have had experiences quite similar to mine and that experiences seem to cross religious, social and cultural barriers, but their expression does seem to be affected by previous religious and cultural backgrounds.   Many people seem to come out of the “experience” with more belief in God but less in formal religion.

Children seem to have a 'pure experience' with fewer cultural overtones. Some adults do have 'experiences' that link them to a significant religious figure or “deity”---that just happens to correspond precisely to their prior religious upbringing.

Since my surgical recovery, I have resumed practice as a Psychiatrist and now include, as part of my history- taking, a few non-directive questions regarding any unusual experiences people might have had during an accident or a surgical procedure. I’ve also had two patients spontaneously report to me NDEs that they had previously told no one, and write out reports for me that are variants of my own experience, but told me they had said nothing previously for fear of being called 'crazy.'   Neither patient was being treated by me for a psychotic illness.

Could my experience have been secondary to hypoxia?   My own experience with hypoxia in a tightly controlled environment in the Air Force was not in any way comparable to the feelings I experienced while seeing the “light”.

I have just become aware of a study by scientists at the University of Chicago-- soon to be published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, finding that most US doctors believe in God and in an afterlife. 76% of 1,004 physicians surveyed said they believe in God and 59% believed in some form of after-life. My own belief, prior to my respiratory arrest/NDE, included believing in God, but with a strong conviction that the way to demonstrate this was to be helpful to my fellow man while alive and with no feeling that I would be rewarded in an after-life for my deeds---for I did not believe in an after-life!

Somehow, after my respiratory arrest/NDE, I awakened with the firm conviction that there is a God, a gentle, forgiving God for all of Mankind.   Was I so terrified by my close encounter with death that I mentally had to configure this strong conviction? I certainly have no memories of anything frightening during my “experience”. My awakening and subsequent slow recovery were distinctly unpleasant, but I am perplexed by my subsequent total conviction of God’s existence.

As a scientist, am I therefore to disqualify myself from evaluating current research for fear of falling into the scientific trap of the “immaculate perception” or “confirmation bias” and accepting as truth only that which goes along with my personal belief? I hope I have been well enough trained in the scientific method and the currently taught Evidence Based Medicine to separate “Belief,” no matter how strong, from 'Truth' however it is demonstrated.   Many years passed, and with the passage of time, I occasionally wondered when or if I was going to acquire the 'super-powers' written about by some experiencers.

One of my other sons recently, in a conversation with me, brought up the past, saying “Dad, remember that white light experience, telling you there was something you had to be?”

'You had to be a GRANDFATHER.' And so it was.....

TWO NDEs REPORTED BY PEOPLE BLIND FROM BIRTH – Vicki Umipeg and Brad Barrows

Vicki Umipeg was born prematurely, having been in the womb only 22 weeks at delivery, and weighed just three pounds at birth. Afterward, her weight dropped precariously to one pound, 14 ounces. As was common for premature babies in the 1950s, she was placed in an airlock incubator through which oxygen was administered.

Unfortunately, because of a failure to regulate the concentration of oxygen properly, Vicki was given too much, and, along with 50,000 other premature babies born in the United States about the same time, suffered such severe optic nerve damage in both eyes as to leave her completely blind. Vicki was not only unable to see light or shadows, even in her dreams, but she was also unable even to understand the concept of light!!

Because of this, Vicki had never had any visual experience whatever, until she was 22 years old and seriously injured in an automobile accident.

In early 1973, Vicki was working as an occasional singer in a nightclub in Seattle. One night, at closing time, circumstances forced her to get a ride to her home with a couple of inebriated patrons. Not surprisingly, a serious accident ensued, during which Vicki was thrown out of their van. Her injuries were extensive and life-threatening, including a skull fracture, concussion, and damage to her neck, back, and one leg. In fact, it took her a full year after being released from the hospital before she could stand upright.

Vicki has no memory of the her trip to Harborview Hospital in the ambulance, but after she arrived at the emergency room, she found herself up on the ceiling, seeing doctors and nurses working on a body beneath her. To be able to see for the first time in her life was initially frightening to her. She was only used to living by taste, touch, sound, and smell. Then, she noticed the unusual wedding ring on the finger of the body below her and realized that it was HER body---quite tall and thin at that time. After she realized that she was up on the ceiling, she thought, "Well, that's kind of weird. What am I doing up here?
“Am I dead?"

Vicki could overhear one doctor saying to another that she could become deaf as well as blind, because she had blood on both eardrums. She tried desperately to communicate to them that she was fine, but drew no response.

Almost immediately after that, as she recalls, she found herself going up through the ceilings of the hospital until she was above the roof of the building itself, during which time she had a brief panoramic view of her surroundings. She felt very exhilarated during this ascension and enjoyed tremendously the freedom of movement she was experiencing. She also began to hear beautiful and exquisitely harmonious music, akin to the sound of wind chimes.

With scarcely a noticeable transition, she then discovered she had been sucked head-first into a tube and felt that she was being pulled into it. The enclosure itself was dark, Vicki said, yet she was aware that she was moving toward light. As she reached the opening of the tube, she then "rolled out" to find herself lying on grass.

She was surrounded by trees and flowers and a vast number of people. She was in a place of tremendous light, and the light, Vicki said, was something you could feel as well as see. What the light conveyed was love. Even the people she saw were bright and reflected the light of this love. "Everybody there was made of light. And I was made of light. There was love everywhere. It was like love came from the grass, from the birds, from the trees."

Vicki then became aware of five specific persons she had known who were welcoming her to this place. Debby and Diane were Vicki's blind schoolmates, who had died years before, at ages 11 and 6, respectively. In life, they had both been profoundly retarded as well as blind, but here they appeared bright and beautiful, healthy and vitally alive, and no longer children, but, "in their prime." In addition, Vicki reports seeing two of her childhood caretakers, Mr. and Mrs. Zilk, both of whom had also previously died. Finally, there was Vicki's grandmother, who had essentially raised Vicki and who had died just two years before Vicki’s accident. Her grandmother reached out to hug Vicki. In these encounters, no actual words were exchanged, Vicki says, but only feelings of love and welcome.

In the midst of this rapture, Vicki was suddenly overcome with a sense of total knowledge. I had a feeling like I knew everything ... and like everything made sense. I just knew that this was where I would find the answers to all my questions about life, and about the universe, God, and everything. ... It's like the place was the knowing.

And then she was indeed flooded with information of a religious nature, as well as scientific and mathematical knowledge. She came to understand languages she didn't know. All this overwhelmed and astonished her: “I don't know beans about math and science. ... but all of a sudden I understood, intuitively, things about calculus, about the way planets were made. I felt there was nothing I didn't know.”

As these revelations were unfolding, Vicki noticed someone next to her, a radiant figure who greeted her tenderly, while she conveyed her excitement to him about her newfound omniscience and her joy at being there. Then, without speaking, he communicated to her: "Isn't it wonderful? Everything is beautiful here, and it fits together. And you'll find that. But you can't stay here now. It's not your time to be here yet, and you have to go back."

Vicki reacted, understandably enough, with extreme disappointment, and protested, "No, I want to stay with you." But “the being” reassured her that she would come back; but for now, she had to "go back and learn and teach more about loving and forgiving."

Still resistant, however, Vicki then learned that she also needed to go back to have her children. With that, Vicki, who was then childless, but who "desperately wanted" to have children---and who has since given birth to three---became almost eager to return!

However, before Vicki could leave, the being said to her, in these exact words, "But first, watch this." She then saw a complete panoramic review of her life, and, as she watched, the being gently explained the significance of her actions and their repercussions.

The last thing Vicki remembers, once the life review had been completed, are the words, "You have to leave now." She then experienced "a sickening thud", like a roller-coaster going backwards, and found herself back in her body, feeling heavy and full of pain. When Vicki awoke in the hospital, she was again completely blind.

-----------------------------------------------

A second case is that of Brad Barrows, a 33-year-old man living in Connecticut, who had a near-death experience in the winter of 1968 when he was only 8 years old. Brad, like Vicki, has been blind from birth. At the time, he was a student at the Boston Center for Blind Children, and had contracted a severe case of pneumonia and eventually had severe breathing difficulties. Afterward, he was told by nurses that his heart had stopped, apparently for at least four minutes, and that cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) had been necessary to bring him back.

Brad remembers that when he couldn't breathe any longer, he felt himself lifting up from the bed and floating through the room toward the ceiling. He saw his apparently lifeless body on the bed. He also saw his blind roommate get up from his bed and leave the room to get help. (His roommate later confirmed this.) He then found himself rapidly going upward through the ceilings of the building until he was above the roof.

Brad estimates that it was about 7 am when this happened. He noticed that the sky was cloudy and dark. There had been a snowstorm the day before, and Brad could see snow everywhere except for the streets, which had been plowed. He was able to give a very detailed description of the way the snow looked. He could also see the snow banks that the plows had created. He saw a street car go by. Finally, he recognized a playground used by the children of his school and a particular hill he used to climb nearby.

When Brad was asked if he "knew" or "saw" these things, he said: "I clearly visualized them. I remember being able to see quite clearly."

After this segment of this experience, which happened very fast, was over, he found himself in a tunnel and emerged from it to find himself in an immense field, illuminated by a tremendous, all-encompassing light. Everything was perfect.

Brad could clearly see in this domain, too, though he commented that he was puzzled by the sensation of sight. He found himself walking on a path surrounded by tall grass, and also reported seeing tall trees with immense leaves. No shadows were visible, however.

While in this field, Brad became aware of beautiful music, like nothing he had ever heard on earth. Walking toward the sound, he came to and climbed a hill, eventually encountering a glittering stone structure so brilliant that he thought it might be burning hot. But it wasn't, and he entered it. Brad encountered a man whom he didn't recognize but who emanated an overwhelming love. The man, without a word, gently nudged Brad backward, initiating a reversal of his experience, ending with his finding himself in bed gasping for air. He again was completely blind.

These two cases took place a continent apart and before the advent of modern near-death studies.

OLDEST MEDICAL DESCRIPTION OF A NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCE (NDE), FRANCE, 1740 CE

Resuscitation---Official Journal of the European Resuscitation Council

September 2014Volume 85, Issue 9, Page e155

Near-death experience (NDE) has been scientifically described as ‘a profound psychological event with transcendental and mystical elements’ after a life-threatening crisis (mainly cardiopulmonary resuscitation): awareness of being dead, positive emotions, out of body experience, the feeling of moving through a tunnel, communication with light, observation of colors of a celestial landscape, meeting with deceased people, life review, presence of a border.

Scholars have analyzed mystical and historical possible experiences of NDE in ancient civilizations (Pharaonic Egypt, Mesopotamia, Vedic India, Greco-Roman Antiquity, pre-Buddhist China, Himalayan Buddhism, pre-Columbian Meso-America). We report here a 18th century description (circa 1740) given by a physician, i.e. the oldest professional/medical case report of NDE.

The author is Pierre-Jean du Monchaux (1733–1766), a military physician from North of France who died of a fever at the age of 33 in the island San Domingo:

“Sir L.C., one of the most famous apothecaries of Paris had in Italy, 25 years ago, a malign fever, and was treated by French physicians and surgeons, and sustained many blood-letters. After the last phlebotomy – which was very important – he had a syncope and was unconscious for such a long time that the assistants were particularly worried. He reported that after having lost all external sensations, he saw such a pure and extreme light that he thought he was in Heaven (literally: in the Kingdom of the Blessed). He remembered this sensation very well, and affirmed that never of all his life had he had a nicer moment.”

Other individuals of various ages and sexes reported a very similar sensation in the same circumstances. These observations seem to be comparable to those of a 12th c. theologian, who said that at the moment approaching our body and soul dissolution, the latter is lit by a primary light ray (luminositas lucis primae)?’

Arthur’s EXCEPTIONAL NDE in 1988

This all happened the first week in October 1988, and I was in the hospital, being treated for Legionnaires Disease. I was extremely ill with 106 degree fever for a week.

When I had this experience, I knew nothing about NDEs; I had never heard of them. It was a few years before I learned about such things or read anything about them. My experience was vivid, every dead loved one and good friend was there to greet me and guide me! I saw a field full of them! I heard music that I can't begin to compare with anything on earth. Love was all around, feelings that I cannot articulate.

If I returned to earth, I was told to marry a certain woman and that we were to have two children, a boy then a girl. [We did and we have!! Thinking about this brings tears to my eyes, joy, chills, goose bumps, and a sense of reverence beyond explanation!] However, I was given a choice, there was a long discussion, and I was shown some future events that would happen if I decided to stay in heaven by just moving toward the approaching light.

I decided to come back and was whooshed backwards through the tunnel from whence I had arrived. I hit my hospital bed with a thud! It must have been audible, as 3 nurses came running in and yelled “thank God; his fever has broken and he is still with us. Thank God!”

After my experience, I doubted where I had been, because, among those who greeted me on the Other Side were two of my friends who I knew were still alive: Mike, a client in London was there in a green cashmere sport coat holding a wooden handled putter, and a childhood friend, Betsy, who was smiling and hugged me. The rest of my heavenly greeters were dead, including some great grandparents that I had only seen in photos but had never met.

Later on, at Thanksgiving, my mother told me, ‘I have some sad news: your friend Betsy died last summer. This made chills go down my arm. At Christmas time, I decided to call Mike, and was told he couldn't come to the phone---because he was dead! I asked, ‘how, where, when?’ They replied, ‘Last July at the annual Lloyds Golf tournament, Mike had finished his round, had dressed for dinner when he had a heart attack.’ I was speechless, and this validation of where I had been hit me like a ton of bricks.

Since then, I have puzzled over questions like: How did Mike and Betsy come to meet me? How did this communication transpire? How did they know I had died in a hospital in Miami? How?

SO, it is important now that I do something a little better with my life than what it was I had not been accomplishing before this life-giving episode in my short visit to the other dimension. I am trying!

$C:\Users\Bob\AppData\Local\Temp\ilmkgiilckfplooo.jpeg$

I HAVE NEVER READ THE LIFE STORY OF A YOUNG PERSON WHICH WAS AS AMAZING AS THIS ONE.

A computer programmer with a high salary

who founds her own company,

is diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma,

overcomes it with chemotherapy,

has heart failure, flat-lining in her husband’s arms,

is in coma for months,

is kept underwater as part of her treatment,

is kept alive for 4 years with a bionic heart pump,

has an amazing near-death experience,

finally, has a heart transplant,

and now appears to be completely normal!

NOW READ HER NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE!

Cherie B's NDE

On April 10, 2010, I was rushed to the hospital. It was almost sixteen months after I had completed chemotherapy for a diagnosis of Hodgkin's Lymphoma, and only ten months after being declared free of any signs of the cancer. I had symptoms of shortness of breath for several weeks, and medical and health practitioners were unable to determine the cause. My husband rushed me off to the emergency room after contacting my cardiologist who planned to meet us in there. I remember nothing of that frightening day, but my husband still has the memories of what was happening to his new wife. Within minutes of arriving in the emergency room, I flatlined. Emergency medical staff came rushing to my side to immediately begin resuscitation. But my heart would not restart. A series of miracles then unfolded to enable me to still be here in physical form today.

The medical staff were ready to declare my ‘time of death,’ but my local cardiologist would not give up. While resuscitation techniques were being applied, my doctor rushed to get some type of life support system in place to keep blood circulating to my organs. But my heart did not restart. It was no longer beating. All of my organs were failing. I was eventually transferred from one hospital to another where the medical tests showed there was no left or right ventricle or atrial movement in my heart. I had arrived at the new hospital with no heartbeat. I was in a coma for the next six to eight weeks and no one knew if I would survive or have brain damage. During this time, a bionic heart pump had to be installed over a series of open heart surgeries.

While in my coma, I remember being in a few different medical centers, but the medical staff had to keep me submerged underwater because I couldn’t breathe regular air. And the events that unfolded were extremely traumatic, because the doctors had to keep trying different methods to pull me out of the water at times so I could breathe on my own. It reminds me of when a baby is born and has to take their first breath of air. In short, my brother, who is a few years older than me, was the only one who could pull me out of the water where I was able to breathe. I do remember, at that moment I briefly came out of my coma for just a minute or two, enough to know that my brother had flown in to see me and was standing by my side. I didn’t have enough time, but I remember that I was pointing to different letters on a sheet of paper to try to spell out, ‘I thought I had died.’ I was placed back into my induced coma before I was able to spell out the last two words, but my husband confirmed later that he knew what I was trying to say. I was in the coma again for another six to seven weeks.

From the moment my heart first stopped, my spirit drifted off to another dimension. It was during this time that I experienced the most incredible experience of my lifetime. I crossed over to the Other Side ("afterworld") and later came back to share my journey with the world.

As soon as I died, I remember “finding myself floating in white light.” I knew I had died and crossed over. “It was instant and pain-free”. “I remember feeling so relieved at how easy it was; I had spent my whole life worrying about death and wondering … would the transition hurt? But, it “was quick and painless.”

When I first crossed over into the afterworld, I was greeted by a group of beings, and we communicated telepathically. These beings felt familiar, as if I had known them for lifetimes. They showed me a review of my life, when at first I didn’t want to go back to my physical life. (Later, they were the ones who told me I would be given a choice of whether or not I wanted to come back.)

I was extremely alert during my experience in the other dimension. I was able to see, and the colors were so much richer and brighter than before. My depth perception seemed different. I didn’t have to ‘look’ and use my eyes the way we do normally.

I was never alone. I was always surrounded by many beings. Some were in form and others non-form. I always felt their love and protection. The heavy burden of guilt, shame and worthlessness I had carried earlier in life seemed to have detached from my soul, making me feel as free as a bird.

I was thrilled to meet my grandmother and a family friend who had always been a secondary father-figure growing up. They needed my help, they said, to find peace for the loved ones they had left behind who were unable to move on without them.

Surprisingly, there were also times during my life review where I was interacting with other beings in different lifetimes, or dimensions. But, I felt safe and as light as a feather, with none of the burdens of my normal life, and incredible peace and joy. I was made aware that my body would heal and that it was safe for me to return.

I was never raised to be religious, and although I have always been curious about different religions and practices, I have never followed, nor do I now, any particular religion. However, this experience did confirm my belief that our soul never dies. And that we will not be alone even after our physical bodies cease to exist. I was able to understand why I had become sick through my life review. And I was able to see exactly what energy or belief was held within my spiritual vibration that was being carried from lifetime to lifetime. It was very clear. I knew what it was I needed to do in this lifetime to clear that energy so my spirit no longer has to carry that suffering into another lifetime.

I was shown that our created concept of hell only exists in this world. Hell exists right now, not in the afterlife. The afterlife is beautiful, pure, loving, and safe. The struggles and heartaches we put on ourselves in this world are our hell. I was able to see that the universe consists of different dimensions. Some are happening at the same time, some are in the past and some are in the future. It was fascinating. I’m still trying to find words to communicate in detail that this is real. I’m not a scientist, but I know what I experienced was real. It was not a dream. I know that no matter what our circumstances, how we are perceived or judged by the world, or what we have done in this lifetime, that we are all pure love. It’s as simple as that. And we are all here to remind each other of our pure essence and what we can create in this three-dimensional world together.

I was unable to speak during most of my four months at the hospital due to being on a respirator for so long. I had to transition over the last two months' stay in the hospital off both the ventilator and the tracheal tube, which had been put in place after my initial open heart surgery because both of my lungs had collapsed. But there were times in my third month that they were able to begin strengthening my lungs and I was able to occasionally use a tracheal attachment to allow me to say a few words.

Since my NDE and release from the hospital, I waited on the transplant list for a new heart to replace my bionic heart, and I am now a heart transplant recipient, an International Keynote Speaker, a member of the Board of Directors of the Transplant Forum at Columbia University Medical Center, and have been featured in Forbes, ABC, the Dr. Oz Show, and The Morning Show!

Remember, I was married in 2008, diagnosed with cancer two months later, and, then, in 2010, died in my husband’s arms. Doctors couldn’t resuscitate me for over 90 minutes. Then I survived for several years with a bionic heart, until, in 2014, a heart transplant gave me new life!

It has taken a massive team of over 100 doctors and surgeons from around the world, and $3 million dollars to save my life, shattering medical records globally. To this day, all of the doctors and medical teams that have been following my case still cannot believe how well I have done. Even loved ones who saw me in the hospital still have a hard time grasping that I survived my experience. Now, I am happy and healthy, sharing my lessons, learnings and love with the world.

Dr. Eben A’s NDE in 2008

I graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1976 with a major in chemistry and earned my M.D. at Duke University Medical School in 1980. During my eleven years of medical school and residency training at Duke, as well as Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard, I focused on neuroendocrinology, the study of the interactions between the nervous system and the endocrine system— the series of glands that release the hormones that direct most of your body’s activities. I also spent two of those eleven years investigating how blood vessels in one area of the brain react pathologically when there is bleeding into it from an aneurysm— a syndrome known as cerebral vasospasm. After completing a fellowship in cerebrovascular neurosurgery in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in the United Kingdom, I spent fifteen years on the faculty of Harvard Medical School as an associate professor of surgery, with a specialization in neurosurgery. During those years I operated on countless patients, many of them with severe, life-threatening brain conditions.

On November 10, 2008, however, at age fifty-four, my luck seemed to run out. I was struck by bacterial meningitis and thrown into a coma for seven days. During that time, my entire neocortex— the outer surface of the brain, the part that makes us human— was shut down.

The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) glucose level of a normal healthy person is around 80 milligrams per deciliter. An extremely sick person in imminent danger of dying from bacterial meningitis can have a level as low as 20 mg/ dl. I had a CSF glucose level of 1. My Glasgow Coma Scale was eight out of fifteen, indicative of a severe brain illness, and declined further over the next few days. My APACHE II score (Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation) in the ER was 18 out of a possible 71, indicating that the chances of my dying during that hospitalization were about 30 percent. More specifically, given my diagnosis of acute gram-negative bacterial meningitis and rapid neurological decline at the outset, I’d had, at best, only about a 10 percent chance of surviving my illness when I was admitted to the ER.

Something had appeared in the darkness. Turning slowly, it radiated fine filaments of white-gold light, and as it did so, the darkness around me began to splinter and break apart. Then I heard a new sound: a living sound, like the richest, most complex, most beautiful piece of music I’d ever heard. Growing in volume as a pure white light descended, it obliterated the monotonous mechanical pounding that had been my only company up until then. The light got closer and closer, spinning around and around and generating those filaments of pure white light that I now saw were tinged, here and there, with hints of gold. Then, at the very center of the light, something else appeared. I focused my awareness, hard, trying to figure out what it was. An opening. I was no longer looking at the slowly spinning light at all, but through it. The moment I understood this, I began to rise up. Fast. There was a whooshing sound, and in a flash I went through the opening and found myself in a completely new world. The strangest, most beautiful world I’d ever seen. Brilliant, vibrant, ecstatic, stunning . . . I could heap on one adjective after another to describe what this world looked and felt like, but they’d all fall short. I felt like I was being born. Not reborn, or born again. Just . . . born.

Below me there was countryside. It was green, lush, and earthlike. It was earth . . . but at the same time it wasn’t. It was like when your parents take you back to a place where you spent some years as a very young child. You don’t know the place. Or at least you think you don’t. But as you look around, something pulls at you, and you realize that a part of yourself— a part way, deep down— does remember the place after all, and is rejoicing at being back there again. I was flying, passing over trees and fields, streams and waterfalls, and here and there, people. There were children, too, laughing and playing. The people sang and danced around in circles, and sometimes I’d see a dog, running and jumping among them, as full of joy as the people were. They wore simple yet beautiful clothes, and it seemed to me that the colors of these clothes had the same kind of living warmth as the trees and the flowers that bloomed and blossomed in the countryside around them. A beautiful, incredible dream world . . . Except it wasn’t a dream. Though I didn’t know where I was or even what I was, I was absolutely sure of one thing: this place I’d suddenly found myself in was completely real.

Someone was next to me: a beautiful girl with high cheekbones and deep blue eyes. She was wearing the same kind of peasant-like clothes that the people in the village down below wore. Golden-brown tresses framed her lovely face. She was my companion and guide.

The girl’s outfit was simple, but its colors— powder blue, indigo, and pastel orange-peach— had the same overwhelming, super-vivid aliveness that everything else in the surroundings had. She looked at me with a look that, if you saw it for a few moments, would make your whole life up to that point worth living, no matter what had happened in it so far. It was not a romantic look. It was not a look of friendship. It was a look that was somehow beyond all these . . . beyond all the different types of love we have down here on earth. It was something higher, holding all those other kinds of love within itself while at the same time being more genuine and pure than all of them. Without using any words, she spoke to me.

“You are loved and dearly cherished, forever.”

“You have nothing to fear.”

“There is nothing you can do wrong.”

The message flooded me with a vast and crazy sensation of relief. It was like being handed the rules to a game I’d been playing all my life without ever fully understanding it. “We will show you many things here,” the girl said— again, without actually speaking these words but by driving their conceptual essence directly into me. “But eventually, you will go back.”

Meanwhile, I was in a place of clouds. Big, puffy, pink-white ones that showed up sharply against the deep blue-black sky. Where is this place? Who am I? Why am I here? Each time I silently posed one of these questions, the answer came instantly in an explosion of light, color, love, and beauty that blew through me like a crashing wave. Thoughts entered me directly. The questions, and the answers, continued. Though they still didn’t come in the form of language as we know it, the “voice” of this Being was warm and— odd as I know this may sound— personal. It understood humans, and it possessed the qualities we possess, only in infinitely greater measure.

I saw the abundance of life throughout the countless universes, including some whose intelligence was advanced far beyond that of humanity. I saw that there are countless higher dimensions, but that the only way to know these dimensions is to enter and experience them directly. They cannot be known, or understood, from lower dimensional space.

I was going back, the inky-bright darkness faded into the green landscape. I saw the villagers again, the trees and sparkling streams and the waterfalls. My companion was there, too. She had been there the whole time, of course. But now she was, once again, in human form. She wore the same beautiful dress, and seeing her again made me feel like a child lost in a huge and alien city who suddenly comes upon a familiar face. What a gift she was! “We will show you many things, but you will be going back.”

I had already been taught the one thing— the only thing— that, in the last analysis, truly matters. Love is, without a doubt, the basis of everything. Not some abstract, hard-to-fathom kind of love but the day-to-day kind that everyone knows— the kind of love we feel when we look at our spouse and our children, or even our animals. In its purest and most powerful form, this love is not jealous or selfish, but unconditional. This is the reality of realities, the incomprehensibly glorious truth of truths that lives and breathes at the core of everything that exists or that ever will exist. Love is also the single most important scientific truth as well.

The unconditional love and acceptance that I experienced on my journey is the single most important discovery I have ever made. I also know in my heart that sharing this very basic message— one so simple that most children readily accept it— is the most important task I have. One of the biggest mistakes people make when they think about God is to imagine God as impersonal. Yes, God is behind the numbers, the perfection of the universe that science measures and struggles to understand. But— again, paradoxically— God is “human” as well— even more human than you and I are.

“Have a seat,” Dr. Wade told my wife Holley; “a week in coma with severe bacterial meningitis is already beyond the limits of any reasonable expectation of recovery. Given those prospects, it might be better to let nature take its course.” Spoken in a single sentence, it was time to let my body die.

Holley told our son Bond to wait outside the door because she hadn’t wanted him to hear what she feared was very bad news. But sensing this, Bond had lingered outside the door and caught some of Dr. Wade’s words. Enough of them to understand that his father was not coming back. Ever. Bond ran into the room and up to my bed. Sobbing, he kissed my forehead and pulled up my eyelids and said, directly into my empty, unfocused eyes, “You’re going to be okay, Daddy. You’re going to be okay.” But now, as my wife’s friend Sylvia and Bond stared into my slack face, my eyes opened. Sylvia shrieked. “Holley . . . Holley!” Sylvia shouted. “He’s awake. Awake!

As my loving family and caregivers gathered around my bed, still dumbstruck by the inexplicable transition, I had a peaceful, joyous smile. “All is well,” I said, radiating that blissful message as much as speaking the words. I looked at each of them, deeply, acknowledging the divine miracle of our very existence. “Don’t worry . . . all is well,” I repeated. Everyone was surprised by the speed of my recovery— except for me. I— as of yet— had no real clue how close to death I had actually been.

What I’d experienced was more real than the house I now sat in, more real than the logs burning in the fireplace. Yet there was no room for that reality in the medically trained scientific worldview that I’d spent years acquiring.

I didn’t think about my adoption during my college and medical school years— at least not on the surface---but four months after my departure from the hospital, my birth family sister Kathy finally got around to sending me a photo of my birth sister Betsy. I opened the oversized envelope and pulled out a framed glossy color photo of the sister I had never known. She had long brown hair and deep blue eyes, and her smile, radiating love and kindness, seemed to go right through me, making my heart both swell and ache at the same time. My eyes were misting as I put the picture carefully up on the dresser and continued to stare at it. She looked so strangely, hauntingly familiar.

For a moment I went into a strange, dazed space; some thought that was right on the edge of my consciousness hadn’t quite broken through. Then my eyes looked back at Betsy’s photo. I suddenly realized that---without the powder blue and indigo dress, without the heavenly light around her, she wasn’t easy to recognize at first. But now there was no mistaking her, no mistaking the loving smile, the confident and infinitely comforting look, the sparkling blue eyes. It was she who had been my heavenly guide and companion! For an instant, the worlds met. My world here on earth, where I was a doctor and father and a husband. And that world out there—that I had visited during my coma.

For the sake of those here on earth, I see it as my duty— both as a scientist and hence a seeker of truth, and as a doctor devoted to helping people—to make it known to as many people as I can that what I underwent is true, and real, and of stunning importance. Not just to me, but to all of us. You are loved.

Dr. Gillian M’s NDE in 2013

I had been ill with chest pain, fever, headache, and night sweats for about a week, but had not missed work, and I was on-call. I finished rounds and went to the Urgent Care clinic. The chest x-ray showed a suspicious nodule in my lungs. A CT scan of my chest resulted in my being flown to a cardiovascular intensive care unit after being diagnosed with a dissecting aortic aneurysm. After arrival at the tertiary care center, a regular echocardiogram did not support the diagnosis of an aortic aneurysm.

The CT also showed hilar lymph nodes and a peripheral pulmonary nodule, but this was not the primary concern at the time. [Hilar lymph nodes are located in the region of the junction of each lung and its bronchi. Peripheral pulmonary nodule is a common disease of the lung, which can be benign or malignant.]

I was sedated due to erratic blood pressure and went to the operating room with plans for cardiothoracic surgery and was prepped for a heart bypass and intubated. They then did a transesophageal echocardiogram, which also did not confirm an aneurysm, so the surgery was, thankfully, cancelled. The next morning, I woke up with a very sore throat and an arterial line in my left wrist. There was still some doubt as to whether the aneurysm was present, so they ordered another heart test.

It was on the way to this procedure when I crashed and had an NDE.   I was chatting with my nurse, who was pushing me down a long underground empty tunnel in a wheelchair.   As we approached an elevator, I realized that I was losing my vision. It worsened and I mentioned it to my nurse. She asked if we needed to return to the intensive care unit. I told her, ‘I think so,’ as I could no longer see and was losing my hearing. I tried to put my head down, but was about to fall out of the wheelchair when she yanked me upright. That is the last thing that I recall.

At this point, I had been off the blood pressure-lowering drip and a last morphine injection for at least an hour.   I had had a bad headache that morning with the injection about 2 hours prior.   I don't recall feeling sedated and did not have a fever at the time.

My next recollection is being in a vast, seemingly endless, space filled with brilliant white light. I felt incredible joy and peace and love. Love was as all-pervasive in the space as the Light.   I recall no limits on perception, no binocular vision, but a panoramic/spherical/360 degrees vision which is hard to describe.   I spent what seemed like a long time with a group of beings that I felt I had known forever.

I have a vague recollection of having my past Earthly experiences ‘downloaded’ while having a great reunion with these beings, including a great period of relaxation/recuperation.   Communication was non-verbal and instantaneous.   It involved relaying my entire Earthly experiences, concepts, and events with associated emotions, not just words and sentences. I felt intense joy and happiness in this disembodied state in the white light. There was a sense of ‘I’, but I was also a part of a group consciousness, and that was blissful. Eventually a consensus was reached that I should return to the life I had just left, as it was left unfinished.

I don't recall how I appeared, but I do recall how the other beings appeared as I departed from them. They were like brilliant points of sparkling light in emerald green and deep purple that radiated outward from inside them.   I thought, 'this is weird, why not all colors?' I recall them receding into the distance.

My next memory is being a point of consciousness hovering. I don't recall any sound.   I was back to having binocular vision; my entire field of vision was taken up by a ‘face’ for which I had immediate compassion as I realized it was suffering.   I recall the eyes staring and mouth being open, perhaps wearing an oxygen mask. Then I realized I was looking down at my own face!   With the feeling of compassion, came an instantaneous sense of connection, and I was suddenly wrenched back into my body. It was a very rapid transition.   I could hear the medical staff yelling orders. I was drenched in sweat and felt awful and very weak and hurt all over.   Later, I learned that I had had some seizure activity.

I recall a bald-headed man leaning over me. Someone else to my right yelled ‘do you have epilepsy?’ and I turned my head and told them ‘no’. Someone on my left was fumbling under my gown with defibrillator pads, asking ‘should I take them off?’   Someone else said ‘No, we may lose her again’.

At some point, I recall starting to cry and asking them ‘why did you bring me back to this place? It was so wonderful there. Everyone was so pleasant and loved each other. It was so beautiful. Why did you have to bring me back here?’ Those nearby seemed to hear me and seemed shocked, but remained professional, as I recall. I was quiet for a while, processing what I remembered of the experience while they worked. I recall eventually asking them not to tell my husband that I didn't want to come back. I'm quite sure they thought I was an ungrateful lunatic, but they were relieved I was alive.

The rest I pieced together by asking a lot of questions, and my nurse confirmed that my heart had stopped briefly after developing hypotension (systolic to 30) and bradycardia. She also told me about the seizure. Mostly, however, no one wanted to talk about it. They eventually chalked it up to the effects of prolonged ‘vasovagal response’ resulting in bradycardia (decreased heart rate) and eventual brief cardiac arrest. [Vasovagal response is a rapid drop in the heart rate and blood pressure resulting in loss of consciousness.] I remained in the intensive care unit for several days but have now fully recovered.

I will add that I was raised in a fundamentalist religious community, but became agnostic for a while after reaching adulthood. Today I consider myself spiritual, but not religious. I believe that we should not ‘sweat the small stuff,’ because, in the big scheme of things, much of our reality is ‘small stuff’ and we are here to learn. Also, don't beat yourself (or others) up for mistakes. It isn't like we come here with an ‘Idiot's Guide to Earthly Living’ or anything. We all have to figure it out (or not) as we go along.

Also note that I discovered that I had existed before I came to Earth. I was welcomed back to a group of intelligent beings that knew me before this lifetime. Information flow among us was instantaneous and reciprocal, so they knew all about the life I had just left, and I recalled my prior existence with them, although we did not discuss it.

I have shared my experience with colleagues, despite the fact that it could result in professional criticism or concerns about my sanity and ability to practice medicine. In fact, they have been amazingly supportive. The whole experience has made me a better doctor. The NDE has made me a better person. I now feel that my fear of death has been laid to rest.

It was a profound experience. I doubt I could ever forget it. My NDE was definitely real, as real as everyday life, not at all dreamlike. I am a scientist at heart. I am aware that nothing in my experience is ‘provable’ using the Scientific Method, but If it was not real, then how can I have any certainty that my Earthly existence is real?

Marion R’s NDE in 2011

My near-death experience and how I went from believing that death was the end of it all to being absolutely certain that it’s just the beginning of everything, and most importantly the beginning of real love and life.

I grew up in the U.K. in a very rational family made up mostly of scientists and very down-to-earth individuals who – with the exception of a very few – believed in absolutely nothing but proven, quantifiable and verifiable facts. To this day, most of my relatives are convinced that my incredible and utterly magical “near-death experience” was nothing but the result of the drugs I was given in hospital on that night of the 5th July 2011, when I nearly died. Others believe that I just had a “very beautiful dream.” I’m not a scientist myself; however, given my upbringing, I probably would have followed a similar line of reasoning before I found myself being, luckily, the victim of medical neglect, and nearly losing what I’ll refer to as my “bodied life”. My NDE fundamentally changed my life, my outlook on life and my entire belief system.

Just as I’m not a scientist, although I display a great interest in science, I’m not a religious person, either. Even though I’ve been baptised and had my communion, I’ve never been a practicing Catholic. My mother is, I believe, an utterly fake Catholic. She practises Catholicism for the sole purpose of appeasing her conscience for all the suffering she has inflicted on every single person that has been unfortunate enough to cross her path.

By the 1st July, I noticed that I had lost 18 lbs, weighing a mere 92 lbs at 5 ft 4 inches in height. I am a walking skeleton in constant pain and all I have been offered by my dentists to ease the pain is either a tooth extraction or antibiotics. I have chosen the latter during the two weeks since my appointment; in this time I have at least been able to eat thick soup, but nothing more solid than that. By the time my course of antibiotics ends, on the 3rd July, the pain has come back just as strongly as before. I have to wait just two more days in order to get a root canal treatment on the NHS.

However, in the early hours of the 5th July, I can’t swallow anything anymore, not even water. The infection has gone down to my throat. It is spreading. I am greatly weakened and have a fever. The pain is now intolerable. It is in my entire head and jaws – even crying is physically painful, and any movement in my face is agony. I pass out and fall unconscious as I arrive at the hospital.

Right after “losing” consciousness I was completely pain-free and I could see a bunch of random people and medical staff getting all agitated around someone. I didn’t know yet that that person lying on the floor was me. It then occurred to me that I was witnessing the entire scene from the ceiling. I found it really strange. I then spotted the man who was my partner at the time. He was outside that group of individuals but focused on that someone the doctors were seemingly trying to revive. He looked greatly sad, tearful, worried and distressed. I was wondering why. And what were we doing here anyway? I asked him what was wrong and soon realised that he couldn’t hear or see me.

As I tried to touch his shoulder, I became aware that I didn’t have any arms anymore, let alone a body. Not only that, but my vision was now a panoramic three hundred and sixty degrees. I could see everything at the same time: on the left, on the right, underneath and above. I must say it felt strange, but I really enjoyed it. I hadn’t realised yet that I was dead. I then got distracted by a baby girl crying in the arms of her father. She was a very cute little blonde girl with hazel eyes. Her dad looked anxious and I knew why. I had just heard him say to someone on the phone that his other, older daughter was being examined by a doctor in a nearby room for suspected appendicitis. It was when I went and looked into that room that I realised I could pass through the doors without having to open them, and even through the walls. What was going on?

However, as I reached the next room I knew it was nothing like appendicitis that child had. She had something much more serious – she was suffering from a chronic gastrointestinal disease and operating on her for appendicitis wouldn’t make any difference to her condition. Even though I was one hundred per cent sure of my diagnosis on her, I asked myself how I knew that. I had known nothing about intestinal disorders before. That’s when it occurred to me that I could read her thoughts, and therefore I knew the nature of the very pain she was experiencing, which, at three years old, she couldn’t put into words in a precise manner. I also knew through her thoughts that she experienced this pain on quite a regular basis but this time it was much more severe than the other times.

It was definitely not an inflammation of the appendix. Her pain extended through her entire intestines and was spasmodic. I tried to explain this to the doctor but, just like with my partner, he couldn’t hear me and I found it very frustrating. The pain of that kid saddened me so much. I knew they were wasting time and yet no one could hear me. I then realised that I also knew what that doctor was thinking about while typing some entries on his computer. He was thinking about going on holiday in two days’ time. In the questionnaire aimed at the mother of the girl, there were some questions about the latest foods her daughter had eaten. He asked her whether or not the child had eaten any seafood in the last forty-eight hours. This led him to think of all the delicious seafood he would have on the French Riviera in just a couple of days. He had been exhausted lately and was greatly looking forward to this holiday with his wife and their kids. He also thought: “I must remember to put my electric toothbrush charger in my luggage. I don’t want to end up forgetting it like the last time on my holiday to Italy when I had to use a manual toothbrush. It doesn’t brush as efficiently as an electric one.” I said to myself: “How do I know what this man is thinking?” And what about that baby still crying in the waiting room?

I went back to her and her dad and I knew why she was crying so much. It was because of that unexpected trip to the hospital in the middle of the night. She had been woken up under stressful circumstances and was tired. Furthermore, she really needed her dummy. Her dad knew that. That was what he was thinking about: her dummy. He couldn’t tell whether he had left it at home or lost it on the way to hospital. He had already looked everywhere in the car and there was no dummy to be seen anywhere. Well, the dummy was in the pocket of the shorts of the big sister in agonising pain in the other room. I saw it through the pink cotton of her shorts. I tried to tell him that and the same thing happened again. He couldn’t hear me, let alone see me.

He looked at his watch and hoped that the ordeal would soon be over and that everything would just be a false alarm and that he could go to work later in the morning. I then realised that I could see inside the watch. I could see the entire internal mechanism of the clock and, even better than that, I knew the function of every single metallic piece in it. I understood the true meaning of time in the universe, in that universe, the earthly one.

I asked myself again: “How come I know everything?” As I asked myself that question, I heard some music coming from a radio at the back of the hospital café. I decided to go and see... passing through no fewer than two rooms and three walls. I was now used to my new “condition.” Even though it still felt a little bit strange, I didn’t question it anymore. The song was ‘Ruby Tuesday’ by The Rolling Stones. I loved that song! Why didn’t they play it louder? Oh but wait, as soon as I thought that, the music did play louder. Did I turn the volume up? It looked like it because the man making some sandwiches in the kitchen didn’t touch the radio. Was it my mind enhancing my sensory perception of the things I liked? The tall, dark-haired man with a white apron on and a thin golden chain around his neck incontestably didn’t turn the volume up. As he was preparing the food for the day, he was thinking that he hadn’t had enough sleep. It was 6 a.m. and he was tired. He was hoping he’d get to sleep for at least an hour before going to the pub for a beer with his friends after his shift in the late afternoon.

There would be a woman there he really wanted to date but he wasn’t sure she was interested in him. Could he hear the music as loud as I did? The answer in my mind arrived fast. He couldn’t. I knew instantly that I was the only one in the room that heard it much louder than he did, and I also knew all the notes required for every instrument to play it, even though I had never got past the beginner stage of guitar-playing in the five years since I started to learn sporadically. This was insane.

I decided I must talk to my boyfriend about that. He was a professional jazz piano player and he always teased me about my great lack of skill at playing music. The very thought of my partner directly led me to him. I was passing through the walls at a crazy speed, at a speed I had never experienced before, and yet I didn’t feel any sensation of actually moving. It felt like I was a part of my surroundings: I was everything and everything was me. Therefore, moving from point A to point B didn’t feel like it required any movement. I found it strange but I didn’t think much of it. I was too excited to let my partner know about the newly discovered music genius in me.

However, he was still in that hospital, still looking upset, and I wondered who on earth could be causing him so much stress and sadness. I then literally heard his thoughts: “Please Marion, don’t die. I promise I’ll stop telling you that you talk too much and that you sing out of tune in the shower. This is so unfair. How could a tooth lead to this? Not to mention her grandmother who just passed away… How will her dying affect her family?” I was confused, to say the least. Why was he thinking of me dying when I was perfectly fine? Come on, I could even play music now! And not just the guitar but every instrument! That was a dream come true. I tried to tell him that, but once again he couldn’t hear me and I couldn’t touch him. I then realised that his focus was turned in a particular direction, a particular room. I went over there, and as I looked I was surprised to find out that “I” was there. Well, it wasn’t me. The real “me” was up there just under the ceiling. Yet, it was my body down there. I then asked myself: “How could I be here above the room and my body be there on a reanimation table?”

Yet, I felt an utter and complete detachment from my body. I really must emphasise that it was a profound and genuine detachment. That inert and lifeless thing lying on the reanimation table wasn’t a part of me anymore. I then thought: “Am I dead? Is this death?” If this was indeed death, I was pleased with my new life. It felt great. I could see everything and I knew everything. What’s more, I knew I would never have to suffer any physical pain ever again. I loved being “dead.” I just couldn’t understand, while I was feeling so great, why these doctors seemed so determined to bring life back to that dead and now obsolete biological entity that used to be mine. I had the greatest awareness anyone can possibly imagine ever. I really was feeling amazing. I screamed as loudly as I could to tell them that. I was moving all around that table, begging them to stop. No one could hear me. I absolutely didn’t want to go back into that skinny and pale body that used to be mine. For some reason I knew that, if they managed to make that body live again, all the pain that was attached to it would be reawakened and I really, really didn’t want to go back there.

As I approached a nurse in a last attempt to get this across to her, I heard her say jokingly: “Who in 2011 still wears a Wayne’s World T-shirt?” Everyone laughed. I was indeed wearing such a T-shirt that day. She had just removed it from the back of a chair she needed near my bed, and I remember that I found her statement quite rude and inconsiderate. I had been sick, very sick, and at home all day, every day – sleep-deprived, agonised and starving because the pain in my jaws was preventing me from eating normally. I therefore didn’t need to dress fancily and my old outfits from the nineties were perfectly appropriate for the circumstances. Furthermore, I had become so skinny that if a fun, oversized T-shirt could conceal even just a little my protruding bones and therefore make my friends worry a little bit less about me – on top of making them smile at the sight of Wayne Campbell and Garth Algar – it was perfect. I felt I could definitely do with a little humour and positivity during that living nightmare.

People now had serious looks on their faces. A man said: “We’ve lost her.” Another said: “Let’s try again. We can’t let a pretty young woman like that go.” I wondered who he was talking about because if he was referring to me he really had weird tastes when it came to beauty. Right then on that reanimation table, I was the ugliest, most lifeless thing you can possibly imagine. They all looked at a machine where I could see and hear two flat lines. I was definitely dead... and so at peace. Yet, they tried to revive me over and over again – they were determined not to give up. One of them said: “She’ll make it. Come on Marion, come back.” And I screamed: “No. Please, no. I beg you. Don’t make me go back there.” However, what was the point? They couldn’t hear me. This whole out-of-body experience was incredible and it was very real. It was not some dream, as many people and especially my rational family tried to make me believe after it happened to me. My awareness was enhanced in a way I didn’t know existed.

I am now convinced that this very high level of awareness is impossible to reach in the earthly world as long as our minds – the real us – are trapped in our bodies. The sense of freedom and knowledge I felt while wandering outside my cage made of flesh was amazing.

As I gave up trying to tell the medical staff to leave to rest the body that was once mine, everything in the room turned black. It was a kind of darkness that you couldn’t possibly imagine in the world we live in. If you go to any windowless basement and turn off the light, the darkness you’ll see is not even remotely close to what I saw during my NDE. The darkness I’m referring to is a million times darker and, not only could I see how unbelievably dark it was, I could also feel it.

In the middle of that infinite black space I saw a teeny tiny but extremely bright point of light. It was the brightest and most velvety thing I had ever seen, heard, or felt in my entire life. I could sense pure softness and life in an upper form in that light. It was a white-yellow, extremely bright light which was much brighter than the sun or any other light we can see on earth. It was a kind of light I had never seen before. It simply doesn’t exist in our world. Yet, that light was not blinding at all but, rather, comforting and soothing. There were millions of energetic movements in that light.

The first thing I felt while I was in that light was a sensation of being home – literally, returning home. My entire being came from that very place. Even though I had inherited my mother’s eyes and my father’s ears in the earthly life, I was not my parents. Apart from their egg and sperm – in the physical world – I did not come from them. Here, however, I was that energy. I came from it and I was made of it. It felt like that was where my soul had been born millions of years ago and where it would now stay forever. I knew that instantly.

I also felt an indescribable and gigantic sense of peace, well-being and unconditional love. That light is the most peaceful and loving place in the entire universe, where love exists in its utmost and purest form. That’s a kind of love that you can’t possibly even begin to imagine in our reality; it’s a type of love that lives. It really is the strangest of feelings. I felt like I was me – my soul – but I was also every feeling and emotion around me. I felt like the light was my twin, my soulmate, my true soulmate. That light knew absolutely everything about me. It knew the very core of my soul.

Yet, that light is far, very far, from being judgmental. It is the wisest and most compassionate and forgiving energetic entity I’ve ever come across. Some name it “God.” I call it Superpower of Love, Peace, Compassion and Wisdom. There are no other words I can find to describe that energy, when I remember that I was shown my bad actions and behaviours and yet felt totally forgiven for them and still immensely loved. The Light was everything I felt in my life and everything I made others feel. It was everything I had experienced in my life: the love, the joy, the happiness, the pain, the sadness, the guilt, the remorse... It was the world in its entirety and it was the Truth

I remember very vividly that the thoughts of the other entities – including the thoughts of the light – went straight into my mind. This wordless communication was instantaneous. Any questions I had about anything were instantly answered. Furthermore, I was able to completely understand the reply just as fast. I realised that I simply needed to have a thought about something and straight away I understood everything related to what I was thinking of. In our earthly world, you ask yourself questions such as: “What did he mean by that?” “Is she joking?” “Was he serious?” In that world, the clarity of everything is beyond all that we know here. Misinterpretation doesn’t exist.

I was then shown my entire life from birth to my “death.” During this “life review” I saw the consequences of my actions for other people whether they were “dead” or still alive. I’ve also been shown that I made no mistakes in my personal life – or at the very least that, no matter what mistakes I thought I had made, it was okay. I would still be loved unconditionally.

Right after the review of my actions in my earthly life and these amazing encounters with those beautiful souls, I found myself again in the light, with the light, through the light, that unbelievably wise and loving light. That light was now talking to me again. It was a heart-to-heart talk with so much love in it: I had to choose whether or not to stay. Needless to say, I absolutely didn’t want to leave that place. I wanted to stay. I then saw an image of a little girl playing in the sand, and that was the revelation. I knew instantly I had to come back for that child no matter what she would be to me in the earthly life. I would come back for her.

As the very thought of accepting the return to this life crossed my mind, I was thrown back into that tunnel at the same speed I had entered it, and the return to my actual body was the most painful thing I have ever experienced. I was awake.

The doctor said to me: “Well done, Marion, you’re a fighter. You’re coming back from afar. We nearly lost you. You were completely unconscious for seven minutes.” I thought: “Seven minutes? Really? I just lived for eternity.” The conflicting emotions I was now facing every minute of my existence in the aftermath of my NDE were unbearable. To make matters worse, I am mostly surrounded by skeptical people. No one in my family believes that my experience was real. My most rational friends keep saying that I more than likely dreamed all of that. When I came back, I felt so lonely among these “mortals” and yet so at peace at the same time. But I know I’ll find my way. That light I saw was the Truth. That amazing Being certainly didn’t lie to me and I know that I came back with some of its energy and I now have to learn to use it on earth.

Have I become religious? If Love can be classified as a religion, YES I have. If you’re referring to the man-made religions as we know them, NO I haven’t. However, I must admit that there are many similarities between the Light I saw and God as most religions picture Him. In both cases it’s a being of unconditional love.

Our time here is limited. However, the time we spend on earth is our future in the afterlife. That’s the reason why I truly believe that we should put all our focus on happiness – both the happiness we bring to ourselves, but even more so the happiness we give to other people. Whoever you are and wherever you are, I already love you. ----Marion

Viola H’s NDE from 1971, containing verifiable evidence related by her film producer

I met Viola H on a beautiful spring day in 1991, twenty years after her amazing
near-death experience. She cheerfully agreed to fly up to Nashville from Augusta, Georgia,
where she and her husband lived. She would be among several people whom Raymond
Moody had suggested we interview for my film.

Viola impressed me as a really sweet soul—a kind of country grandmother. In fact, I
wished she had been my own grandmother! The wisdom she had gained from her years here on
earth plus the knowledge she acquired from her NDE (near-death experience} would have been
nice to be around while growing up. She had a good sense of humor, too, which put my film
crew and me at ease as we anxiously prepared for the shoot that day.

The original plan was for Dr. Moody to sit next to the cameraman and have Viola
address him while she was being filmed. It didn’t take too long, though, before she was being
“interviewed” by everyone in the room including the film crew, my wife, and a few friendly
neighbors who happened to drop by. Her story and the way she told it was heart-warming.

It all began when Viola was admitted into a hospital in the spring of 1971 for routine gall bladder surgery. The operation was believed to have been successful. Not wanting to become dependent on pain medications, Viola refused all drugs after the 3rd day. As she would soon learn, though, she was not on the road to recovery. She suffered for the following three days as her pain intensified. Her condition worsened—and on May 5th—Viola died on the operating table. This was the start of her amazing journey.

The doctor looked up at the nurse, then, taking a heavy breath, solemnly cast his eyes
down toward a woman lying motionless on the operating table. The surgical room, which just
moments earlier had echoed with the doctors’ desperate attempts to resuscitate the woman, was now completely still. Only the steady tone of a flat line heart monitor broke the silence—a
painful reminder of the scene that had just unfolded. The time of death was duly noted. As far as they could tell, their efforts to save the life of Viola H had failed.
“I’ve lost her,” the doctor sighed. “She’s gone... she’s dead.”

“Well, who’s he talking about? Who’s gone?” wondered Viola. She was in excruciating
pain when she heard a faint buzzing in her ear and then felt herself “pop” out of her body! Free
of her earthly shell, she immediately went to the head of the bed where she “sat down” to have a
look around, and then found herself floating up to the ceiling, hovering over her now lifeless
body. A new sense of freedom swept over her. She suddenly felt strangely unfettered by the
usual labels with which she had always identified herself. For the moment, she was no one’s
wife, mother or daughter. And for a woman who had just been pronounced dead, why, she had
never felt more alive! “But how could this be?” she wondered.

Viola observed the doctors momentarily and then glanced about the operating room. As
she did so, she became aware of voices—people out in the hallway. The room had been
completely sealed off for surgery, but as Viola would soon discover, walls and closed doors
presented no obstacle to her. She simply went through them, like vapor through a screen door.
She encountered her anxious family in the hall. She noticed right away that her daughter, Kathy, was wearing an outfit that Viola considered unbecoming. Upset and in a hurry,
Kathy had apparently left home in a rush. She had grabbed whatever clothes she could find, and
in a strangely mismatched outfit, dashed to the hospital. Shocked that her daughter was
dressed this way in public, Viola immediately went to her and said, “Kathy, go home and change
your clothes.” Kathy did not respond to her mother. It seemed that Kathy was unable to hear
her. Never one to give up though, Viola persevered, urging her husband to take Kathy home
and change her clothes. But, he too was oblivious to her words. It was as if Viola had become invisible!

The realization that no one could see or hear her was just beginning to sink in, when Viola
noticed her brother-in-law standing in the hall. He had just been approached by one of his
neighbors and they struck up a conversation. The neighbor asked the in-law what he was doing
at the hospital and also inquired about his plans for the upcoming weekend.
“Well, it looks like my sister-in-law is going to kick the bucket...” he said. “I was
planning to go to Athens but I’ll stick around now to be a pall bearer.”
Viola was infuriated by this insensitive remark but she had to face the fact that, for the
moment, there wasn’t much she could do about it. It seemed that she had attained a unique
vantage point, one, that many people only dream of—a fly on the wall!

Fortunately for Viola, later on she would have the opportunity to confront her brother-in-law
about this little conversation sometime after her release from the hospital. Laughing, she would
watch his face turn several shades of red while quoting him word for word. Though he would
make quite an attempt to deny it, eventually he gave in, admitting that it was exactly what
he had said.

But for now, Viola was trying to make some sense of the strange situation when she
noticed that there were others with her, which she called her “guides.” They didn’t look
like angelic beings, at least not the way she had always envisioned, with wings, halos and golden
harps. Still, there was something about their presence that gave her a much-needed sense of
peace. She came to understand that they had always been with her!

Another exciting discovery was that she was able to travel anywhere her thoughts could
take her. Instantly, after thinking that she would like to see her sister, Viola found herself in
Rockville, Maryland at her sister’s home. She observed her sister getting ready to go to the
grocery store. Viola took note of the clothes she was wearing, the search for misplaced keys and
a lost grocery list, and finally, the car she drove to the store. Viola was feeling in no mood to go
grocery shopping, so instead decided to visit another nearby sister. She was able to determine
that this sister had also gone shopping. Like the conversation with her brother-in-law, all of these details would eventually be verified when Viola would have a chance to talk with her sisters.

While she puzzled over her peculiar disembodied condition, her guardian angels asked
if she was ready to leave this area. Without any hesitation she replied, “Yes, I’m ready to go
now...” All at once Viola felt herself being whisked in an upward motion through a long black
tunnel. She had no idea how she entered the tunnel and noticed that the walls of the tunnel did
not touch her. The radiant light at the end of the tunnel mesmerized her and it drew her ever
closer. Faster and faster she went through this remarkable passageway, focused on the fantastic light up ahead.

Viola accelerated through the end of the tunnel, emerging into what appeared to her as a
beautiful valley full of flowers, flowing rivers and brilliant colors. Birds and animals dotted this
magnificent landscape. Viola could think of no words to describe this place for she had never
seen anything like it. The world that she had left behind was nothing more than a pale imitation
of this heavenly scene. Everything was bathed in a glorious love and light. And somehow she understood that the light and the love were the same thing! This radiant loving light pulsated all around her and was so incredibly bright that she could not resist the temptation to look at it, yet it did not hurt her eyes. She felt that this love was alive and it was almost as if she could see it, touch it and feel it.

Viola soon found that she was not alone in this wonderful place either. She encountered
friends and family who had died before her. Although these people would initially appear to her
at the age she had last seen them, she soon realized that they were all in the prime of life. They
were filled with great warmth and spoke to her, not in words, but in what can only be described
as a kind of mental telepathy, in which there were no misunderstandings.
The first person she encountered was a childhood girlfriend who had died in the polio
epidemic of the 1930’s. Her friend was a loving woman who assured Viola that everything was
fine and that she was happy. Viola’s mother and her grandparents also came to greet her. She
was overjoyed to see her mother and grandmothers again, and to meet her grandfathers for the
first time, both of whom had died before she was born.

During this time a child also appeared to her and said, “Hi, I’m your brother.”
“I don’t have a brother,” Viola replied, somewhat baffled.
He then proceeded to show himself to her as a small infant dressed in a cap and a long
dress with booties and socks. He told her, “Look me over now and remember how I looked this
way and you can tell our father when you get back and he’ll tell you what happened.”
Later on in the hospital, after Viola would recover enough to talk, she would tell her
father what she had seen and heard. He would shake his head in disbelief and reply, “Well I
don’t know how you knew that because nobody but your mother, the doctor and I knew about
these things.” Viola discovered from her father that she did indeed have a brother who had died
as an infant, but had never been mentioned to the later children.

Viola was experiencing a joyous homecoming, overflowing with love. But the best was
yet to come! It was at this time that she was approached by a warm, loving presence of
extraordinary light that completely engulfed her. Viola felt she recognized this brilliant light—and later told me during our interview that she had known it to be Jesus. She reveled in His wonderful love, which pulsated all around her. He totally accepted her and forgave her for everything she had ever done. But deep inside Viola wondered, could she ever forgive herself for some of her selfish ways?

And then she saw it—a panoramic view of her entire life. It unfolded before her in a
dimension of time that she had never experienced. It seemed to be there all at once! It began with her birth and included every minute detail of her life, right up to the present moment. There were no secrets, no hidden truths. She observed her earthly actions as though she were watching a movie, while simultaneously having the sensation that she was actually living her entire life over again! Viola H became aware of every feeling, every thought, and every deed she had ever done and realized fully for the first time the implications of her actions on others.

As the events in Viola’s life were reviewed, she was surprised to learn that it was not her
outward success that received attention but rather the simple acts of kindness she had done.
Many of her big achievements that she had considered to be important, didn’t count for very much there. She came to understand that it’s the little things one does, like giving someone a helping hand, or hugging a child, anything done unselfishly, that matters most of all.

Viola was feeling a glorious peace wash over her soul. In this brilliant light she had
found acceptance, forgiveness and most of all, love—wonderful love. She never wanted to leave.
And that is why she was absolutely devastated when she was asked by the light, “Are you ready
to go back?”
“No, I want to go on to the city of light.” she pleaded, glimpsing the amazing scenes that
awaited her up ahead.
But again the voice came, “No, don’t you want to go back?”
She paused for a moment and listened. Someone was crying; it sounded like a young
girl. Looking back over her shoulder, Viola was able to see her daughter and husband standing
next to her hospital bed. They were trying desperately to hold on to the woman they both loved.
She could hear her daughter’s tearful pleas, “Mom, don’t go, come back to us. Mama, I need you.
Mom, come back.”
And then Viola was asked again, “Are you ready to go?”
She gazed off into the distance toward a city filled with splendid light. How she longed
to go there, to stay in this wonderful place forever. But her daughter was counting on her; Viola
couldn’t let her down. So with a heavy heart she replied, “It seems that my daughter needs me...
so I must go back.”
“That is good, for it is not your time yet,” came the voice.
And then it was over. As swiftly as Viola had left her body, she instantly returned.

There was no tunnel, no beautiful light. Her spirit simply entered her body through the top of
her head, and she was immediately consumed by the pain and suffering of her earthly being.
The guides, who were still with her, told her that she would need to make some kind of
sound or movement so that the doctors would know to keep fighting for her life. Viola found
this request to be rather amusing since she had never felt more alive. She laughed out loud. The
astonished doctors wasted no time in their efforts to restart her heart. Before leaving, the guides
informed her that she would remain unconscious for three days in order to suppress the
knowledge she had been given.

While Viola slept, her anxious family waited and prayed for her recovery. True to the
guide’s word she awoke on the third day—a changed woman. It was several more days before
she could speak and tell her family of her fantastic encounter.
She emerged from this experience with a great appreciation for people and most of all,
the wonderful love that had been shown to her.
“Oh, I’m not perfect,” she confesses. “I’m still human—I’m still selfish. But it has
changed my way of thinking. It's made me a more understanding person of others. I think I'm a
better person about watching out for the needs of others and not being always so selfish.”

She answered many questions on that day of filming from those of us who wanted to
know more about what she had learned from her time in the light. Over the next several years, my wife and I kept in touch with Viola and her husband, and they became like family. Upon hearing about the birth of our firstborn daughter, Viola sent us a beautiful baby-quilt lovingly crafted by her grandmotherly hands.

We received a call early in the spring of 1997 to tell us that Viola had finally returned to the
Father. We all will miss her.

PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD HAVE NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES.

Gulden’s NDE ---From Turkey. Translated from Turkish

While living in a Muslim country, the child of a Muslim family, I cannot say I met their religious requirements! During my experience (below), I learned that death is nothing to be scared of. I am now a happy person, smiling in my eyes, spreading positive energy in the places I go. I told my experience at first to my close friends, they were confused. My family knows only a little of this, because I know, they would not believe me. My physician said that the painkillers and drugs could have caused the feeling of living this experience, but I know my experience was definitely real. I think you cannot interpret this, you only know that it is real.

I don't know how many days I was in the clinic but I was in the Izmir Ege University Neurosurgery Section. On the right temporal lobe was a bleeding and I had in my brain nine times more veins/arteries than an average human did. (I had a kind of veins/arteries accumulation.) This was the cause of the hemorrhaging. Since 06/06/2000, I was in the clinic but the date for surgery was on 20/06/2000, because the doctors had to make the decision which of the veins/arteries they had to cut out.

Sometime during my surgery, I rose out of my body, up above my bed. After raising up above my bed, taking direction to a white, very bright light. Meantime, I saw my uncle, who died one month ago, and while passing me he said, 'Not yet.' I was surprised how I understood him without spoken words, but I felt very peaceful. Later a lady came to me, if I saw her now, I would recognize her. She took me to a wonderful place with mountains and said that this was the place of my life. The place we went was beautiful, but I said to her that this place is not my life's place.

Then we came to a seashore with a little village and she said again that this place was my life, but I didn't know this place and I said to her that this is not the place of my life. After we traveled to some more very beautiful places, she said that I was not ready to stay in these places and asked me what I remembered about my life.

The first thing I remembered was my mother and I fell with high speed down. I felt how I fell into my body, woke up, and asked my mother if she was my mother, who was sitting at my bed side. My mother was confused and said that she was my mother. I had a blanket on me, a gift from my close friend and I wanted her to verify this. I said the name of my boyfriend and wanted to know from her if he was real. She said that he was real and started crying. Before my surgery, I spoke to the visitors and could make jokes but while I recall only very few of this, I remember my near-death experience like it was yesterday. I think the wonderful white light and the peace I felt can't be made forgotten by anything.

HERE IS AN EXAMPLE OF THE ORIGINAL TURKISH TEXT:

“TARİHİNDE BEYİN KANAMASI GEÇİRDİM VE 20.06.2000 TARİHİNDE BEYİN AMELİYATI OLDUM. AMELİYATTAN HEMEN SONRA HATIRLADIĞIM "TEK ŞEY" İ ARAŞTIRMAYA BAŞLADIM VE BUNUN ÖLÜME YAKIN DENEYİM OLDUĞUNU ÖĞRENDİM.”

GOOGLE TRANSLATES THIS TURKISH TO:

“I HAVE BRAINED BLEEDING ON THE HISTORY AND I HAVE BRAIN SURGERY ON 20.06.2000. I HAVE STARTED TO RESEARCH THE "SINGLE THING" I REMEMBER AFTER SURGERY AND LEARNED THAT IT IS THE NEAR TO DEATH EXPERIENCE.”

Michael J’s NDE in 1966

I can't completely describe my experience. It is just far too huge and detailed to summarize in this space. It would take a book. It was Washington's Birthday and I had the day off from school. I could have stayed home but I chose to go to work with my dad at the family gas station mom and dad owned. I worked there on weekends and after school helping my dad out. I pumped gas, washed windows, checked oil and took care of customers including taking their money and bringing them change. I also cleaned the bathrooms, filled the oil racks with cans of oil, filled the soda machine and collected the money, swept up and did other jobs for my dad and was paid 50 cents an hour. That was a LOT of money in 1966 considering comic books cost 12 cents, matinee movie tickets were 1 dollar and so forth. I could make $4 a day working for my dad on weekends and $1+ a day after school. That's $13 to $15 a week. So I decided to go with my dad for Washington's holiday from school.

Nearby the gas station were huge limestone boulders some soaring as high as 30+ feet. That day was just another freezing cold morning where the ground was covered in ice (which happened a lot in the 60s and 70s). So there wasn't a lot of business that day and I did all the other jobs Dad had for me. Being bored, I asked him if it would be ok if I took off for a while.

I went out into those huge boulders, boulders I had climbed many times. To make a long story short, the water freezing and thus expanding in the cracks of these boulders had loosened a chunk of rock on this 15 to 20 foot high boulder. The chunk was perched on a ledge but seemed adhered to the side of the greater rock. I had climbed over it many times but this day it broke loose. The chunk was tear-shaped, narrow and tapered at the top, but thick, wide and heavy at the bottom, and was about 4' high or so as I recall. It broke off, I fell backwards off the gigantic boulder and this stone fell right on top of me. In fact, I rode it to the ground. It probably weighed around 400 to 500 pounds.

I don't recall much at that point except hearing a voice far off in the distance screaming. 'Oh my God, I'm dead!' I was oddly disconnected from it.

The next thing I knew I was floating there, hovering in the air and feeling stunned, not sure where I was, who I was or even what I was. There was a feeling of amnesia. I tried to orient myself to my surroundings, get my bearings and that meant carefully observing. Instantly my head was flooded with knowledge. As I stared at the boulder, I knew its chemical composition, could describe every curve’s concavity and convex structure with mathematical formulas that were both known to me and yet unknown. I couldn't believe how clear my thoughts were. I have an IQ of about 150, and yet when outside of my body, in a 'dead' state, I found myself much smarter. Comparing the two, I'd consider myself a drooling moron now to what I was when outside of my limiting body. Then I became aware of a body. I use the following words because they express what I felt---but I didn't use these words. In fact, I wasn't thinking with words at all. I became aware of a 'biological unit' that wasn't functioning. I literally viewed it in the way I might view a car that was all crunched up. I swept over this body and could see almost no space between where the boulder was lying on it and the ground. There was literally less than an inch. The face was contorted and gray with the mouth open, and mud and blood was smeared from its nose across its forehead. It wasn't moving or breathing, and the face looked familiar but I couldn't place where I'd seen it before.

Then it hit me. It was my face! It looked different partly because it was dead and partly because I had always seen my face in a mirror. It looked different from outside of my body. It was then that all my memories flooded back into my head, who I had been, who my family and friends were, what I had done and what I thought.

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I was dead and yet here I was, still alive and fully conscious. How could that be? In that instance, my atheism was wiped away, and now I didn't know what to expect. I panicked. I was dead! Dad was really going to get pissed at me for killing myself. Then my panic went through the roof when I realized I was dead. Dad isn't going to get pissed at me. I'm dead!! Oh my God, what is going to happen to me? Because I've rejected Jesus, I'm going to hell! Maybe I shouldn't have been so hasty in rejecting religion. Maybe I should have listened more.

Then all that panic was pushed out of me, and I can only use the analogy of being bone-shivering cold and standing in front of a nice warm fire. All that shivering and cold slowly gets pushed out of you and all your muscles relax as the fire's warmth fills you. I felt this 'fire' coming from behind me and I whirled around to see a man with black wavy hair and black beard, all short-cropped and dark, well-tanned skin. His eyes were like diamonds sparkling under light and his robe was like a monk's robe, except it was bright white and glowing. I could see it flowing around him with visible eddies and currents. This being smiled at me and I was instantly filled with love, so much love I felt I would explode from it. I could not contain it. I've never felt so adored. This being communicated directly with me with thoughts, no words were ever used.

He told me this was an accident and I could go back, if I wanted. I told him by my thoughts there was no way to make that body work. It was squashed flat. He told me that he could make it work again. Did I want to go back? I wanted to know my options. What would happen if I chose to go back and what would happen if I didn't. No sooner did I think these thoughts that I was hit with a package of images. It showed in brief what would happen if I didn't go back. I saw my sister get into alcohol and drugs and her life spin out of control, because I wasn't there. I saw my Dad commit suicide because of my death and because my mom divorced him over the matter of my death. I saw my paternal grandfather wither away and die, his heart broken over my death and my dad's suicide. These were twin blows that destroyed all the joy he had left in life. The effects went on and on, my mom was sad and heart-broken the rest of her life and so very lonely. And I saw a parade of faces of people I would never meet and whose lives I would have impacted and whose lives would have impacted mine, but now I would never know any of them and they would never know me. The man in the white robe had me with my sister. I've always loved my little sister and for her alone I would have chosen to come back but seeing all that pain it would cause everyone else, mom, dad, grandparents, friends, cousins, aunts, and uncles, I had to go back.

Then came a second package of images, those of what would happen if I went back. I skipped over the obvious. Dad didn't commit suicide. My sister turned out okay. Mom ended up happy. My grandfather went on to beam with pride over his first grandson to attend a university. My grandfather was a legal immigrant from Italy who never made it past the 4th grade and he treasured education beyond everything. He crowed like a proud rooster when his kids graduated from high school and I became the first of his grandkids to attend a prestigious university. But what I focused on in this second package was what I would pay as a price for going back. I knew that I would walk again, that all I had lost would be restored but only temporarily. In my latter life, perhaps 10 to 15 years after the accident, I would suffer pain, extreme pain, and it would affect me the rest of my life.

I chose to come back. He smiled, as if he knew I would pick the harder path because of how I felt for my family and friends. There was a snap and a pop and I was back in my body. It was filled with crackling electricity like sounds and feelings. I had no breath, no air and this huge rock was choking off all air. I grabbed the small end of the tear-shaped rock near my nose with my one free left hand (my right arm was pinned under the rock) and rolled the thing off me like it was made of papier-mâché`!

I took a painful breath of air and it was as if someone had plunged a sword into my right side. It was an agonizing breath, so painful I passed out and rolled down an embankment into a depression, and yet as my body flopped over and over, rolling down hill, I was watching it from the top of my head, both half in and half out of my ruined body. I landed in the bottom of this depression in a tangle of brush. I couldn't feel or move my legs. I was completely paralyzed from the waist down, and I could barely breathe. Every breath was shallow and stabbed me like a dagger driven deep into my right chest. But I was alive, just like the man in the glowing bright white robe told me I would be, but I had not a clue how he did it. I could feel and hear the crackling of what felt and sounded like electricity flowing through me and I knew I had to get help and fast. But how does one walk out of a deep ravine surrounded with muddy slopes and soaring boulders of limestone 15+ feet high with a broken back and legs that not only don't work but I couldn't even feel?

Just then, two boys crested the hill above me, one being a boy I knew named Johnny. I called to them weakly and Johnny dropped down to me. I told him to run and get my dad; I was very badly hurt. The other boy, who I didn't know, lived just up the hill above the ravine I was lying in. He ran to tell his dad to call for an ambulance (They didn't have paramedics in those days).

Things moved fast after that. My Dad, in a complete panic, finally found me as he ran aimlessly around the limestone field calling for me. My dad was the toughest, most fearless man I've ever known, but I saw panic in his eyes when he finally got to me. He wanted to pick me up and carry me out of there, but I told him not to because my back was broken. Soon the ambulance showed up at the top of the hill and a small army of men appeared from God knows where. I was strapped to a board that was very carefully slid under me. A small army of men passed me from hand to hand, up that steep muddy slope out of that ravine. Near the top, the line of men collapsed in the slippery mud and I started to fall back down the slope only to be caught and held by my beautiful papa who refused to let me fall. He rammed his feet into the mud, carved out footholds, and held on until the other men could reestablish their footholds and get me over the crest of the hill and into the ambulance where my mom was waiting.

It was quite a ride to hospital and on the way, I asked my mom to wash the blood and mud off my face, which surprised her, because how could I know? She took out of her purse a Kleenex, wetted it with her saliva, and used it to wash my face. Ironically, my face was so numb I couldn't even feel her touching it.
I was X-rayed, my clothes cut off, and the x-rays showed no internal damage; yet over the next 11 hours, I could feel the electricity from the white robed man slowly bleed away. I knew I was dying again despite the fact I was delirious from all the morphine they injected in me to hold down my pain. It was clear they had to operate because my blood pressure was falling and I heard them talking about perhaps a bleeding spleen.

My personal doctor came to me and said they had to operate and asked if that would be ok with me. He was such a gentle, kind doctor! I said, 'oh yeah, sure, as long as you promise me I'll wake up.' Promises in my family are sacred and you never break one unless the entire universe prevents you, and even then, you finish it later. He made the promise, and that meant I'd survive the operation. He gave me his promise.

They administered an anesthetic and told me to count back from 100. I counted clear to zero and the orderly said, 'do it again.' So, I did and since I reached zero again, I figured he'd just ask me to do it a third time, so I did it a third time. I found them wheeling me into an operation theater. They hoisted my body with several nurses and orderlies up onto two parallel steel rails with my spine settled in between the two rails. My body was draped with sheets, a hood put in front of my face, a huge spot light hovered over me, and the room was really, really cold.

I could hear someone say, 'We are losing him!' Then, 'His BP just went to zero.' My heart stopped. I watched as the doctor, the chief surgeon, took a saw to me to quickly open me up. I still bear the ugly scar across my chest where he literally ripped me open. I saw him say something, 'Oh my dear god' after he got me opened. The internal damage was extensive. In fact, I should not have survived the initial impact of the rock. My heart was pushed out of its normal cavity up under my left armpit. My stomach and liver were shoved up into my right lung, which had collapsed around them. My diaphragm was missing. All my intestines including my spleen were shoved down into an area just above my pubic bone. There was literally nothing in my abdomen and that was why nothing looked out of order in my x-rays. I heard the surgeon say he'd seen car wreck victims die with nothing near as severe as my injuries. He found it miraculous that I'd survived this long.

He sawed me open and shoved his hand into my chest. I presume he went after my heart to massage it back to life, but just then, the oddest thing happened. I could hear people praying for me. Suddenly I was there (again out of my body) and I could see my doctor kneeling on the floor in a waiting room with a bunch of chairs. Next to them were my mom, dad, and someone else behind them. They were all kneeling on the floor in that room praying for my life.

The next thing I know I'm back in the operating room where the surgeon is working frantically to save my life and as he works at massaging my heart I found myself drifting away, and the further I drifted, the darker the room got and the further away his voice sounded. I found myself well above the operating theater, floating in the entrance to a tunnel or vortex. I was sucked into it and that was when my adventure really began. [I also saw parts of the operation to save my body which shocked and frightened my doctor when I later described it to him.]

And I saw colors I've never seen before and saw into realms of existence that people don't even know exist. I ended up with a life review, and was escorted around 'the Other Side' by a being who was my teacher, whom I came to call 'professor,' and who had an incredible sense of humor. (I say 'he' with tongue in cheek because 'he' was neither a he nor a she.) I even asked to meet Jesus and apologize, only to meet a man that was nothing like I expected and was given interesting historical facts I was later able to verify. All of that is far too complex to include here, including numerous predictions of the future that have all come true except one, which I think is yet to happen. There is just too much to describe.

ADDED COMMENTS:

In summary, I was stone-cold dead at the site, crushed under the boulder. There was no one anywhere near me to help me. Then I saw a man dressed in white light who literally resurrected me in my body. About 12 hours later, though half delirious at the time, I was told I needed an operation and died on the operating table.

Then the fuzzy delirium vanished mysteriously. I didn't understand why I wasn't going ‘under’ when they administered the anesthesia to put me asleep, until I finally realized I was out of my body a second time and was just lying there fully conscious near my body!

During these two NDEs, at different moments I felt fear, terror, panic, overwhelming love, awe, curiosity, and incredible peace and joy. Time seemed to stand still. I understood everything about the universe! Anything I wanted to know, I seemed to get a response to. Even though I was only 13, I was a confirmed atheist. I was gifted with a keen mind and was deeply interested in science. I had LONG rejected religion in general and Christianity in particular. I was kicked out of Sunday school circa age 8 or 9 because I kept asking questions related to science and logic versus what the Bible was saying that they were teaching us and that the Sunday School teacher couldn't answer. My family was asked to keep me in the worship service rather than send me to Sunday School. Shortly thereafter I asked to not go to church because I was convinced they just didn't know anything, and I found it no different than Greek, Roman, or Norse mythology. I was bored to tears by the whole thing.

Now, I KNOW we are more than our body. I met and walked and talked with Jesus during my second NDE and found him delightful and inspiring. I thus carry a soft spot for Christianity. However, Jesus told me several things about his life that didn't square with anything I learned in church. During my NDEs, I experienced a universal connection or oneness. We are all part of a great supernatural "internet"--- and yet simultaneously separate PCs as well (to use an analogy). As for the meaning of life, LOVE IS THE ANSWER! I experienced love off any measurable scale. Now I've learned to be more deliberate in how I love others.

Bolette L’s NDE in 1996---from Denmark

It was the 11th of February 1996. I had postpartum preeclampsia after the birthing of my youngest son the day before. I gave a normal birth to my son, which lasted 1 hour and 15 minutes. The doctors wouldn’t give me a C-section, even though there was an imminent danger of cramps, and the risk of bleeding to death due to my lack of platelets was great. My preeclampsia persisted after birth. The child, my son (my 10th child) was fortunately healthy and was fine after the birth.

I bled from nose, mouth and eyes. The personnel and the attending physician came once an hour to take blood samples. I received intravenous platelets in the arm, and some other form of medicine that I do not remember. I knew that I was very ill. I was luckily with my newborn son and was so happy. I also got to breastfeed him. At some point during the evening of the February 11, I sat in my bed with pillows supporting my back, as I had just breastfed my son and put him back in his crib. I felt very weak and ill. I also felt befuddled and dizzy. Then I knew, if I were to lie down, I would die. I just got that knowing in a calm manner, without drama; I just noted it. Feeling very tired and exhausted, I tried all I could do to remain sitting, but then I couldn’t go on, and I lay down in the bed.

Then I died, in silence and calm, by feeling and observing myself slipping out of my body, out of the back of my head. I floated slowly and calmly out of my body, as though it was the most natural thing in the world, up under the ceiling of the hospital room. Then I left the room, leaving behind my body, the hospital ward, and the hospital where I was lying down with my newborn son.

After leaving the hospital, I entered a very comforting and soft darkness. It felt so nice and loving. Then I saw a light very far away. It came closer while the soft and loving darkness pushed me towards it. Then I was surrounded by this unearthly, loving, very beautiful, radiating light. In that overwhelming light, I met a glowingly beautiful, very loving being. I knew that I knew him and felt completely comfortable and happy. His loving presence completely surrounded me, and together we went through my life and all that I had experienced in a loving way, not in a judging way. In addition, all the feelings involved during my life were also examined. While we were observing something particularly good, my good friend, this light being, made a kind of joyous outbreak of light and loving messages about what good I had done in that moment we had just observed.

We communicated with the use of our thoughts and mind. There were a lot of smiles and happiness related to the review of my life, even though my life was anything but easy. It had been tough, with many tears, betrayal, loneliness, abuse and more, but much joy with my grandparents and good playmates during my childhood, and later with my own children.

All situations were examined, and all the good was emphasized and shown. I could see it with him; endure it all without feeling a single negative emotion through it, which is strange to think about afterwards. I was told what was especially good, that also included experiences where I had acted with my heart, and not giving it any particular thought; this was really pointed out.

In this way, I got to know what is especially good: to be and act with love and with the heart. To be happy and to be as good and pure in heart as possible with others. Not to lie, but to stand by myself and take care of myself. I learned to be true to my own values and myself, to forgive without accepting negative actions from others, to let go and forgive, and to stay in joy. I also learned to be in the present as much as possible, to nourish myself and to be my own best friend, and to be a good friend to others. We all have our own path to learn and work on accepting this, so I try not to brood over problems, but to let go of them even when it’s difficult. I try to address the challenges and problems again later when I have the strength to overcome them, to forgive myself and not push myself too much, to feel myself more and not cross my own limits and values, to be good and to honor ALL life.

I learned that death is so amazingly beautiful and full of joy and love. I felt myself to be very awake and aware the whole time. Everything was sharper. All the colors were clearer and vibrant, unearthly beautiful. I have hearing loss in my life, but I did not have that in death. I could hear much better than ever in my life. Sounds were beautiful and melodic. The conversations I had with others did not take place with sound, but rather with telepathy. I was completely filled with emotions, such as great joy, deep, deep love, comfort, gratitude, freedom, an ‘EVERYTHING is as it should be’ feeling. I was so happy and calm during all of my near death experience.

I got to know from the radiating being, my loving friend, that I was only on a visit here at the other side of death, and that I should return to life again. I didn’t take this message in, and didn’t pay attention to it, because I was occupied with everything else going on. I was told that I would be divorced from my husband later on, that we couldn’t go on together, my former husband and me. That we both had something else to do and that I should look at it as a joyful thing for me that it would give me joy and much freedom to be divorced, but that it wasn’t to happen just yet. I was told that I should forgive my then husband and his actions and attitude, and that I should, with joy and gratitude; go on with my life after, even though he would hurt me deeply. It was required for me to let go of him.

I was also told that I would have many delightful experiences thereafter, and begin to write and publish books about subjects I didn’t know about yet. I was told that I should take care of my health and myself and to be good to my body. If I was, I would be able to reach those goals I had set myself before I came into this life, and that it would give me so much happiness to reach those goals.

I would also find love again between man and woman much later, and it would be the dessert of the life I have, for both of us. Then much laughter followed in a compassionate way. Right then I was shown how he looks, he who would be my great love in the future, so that I could recognize him that day off in the future when I would meet him. The reason that I was told this was to give me enough calm so that I would work on myself and on that life that I wanted to have.

After the review of my past and future, I visited a very beautiful and lively landscape, where I had the experience of taking a walk with my energetic and radiating friend. Everything was alive and buzzing. Here I reached a beautiful spot, where some souls came towards me, I recognized some of them, those I had known in my current life, those who had passed. My four grandparents, who I loved so much in my life, were also there. They smiled and were quite happy. They gave me many hugs and much love and told me that they had fun and were well, and they worked on whatever they desired the most. I also met several friends who had passed away, and they had come to greet me. They all said that I had to go back, and it wasn’t my time yet. Everyone was so healthy and smiling, and those who had been old when they died looked at least 20 years younger. I felt very strong, and was then absolutely sure that there is meaning to everything that happens to us in our lives, including everything I experienced in my near death experience.

I then met a group of souls, who I didn’t know from this life; but when I saw them, I just knew that I knew them deep in my soul. It was them that I knew the best and cared most about. They were those who I feel the most connected to in the entire universe! I was so totally filled with happiness by the reunion that I cried with joy and surprise. Meanwhile, I wondered a lot about why, in my 42 years of life, I had at no point remembered them, them most of all. It was overwhelming and indescribably wonderful to meet them again. Now that I look back upon that, I can see that what I saw and experienced, was especially arranged for me and for my visit.

Suddenly a young man stood in front of me and I knew that he was my newborn son. He stared at me intensely, and shouted, ‘Mom, you promised me to be my mother in this life! Otherwise I wouldn’t be here!’ Then immediately I was propelled back to my body with immense speed. It only took a split-second to come back and it hurt incredibly to get back in my body.

When I was leaving the hospital, the attending physician told me that I was that patient, who had been the most ‘gone’, and then came back again. He said that they couldn’t do so much in that situation, other than give me plenty of platelets, watch me, and then pray to God. I now know that there is a life after death, that there is no hell other than the one we create ourselves. I know the most important thing is love between people and all beings.

LARRY’S NDE in 2001

In August, 1996, about 5:30 in the morning on highway 151, I was driving my truck. It’s early morning, It’s foggy. I’m taking my wife, Kathy, to work at her job in (deleted). We lived in (deleted). It’s a distance of 7 miles. All of a sudden, I didn’t feel right. I pulled over on the gravel side, I got out and Kathy got out. I walked around the back of the truck, shook my head, tried to get some air. I said, “I don’t know what’s going on. I don’t feel right.” She said, “Do you want me to drive?” I said, “No, no, I can drive.” We get back in the truck and I pull out. I don’t know how far I went, maybe only 3 blocks on the highway, and I pull over again. I told Kathy, “I think you’d better drive. I’m getting weak and dizzy spells. I don’t know what’s going on.” So I get in on the passenger side, and she’s driving.

The part I’m going to tell you now, I can remember bits and pieces, but I’m going to tell you what Kathy told me happened. I’m getting dizzy and things are getting blacker and blacker … I remember blacking out. Boom! Everything went 90,000 miles an hour. Boom! She’s driving, okay? I can hear her voice. “What’s wrong with you? Come on, wake up!” I can hear her yelling and screaming at me. She was panicked. Here’s the part she told me: I started flopping around in the truck. My arm got caught in the steering wheel. She didn’t know what to do. She’s trying to drive to work and it’s foggy. She’s trying to hold me back. She put her hand on my neck to feel the pulse. The next thing she said, I was out. Boom. I just stopped flopping and everything.

Now, the part I remember is when I’m talking to her. It’s kind of hard to explain. She’s yelling, and I thought I was talking to her, and I told her, “You gotta go on in life without me. I’m in a different place now. There’s nothing I can do for you. I’m here and you’re there. I’m someplace else, where, I have no idea. Just keep on driving and you’ll make it. I gotta go now. Goodbye!” I was talking and I thought she was listening to me. I thought I was alive (in my body). She says I was not talking, but I thought I was.

I’m in the cab of the truck---above the cab of the truck, looking down at myself. I’m in a fetal position, all curled up, and I don’t know where I’m at. I could see her driving the truck, I could see my grey shorts and grey tank top. I could see myself, and I KNEW I was in a different place. This happened in a seven mile span. Then I came out of it just a touch. I remember her running into the police station, but nobody was there, so she went on to her work. I remember her opening the passenger side door, and I have no idea where I’m at. I didn’t recognize the building or the parking lot. So she ran in and called 911, and here comes the fire department. All I can remember is the fire department saying, “He’s dead. You’d better call an ambulance because he’s gone. Code red.” Next thing I know, I’m in this ambulance, and they’re taking me to the hospital. The ambulance came to the parking lot, and put the paddles on me, boom boom, and nothing happened. I heard them say, “There’s a sheriff’s car coming from (deleted), and the sheriff’s a paramedic. The ambulance stopped to meet him, and I look up as he’s loosening his tie. He says, “Are you on drugs?” I have oxygen on my face, but I’m saying, “No, no!” Of course, he couldn’t hear me. He starts putting IVs in me.

I’m going to back up now. When I was hovering over the top of myself, all of a sudden I knew I was in a different world. I wasn’t here on earth any more, the reason being, all of a sudden, I see what looked like Christmas tree lights, all white lights--thousands of them. Then it got really quiet and calm. After it got calm, my body started going about 90 miles an hour, and all of a sudden, my life started passing in front of my eyes. It went from a little pink dot, and it was like a deck of cards being flipped so fast, that’s how fast this was going. You can’t stop it. That’s how fast my life was passing before my eyes. It was a continuous motion picture, passing non-stop. I could see myself. I was probably 8 years old, holding a little B-B gun. Then suddenly I see this oil well I used to play on in the back yard. Here’s me in the Marine Corps, holding a rifle. Armed forces. Zip! That was it! It went that fast!

Then here I am, looking at this orange and yellow ball. And it’s scary. I don’t know where the hell I’m at, but it’s beautiful. All of a sudden, it’s like tunnel vision—I’m looking down this tunnel. This little pink light went to a greenish-blue light. That’s when my life was passing. Then I’m up here looking at this orange and yellow ball, that was soft, looking into a tunnel. Everything is quiet, dead quiet, but it’s peaceful. I have no idea, but I know I’m not on earth. I know! All of a sudden, there was this voice. It wasn’t male or female, it wasn’t nice, or soft. You’ve heard of impersonators. Impersonators can’t imitate this voice. The reason is that there’s only one voice like that. When you hear this voice, you KNOW this voice. I cannot describe this voice. It wasn’t strong; it wasn’t mean; it wasn’t soft. It was a voice I cannot explain! And I couldn’t turn my head, because this voice was talking to me. I cannot remember what it was saying. I do remember the voice saying to me, “You’ve got to go back. We’re not ready for you.” I wanted to turn my head and look at this voice, but I couldn’t see it. It was dark, it was black and beautiful, the orange ball, the lights, my life passing before my eyes. Next thing I know I’m back! This thing went fast! Instead of my life going forward, it went in reverse. I was going backwards now. All these lights, and the orange and yellow faded. It’s gone.

Now I’m back at the hospital---the ambulance, the gurney, and I’m coming to on the gurney, and I’m looking at these people, and then I’m out of here again! Boom! I had no blood pressure. They said I was gone. Then I was coming back. I was sweaty and cold, and my mouth was going 90 miles an hour and I started telling this doctor what happened. I said, “I just saw the tunnel, the light, the voice!” He said, “You’re fine, Larry.” He left the room, and everything started going black again. The doctor came back in and started pushing on my chest. When I told him about what happened, the doctor said, “I’m a medical doctor and I don’t believe in this stuff, but from what you’re telling me, you just had a near-death experience.” My mouth was going 90 miles an hour!

I told the doctor I want to go to the VA Hospital. He said, “Well, you’re going to have to sign a release. We’d have to transport you from the hospital to the VA in Iowa City and we’re not responsible if you die on the way.” I said, I’m not worried about that. I wanted to go see Todd, the chaplain there, so I could talk to him. He’s been a friend and we’ve had some really good talks.

So they’re rushing me to Iowa City in this ambulance, and I keep blacking out. They put me in the emergency room, and I told them my symptoms and that the doctor said I had a near-death experience. The nurse said, “We don’t really believe in that. You must have had a drug reaction.” I said I’m not on any drugs!

As they’re taking me to the elevator, who should be standing there, but Todd! I said, “Todd, I gotta talk to you! I had a near-death experience and I gotta talk to you.” He told me he’d be right up. So they put me in my room, and I’m waiting for him, but then they give me some medication and I’m out! Twenty-four hours I’m out. When I woke up, I looked on my pillow, and there were two books about the near-death experience. I told the nurse I wanted to see Todd! I was so weak, but I said, “I’m going to get out of this bed!” The nurses didn’t even see me as I walked by the nurse’s station. I went all the way downstairs on the elevator, in one of those gowns they dressed me in! There’s Todd standing by the elevator! Then he came up to my room, and before he came in the room, I knew what he was going to ask me. I knew word for word what he was going to say. I said, “No, Todd, I don’t know about your daughter. I didn’t see her up there.” His daughter was killed, and I knew he was going to ask me about her. I told him about everything, and he asked if he could send someone who works in the kitchen up to talk to me. Some things happened in this man’s family, and he’s interested.

I read 2 or 3 chapters in the book, and I found I was reading about myself! I thought, “This is interesting! I’m reading about myself!” This guy from the kitchen knocks at the door, and he got two feet in the door, and I thought, “Uh-oh.” I knew what he was going to ask. I’d never seen him before in my life, but I knew his son was killed by a shotgun, before he even walked into the room. It was like picking his brain, but it was so simple. Just boom! I knew what he would say before he said it! I’m thinking, “What is this near-death experience, all this weird stuff is happening to me!” It gets spookier! He says, “I had a son that got killed on a hunting trip.” (I knew, but I didn’t dare say that.) “Did you see him up there?” I said, “No, I just heard a voice, I didn’t see your son up there.” What he meant when he asked the question was, “I would love to change places with you, so I could go see my son.” I knew what he meant. I knew before he even said that! He wanted to change places so he could do some looking around to find his son.

This knowing went on for a month. I knew what people were going to say before they said it, and it was getting spooky because I could tell what people were thinking. For example, I could go to Bishop’s Cafeteria, and I could look over at people and know what they were thinking! I told my wife, Kathy, “If you could hear what I’m hearing!” She told me, “Don’t talk like this. People won’t understand.” She got to the point where she didn’t understand me, but I got to the point where I knew what people were thinking without their mouths open! As this went along, when I’d pick up a magazine or something, it wasn’t like when you and I pick one up. I was seeing something in a magazine that nobody else could see. I’d look at it and everything was in three dimensions--everything was away from the page. You know how you wear those little glasses in a movie for three dimensions. It was like that. I thought, “This guy’s not on the page—he’s out here!” When I told the doctors, they sent me down to have my eyes checked. They ordered me new glasses, but it was still three dimension, no matter what I picked up! This went on for quite awhile, but it did finally go away. It was spooky. I still don’t know why I’m back here. I haven’t a clue. All I can tell you is I KNOW what happened!

Back in the life passing before my eyes, there was nothing left out. It was going fast. I knew that was my life. It was like somebody put on a reel in a motion picture, and they speeded up the film. Your life! Your whole life! There was nothing spliced or cut out. It was your whole life, from the day you were born, to the time you went to kindergarten, to when you stole a piece of bubble gum out of the dime store. It was continuous! Driving cars, stealing hubcaps, having sex. Nothing was left out! It was the whole life! It happened just on the way from (deleted) to (deleted) where Kathy worked. The taller I got, the bigger the picture got! I thought I was gone. I knew I was in a different place. I was watching myself, my whole life. I couldn’t see anybody around me, just me. Nobody was in the background or anything. It was just my life! Nobody was involved but me. That was my own film.

Some people I wouldn’t dare tell the story to. Some people I start talking about the near-death experience, and Kathy said, “Hey!” It embarrasses her. If people would just let people talk and tell people, but even my own wife doesn’t want me to tell anybody!

One thing I did learn from this is that I got something given to me and I don’t know what it is. This is fact. I was given something. I don’t know how to use it. I don’t know what I was given. I was given the gift to hear the Voice that nobody else has heard. It was given to me. Try to understand what I’m going to tell you. I can’t sell it. I can’t give it away. I can’t show anyone. It’s mine and I can’t describe it very well. And I can’t put it on video so that someone could see it. I was given something nobody else has got! I can’t even put it on film and sell it in a market. You’d have to see what I really did see! It exists and I wish that I could communicate it, but I CANT! When The Man gave it to me, he said, “Go do what you want with it, Larry.” But you can’t get rid of it. It’s mine!

I KNOW what I’ve seen, and no one’s going to take it away from me. I know the Voice, I know it! But I can’t describe it. It hurts me! I can’t imitate it. There’s only one voice like that. The Man himself. You can’t be a second to him. He’s the One.

I’m going to take life more serious. In other words, don’t wake up in the morning, see a bird, and take that poor little bird for granted. Before, when people would talk to me I would say, “Yeah, okay…” But now when people talk to me, I listen to every word they say. I have more compassion for people. I don’t take things for granted any more. This will sound like I’m contradicting myself. I used to hear what I wanted to hear. But now I listen to everything you say. And I don’t look at a bird as a bird, I look at a bird as a human. But. Everything I see here now is not real any more. Nothing I see is really real. What I saw over there was real. This (life) is like an imitation, because I saw the “real McCoy.” I do take things more seriously and listen more, but I don’t take it for real. It’s not as real as what I saw. But I still listen and watch the waitresses pour my coffee but it’s not real. Every time I pick up a magazine or watch TV, I know it’s material things, but it’s not real.

I was in the hospital for about a week, but when I got home, it took me awhile to get my bearings. Even on the TV set, and I couldn’t read, because everything was in 3D. When I looked at TV it wasn’t real. I lost interest in TV because it wasn’t real. I was kind of in my own world. Nothing was real, and it’s still not. But when it happened, it was MORE unreal. The only thing that was real was what happened to me. I’m real here, with my skin and body, but I’m not as REAL as that was.

Everybody’s going to go to heaven!

Some believe in hell, but I didn’t see it. I’m not too much into religion. I don’t know too much about it. I was probably the biggest renegade that walked the streets, and I went to a good place. I know I didn’t lead the best life. I wasn’t a Bible pounder; I never read the Bible. I was just a construction worker, a stupid Marine.

Mary Jo R’s NDE in 2003

I had a cerebral aneurysm. An artery in my brain had burst.

I saw a light. It appeared small and then grew bigger and encompassed me into it. I was not afraid and was very much able to evaluate the light coming toward me. I noted it was not large but then grew larger. I remember 'floating' through this tunnel like thing - and then it just folded out into a huge room---not sure it was a room but it was a space. It was brilliant and had a pink tinge.

God held me. I don't remember if my whole body was in his arms or what. I knew it was God because it seemed an omnipotent being. Not like a person. God spoke through all of my senses. He called me by name and told me I could not stay, that I had more work to do. I protested. I told him about all of my service on earth (working with cancer patients 24/7, with not much money for my work, a good wife, a good mother). I did not want to leave this place. Then God said, 'Let me ask you one question. Have you ever loved another person the way you have been loved here?' The love I had received there was overpowering! I had never felt anything like it, so I answered God honestly. I said, 'No, it is impossible, I am just a human.' Then God gave me a sweet, protective chuckle. He said, 'Mary Jo, you can do better.' Then I had to go back. When I came back, it seemed like I had talked to God for a long while, but It was only three minutes that I was unresponsive.

I woke up to my husband shaking my arm and crying, telling me I was very sick, that they were going to have to take me to surgery. He was telling me they would have to open my head and clip an artery that was bleeding. He told me please don’t die. I told my husband not to worry. I had just talked to God and He wouldn't let me die. My husband, who is a physician, thought I was hallucinating. I have to say, if the roles were reversed, I would have thought that too! I worked in a Cancer Center and often thought patients were hallucinating when they told me such unbelievable stories.

I recovered so quickly from the brain surgery, my neurosurgeons were perplexed about how this could be! It also caused my husband to give more credence to my story!

ADDED COMMENTS:

I was very skeptical at the time of my experience about whether or not God exists---as I had been taught as a child. Now I have no doubt that God exists, and, although I am more spiritual, I am less religious. I still practice the Catholic faith, but very differently. I felt like everything on the Other Side made sense to me. I had a knowingness of the place. It felt like my original source. The colors there were not colors as we know them here. They were brilliant. The love and acceptance I felt there was not a human emotion I had ever experienced before. I had to grieve being sent back to earth. Now I have no fear of death. I have a sense that we are 'limitless' in what we can give and do on earth. I see life on earth as more plastic, not real. I see my body as a shell I have to take care of, but it is not meant to last forever. I am a psychotherapist and am paid a lot of money to help people change. I may spend years trying to help them change one small behavior. I spoke with God one time, and my whole life has changed! My experience was definitely real! I feel like it is a great blessing and responsibility. Nothing in my life is the same.

Patrick G’s NDE in 1976---A cultural anthropologist

THE NDE AND ITS AFTER-EFFECTS
The accident that propelled me into my new life style occurred in 1976 when I was driving from a visit with former students near Death Valley to meet my wife and return with her to our home in Berkeley. The accident caused that meeting to be considerably postponed, for I was greatly damaged by flying through the windshield some fifty feet and landing on the highway. In a hospital, a number of physicians aided me as I was comatose. My twenty-year-old son, by chance telephoning, learned of my hospitalization and was the first to speak with the physicians. The head physician told him I would never walk or talk again, mainly to prepare him for my certain death that day.

When I awoke instead, the entire right side of my body was paralyzed because of skull fractures over the left hemisphere, and I had grave difficulty in breathing because of the paralysis and because of broken ribs on the other side. I was unconscious for weeks and suffered from lacerations and other major problems. When I awoke, I was amazed at being unable to move the right side of my body but unaware of all else. I could not recognize any one who greeted me, including my wife and children. And, of course, I didn't know who I was. Finally, after a couple of weeks, I discovered language exists on earth, but the one that began to return was Spanish. Perhaps this second language came first because I am ambidextrous and so use the left hemisphere for English and the right for the second language, and the left neurons damaged in the skull fracture hindered English far more than Spanish. Since the ambidextrous person has greater ease in shifting brain functions, English began to return a few days later with the two problems observed by linguists in people who miraculously regain language. One is using the wrong noun, to produce "Hand me your elbow" instead of "Hand me your book"; the second, disastrous to understanding, involves arranging words of a sentence in a wrong order and thus violating vastly important syntax rules.

But after a short period of time, I was able to speak fairly accurately. As English returned, I gradually lost the paralysis of the right side of my body and regained other capabilities as well. So to the astonishment of many people, including the physicians, I did recover enough to begin lecturing again without much noticeable damage. I began to have seizures, however, (probably because of scars in my brain tissue), which almost always commenced with auditory (rather than visual) curiosities. Generally, I would distinctly hear classical music, a warning to lie down immediately to avoid falling down. Some seizures led to another day or two in the hospital in a coma.

MY NDE during my accident: My first vision was seeing my own dead body inert and totally prone. “I” was floating in the air, but not in some kind of a room. I viewed the body from above at a diagonal angle, with great interest but without any consternation. I cannot recall if I was clothed or not. But soon thereafter, so to say, I noticed I had something else to think about in addition to the bereaved body. Not only was I freed from gravity but from all other human restrictions as well. I could fly, and fly so adeptly that I felt transformed. Total ease and joy are but a part of such complete, solely human, non-mechanical, and unimpeded flight.

Next in the sequence was the sight of a dark area ahead, void of all light, which I saw to be the entrance of a tunnel. Flying into the tunnel at once and so moving very, very rapidly, I enjoyed the flight even more, freer from other distractions by being barred of sight. The time I was in the tunnel can only be speculated, for as I said earlier, time itself seemed unavailable, but finally I saw a circular light in the distance. As I continued to roar along, the light began to look somewhat like the sun on the horizon, without the problems one has in so sighting the sun. The end of the tunnel was an incredible sight, with an illuminating marvel of yellow-orange color of total beauty, which also seemed at once a marvelous place to be.

When I left the tunnel, I entered a dazzlingly beautiful area, totally and perfectly illuminated with colors and radiance. I also saw certain surprising creatures, such as lions and other marvels, all wondrously proportioned and replete with grace and beauty beyond imagining. I saw as well a number of people in clothing which seemed transparent. The people, also of graceful beauty, all seemed to be those that I have long been interested in, such as my father (who had been dead for some twenty-five years) and Sigmund Freud and Charles Darwin (whom I had written, read, and lectured about for many years). But everyone there, as I knew the very moment I was there, seemed to possess a knowledge as radiant, transfiguring, and ideal as the luminous light. And I possessed it, too.

Naturally, I had never experienced or believed such phenomena could be, but there they were. Flying ceased, replaced by my greater interest in these new phenomena, and, like the others there, I walked around as I wished. Others were reclining. I knew that all one had to do was approach an interesting person and quite easily and almost immediately understand his essence. Time was unnecessary, but the entire episode might be termed minute, requiring only interest on the part of the viewer. The other person had the same type of interest, and the result was consummate exchange of knowledge. Words cannot provide a hint of such universal knowledge.

I also knew that the illuminating light would never cease: no one had the need to sleep since we sleep only to dream, and dreams were not required for persons with radiant absolute knowledge. I also understood that everyone present was in a state of perfect compassion with everyone else and everything else, that there was no specific need at all for portions of space since total space was available, and similarly there were no preferences for specific time since all time is experienced only in the present moment. We were freed from all those contrivances historians often claim to be the causes of war and other conflicts, including land, food, and shelters. Love was the only axiom. These ideal conditions produced a phenomenal state, for neither hate nor any other disturbing passion was present - only the total presence of love. As a result, one might say that there were no emotions at all. But I think a better version is that since love was complete, it also included slight variants such as consideration, respect, compassion, and interest, and that all of these merged.

I knew it quite possible to return to my terrestrial life, and I missed other people I also admired (those paradoxically called "living"), my children, my wife, and many others. I did decide to return, though I knew also that the price of ticket would be gargantuan: accepting the biological, physiological, and physical needs and handicaps of my body, as well as the loss of all but a splinter of my luminous knowledge. I know nothing of any aspect of the return trip, but as soon as I decided to return and so lost the ALL of what I have ever wanted to be or to know, I was there. Neither do I know how often I had visions while comatose for those weeks, but I speculate that they occurred during all the time I was unconscious. When I returned to consciousness, a great number of other things were required of me because I was far from recovery.

Although I didn't recognize my children, or any other relatives or friends, I did note the continuous, loud sound of the vacuum sweeper occasionally used in my room was far more intense and likely more meaningful than the sound of speech. I recall being puzzled by the attentive glances to the often silent and always interrupted mumbo-jumbo that comprised conversations between persons and the disregard paid to the majesty of the vacuum sweeper's sound. In many ways, I had to relearn things that we usually take for granted. I had to relearn Spanish, English, our culture, and my role in it as a "human": to live, to be social, to lecture, to deal with all the earlier, myriad details of my life. All that returned, however, did so without formal effort or even wish on my part.

All visions here described are absolutely distinctive from what I have experienced and studied both in dreams and with psychoactive drugs. Dreams, as psychoanalytic creeds often propose, may be of considerable worth to all of us. But clearly, dreams must first be translated in order to follow the premises (of our "rational" awakeness) of time, space and logic, with causality added to uncover their meanings. We thus have to handle such impossibilities as a dream in which the dreamer acts as a child while simultaneously viewing the scene as an adult in the audience, and in which some participants can be familiar personages long dead, some participants composed of other, thus hidden, representatives. These entirely acceptable conditions in dreams would cause one to panic were they to appear in a wakeful moment. The language used in dreams, if to be understood, clearly needs translation. The events in my visions are completely different. There is no need at all for translation in any sense in order to achieve understanding of the semantics involved, either physically, socially, mentally, or linguistically. The extraordinary knowledge there cannot be improved and, rising quite above all temporal, spatial, and logical conditions and far beyond any yearning for causality, makes any earthly conjecture pitiful, no matter how universal its terrestrial acceptance may be. In large part this difficulty is because of our conscious reliance and dependence upon words. But as I've mentioned, I knew what I knew in my visions without the use of or reliance upon translation for meaning and function. Not one word existed there. Words, after all, are extremely weak, erroneous approximations - far less than, or even contrary to, the luminosity I experienced there. Hence, visions and dreams are not the same in any sense.

For the same reason, hallucinations and other changes in perceptions or altered states of consciousness, while interesting, are also quite different from my NDE visions. Further, it may well be that a substantial minority of the human population fails to receive either the blunders or the blessings of hallucination however termed, but all of us can rest assured that the visions I describe and evaluate will not be denied to a soul on our planet.

Even more reassuring, the automatic knowledge that awaits us all is actually already within us. As a faint example of this point, compare the discovery of the semantics of sex by (1) cautiously and carefully studying all the meaning of that useful subject given to us in the heroic volumes of Sigmund Freud to (2) losing yourself by becoming one with an engaging person who also is lost for you, all out of love. Freud's work is without; the other is within. Keep in mind that I have earned and spent my position in terrestrial life by learning, writing, and speaking words from 1936 to 1982 with scarcely a pause. But the brief experience I haphazardly write about now is itself entirely wordless and entirely worthy. St. Augustine is given credit for the anthropological axiom, "The world is a book and those who do not travel read but a single page." I can justifiably lay claim, I think, to learning a lot about terrestrial life from my visionary flight elsewhere. It may appear that I rely on my memory for such knowledge. But memories can fail or be sketchy at times. Most astonishing to me, the remembrance I use to explain the meaning and nature of my travels does not diminish over time but actually greatly increases. Instead of fading, it daily grows, largely I think because the spiritual dimension of my reflections on that event continuously changes me and gives me insight into our life on this planet.

Such "counter-shock" insight on my return includes the dimensions of our reality - time, space, and logic - which my NDE has profitably altered. Consider, for example, our dimensions of time. I once read in an antique philosophic book the idea that "children, savages, and seers all share a remarkable characteristic that is not found elsewhere even though it marvelously enhances their lives: they are always in the present moment." The simple rule, Pay attention now, do it now, is often used in our society because we characteristically are concerned solely with what has happened in our past, thus generally causing a host of costly and unpleasant sensations (such as resentment, hatred, guilt, shame, and anxiety) to persist for decades after their cause or source has disappeared; or else we plan for the future: a student studies to pass courses to get a degree to get a job to be promoted to become important, and so it goes, ever onward. Hence, with us something appears to be done not for its own sake but for some other reason. I have learned from my experience that by staying in the here and now present moment, I cannot be bored by any conversationalist. A person must have his mind in another time period in order to be bored and so not to pay attention in conversation. Calamities and disasters can occur in my life, but as long as I stay in the present moment, such events are only matters of interest when I wish to reflect upon them. The calamitous events in one's life can cause little more than brief grief by themselves. I am certain that I can become properly horrified by reading any of Poe's tales of mystery and horror. But I also know that such an emotion of terror will absolutely vanish the moment I stop attending to it and resume my affairs in the here and now, once the book is closed.

I am truly amazed at the enormity of the value of time in our lives and how big a dimension time is in our concept of reality. By contrast, the Cuna Indians, who live in northeastern Colombia and adjacent Panama, have a native language as adroit and elegant as Spanish or English, which has no past tense, and their noun for the shortest period of time is not a nanosecond (i.e., one billionth of second) like ours, but a month. But despite the gargantuan importance we place on time in all sectors of our culture, we are generally out of the present, the only time that can be experienced, the only time there is. My NDE taught me also that the present moment without question and right now presents eternity to all those souls who heed it constantly. For me, it helps to understand the present if I keep in mind that each sentence I utter begins in the past and will end in the future, but it is still understood as it proceeds and is heard in the present. I see I am not alone, for according to Waismann (1965), St. Augustine "roughly" answers the question of time measurement by insisting, "We cannot measure an interval of time in the past because the past is no longer at hand, nor can we measure one in the future because the future is not yet here, and the present is only a point."

Accepting for the moment St. Augustine's notion of the present's length – the miniscule point I believe we must all so assume is nothingness by contrast to the length of the past and future - helps me to consider the present moment as out of time - therefore an eternity. While in my coma, I knew with far greater certainty just how nothingness in time means eternity as precisely as nothingness in gravity means floating. In order to gain all love one must give it all away, and so I am persuaded that in acting upon our love of time we would do best by giving away our curious concerns over the unattainable, unending, lineal components of time and be left in joy with the eternal point of the present moment. Among others, that is a virtue of my NDE.

DR. R. P’S NDE---A no-nonsense anaesthetist dismissed patients who said they'd had out-of-body experiences until he went under the knife

By all indications, the patient on the operating table was dead. His heart had been stopped, his body drained of blood, and he was no longer capable of breathing on his own.

He was, in fact, in “suspended animation” — through a surgical procedure that replaces the blood with a cool fluid and stops all bodily functions. Meanwhile, surgeons had just one hour to repair a tear in the main artery leading to his heart.

This is a difficult operation, not to mention dangerous. And, as the hospital’s chief anaesthetist, it was my job to make sure that the patient remained deeply unconscious throughout.

He did, and thankfully he survived.

In the recovery room later, I was there by his side as he woke up — with a smile on his face.

‘I was watching you guys in the operating room,’ he told me. ‘I was out of my body, floating around by the ceiling. I saw you just standing at the head of the table, I saw the surgeon sewing the patch on my artery, I saw that nurse . . .’

Everything he said was uncannily accurate. But could he really have witnessed it all?

No, of course not — how could he see anything when his heart wasn’t beating, his head was packed in ice and his brain had stopped functioning?

He wasn’t the first patient of mine to have reported such strange events. Over the course of my 25-year career, I’d heard people claim to have seen deceased friends during a cardiac arrest, or lights at the end of tunnels or people made of light.

I’d always thought such stories were nonsense, so I said I’d return to talk to him later. But I never did.

By the next day, he’d been moved to another department, so he was no longer technically in my charge. And time, after all, is money. That’s how materialistic I was.

Within a few days, that patient had become just another anecdote.

In many ways, my wife, Arpana, and I had a charmed life. She ran her own dental practice and I was making a very good living not only as an anaesthetist, but also as the co-founder of a private pain clinic.

Soon we’d traded our small house for a larger one and then a mansion. Our cars went from average Fords and Toyotas to ‘supercars’, including a Porsche and a Hummer. I was even planning on buying a Ferrari; my goal was bigger everything — house, cars, art collection, bank accounts.

Naturally, I’d made sure my three children had the finest possible education. And I had my eldest son Raghav’s life all mapped out. He was going to follow in my footsteps and become a doctor.

The only problem was that he wasn’t that interested in medicine, and his grades reflected that. I had no sympathy. I shouted at him a lot, punishing him with my anger. Like my father and grandfather before me, my theory of child-raising was ‘A bent nail must be straightened with a hammer.’

Otherwise, I felt my life was near-perfect. Then, in 2008, at the age of 51, I found out I had prostate cancer. I was furious with God. What had I done to deserve this? Still, I booked an operation with one of the best prostate surgeons in the country and assumed that all would be well. ‘I can almost guarantee no complications,’ the surgeon told me — but something went drastically wrong, and I was left with incredibly painful scar tissue and other debilitating side-effects.

There were five more operations over the next two years to try to repair the damage, but none of them really worked.

Then one evening, just two weeks after my fifth operation, I suddenly felt faint. My temperature was 105F. I knew instantly what was happening. despite two courses of strong antibiotics, an infection was spreading rapidly in my abdomen. And if I didn’t get help fast, I’d soon be dead from septic shock.

My wife, tears streaming down her face, managed to bundle me into her BMW and drive me to hospital, where I was quickly loaded on to a trolley. I remember emerging from a fog to see a surgeon looming above me. He held his hands like a praying mantis, a sign that they were scrubbed for surgery and ready to be gloved.

Next time I surfaced, I was in the operating theatre. I managed to tell the anaesthetist what I did for a living and ask him what he was about to give me. Propofol and fentanyl, he said. In other words, the usual — exactly what I would have selected.

‘Are you ready?’ asked the surgeon. He waved his gloved hand at the anaesthetist, and I was asleep before I could answer.

Was it over? Was the surgery already over? I felt myself zooming straight up, as if in a lift. It was the same feeling you get in the pit of the stomach when you’re rocketing to the 20th floor of a skyscraper.

Slowly, my consciousness began to return. I could see the ceiling approaching, its glossy surface slowly getting closer.

Then I looked down and saw my own abdomen, now with several incisions. I heard the anaesthetist make an off-colour joke. I won’t repeat it, but everyone in the operating theatre laughed, including me.

But where was I? For a few moments, I froze with fright, worried that whatever was holding me up on the ceiling would suddenly let me drop. Eventually, though, I relaxed, watching in rapt amazement as the surgeons and nurses worked on my body.

‘Is that really me, or is this really me?’ I wondered. ‘How can I be in both places at once?’

Suddenly, I became aware of a shift in my perspective as my field of vision expanded. I was still in the operating theatre, but at the same time I could see my mother and sister sitting on a sofa in our family home, thousands of miles away in New Delhi — where I’d grown up.

The scene was vivid and detailed. My sister was wearing blue jeans and a red sweater and my mother a green sari and a green sweater. ‘What should we make for dinner?’ my sister asked. ‘It’s cold outside,’ said my mother. ‘We should make hot soup. Lentil sounds good.’

I was so focused on them that the sudden sound of instruments clanking in the operating theatre gave me a start. Turning my head to the left, I found I could still see and hear the scene below me.

‘This guy’s a mess. He’s lucky to be here. Give me more swabs,’ said the surgeon to a nurse.

I was now seriously frightened. What was going on? Would my untethered consciousness ever get back into my body — or was I destined to roam through eternity as a spirit?

Was I dead? I felt like an astronaut who’d left his spacesuit, only to find that a suit was unnecessary to begin with. With rising panic, I looked back and forth at the two scenes — until both started to fade like a fast-setting sun. Everything went dark. I was relieved. I’m returning to my body, I thought.

Then came a jolt of pure fear. To my right, I heard screams of pain and anguish. I was drawn in, as if on a moving pavement, to the edge of a flaming canyon. Smoke filled my nostrils, and with it the sickening odour of burning flesh. I knew then that I was on the lip of hell. I tried to turn away, but each time I took a step back, an unseen force moved me forward. A voice spoke to me telepathically. ‘You have led a materialistic and selfish life,’ it said. I knew that was true, and felt ashamed. Over the years, I’d lost empathy for my patients.

Standing on the rim of hell, I remembered a woman who’d come to my clinic for treatment of chronic arthritis. She was in considerable pain, but that wasn’t the reason why she was weeping.

‘I need to talk to you, doctor,’ she said to me. ‘My husband’s dying of lung cancer, and I don’t know what to do.’ ‘I’d love to talk to you,’ I said, writing out a prescription for pain-killers and sleeping pills. ‘But I have several patients waiting.’ I was like a robot. I’d trained myself to blunt my emotions. Worse, I had trained myself to think only of myself.

As the smoke billowed and the burning souls screamed around me, I thought of my possessions and how meaningless they were. Why did I have all these things? Why did I need a home so big that, when we were in different parts of the house, we had to communicate through our iPhones? I felt steeped in shame. But I knew my chance to change was gone. at any moment now, I’d be pulled into the pit of fire to burn for eternity. There seemed no way out, but I prayed for one anyway.

‘My God, give me another chance. Please give me another chance.’

Almost at that instant, I did get my second chance — in the form of the last person I ever expected to see. It was my father. I recognised him immediately, though he looked at least 30 years younger than when he’d died. He took my hand in his and led me away from the edge of hell, as if I were still a little boy. Then, putting his arm around me, my father tried to comfort me — and it was the first time I could remember him touching me affectionately.

To be honest, I almost shrank back — even at the age of 53, I was still afraid that my father was going to beat me, just as he had so many times in my childhood. But, just then, I had a vivid flashback of the day he found out I’d bunked off school and gave me a savage beating with a cricket bat.

Suddenly, I was seeing it all from his perspective. His own dreams of bettering himself had come to nothing, so he’d beat me because he couldn’t bear to see me wasting my life.

What I’d discovered in my father’s mind wasn’t hatred, but fear. He’d been frightened that I wouldn’t take advantage of my chances and go on to university. His tyranny, I finally understood, had been born of love.

And now this. My father, my cruel and despotic father, was spiritually rescuing me from hell! I looked into his eyes, and my hard heart melted with love.

No words came from his mouth, but for the first time I learned from him that his own father had abused him, just as he’d abused me.

‘Anger,’ my father told me, ‘isn’t usually about an event. It’s passed on from father to son. If you know that, you can stop it; you can choose not to be angry. Simple love is the most important thing in the universe.’

I asked myself, would I ever return to the land of the living? If I did, I would have to focus on love; I would have to break the cycle of anger in my family.

The scenery was changing. I noticed now that we’d walked straight into a tunnel. Incredibly, it was soon teeming with people I knew were my ancestors, reaching out hands of welcome.

I recognised my grandfather, who gave me a look of sheer joy. ‘Love is the most important thing there is,’ he told me. Then both he and my father simply faded away.

I was now halfway through the tunnel. And that’s when I had a life review — in which I re-experienced in detail all the good things that had ever happened in my childhood — from being given sweets by my sisters to the warm feeling of being swathed in my mother’s love.

Again, a telepathic message came from nowhere. ‘The simple moments are the most important. All moments are memory and lessons. They all build the person you are.’

I was nearing the end of the tunnel now, where a light shone more brightly than a thousand suns. I could feel it pulling me weightlessly towards it, but I felt no fear.

Before I could reach the light, however, two angelic forms emerged into the tunnel. Exuding powerful energy as they hovered above me, they introduced themselves as my guardians — the archangels Michael and Raphael.

Now, I’m a Hindu. So it was only later that I learned that St Raphael is the angel of healers, and St Michael is the protector of people and the angel who opens doors.

Both archangels had a human shape, yet they shimmered with light and had a thick translucence. Michael had a blue hue and long hair; Raphael was greenish and wore a cap.

In a moment, I was lifted by them and guided towards the blazing light before us. As we approached, I found myself high above a green meadow, peppered with rose bushes. Just the sweet smell of the grass and roses made me almost delirious with pleasure.

We travelled on to a higher plane and then a higher one still, until I was surrounded by a landscape of clear light. Raphael explained that at the highest level, you are surrounded by a powerful energy that consists of pure love and intelligence — the underlying fabric of everything in the universe.

Enlightenment comes, added Michael, when a person realises that love is everywhere and is the only thing that matters. Yet most people don’t realise this until they leave the earth.

With that, they took me by the arms and we moved rapidly upwards towards a being of light, a silver-blue form that showed no sign of being male or female.

When it engulfed me with its blue light, I felt as if I were being wrapped in a blanket of pure love. ‘I am one with the universe,’ I thought.

The being started communicating telepathically. ‘You need to look at your life one more time,’ it said. ‘It’s important to reflect on changes that you need to make.’

It went on to tell me that I was destined to become a healer of souls — helping people with problems such as addiction, depression and chronic pain.

I would no longer be an anaesthetist; instead I’d become a practitioner of spiritual medicine, of ‘consciousness-based healing’.

I don’t know how long I stayed with the being. But my exit, when it happened, was sudden and rapid as I fell into a white fog. For the first time, my eyes began to hurt, so I closed them.

And when I opened them . . . I was in the recovery room. My heart was beating hard and my lungs pumping double time.

‘How do you feel?’ It was the anaesthetist, still in his scrubs. ‘That was a rough one,’ he said, referring to my surgery.

I must have looked stunned, because when I didn’t respond, the anaesthetist leaned closer. ‘Are you all right?’ he asked.

‘I saw you during my surgery,’ I said. ‘I left my body and watched you from the ceiling.’

‘Interesting,’ he said, his voice a study in disinterest.

‘No, really. I watched as you administered the anaesthetic and even heard you tell a joke.’ I repeated his risque joke, word for word, and he blushed.

‘I must not have given you enough anaesthesia,’ he said, looking hard at my file in order to avoid meeting my gaze.

I wasn’t about to be fobbed off. As one professional to another, I was determined to tell him exactly what I’d seen. So I described going to India, where I’d seen my mother and sister, and travelling to the edge of hell. I’d just started on the next part when he glanced at his watch and flipped the file shut.

‘Very interesting,’ he said. ‘I’ll come back later to hear about it.’

I never saw him again.

When the surgeon came in to check on me, I started recounting my out-of-body experience all over again, and this time got all the way to the tunnel entrance.

At that point, he reached for his phone — which wasn’t ringing. Then he excused himself by saying he had an ‘important call’.

POSTSCRIPT

After recovering, Dr Parti resigned from his job as chief anaesthetist at Bakersfield Heart Hospital in California — much to the bewilderment of his colleagues — got rid of all his expensive cars and sold his mansion, moving into a house half the size.

His wife supported all his decisions, keeping the family afloat while he established a new practice to heal people though meditation and other alternative methods.

Realising he’d placed his ego above his eldest boy’s happiness, Dr Parti encouraged his son — then in his third year at medical school — to find a career he preferred.

His son is now happily training to be a computer programmer and enjoys a close relationship with the father he once feared.

TWO IMPORTANT POINTS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER.

---THE RADICAL CHANGES DR. PARTI MADE IN HIS LIFE AFTER HIS NDE INDICATES HOW REAL HIS NDE WAS TO HIM. CONSIDERING HIS LATER BEHAVIOR, IT BECOMES OBVIOUS THAT HE DID NOT THINK HIS NDE WAS JUST A DREAM OR HALLUCINATION!!

---THE TEMPORARY "HELLISH ELEMENTS" IN HIS NDE ARE UNUSUAL, BECAUSE ONLY 1 IN 100 NDEs HAVE HELLISH FEATURES. NOTE ALSO THAT HE WAS NOT PUT IN HELL---AND HIS "CRUEL AND DESPOTIC FATHER, WHO WAS ALSO A HINDU" HAD NOT GONE TO HELL EITHER!! SO, JUST AS IN OTHER NDEs, GOD HAS PROVIDED PARTICULAR EXPERIENCES THAT WOULD BE MEANINGFUL TO THE INDIVIDUAL HAVING THE NDE. BUT ALL NDErs ARE FORGIVEN AND LOVED BY GOD.

Giselle RV’s NDE in 1978---from Costa Rica. Original in Spanish.

I was in the hospital, semi-seated in bed, after giving birth to my first child. I was having a cup of coffee and chatting with the ladies I shared the hospital room with, who had also recently given birth. Suddenly, I felt as if I were bleeding. When I looked down, I saw a lot of blood. I called the nurse and was immediately taken to the operating room for a dilatation and curettage procedure. The doctor and nurse started to work on me. Since I was in a lot of pain, they administered anesthesia. I quickly went under and don't know when it happened. I woke up, but only my mind, my body was still asleep. I heard the nurse tell the doctor that they were losing me. He replied that they had to save me, that it was their responsibility since they had given me too much anesthesia without intubation.

I suddenly became aware that my heart and lungs were silent and thought to myself 'Now I really must have died, at least I am not in pain.' My soul or spirit left my body and I found myself floating in a dark space. I was not afraid. I felt comfortable there. I thought it was very beautiful. I was still thinking like myself, feeling like myself. My memory and personality remained, and I could float in this space freely. I had something similar to my body, but I was transparent and milky white, like ghosts are described, with a slight glow. When I got bored of being there by myself without doing anything, I thought that there must be more than this. I asked God to take me where He was.

I started to float but could not tell in which direction. I was gradually able to make out a small light and noticed that I was quickly traveling toward it through what seemed like a big tunnel. My arrival there is a little confusing. I was welcomed by beings whom I remember as very tall and made of an incredible light. They loved me like no one had ever loved me. I felt what can only be described as the love of God surrounding me, welcoming me, filling me with warmth and happiness. To this day, when the suffering of this world makes me despair, I close my eyes and travel there. The fact that all of this will pass and I will return to be with them is a consolation to me. I remember thinking ' At last, I have returned home, my God, this is my home.'

I know that I spoke to them for a long time and then they took me to another place. I don't remember walls but I had the feeling that it was more enclosed. I saw something similar to a three dimensional movie of my life up until that day. There was no judgment. They only showed me what was expected of me in certain situations and that perhaps I hadn't behaved the way I should have. I remember vividly that it was expected that my soul controls my body, that the body is only the vehicle necessary for life on planet earth, and that we are not to let the vehicle control us. I saw where I had fallen short was mainly by omission. Sometimes by laziness or not wanting to complicate my life, I had not helped someone that needed it. At that moment, my hands should have been available for God to respond to a person in need. I have tried hard to correct this, trying to see the best in others acting as a bridge for God to tell someone their worth, how beautiful they look, or how much they are loved by God and how important their friendship is. These may seem small and silly things, but they are very important to some people at certain times.

They told me that it was not my time to be there, but that due to a medical mistake I had arrived “home” once again. I knew I still had a lot do and to learn, but under no circumstance did I want to return to earth! I was going through a rough time in my life and was afraid to lose all those wonderful feelings.

A being of light, even brighter and more loving, asked them to show me part of what I still had to do on earth and to show me my newborn son in the crib at the hospital. They told me that my son had a learning path depending on the fact that I would be his mother and that my decision would greatly affect his life. With all the pain in my heart (by the way I had no physical pain) I decided to return. They would have to erase almost all of my memories because they explained that if I remembered too much I would not be able to handle the desire to return and would run the risk of committing suicide, which I should not do.

When I agreed to return, it was very difficult for me to decide to enter my body---so heavy, dense, and encumbering. But a deal is a deal. I entered just at the time they were using the electrical metal plates to restart the heart. I heard the nurse say, 'Doctor, she has a pulse.' I then fell asleep and woke up in the recovery room.

I have to finish that which I promised, even if I do not remember what it is. I have tried to give the best of me this time. Not to say that I have achieved it, but I will keep trying to be better each day of my life. I try to see things and people in a positive light, to enjoy and give thanks to God for each moment that I live, for the air that I breathe, the fruit, the flowers, the animals and my four children and grandchildren. I wait impatiently (since it has been thirty-two years) for the day that I return home and rest from my passage through this life. I am not afraid of death, although I take good care of myself in order to keep my earthly vehicle in good condition and return it used but in working order. I like life in this place (on earth), although I have suffered a lot, but is seems like this is the way that we learn and grow.

I have learned to see beyond appearances. I see in people their struggle to be better, even though they do not always succeed. I have been called naive, silly, and sometimes a hypocrite, because I get close to people that treat me badly and try to be their friend. I am still catholic because it is a little less fanatical, but I have a different view regarding the beliefs of others. I believe God approaches you according to your individual beliefs, that we are all his children, and He speaks to us according to the language that we understand. I do not believe in everlasting damnation for those with different beliefs. I am not afraid of God; I feel only deep reverence toward him. I know that he is my loving father who is waiting for me and will welcome me with Love and Peace. The truth is that I want it to be over already, I want to return. Thank God, my children are older now and will be able to continue with their life plans without me. Later we will see each other again.

Graça P’s NDE in 1980--from Portugal in Portuguese

This was my second day with a horrible headache! My parents had gone out in the afternoon and taken our son with them because I was in pain. My husband gave me an aspirin to alleviate the headache. Suddenly I couldn’t breathe. Now I had a horrible pain in my chest. Then everything stopped.

I saw and heard my husband crying and did not understand why. For me, now I was feeling much better! I said “Manuel, I'm well! It’s over!' He didn’t seem to hear me. He took my blood pressure and couldn’t get a reading! I saw that he went to get a small mirror, which he put in front of my nose and my mouth, but there was no vapor on the mirror. I couldn’t explain why the mirror didn’t fog up, but I worried more about calming my husband. He babbled, “Please, Gracinia! Don’t leave me! Come back to me! I need you!” I was telling him: “Listen to me! I am well! It’s over already!”

At that moment, I realized that something absurd was occurring. I was aware that I was watching the scene from close to the ceiling. I felt unsettled. It was strange. How could I see my husband crying and bent over my body? It was me! How could that be? What was going on?

I was not scared. I was intrigued. I tried to find an explanation, but I couldn’t. I looked around stunned.
I think that I stopped listening to my husband, although I saw him leaning over my body crying.

I looked carefully around from the ceiling. I saw the ceiling lamp and the surface of the top part of the closet door. It was covered with dust, and I remember thinking 'Oh, I forgot to clean the dust here!' It was then that I saw a sheet of blue paper with twenty-five lines, covered with dust. It was a document that I had searched for and couldn’t find. I thought, 'It’s here’. It was a certificate of qualifications that I needed to present to my School Board.
I was aware that this was not a dream. Below, my husband shook my body and I felt sorry for him. I did not think that I was dead. I was not dead because I could watch the scene from a physically impossible point of view. I was unable to understand anything. I felt unsettled. I looked at the wall behind me and saw the clock. When I tried to see the time, I felt “suctioned away” from that place!

In the following instant, I was in a place in total darkness. I felt a lot of fear and was disoriented. I extended my arms trying to reach a wall or a piece of furniture. I couldn’t reach anything. I remember I was going forward with my extended arms and rolling in all directions, looking for a point of reference. There was Nothing---and I was terrified. Where was I? What was I doing here?

I didn’t call God or the saints. Manuel was a Catholic, but I did not believe in them. I was an atheist. I didn’t call for anyone. It was then that I heard a voice: 'Don’t be afraid! We are here to help you!' I extended my arms in the direction of the voice but all I found was a void. Another voice, and still another, said the same to me. I cannot tell how many of them there were. I felt their 'presence' but I couldn’t touch them. At a certain point, I realized that I didn’t hear them with my ears but with my thoughts. How was that possible?

I realized that I didn’t have an option. I was in the darkness, not knowing where. Whatever it was that was there, I had no one to ask for help. These voices seemed like people to me because I could understand what they said to me.
I was intrigued to know where I was. If I didn’t see them, was I perhaps blind? I heard the answer within me, 'No, you’re not blind!' I stopped trying to touch them. I mentally accepted their help. I was scared; I can even say that I was terrified. The total darkness disoriented me.
'Come!'

'Where to?'

'Come! Follow us!'

'How? I cannot see you'

‘Let it go!'

I felt something like an energy, like static electricity or magnetism, which I couldn’t define. I felt also that there were other 'energies' around me. I desisted from questioning and I let it go. I felt my body take the position of lying face down on my belly. I felt agitated, but the one who accompanied me said that I would not fall.

We moved slowly in the darkness. Or so it seemed to me. Without any point of reference, I was not able to know how fast I was moving. I had the sensation of gliding. I asked 'Where are we going?' And they answered that I should be calm and to continue. The fear was going away.

At a certain place, a minuscule point of light appeared in that darkness. They said to me, 'Look! That is where we are going!' I did not have any questions. As we advanced in the direction of the light, the darkness faded.

I started to feel anxious. I wanted to be there, close to the light. To me, it was a star that would illuminate the landscape when we were closer to it. When there was clarity around me, I tried to look at my companions. I couldn’t see them but I continued to feel them close to me. I was calm, as if everything that happened was natural. I understood. I saw the Earth and the Moon in the distance. I saw the Sun moving away. I was amazed.

There were colors that I cannot define because they don’t fit in the palette of colors that we have on earth. There were tones that created layers like transparent, superimposed plaques. They were beautiful and I was ecstatic. I let myself be carried through, without fear.
I remember understanding.

I looked at the light towards which we were heading. It was as bright and powerful as the sun. I looked at it directly but did not feel discomfort. As strange as it may seem, the more away I was from the planet Earth, the more the existence of my family ceased to matter to me. I didn’t think of my son and that was very strange.
I recall that I had a feeling similar to one that we have when, after a long absence, we come back home. I felt I was 'going back home'. I was at peace, and happier than I had ever been before.

At a certain moment, the first light issued sounds which I cannot define. Sound came out in 'a wave', which I call so because it moved like the waves of the sea.
I stayed watching the wave as it came nearer, waiting for what would occur. When the wave touched me, I felt love!   It was a love so great that even if I added the love of my parents, my husband, my son, all the family and that which I felt for them, it could not be compared to this love more than a grain of sand to the desert. I had never felt anything like it. A new wave formed and when it came to me, again I felt loved in an unexplainable way.

I wished to go to the source that emanated so much love. I changed focus from all that surrounded me to center only on that strange star. I wanted to reach it soon and with each wave that touched me, I felt ever happier, as if I had always been part of that love. I was close, so I thought, when the light said mentally to me:   'Stop!' 'You have to go back!'
‘Your husband son need you!'

'No! Please! I want to stay.'   'My husband will get another woman and my son has his father and grandparents! They don’t need me! Let me stay!'
'You have to go back! You have duties to fulfill!'

'But I want to stay! Please! I have never felt so much love in my life!
'You have to go back! Your mission has not yet ended!'   'Mission? What mission? I’ve already suffered so much and I’ve never been bad. Please! Please! I want to stay here!'
'You can’t!   Go back!'   In the following instant, everything vanished.

The pain came back.   I breathed and was on the bed with my husband crying with joy. I was crying with sadness.

At that time, the nearest hospital was about 13 kilometers (8 miles) away and serviced the community so poorly that anyone who had to go there was scared. I was so tired that I only wanted to rest. My husband phoned a doctor who didn’t answer. I narrated for my husband the experience I had had and we cried together. He was so moved for having me safe, and I was so moved by the experience and the frustration of my return.

My husband affirmed that after I put my hand on my breast and tried to breathe, I didn't open my eyes. Then, how could I see everything that happened?   I told my husband, ' Excuse me! But I didn’t want to come back! Everything was beautiful. There was so much love!'

When our 4 year-old son arrived from a tour with his maternal grandparents and came to embrace us, I felt guilty for wanting to leave him an orphan of his mother. But the pain of the departure from that love was still with me.

My husband went to see the document which I said was on top of the closet. He set up a chair to stand on and retrieved it, full of dust, just as I had seen it.   We’d never heard of anything like that.

On the morning of the next day my husband took me to a doctor of good reputation. After a long examination, he took an electrocardiogram, radiographed my whole body, made reflexive and reasoning tests. I don’t remember what else he did. Then he informed us that I had had a cardiac and respiratory arrest due to an allergic reaction to the aspirin, and I was very lucky to have survived. I attempted to speak about what had happened, but he stopped me by saying 'Why, Grace! You were unconscious and one step away from death!   I am absolutely certain that you saw nothing and heard nothing.’   Going back home, my husband and I decided to keep secret what had occurred, for fear someone would consider us crazy.

Before my experience, I did not believe in God or an afterlife. I continued without answers to so many questions. I started to search for literature and found nothing. In Portugal; no publications exist besides the Catholic ones. I had the certainty that I had not lived a dream or an hallucination. I started to be more attentive to the needs of people, animals and plants. I felt like a boat adrift, but in a certain way bound for a destination. I wanted to make good, forgive people, love them.

Now, I can’t affirm that the 'light’ was God, but I can affirm that it was LOVE---and that I no longer fear death. I thank the Universe for my experience.

Katherine L’s NDE in 2001---An NDE that says we have the freedom to choose aspects of our reality on the Other Side!

I had an ectopic pregnancy (i.e. a pregnancy in my fallopian tubes). I was eight weeks along and the pregnancy was near rupture, so I had surgery. Ideally, under laparoscopic surgery through my belly button, the pregnancy sack would be removed without rupture. But, unfortunately, there was a rupture, which complicated the procedure. I heard the surgeon and assistants talking about how there had been a rupture and that I was bleeding too much. They had to 'vacuum' out the excess blood which my body wouldn't have been able to absorb. This also meant that they had to make additional incisions to accommodate the complication. One of my family members was told that I had died during surgery, but that I had been brought back.

I was out of my body but not seeing with my eyes. I knew something had happened during surgery that was life-threatening. It was somehow understood that as a spiritual being, I needed to be outside of the body as it might not have been usable anymore. I remember floating toward a light. I arrived at a place with both gorgeous wildlife and beautiful buildings. I remember a sense of familiarity with the beings who greeted me, one of whom was a dog, my childhood pet.

The way I experienced knowledge wasn't through human means. If I focused on whatever it was I wanted to know, I'd immediately know the answer! The best way to describe information is through a series of emotional impressions which I accepted as truth because there was no concept of untruth or lies there.

Physically, I did not have form or shape in the usual way. If I thought that I should have form, I would assume a human form! If I didn't think about it, I was a contained essence, but weightless and maybe even made of light. Two beings guided me into one of the buildings for a life review process. I believe these buildings were constructed as blending with the natural environment. They were open, like pavilions. If I thought about them, they assumed more form! If I didn't think about them, they assumed less form.

I remember a screen as if on a table. The screen was like a touch screen.   I had never had access to this technology at the time of my NDE, so I didn't know a thing like that existed!   I reviewed my life like a movie, except that I could pause it and zoom into different important times during my life!   I could examine these times from multiple perspectives, such as the people they affected. When I think of this review now, I imagine it must have taken up a very long time in earth-time had I done the same thing here. However, at this place, the concept of time didn't translate very well. Time was now and it only passed in a linear fashion because I organized the different events as happening in a certain order when I reflected on it. It's extremely hard to explain, but it was nothing like time on earth.

After the life review, I was taken before more beings which seemed to be wiser than the two who brought me to my life review. I communicated with them about my decisions during my life review and areas where I could improve. While it was a collaborative process, I had deep respect and reverence for these beings. I felt that they loved me completely and without any judgment. In psychology there's a term to describe this called “unconditional positive regard.” I felt completely sure that they had this feeling for me. This surety felt like a warm glow of light around me. The conclusion of these conversations was that it wasn't so much a decision of doing the “wrong” thing in situations, or making unwise choices, but that the times of greatest challenge for me were times in which I could have acted but chose inaction. It was concluded that when I returned to earth, I must choose action and use my experiences and feelings to guide these actions so that they be an act of love.

Before I went back to earth, there was an agreement of some sort that I could stay in a certain area of this place, but I could not go deeper into this city. For example, I couldn't find out more information about the future of my life, even though I knew I'd forget upon returning if I did.   Instead, I stayed in an area of beautiful gardens. These gardens were greener than green is on earth and the colors were vivid and rich. I also felt no pain because I didn't have a body. No weight, no pain. It was like it was impossible to be clumsy. It was also impossible to be anything other than truly myself. I felt as if I was more myself there than here on earth.

I spent what would be in earth terms, a great deal of time in these gardens talking to the people there. We talked for what could have been hours or even days on earth. It was always light there, as if it was continuously in the afternoon. This wasn't bothersome to me though. I believe it was like that because I thought it should be like that. Unlike being around people on earth, I felt completely energized and refreshed from the social exchange. I'm an introvert on earth, so this was a very striking difference for me. I do not remember what we spoke about except that it involved special knowledge, which I don't have access to on earth.

What I got out of this experience before leaving was that I must choose action instead of inaction. I must behave in a way that would help bring more awareness and love to the world.   While I was never asked specifically if I was going back or not, it was understood that I was going to go back. It was also made clear to me that I was going to return to this place upon the conclusion of my life. Then I would go through another review process and I would stay there until I wanted to come back to earth in a different body. This was commonly understood there. Thus, death is not the end of life.   We have a choice to come back to earth after death in a different body if we want to.

I do not remember the journey back to my body, but I don't believe I went back to my body and then immediately woke up. I think I went back to my body and then gradually came out of anesthesia sometime afterwards. The first thing I remember when I woke up was that I was back in a hospital room. My father was sitting next to me. He commented that I was very lucky to have survived the surgery, because there were complications during surgery. I can't remember whether or not I talked to him about my experience, but I think I made some simple comment like, 'I had a dream' or 'I had a vision'.

My experience was not a dream or hallucination. It was definitely real. It was more real than reality is now when I'm alive on earth. It resounded with a truth that defies logic. It seems impossible that I could have imagined anything with such vividness. Since my experience, it's easier for me to put myself in other people's shoes. It's easier for me to act out of love and compassion. However, that’s something I work at.

Halil T’s NDE in March of 2017—From Turkey

I was picking up my daughter from school. While I was walking there, I dropped to the ground. I was having a heart attack! I was walking in a pretty populous area, so there were many people around. However, no one seemed to do anything. A few younger boys walked by, and just watched as I was lying on the ground. A young girl, who was maybe five years old, noticed me since I had collapsed right outside of her apartment complex. She asked me if I was alright, but I couldn't speak. She went back inside.

Everything went black. I don’t know how long I lay there, but all of a sudden, I could see. There was one thing that didn't make sense; why was I floating? I was in the same spot that I had collapsed, but I was slightly higher up. Suddenly, I heard sirens and looked down. I could see an ambulance with people coming out. They were putting me on a stretcher. I heard one man say, 'This man has no chance of survival. He has been here without any help for nearly an hour!' The other man said, 'I'm sure he is already dead. I didn't realize it was this bad.' I could see everything very clearly.

As I floated above my body, I wasn't feeling any pain and actually felt very comfortable. However, I was a bit stressed at the thought that my daughter and wife would find that I had died. I didn't know where my daughter was, but I knew that my wife's work was not too far, so I went to her workplace. I went to her office, but she wasn't there. I saw that her computer screen was on, and that she had been looking at an Istanbul real estate page with apartments and houses for sale. I didn't think much of it at the time, but this did have significance later on in my story.

I became curious. What would happen if I continued to float up? I began to go up, up, and up. Finally, I could see the entire city of Samsun (Turkey).   As I started to rise, I could see the Black Sea and the Southern tip of Ukraine, which is geographically close to Samsun. Eventually, I could see all of Turkey and Ukraine. Then, all of Eurasia. I kept going up so high that I was eventually able to view the whole earth from outer space!

Suddenly, I saw total black. I couldn't see anything. I started to panic, and yelled, "Hello!" I didn't get a response. Then, I called out to a higher power, and suddenly, I saw immense Light. As a Muslim, I believed it was Muhammad or ALLAH. I was able to float towards that Light. As I entered, I realized that I was getting sucked into some vortex. Then, I was in a cave or a tunnel. I could see the same Light, but it was at the end of this tunnel. I started to float towards that Light, and I came closer, and closer. As I got to the end, I saw a door. This door had typical Islamic ornamentation on it. The door opened, and it looked absolutely dark. However, this was only for a few seconds.

I then began to see an entire review of my life:   from when I was in my mother's womb to the present day. I was shown many life events that I forgot about afterward. Some of them made me feel happy, while others filled me with guilt, sadness, sorrow, and so on.
My life review also included some of the future: I saw an image of my daughter as an adult, becoming a model.   I also saw her future children.

Next, I saw a nice meadow with green grass that was greener than I could have ever imagined or seen. It had flowers that had a color that I cannot describe. I went inside a house and saw a young man who was sitting. As soon as he saw me, he stood up and ran to me. He looked similar to my father, but I could tell it was not him, as I had seen photos of him when he was in his early twenties. This man was visually younger than I was. I asked him who he was. He told me that he was my grandfather. Ever since I had known him, he was in a wheelchair. I was very surprised. He asked me to say hi to my grandmother, his wife.

Then he asked me if I wanted to meet my deceased father. We walked for about 5 minutes. In the distance, I saw my father. When we got closer, he welcomed me with open arms. He told me that I had been a good person, but that I needed to make sure my daughter would never lose her religion. My grandfather, father, and I were walking along a field, and we saw a beautiful Mosque in the distance. As we got closer, I could feel my walking became more and more difficult. It felt as though I gained all this extra weight. They entered, but I could not.

I could feel myself being pulled back. I heard an authoritative voice say, 'You shall not enter. You have not finished your life. When you have completed your life and continued to be a good person, you will earn your place here.' [NOTE that this Muslim has seen a Mosque and hears the need “to be a good person”, a characteristic of Islamic teaching. Christian NDErs, in like manner, tend to see religious elements of their own religion, although most NDErs do not hear any admonition to be good. Instead, they feel nonjudgmental, unconditional love.]

Suddenly, I saw complete darkness. Then, I opened my eyes and realized I was in a hospital bed, with my wife and daughter around me, crying. Apparently, I was out for longer than most cardiac arrest patients and it was a miracle that I had survived. I felt pain, but I was not tired or drowsy. Visiting hours were over and my wife and daughter had to go home. After I had recovered, I revealed exactly what happened. My wife had a hard time believing it at first, but I told her about the fact that I went to her office and saw the Istanbul real estate apartment and house website on at her desk. She was shocked. She said that day, her boss had offered her a job in Istanbul and she was wondering what kinds of apartments and houses exist there if she planned to relocate for her job. She said she never looked at that site before and thought that there was no way I could have known that information unless I had been there. I hadn't been to her office in over 2 months.

The experience was timeless and vivid. I actually still dream about the experience, and I have perfect replay ability of the whole thing. I had no questions, as I knew everything. My father, as well as the voice, told me the purpose of life is to be good and faithful. My experience was definitely 100% real. Nothing can change my mind. I was there, and I know.

Romy’s NDE in 1996---From Australia, but she was originally from Israel.

I was in a car, with my family, on a trip in India, when suddenly there was a commotion. There was a sound of the car going off road, and I could see both my brothers, the one who was sitting in the back and the one in the front, jumping and trying to catch the wheel. The car was tumbling down the mountain.

The circumstances in the car were in the back of my awareness.   In the front of my awareness, I heard a masculine, comforting voice say several times slowly, ‘It is all okay’. Surprisingly, I was experiencing absolute peace and I felt no fear. As the car was tumbling down the mountain, turning and bumping against the hard surfaces, the voice calmly said, ‘Roll with it’, as if it was just a movement exercise. Feeling absolute peace, I let myself roll.

The voice came from inside of my head, but at the same time, the voice wasn’t ‘me’. It was very comforting, stable and strong. I did not recognize the voice, but I connected to it very deeply, and knew I could trust it with all my heart. As I was ‘rolling’ with every tumble, I suddenly wasn’t in the car anymore. I experienced complete trust. I was surrounded with space, as I saw my whole life unfolding. I was watching millions of pictures of my life, like a movie broken down into picture frames. All the little deeds, thoughts and moments upon moments, even the ones I forgot ever happened, they were all there. It was such a fascinating sight. The most curious thing was that the pictures were not connected to one another; they had a gap between them that looked like a string of light. It looked like they were threaded upon this string of light.

My main feelings were equanimity, awe and curiosity. There was a strong quality of inquiry and inquisitiveness as I was examining everything. Every time a question came to me, the answer was immediately revealed. This unfolding of pictures and gaps developed and progressed continuously, presenting a constant, delicate, consequential line, in perfect order, a chain of events, yet somehow they were all happening at once. The past, the present, and the future were all happening at once. It was inspiring to witness the order and sense that all these little pictures seemed to have in ‘the big picture’.

I felt a lot of compassion. It was all forgiven. In fact, there was nothing to forgive. I could see that my life had ‘perfect order’ to it. In some way it was like watching a mathematical equation, or sum, that makes perfect sense. Such and such events create this kind of result. It was a simple portrayal of natural cause and effect, with a gentle understanding. There was no judgment, only innocence. As I was watching this linear unfolding of pictures, I realized that just by looking and focusing on a specific picture, ‘zooming in’ on it, I could also ‘enter’ that scene and then come back out of it, ‘zoom out’ and return to my place of observation.   I looked back at my childhood. I could enter pictures there. From each picture, moment or thought, there was always the possibility to access that light that separated between it and the next picture. I could also see all the thoughts I had all my life. Their ‘pictures’ were as strong as the pictures that depicted action or words. I was amazed to see that our thoughts are that strong, so real. It looked as though they were also threaded on a string of light. I realized that everything that happened to me and every single thought I had, created an imprint. Every single event or thought influenced my life and the lives of those around me. Every feeling, every intention, everything counted. As I looked, I felt very peaceful. I could see how the last moment of my life was a result of everything that had ever happened to me, before. I could see my life was a perfect manifestation of just what it was, who I was. There was complete acceptance, even of those moments that I remembered as unpleasant.   My vision expanded, as if I zoomed out and could see a lot more things, all happening at once. I could control the zooming in and out, and it seemed wherever I would look, wherever my awareness took me, that's where I would go.

The last moment or picture of my life, rolling down the mountain in a car, with my mother, my brothers and the driver---I was suddenly inside that picture again. I could see how we are all connected. Everything connected to everything with delicate threads of light.   It showed my connection to other people, other souls, other incidents, moments past, future, and present. There was complete order and complete acceptance of everything. Then, there were no more pictures, but a strong sense of motion forwards.

I now was continuing onwards, I felt that I was leaping forward. There was nothing around me. There was only space. I tried to understand where I was. I felt very clear in my mind. I also felt happy and light. I was in another realm. Somehow, I was still alive, but I didn’t have my body. I knew for a fact that I exist. I sensed that I had left my body. I reflected upon the last picture I saw in my thread of life, of myself inside the car that was rolling down a mountain, and concluded it must have been the last moment of my life in a fatal car accident.

I now realized and understood that there was life after death; I have died and left my body, yet I still exist. I tried to understand where I was. I was in a transition. I reflected on how this whole transition between life and death is very smooth and calm. It became clear to me that death is the continuation of life, and not the opposite of it. It was on-going. I felt vibrant like a child, very curious to see what was next, looking at everything with new eyes. It was amazing. I felt deep intimacy and powerful love, a great surrender, calm relief and joy, peace, amazement, and happiness!

I could see that I am connected to everything in a perfectly ordered web of light.
From what I have seen, our lives are threaded with this light, which fills the gap between each moment. Everything was in this Light.   Everything I have ever needed, everything I need now, and everything I might ever need in the future. It had an immense healing and nourishing quality to it. It was pure, immense, powerful, unconditional Love. I knew I could trust this Light. Now I was kneeling in front of the Light. All I could feel was a great yearning to be part of it. I was aware of being presented with a choice. With gratitude, I decided that I must merge with the Light. I smiled a big smile and jumped. For one eternal moment, I was one with it.

In the next moment I saw my body lying down on the ground and felt like I was ‘entering’ it.   I came back to life. I felt quite surprised, since I didn't think I had made that choice.   I began to feel my senses; there was a terrible taste in my mouth like dirt, and a horrible smell in the air, that was filled with gasoline and smoke.   I was by myself, 50 meters from the car.
For the next hour, many interesting things happened. I can in all honesty say that my NDE was the most powerful, insightful and joyous experience I had ever had.   Before my experience, I was not sure of God’s existence, but the Light that I encountered felt supreme.   It was “God”, unending, unconditional, immense love, a force that feels eternal, powerful and creative.   At the time of my NDE, I didn't know anyone else who had had this kind of experience.   I remember the experience more accurately than any other life event. It is the clearest experience I have ever had.   It was definitely real, and after 18 years is still the most powerful and insightful experience that has ever happened to me.   It was a great gift.

Xue-Mei C’s NDE in 1995--From China--Original in Chinese

I was raised under the influence of my father, who was strict and authoritarian since my childhood, so my mind was deep-rooted in Marxist theory. Also, I was an active member of the Communist Party in college. When I started working, I was ambitiously longing to become a success of the party in being both socialist-minded and professionally competent. Hence, I disliked idealism, having no attachment with any religions or superstitions. Nevertheless, incredible things happened to me, especially since I was a die-hard atheist.

The illness might have been initiated due to several cold and hard winters. On top of this, I was a workaholic.   Each year my chronic coughs always began in autumn and continued to winter, and then lingered until the end of spring and the beginning of summer. One autumn of that particular year, my prolonged coughing ailment broke out again. I went to a local clinic every day to have an antibiotic intravenous (IV) treatment, as I usually did before. I arrived at the clinic around 8 PM. The doctor told me that a specific lot of Penicillin that was used on me two days ago was given to treat a child just recently. Then I needed to use a new lot, so they did a skin test on me first. It was a 'positive' result on my wrist with a big two-cent size, bulging redness on my skin that spread like pseudopodia. I hesitated a few minutes before asking doctor, 'Is it OK to have a reaction like this?' The doctor pondered awhile then replied, 'It is a false positive due to a new lot was used on you. It should be all right as you had been treated with Penicillin a couple days ago.' However, to prevent me from having an anaphylaxis shock, he gave me a Phenergan shot. Additionally, he injected Dexamethasone into my intravenous drip. I felt confident and relaxed afterwards. I then walked into the patient ward and was lying down on a bed.   A nurse hooked me up with an IV and then left to attend other patients. Shortly after, there was a train-like screeching, tinnitus sound in my head.

Suddenly I fell into a dark tunnel, and I was charging forward. I felt tremendously apprehensive, asking myself, 'What is wrong with me? I am fine just now, but why did everything change?' I wanted to stop and go back, but I was moving uncontrollably forward and could not head back. I screamed frantically, yet I was mute. I perceived myself as a speck, hurling in an eternal circular pathway.

Although my flesh lay in the physical world, I (my soul) entered into a dimension with a barrier that separated 'me' from my body.   Clearly, I realized that it was not a dream. Instead, there was something wrong with the intravenous drip. I had an allergic reaction to the Penicillin. I underwent panic, felt frightened, vulnerable, and despaired while floating in this endless tunnel. I knew obviously my body still lay in bed, but I could not go back into it anymore. 'Is this death?' I contemplated. 'If it is, why am I very clear-headed?' I did not disappear, but rather I was isolated from the physical world. I felt no pain. I was hovering like a feather and feeling very cozy.

A stream of beings began to guide me. They affirmed my answers, clarified my confusions, and comforted my bewildered heart. I do not know how to describe this 'stream of beings.' They were silent and shapeless, yet full of kindness, brightness, compassion, and amiability. They answered all my questions. I understood they were beings in a much higher level than me in the spiritual realm. I called them prophets, the wisdom who communicated to me telepathically, revealing the true colors of the universe, purpose of life, and opened the door of death so I could have a glimpse of this other dimension.

Instantaneously, I was no longer in the lengthy, dark tunnel I had been moving through.   I was now in a bright, warm, and pure world. I was completely relieved, with no more agonies, but instead replaced with eternal peace and bliss. My spirit asked one question after another, regarding the true colors of the universe and about life and death. Wherever my consciousness went, the beings guiding me unfolded the answers before my eyes.

I saw that the world is made up of particles. For example, to many people the tree in front of a house is only a tree, while in this realm it is seen as a stacked heap of molecules shaped into a tree, molecules that are drifting and cycling forever. I could see the piles of molecules that comprise this phenomenal world. While my physical body still lay in bed, being given an IV drip, my consciousness was free to watch trees outside the clinic.

Am I a particle, too? “Yes, the human body is built with innumerable moving particles. Therefore, particles cluster, move, recycle, flow to somewhere, and then assemble into another physical shape. This phenomenon keeps recurring; there is no life or death. Reality is infinite, and what is commonly known as death, is actually a continuation on to the next phase of life. At this state you are in now, your mind (soul) is existing and thinking obviously, but you are separated from the physical world without communication. It is like a glass door partition between you and the world; you can see everything of the physical world, however, people on the other side can't feel your existence. Being unable to communicate the situation you are in to your loved ones leaves no means to understand it. Thus, I know, as for death, since people you loved don't understand what death truly is, they feel sorrow for the deceased.”

At this moment, I became worried that my parents knew I had died, making them very miserable. In addition, my only child was too young to be alone.   All these worries were flashing in my mind.   I came to a definite conscious decision to return to life.

As our flesh is like a TV set, our consciousness is like a TV program. When a TV set is aged and breaks down, do all TV signals vanish?   No, the signals are still present. Our human body is an aggregation of particulate matter that becomes a carrier. Whether the carrier is particulate matter or in a form of energy (after death), it never disappears. At this moment, I was in a confused situation where my consciousness and flesh were detached but still in a connected state. I felt there are several different coexisting dimensions. While my consciousness stayed in one realm, I was communicating with beings who revealed the true colors of the universe to me. I was keen to know everything in this dimension. But I soon returned to the clinic. People hustled in and out, accompanied by unceasingly muffled noises. I even saw right through the wall into where two coat hangers dangled in a closet. Then, I returned to my body.

When I opened my eyes to sit up, I began vomiting nonstop.   I puked pickle-like dark fluid into a wash basin, and then my whole body felt empty. The doctor was astonished,”How could your small stomach hold this much stuff?” The doctor had made every effort to rescue me. When I told him about what I had been through in the last four hours, he was silent and listened to me before his face turned pale. I thought he was very terrified after hearing my experience. He stayed with me in my room the whole night. I have no intention of blaming my doctor at all. I had a chance to experience my NDE because of his mistakes, so now I have an insight into the Earth and the other realm. My fear of death has diminished, as my NDE has completely changed my perspective toward the meaning of life and the ethics of the entire world.

To me now, it is meaningless when the world is chasing both fame and fortune in a win-at-all-costs mentality. Instead, through my NDE experience, I could help people in desperation. Luckily, my experience brings comforts to the dying elderly, cancer patients, and people with grief from losing loved ones, etc, and this provides support and alleviation to those who are going through dread and mental suffering. Now being kind and affectionate to others makes my life full of joy.

Chen C’s NDE---From China--Translated from Chinese

I was in a car wreck several years ago that resulted in a leg fracture and a head injury. I was transported to a hospital emergency room. I was in the ICU less than an hour when I went into cardiac arrest. Supposedly, I was unconscious on the emergency room bed; yet, I distinctly heard a high pitch sound (like the sound of a monitor flatlining), and then there was a very bright beam of light coming down from above. I felt myself floating upward; meanwhile, I saw my lifeless body below me. I flew upward very fast, through the roof above, and, soon, away from the earth!

I was accompanied by a light while flying upward. We entered outer space, possibly moving at the speed of the light. Then we went through a bright, glaring tunnel that was brilliant. I am still impressed by its brilliance, even today. The tunnel was multi-colored and a spiral.   I felt that time ceased when I went through the tunnel. Abruptly, I noticed a ray of light at the end of the tunnel. When I reached the light, I saw a beautiful meadow with many exotic plants and animals.

Then I saw a 3-D movie projecting something.   It was a review of my life, showing important events, such as going to school and getting married. Then I saw people whom I did not recognize, and they told me it wasn’t my time yet, so I needed to go back. Instantly, I was back in the hospital.

Later on, the doctor told me that my heart had stopped, and I was revived after they performed about 15 minutes of CPR resuscitation.

I did some research after my experience of being dead. I found that I had experienced an NDE, where my soul had left my body. Now I believe that human beings have souls; although it cannot be detected by any scientific instrument.

As for describing the feeling of this experience, I am speechless.   It is similar to dreams, but not like a dream.   My mind was in a vivid state when my heart had stopped; it was dark but I was still be able to see everything.   Initially, I felt a floating sensation, and while I was flying in the air, my vision was 360- degree, so that I could see everything around me.   It is difficult to express how I felt when I saw my left-behind body. According to Buddhism, the kindhearted will enter into a blissful, prosperous wonderland eternally after death.   I am no longer afraid of death, because I have touched the brink of the other side.

Dr. Dennis M’s NDE

I was working for the Department of Defense as a Contract Coordinator GS-11 with The Military Airlift Command (MAC) on Commercial Airline Contracts at Tan Son Nhut Air Base/Airport, Saigon, South Viet Nam.

This event happened on May 12, 1973. It was a very beautiful Saturday and it was just a few days before The American Combat Military and their Allies were to Leave Viet Nam in accordance with The Paris Peace Talks Plan. So there were many Commercial Airlines having their Commercial Jets staged at Tan Son Nhut Airport for the Airlift. Therefore, there was much activity going on at this time.

On May 12, I left work just as usual, riding on my Honda 150cc Motorcycle, and as usual I followed my buddies with whom I worked at the Air Base, and my buddies most always drove a Six Pack Pickup Truck, a truck that fit six people. I always followed my buddies on my motorcycle just behind the truck. We usually headed for the Thanh Binh Hotel, where most of the people I worked with lived. We would go there, kick back, and talk about everything: the War, the Women, the World, and what we are going to do after we got back home to the America.

As I rode behind the truck, we headed for a lonely bridge that went over a small branch of the Saigon River, a short-cut to the Hotel. Just as we reached the dirt road, I saw a commotion off to the right of the road from the tree line, and then I saw the bright flash of an explosion around the pickup and then the back window of the truck exploded…and that was the last thing I remember.

I have seen the fog of battle and the haze of misfortune…but…I have never seen the mist of unconsciousness that I was experiencing at this time. Dream-like…yet…a realness and a hard substance to where I was. I felt a hard surface I was standing on… I even stomped my feet to make sure that I was feeling what I thought I was feeling and seeing. The room or area I was in, seemed to be real and enclosed. As I walked to a huge wall of something that resembled windows, I was greeted by a very tall person, perhaps close to seven feet tall, that was dressed in a long off-white robe with long medium blonde hair and Very White Skin… Almost Glowing!

I felt so Alive and Very Happy, and smiling at the moment of just being there for some unknown reason. Also, when I say that I felt ALIVE and that I was So Very Happy… I mean a feeling that I have Never felt nor have I ever felt that feeling thus far in my life afterward of that experience! Just then…a group of small people came from a room or area behind my left side. They were all greeting me and I felt that I knew them and they knew me. I felt a Kinship and deep sense of Recognition, but I could not distinguish any facial features that would have let me know who they were or are.

Then the tall person gestured for me to go to the large windows. Without speaking through his lips, the person told me within my mind, to watch the windows in front of me. Just like a large screen TV, I noticed the windows change and start show something like a movie. Indeed, I watched myself riding my motorcycle from above and the whole ambush was played out before my eyes in slow motion. I smiled and pointed to the action transpiring before me and was happy and not in shock or anxious about what was happening to my friends and to myself during the process of being killed during the ambush.

I tried to look around to see those people just behind me, and just then, a large door-like wall was slowly moving open to my left, and a Very Bright Light that was shining from the interior slowly came into view. I tried to look closer…but then the tall person said that I could not advance into the light… 'Not Just Yet' He said……Then begged me to continue to watch the large window screen and the ambush that was taking place. I felt so Content and Happy, and I tried to understand what was happening to me.   I knew the tall person absolutely cared Very Much about Me and my Soul.

As I looked towards the light again, the tall person told me not to look and started to speak of many things to me.   He then told me about when I was to pass into the light much later, after a full life.   I believe He said I would live until the age of 97.   He also told me that I would have many women in my life… Although… ONE… Would Be My Last!... A woman with a Pure Heart and Soul and a Body of my Natural Selection!   A Strong, Independent woman … But, somewhat Naïve of World Life Experience… and a woman who shall have never Really Experienced True Love of her Heart and Soul. She will be much younger than I, but the age difference will not matter to either of us. She will not be available to me for some time in the future. And she will live far away, and our first Face-To-Face contact will not take place until many months or even years after we meet…(???)   But once we do meet Face-To-Face, we will know that this union will last till death….until I go on through the door of light!   I cannot explain this statement!!! How can someone meet… But, Not Face-To-Face?? I gave it little thought then. However, when I started to ask the Tall Person standing next to me, 'Why can’t I go into the light now? And what Is The Name of the Woman? …The Tall Person all of a sudden touched my back…And like a flash of a strobe light… WOOSH… I was back in my body again on Earth.

By this time, the Army Personnel had declared me dead, and had placed me in the “meat wagon” (A Truck That Went To The Morgue) with the other dead co-worker buddies of mine. I must have gasped for air or something, and an American Army Medic yelled at his people that I was actually alive, and they took me out of the meat wagon and put me into an Ambulance to go to the hospital. I awoke for just a few seconds and an Army Officer asked me if I wanted to go to a French Hospital or an American Hospital. I said, An American Hospital!'…Then I blacked out again.

After the second day in the Hospital… A Seventh Day Adventist Hospital in Saigon, I was lying in bed with tubes in-and-out, all over my body, a bullet in my ankle, a broken clavicle, a concussion, and several shrapnel wounds. A Nurse came over to me and asked how I was feeling.   I looked at her and then looked at the room, and with a big sigh, I said to the nurse and myself, 'Oh Shit, I’m back!!!' The nurse laughed and said, 'Yes, you are back! How do you feel?' I think I just moaned and asked for some water.

After a few hours, I woke up again. An Army Major came into my room with some of my personal gear. He proceeded to ask me where he should have my personal items delivered. He had my Attaché Case, sunglasses, and watch. I looked at my Attaché Case, and asked, 'How did you find it in the bushes?'…The Major was shocked! 'How did you know it was in the bushes?' I told the Major to have a seat and proceeded to tell him a story that he will never forget. Then I told him that I saw the whole Ambush from above and I know everything that happened.

I told him that they caught one of the South Vietnamese Deserters that shot at us, and he had my watch that he took off my body. I told him that all of my six friends were killed and when the MP’s came over to the Ambush site, they killed two of the Deserters. In addition, I told him that a red-headed MP and a tall skinny Army Medic came over to my body and declared that I was Killed In Action (KIA). Then you came over to confirm that I was indeed KIA, and then the Medic threw a blanket over my body before they put me in the meat wagon that was going to the Morgue. And, that he was the Officer that came on the scene and he was wearing a combat helmet and flak jacket. He drove a Jeep with an M-60 machine gun that was mounted in the back seat. I told him that he was also the one that found my motorcycle in the ditch and ordered the MP’s to bring it to the pickup that they had there, and put the bike in the pickup!

You should have seen the Major’s face!!! His jaw dropped and he was white with shock! 'How did you know all of that?' 'Because your body was over a hundred feet away from the truck and in a small ditch, lower than the road, and then we put a blanket over your body.' 'How did you know all this?!' I just told him the truth that I saw everything from above looking at a large TV screen. He just shook his head, as he was walking out of the room.

He looked back at me about four times, and before he exited the room, he said, 'Well, I guess then there is life after death!' I said to him that, 'You have No Idea, Major!!!' And then he said, 'You know, you were under that blanket for a good twenty minutes at least.' As the Major left the room, the Doctor came in at the same time and the Major asked the Doctor if anyone else has come in to see me. The Doctor said 'No, no one except you so far; he just woke up a few hours ago!' Then the Major scratched his head, looked at me again and gave me a thumbs up and left the room.

[NOW HERE IS WHERE IT GETS WEIRD, ESPECIALLY COMING FROM A Ph.D. HE SEEMS TO HAVE READ ABOUT EXTRA-TERRESTRIALS AND BE OPEN TO THE IDEA! NOTE THAT THIS ALSO MEANS HE IS NOT TRYING TO CONVINCE US THAT GOD EXISTS—OR ANYTHING ELSE.]

Well…I don’t know if I was in Heaven… No… I believe that I may have been on A Piloted Space Craft or perhaps in an Interdimensional Spiritual Place and Time. All I know for sure is that I was in a Real Place that had substance to my surroundings and had a hard textured floor and walls to the room. The Tall Person that was talking to me without speaking, may have been my Guardian Angel, or an Extraterrestrial… Or perhaps One in the Same. I do feel in my heart that whoever He was, He absolutely cared Very Much about Me and my Soul; I felt this much for sure. And I also know that…Now I have a VERY SPECIAL PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP with God. As I was raised a Catholic, and survived seven grades of Parochial School, I wanted so much to go to that Bright Beautiful Light…but, I was not allowed to.…At least for now!

I know not what I am to do, or why I was sent back to this Earthly Dimension… But, I do know that someone has protected me from complete death for all of my life for some reason. And, I know that one day… I shall know and see the reason! And also one day… I will know when I find 'THE Woman' I was told about… And when WE do meet… The Chemistry in Our Eyes shall beam to Our Souls and We Shall Be United Forever!

NDE AND LIFE REVIEW: EXCHANGING LOVING KINDNESS WITH ALL

AT THE TIME OF MY EXPERIENCE, I WAS A 31-YEAR-OLD MARRIED MOTHER OF FOUR. WE WERE A HEALTHY, ACTIVE FAMILY, JUST RETURNING HOME FROM VACATION.   A NEW SCHOOL YEAR WAS ABOUT TO BEGIN.

MY EXPERIENCE DID NOT INVOLVE CRASH CARTS OR ELECTRIC PADDLES. IT WAS A SEAMLESS EVENT. MY INFECTION BEGAN WITH A SORE THROAT AND HIGH FEVER, FOLLOWED BY DOCTOR VISITS AND THEN ADMISSION INTO THE HOSPITAL.

I BECAME PROGRESSIVELY WEAKER, HAVING DIFFICULTY SPEAKING AND NO APPETITE. FINALLY, I ASKED THE NURSE ONE DAY, “I NEED TO SPEAK TO SOMEONE; I DON’T THINK THAT I AM GETTING OUT OF HERE.” SHE REPLIED, “WE DON’T WANT TO HEAR THAT KIND OF TALK AROUND HERE,” AND SHE LEFT MY ROOM!   GEEZ, I THOUGHT TO MYSELF, “IF I EVER GET OUT OF THIS BED, I’LL LEARN TO LISTEN TO OTHERS.”

THE DOCTOR WAS COMING IN TWICE A DAY, BUT ONE MORNING, IT WAS DIFFERENT. I HAD THIS INCREDIBLE AND OVERWHELMING SADNESS. I COULD ONLY MOVE MY HEAD AT THIS POINT. THE DOCTOR STAYED, AND HE ASKED ME TO FOCUS ON HIS WORDS.   HE WAS TELLING A STORY, AND AT FIRST, I WAS FOCUSED; BUT IT WAS TAKING TOO MUCH ENERGY TO LISTEN. I COULD HEAR HIS VOICE, BUT THEN THE WORDS WEREN’T CLEAR. I RELAXED, AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, I WAS ON THE CEILING. IT HAPPENED SO QUICKLY!   NOW I COULD HEAR HIS WORDS CLEARLY AND UNDERSTAND WHAT HIS STORY WAS ABOUT.

NOW I’M LOOKING DOWN AT THE WOMAN (ME) LYING IN THE BED, AND I THOUGHT, “OH, I USED TO HAVE A NIGHTGOWN JUST LIKE THAT ONE.”   I STAYED THERE AND JUST OBSERVED. I COULD SEE A BALD SPOT ON THE BACK OF THE DOCTOR’S HEAD. HE WAS CRYING, LEANING ON THE BED RAIL. THEN I FIGURED IT OUT, “IF I’M UP HERE, AND SHE IS DOWN THERE; THAT CAN’T BE GOOD.” I REALIZED AT THIS SAME TIME THAT MY SADNESS WAS GONE, AND MY SENSE OF HUMOR WAS BACK. I WANTED TO TELL HIM THAT IT WAS OKAY, BUT I WAS ALREADY GOING FAST DOWN THE HALLWAY OUTSIDE MY ROOM AND ENDED UP AT THE NURSE’S STATION.

THE NURSES WERE KIDDING AROUND AND ONE YELLED OUT, “OK, TODAY IS CHINESE FOOD, YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO, PUT YOUR MONEY IN AND WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU WANT. PRONTO!” SHE WAS WAVING AN ENVELOPE OVER HER HEAD.

NEXT, I LOOKED INTO A PHONE BOOTH THAT WAS BUILT INTO THE HALLWAY WALL.   MY HUSBAND WAS ON THE PHONE WITH MY BEST FRIEND. HE WAS TELLING HER WHAT WAS HAPPENING. WHEN SHE WOULD RESPOND, I WOULD BE IN HER OFFICE IN NORTH CAROLINA!! WHEN HE WOULD SPEAK, I WOULD BE BACK IN THE PHONE BOOTH. THIS WENT ON FOR A WHILE, AND I WAS ABLE TO NOTICE CHANGES THAT MY FRIEND HAD MADE IN HER OFFICE DECOR.

NEXT, I WAS IN A LARGE THEATRE, WITH A STAGE AND VELVET CURTAINS ON BOTH SIDES. NO ONE ELSE WAS THERE. I WAS SITTING IN THE MIDDLE OF A ROW. I DIDN’T KNOW HOW I GOT THERE OR WHY.   I WAITED, AND THEN ONE OF MY EARLIEST CHILDHOOD FRIENDS CAME OUT ONTO THE STAGE.   SHE LOOKED AT ME, AND SHE LET ME KNOW THAT SHE LOVED THE GAMES THAT WE PLAYED AND ALL THE LAUGHS THAT WE HAD IN OUT YOUTH. THEN IT WAS MY TURN TO TELL HER HOW I ALWAYS HAD SO MUCH FUN, BUT THAT I WAS SAD WHEN THEY MOVED AWAY. WE STAYED THERE A WHILE, UNTIL WE HAD EXCHANGED LOVE AND ADMIRATION FOR EACH OTHER. THIS PART OF MY EXPERIENCE WAS AT A MUCH SLOWER PACE.

THEN A YOUNG BOY FROM MY NEIGHBORHOOD CAME OUT. I THANKED HIM FOR TEACHING ME HOW TO TIE MY LACES, AND HE LET ME KNOW THAT HE LOVED THE RUNNING RACES WE HAD. I WAS ENJOYING EVERY ASPECT OF THIS. I NEVER KNEW WHO WAS COMING OUT NEXT. BUT EACH TIME, IT ENDED IN GIVING, AND GETTING, LOVE.

LATER, AN OLDER BOY CAME OUT. HE WAS THE BUS MONITOR. HE CONVEYED TO ME THAT I HAD CAUSED HIM HUMILIATION. I LISTENED TO HIM. HE USED TO BULLY MY BROTHER, SO, ONE DAY I TOOK HIS BOOK BAG AND PUT IT BY THE SIDE OF THE HOUSE WHERE THE BUS STOP WAS. ALL THE KIDS WERE PLAYING. WHEN THE BUS PULLED UP, THE KIDS LINED UP AND GOT ON THE BUS. WHEN IT WAS HIS TURN, HE COULD NOT FIND HIS BAG. HE TOLD THE KIDS IT WAS “NOT FUNNY.” THEY PULLED THEIR BUS WINDOWS DOWN. I WHISPERED TO THE OTHERS WHERE HIS BAG WAS, AND THEY TOLD HIM. WHILE HE CAME TOWARD THE BUS, THE KIDS WERE TEASING HIM.

I HAD TO GO INTO HIS BODY AND LOOK AT THE KIDS HANGING OUT THE WINDOWS AND FEEL THE HUMILIATION AS HE DID. HE HAD TO GO INTO MINE, AND UNDERSTAND MY EXPERIENCE. I HAD TO SEND HIM LOVE, AND I TOLD HIM THAT I WAS DEEPLY SORRY. HE SENT ME LOVING KINDNESS. WHEN THIS EXCHANGE WAS OVER, WE BOTH FELT UNDERSTOOD AND LOVED. I CAN’T EXPLAIN THE DEPTH OF THE HEALING. THERE WERE MANY MORE SUCH EXCHANGES.

ALL OF A SUDDEN, I WAS IN A TUNNEL, MOVING FAST TOWARDS A BRIGHT LIGHT, AND I SAID TO MYSELF, “OH, I’M GOING HOME TODAY.”   I GOT TO THE LIGHT AND CAME TO A SUDDEN STOP.   IT WAS CLEAR THAT THIS WAS AS FAR AS I COULD GO.   THERE WERE NO FACES, NO FIGURES, ONLY TINY LIGHT BEAMS MOVING SLIGHTLY, MAKING UP THIS BIGGER LIGHT.

THEY LET ME KNOW THAT MY ANCESTORS WERE THERE TO WELCOME ME BUT THAT MY GRANDMOTHER HAD INTERVENED. I IMMEDIATELY THOUGHT, “OH, MY GRANDMA...,” AND INSTANTLY THEY SAID, “NO, NOT THAT ONE. YOU NEVER MET THIS ONE.” AT THAT MOMENT, I UNDERSTOOD THAT THEY KNEW EVERYTHING. THEY SAID, “YOU ARE ONLY HERE FOR A LITTLE WHILE; YOU CAN’T STAY. YOU CONTRACTED TO HELP OTHERS AND THE CHILDREN, AND GET YOUR PHD.”

“WHOA, YOU MUST HAVE ME MIXED UP WITH SOMEONE ELSE. SCHOOL IS A STRUGGLE FOR ME,” I REPLIED. THEN I HEARD BACK, “THAT WAS THEN.”
I KNEW THEN THAT THEY HAD ALL THE ANSWERS. I WANTED TO ASK THEM QUESTIONS. I WAS THINKING, JUST MY LUCK, I GET TO A SITUATION LIKE THIS AND THE ONLY QUESTION I HAVE IS, “WHY CAN’T I STAY? DO YOU REMEMBER THAT MY BODY ISN’T WORKING ANYMORE?”

I KNOW THAT I WAS THERE FOR QUITE A WHILE, BUT I CAN ONLY REMEMBER THAT THEY SAID RACE, RELIGION, AND COUNTRIES WERE KEEPING PEOPLE SEPARATE.
SUDDENLY, I KNEW IT WAS MY TIME TO GO.   WITH THAT, I WAS BACK IN THE KITCHEN IN MY HOME. THE TWINS WERE IN THEIR HIGHCHAIRS AND MY OLDER SON WAS SITTING AT THE TABLE. MY MOM WAS THERE WITH THEM. I GOT THE MESSAGE THAT THIS IS THE PLACE I NEEDED TO BE, AND WITH THAT THOUGHT, I WAS BACK IN THE HOSPITAL BED.

I COULD NOT MOVE ANY PART OF ME, BUT I COULD HEAR. I WAS TRYING TO OPEN MY EYELIDS, OR WIGGLE MY TOES…NOTHING. SOON AFTER, I HEARD A WOMAN’S VOICE SAY, “WHY ARE YOU SO SAD?” AND THE RESPONSE WAS FROM MY DOCTOR WAS, “WE LOST THE YOUNG MOM TODAY.”   ALL OF A SUDDEN, I FELT AN ICE-COLD HAND ON MY NECK, “I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT; SHE HAS A PULSE!”

I BEGAN MY HEALING. I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL ABOUT A MONTH. BEFORE I LEFT, I ASKED ONE OF THE NURSES, “DO YOU EVER ORDER CHINESE FOOD?” “EVERY PAYDAY, HONEY,” SHE TOLD ME. I GAVE HER THE DATE AND ASKED HER IF SHE COULD CHECK IT OUT. SHE CAME BACK LATER AND CONFIRMED THAT, “YES,” IT WAS PAYDAY THAT DAY.

MONTHS LATER, I WENT TO A WALLPAPER STORE AND WENT THROUGH THE BOOKS AND FOUND THE MATCHING WALLPAPER TO MY FRIEND’S OFFICE. I ASKED THE SALESWOMAN FOR A SAMPLE.   I PUT IT IN AN ENVELOPE AND TOOK IT WITH ME ON MY NEXT VISIT. MY FRIEND SAID IT WAS A PERFECT MATCH.

I GOT THE COURAGE AND CALLED THE DOCTOR’S OFFICE, ASKING FOR A CONSULT. I TOLD HIM THAT STRANGE THINGS HAD HAPPENED TO ME THAT DAY THAT I CAN’T EXPLAIN. HE TOLD ME THAT HE WAS NOT SURPRISED. “YOU WERE GONE,” HE BEGAN. “I’VE BEEN DOING THIS FOR MANY YEARS. I HAD TWO OTHER PATIENTS WITH WHAT YOU HAD, AN 11-YEAR-OLD BOY, AND A YOUNG WOMAN. BOTH OF THEM DIED.”

I NEVER TOLD ANYONE.

ABOUT THREE YEARS LATER, I WAS GETTING DINNER READY AND I PUT ON OPRAH. “YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE THE SHOW TODAY FOLKS. WE HAVE A YOUNG MAN WHO WENT SKYDIVING, AND HE IS HERE TODAY TO TELL US WHAT HAPPENED. HE WILL EXPLAIN TO US WHAT THEY ARE CALLING A “NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE.”

THIS VALIDATION WAS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE EXPERIENCE ITSELF. IT WAS THE ROCKET FUEL THAT I NEEDED TO BEGIN MAKING CHANGES IN MY LIFE.

Mohammad Z---NDE From Iran---Translated from Farsi

I am 65 years old and this happened to me in 1977, when I was 26. I am originally from the city of Isfahan, which is in central Iran, about 300 miles south of the capital Tehran. I had followed a friend’s suggestion and had taken a job in the city of Mashad, which is in North West of Tehran, about 800 miles away from Isfahah. That day I was driving back from Mashad to Isfahan for a few days of vacation and visiting my family. I left very early in the morning, around 2 am. Back in those days, the road was not that good and was not a highway, just a two-way road. At some point along the way when I was close to the city of Ghoochan, I noticed a car from the other lane was in my lane and the headlights were beaming right towards me. I tried to steer to the right to avoid a collision but the road shoulders were so narrow. I collided head-on with that car. My car spun a few times and fell off the road onto the shoulder, which was several feet lower than the road itself. I was critically injured, but luckily a few minutes later, a passenger bus was passing by and saw the accident scene and stopped. They took me to a small hospital in the nearby city of Ghoochan.

In the hospital, the doctors and nurses started working on me right away. I had many injuries and felt severe pain all over my body. Nevertheless, when I was on the operating room bed, various thoughts were rushing through my head. For example, I was worried that if I don’t report back to my work on time in a few days that they might give my job away to someone else. At the same time, I was very angry at my friend who had encouraged me to take this job in a city far from my family. I blamed him for my living away from my family, causing my accident and misery. I was frustrated at everything and everyone. I felt that this world and my life were a total mess. My mind was full of complaints and anger.

I was not anesthetized and didn’t go into a coma. I remember a young woman around 22 years old entered the room. She seemed to be inexperienced and rather new to the hospital. She seemed beautiful and I wished I was not in this mess so I could talk to her and befriend her. But once again, I was distracted by unbearable pain and all the angry thoughts that were playing in my head. My attention was constantly shifting from my pain, to my angry thoughts, to this young lady; back and forth, and round and round.

Suddenly, I felt that everything shifted. I felt a deep calm and peace engulfing me. This feeling was totally opposite to what I was feeling a few minutes earlier. I was not angry anymore and I was seeing perfection in everything in the world and around me. Now I was feeling that everything is exactly the way it should be. Whenever I focused my attention to any object or subject, I could get deep and complete insights into that matter. I could even understand the chemical compositions of objects I looked at and all its physical and mathematical properties. I shifted my attention to that young woman again. She seemed a little different than a few minutes ago. I noticed that I am seeing her like 360 degrees around her, like I have totally engulfed her. I could see her thoughts and feelings as well. In fact, I felt that I am present in the entire hospital. I could see that she had a lot of sadness and worry about what she was seeing. She was thinking that it was so sad that this young man is dying like this. I tried to soothe her and tell her that I am alright and that nothing is wrong with me. In fact, I’ve never felt so good in my life. But she kept ignoring me, like she did not see or hear me.

I noticed that she was staring towards a fixed point. I followed the direction she was looking and noticed that she was looking at the body of a young man who was lying on a bed. I was shocked because this man had striking similarities with me. I wondered who he was and why does he look so much like me? I even thought that maybe I have a twin brother I didn’t know about who happens to be in the same hospital. I tried to tap on the shoulder of the young woman to get her attention but my hand simply went through her body without any resistance. I was so puzzled. I looked at myself and saw that I have a transparent and illuminated body. I was so confused and bewildered. I started to think to myself, “Am I dead? Is this my body on the bed? My God, my mom would be so devastated. She is expecting me back home tomorrow.”

As soon as I thought about my mom, I immediately found myself in front of her in our house in Isfahan. It is hard to explain, but strangely I was still in the hospital too. I was aware and seeing everything there as well, without any difficulty and confusion. My presence at home did not decrease my awareness and presence in the hospital at all. It was like I had split into two pieces with equal awareness. My mom was sitting on the patio and preparing some vegetables for the dinner. I went behind her to hug her from behind, in order to surprise her. Again to my surprise, my hands went right through her body. I tried to talk to her but she did not pay any attention to me.

During this period, as I thought about various friends and relatives, I instantly went to them while still present in previous places of the hospital, home, etc. For example, when I thought about one of my teachers who I loved so much back in the days of high school, suddenly I was beside him, while still in the hospital and also in my house in Isfahan beside my mom. I could immediately see all his thoughts, feelings, and all the things that were going on for him in life such as his thoughts, concerns, financial status, and health. I saw that I am no longer in his thoughts and heart. I could see that at that moment he was worried about his son. So I lost interest in him and left that scene. I thought about a few other relatives and friends and similarly I visited them as well. In every case I tried to communicate to the person I was visiting and make them aware of myself, to no avail. I realized that there is no use trying to communicate with people. Nobody could hear or see me.

Meanwhile I was seeing everything in the hospital. Over there, the doctors pronounced me dead and wrote some notes on my chart: “Resuscitation unsuccessful, the patient is pronounced dead at ….” They threw a sheet on my face and put me on another bed with wheels. Then they transferred me to a room where they temporarily kept the dead before sending them to the hospital morgue.

At some point through my experience, I passed very fast through a tunnel and moved towards a bright light at the end of the tunnel. I cannot accurately place when this happened in my experience, as time had lost its meaning. I went to a very pleasant place that was made from light. I felt that this is my true home and I belonged there. My presence on earth looked like a deportation to a stranger, an isolated island that was incompatible and unpleasant. Where I was now, there was no past or future, no close or far, no up or down, no dark or light and all the relative things had lost their meaning. Everything seemed to be in absolute perfection. There were other souls there too; some with more light and possibilities than me and some with less. I never felt envy towards those who were more advanced and who had more light than me. It was well understood that each of us are where we should be according to our own capacity and growth. I had no bad feelings whatsoever that I am less advanced than some of the other souls.

When I was visiting my mom and some of my old friends and relatives, I had a vague feeling that there is a presence that was following me all the time, like a shadow. But I was so absorbed in the wonder of this whole experience, my thoughts, what was going on, and those people I was visiting, that I didn’t really pay attention to that presence. Eventually, I noticed an amazing, divine human-like figure who radiated lots of love and light. Instantly, I fell in love with this holy and immensely beautiful presence who loved me deeply and unconditionally. First, I thought it must be a prophet or religious figure, but then I realized that it has always been with me throughout my life, always. It was my guide.

I got the understanding that everybody who dies has a guide. But some humans are so attached to their physical and material world that they still worry about their money, possessions, or power, even after death. They don’t notice their guide and might not even notice that they are dead! Their soul can stay earth-bound for a long time after their death. For example, my guide showed me a man who apparently used to be in a position of authority and power back on the earth. After this man's death, he still went to the office he used to work in, trying to sit at the same chair and sign documents. He was oblivious to the fact that his signature does not leave any marks and he has no power and effect in the physical world. He kept going to that office trying to sign things and act as he was still working there, not realizing that he was dead. I got this understanding that any strong earthbound attachment can keep our souls from soaring.

I saw people who had committed suicide, and they seemed to have the worse situation among all these earthbound souls. They were completely trapped and had no way of communicating to anyone. Sometimes these souls would follow their loved ones on earth like a shadow for many years, begging for forgiveness for the hurt and pain they had caused them by their suicide. But it was no use and they wouldn’t be heard. My guide showed me these scenes.

Then he showed me a different kind of scene, scenes that formed in front of my eyes like a movie. These were scenes from my own life. The scenes were in chronological order from the very beginning of my life on the Earth. I saw a young woman who was pregnant. She was my mother and was pregnant with me. My feeling was the feeling of connectedness. I felt that everything is connected to everything and there is no beginning and end.

One example of my life review was when I was a little kid. We were traveling by car and stopped somewhere along the way. There was a river not far from the road and I was asked to go and bring some water in a bucket from that river. I went to fill up the bucket but on my way back, I felt that the bucket was way too heavy for me. I decided to empty some of the water to make the bucket lighter. Instead of emptying the water right there, I noticed a tree that was alone by itself in a dry patch of land. I took the effort to go out of my way to that tree and emptied some of the water at the tree base. I even waited there a few seconds to make sure the water soaked into the soil. In my life review, I received such applause and joy for this simple act, that it is unbelievable. It was like all the spirits in the Universe were filled with joy from this simple act and were telling me we are proud of you. That simple act seemed to be one of the best things I had ever done in my life! This was strange to me, because I didn’t think this little act was a big deal and thought I had done much more important and bigger things. However, it was shown to me that what I had done was extremely valuable because I had done it purely from the heart, with absolutely no expectation for my own gain.

Another example of my life review was when I was a 10 year old boy. I had bullied and mercilessly beaten another boy who was also around my age. He felt tortured and deeply hurt. In my life review, I saw that scene again. The boy was crying in physical and deep emotional pain. As he was walking in the street crying and going back home, he radiated negative energy which affected everything around him and on the path. People and even birds, trees, and flies received this negative energy from him, which kept propagating throughout the Universe. Even rocks on the side of the street were affected by his pain. I saw that everything is alive and our way of grouping things in categories of 'alive' and 'not alive' is only from our limited physical point of view. In reality everything is alive. I felt all of the pain and hurt that I had inflicted upon him inside of myself. When this boy went home to his parents, I saw the impact that seeing him in that state had on his parents. I felt the feeling and pain it created in them and how it affected their behavior from that point forward. I saw that as a result of this action, his parents would be always more worried when their son was out of home or if he was a few minutes late.

I saw that whenever I had done something good to anyone or anything, that I had done it to myself. I wanted to stay in the world of love, peace, and light, but they reminded me of my responsibilities back on the earth. I argued and refused to return. They told me that if I don’t return, I won’t be able to achieve certain spiritual capabilities which I would have received had I gone back to earth. I still didn’t want to return and would rather stay there. Finally they showed my parts of my future and how if I returned it would affect many other people and help them to see the Light. When I realized how much my return to earth would help others, I could not wait to get back to earth. However, these scenes from my future were erased from my memory upon return to the Earth.

According to my medical documents, I came back to life 32 minutes after I was pronounced dead. But during this 32 minutes I saw so many things. It was like several months to me, if not several years. One of the staff in the hospital who was passing by the room my body was placed in, heard a little noise coming from inside the room. She rushed into the room and found that I was actually breathing again.

For years I hid my experience from people because whenever I talked about it, I faced their ridicule, negative judgment, or accusation of hallucination and making up stories. After several years, I saw a book about NDEs and noticed there are other people who have had similar experiences like me. Although the detail of their experience might be different or they might express their experience in a different way, we still had similar experiences. After seeing this book, I was very anxious to find others who had an NDE and to meet them face to face. I even changed my job and started working in the medical services section of a hospital to meet other NDErs. Gradually NDE phenomena became more known and accepted in the society. People became more open to hearing my story. Nowadays, on average I tell my story once or twice a month to various gatherings of friends or people who are interested. Unlike the past, now people and specially young ones show a lot more interest in hearing about my experience and it seems it affects them in a good way.

MARK J’s NDE in 1979

My friend drove us to school that morning. Driving in the snow was fun for most of my friends and me. It was easy to slide and spin the wheels for fun, and we got plenty of practice recovering from unplanned slips as well. The roads were in pretty good shape considering the rate of snowfall. I had no problems with the drive but remember thinking there sure was a lot of snow coming down.

The jeep he was driving had great tires and four wheel drive, the ultimate snow toy for young drivers. So the lunch bell rang and off we went across the school parking lot to the jeep. The snow had intensified; in fact, it had become a blizzard.

Suddenly, the jeep slid completely out of control. As I looked in the direction of the slide, I saw we were headed for a telephone pole. My last memory of this was a loud crash, accompanied by a brief flash of light, then dark.

I awoke slowly, and was almost numb. My whole body was tingling, like the way it felt when my leg would fall asleep from sitting cross-legged too long. There seemed to be a ringing or hissing sound in my ears as well. As my vision faded in though, I was lying on my back directly under the rear differential of the jeep, staring up at the rear axle. I don't know how long I had been there. When I awoke again, my friend and some lady had me by the arms and were dragging me out of the street. There were knives and daggers inside my left arm, I could feel grinding and something very loose and sharp inside my arm or my shoulder or my chest, I couldn't tell what was happening, but somehow I knew my arm was broken. I had to tell them to let go, my arm was broken and they was hurting me.. I began to realize I could not breathe. They took me into the house of the lady and laid me on the living room sofa. I passed out again, though at the time I would have said I fell asleep.

I was awake and heard voices. Somehow, I heard that they had called for an ambulance and that the Highway Patrol was on the way. My breathing seemed to get more difficult with each breath. I was to later learn that my lung was collapsing.

When the Highway Patrolman arrived, he started asking me questions. By this time, I could not draw enough breath to speak above a quiet whisper. Everything was quite distorted. I remember drifting in and out of sleep. Then there was more commotion, and I heard the paramedics arrive. They cut my shirt off. As I looked down at my chest, I saw that my left shoulder was grotesquely dislocated to near the center of my chest; my shoulder was under my nipple. Every movement had become painful. Everything the paramedics did to me hurt badly, I tried to scream but could not draw enough breath to scream. I seemed to be looking at the paramedics and at my shoulder from just above where my shoulder should be. This increased my confusion. I remember talking to the paramedics, and looking at them eye to eye, but this could not be; they were standing over me and I was lying flat on my back.

I had put so much energy into breathing, it was wearing me out and it hurt to breathe. I just couldn't breathe, no matter how hard I tried. I was exhausted, the exhaustion of a lifetime. In sleep, this body stopped hurting. I say I was sleeping, but was actually passing out due to a combination of pain, lack of oxygen, and shock. My breaths seemed to take a long, long time. One breath in particular I remember. This breath seemed to exhale too much. It seemed I exhaled slowly and completely, more completely than any breath I had ever experienced before. Then, I could feel myself peeling away from the body. I rode out of my body inside this last breath, leaving the body on the sofa in a kind of whooshing sensation. The pain had left me, but I was not asleep. What I find strange to this day is that I was not surprised to see my body on the sofa below me.

At first, once I realized that I was not in my body anymore, there was a moment of panic. Not a panic of fear, more of disorientation. There was a certain sense of weightlessness.

We were in just a normal room with an eight or nine foot ceiling, but my view was of this room as though the ceiling had risen to maybe thirty feet. It was as if the world was moving away from me and I was becoming a part of something else, which was reclaiming me.

I looked down on the people in the room. They looked somehow different as well. It was as if their outlines had been traced with a crayon of light producing some kind of glow around the lines of their bodies. The air had become a purple hued fuzz, like the air molecules were a translucent purple. I could see the air, then I sensed some kind of hissing sound, and a strange sensation of darkness as I floated through what would have been the ceiling. I was in the storm now, I could sense the snow falling as I continued to merge upward with something to which I was connected. There came a sensation of great attraction. It felt like the world was rapidly moving away from me and I from it.

I realized I was returning from whence I came. I cannot describe this feeling adequately, but I knew of the place toward which I was moving felt like home, like my childhood memory of home, when mom would take care of me. I felt as though I was expected, and there were open arms awaiting me.

At this point I was aware of a great journey. A journey I had just begun, of a great distance to be traveled. I no longer had a sense of sight, nor of temperature, nor of hearing, nor of pain. The only sense I do recall at this point was a deep sense of love. Deeper than I had ever experienced before, though it was a familiar feeling. It was a warm feeling, a comforting feeling, a sense of perfect well-being. There was also the sense of a great burden having been lifted from me. I had been here before.

I was no longer alone; I could feel the presence of another. Suddenly, I was sharing the thoughts of the Other. The first message was for me was a series of feelings about my life. It was the proverbial 'life flashing before my eyes' or life review, as I have since heard it called. I would describe this as a long series of feelings based on numerous actions in my life. The difference was that not only did I experience the feelings again, but I had some sort of empathetic sense of the feelings of those around me who were effected by my actions. In other words, I also felt what others felt about my life.

The most overwhelming of these feelings came from my mother. I was adopted as an infant. I had been somewhat of a troublemaker. I sometimes hurt other children when I was smaller. I had taken to drug and alcohol abuse, stealing, crazy driving, bad grades, vandalism, cruelty to my sister, cruelty to animals; the list goes on and on. All of these actions were relived in a nutshell, with the associated feelings of both myself and the parties involved. But the most profound was a strange sense coming from my mother. I could feel how she felt to hear of my death. She was heartbroken. I got a sense that it was such a tragedy to have had this life end so soon, having never really done much good. This feeling left me with a sense for having unfinished business in life. The grief that I felt from my mother and friends was intense.

I became aware of the thoughts of the Other again. This Other had experienced these feelings at the same time and in the same way, I had just done. It was like we had just watched a movie together and we were discussing our feelings about the movie. Rather than a movie we would only see, we could feel this movie. The Other felt like a very close friend at the time, who has been and forever shall be together. The experience of being there was to exist as love. Love is what I have only been. As I floated away from my body, I was somehow aware that I am always connected to all things, a connection that transcends the human capacity for expression.

Now the question was put in my mind, 'Do you want to stay?' 'Are you done with this life? Do you want to finish the work you were to do in this life? Do you want your loved ones to experience this grief?' All of this was asked in an instant, a single thought. It is my recollection that the choice was mine, totally of my own free will, but I also have a sense that within the question the repercussions and results of either decision were also known. This communication occurred in the context of overwhelming compassion and love. This was in fact the most peaceful and tranquil moment of my life. My response to the question was, 'If I go back, will I be able to come here later? The answer was immediate, apparently, I had decided and the result was instant. There was an oxygen mask on my face, and I was struggling to wake up.

The oxygen was apparently just enough. In spite of the trauma to my chest cavity, I still had one good lung. I believe the working lung was not enough to sustain me due to the pressure of my shoulder joint and associated hemorrhaging on top of this 'good' lung and ribs. The oxygen however, had given my desperately starved brain and blood the boost it needed to remain alive. The paramedic had saved me from death, though I would live to regret both his actions and my decision in the coming months. The pain had returned, with a vengeance.

Nancy R’s Near-Death Experience in 2014

A successful science and technical writer, I was a geologist by training, which for me meant that if I couldn’t measure something with a ruler or study it in the lab, it didn’t exist, including anything spiritual. For me, death meant the end: no afterlife, no heaven, and definitely nothing remotely resembling “God.”

In January of 2014, I experienced some things that promised to change my life forever. These experiences went from horribly terrifying and painful, to profoundly beautiful and soul-stirring; all within the space of a few days. On the morning of January 3, 2014, while riding my bicycle here in town, I was struck broadside by a truck. By all accounts of the doctors who treated me, I shouldn't have lived. 'Most people die from injuries like yours,' my surgeon and primary care physicians insist. They were right. I shouldn't have lived. In fact, I came very close to death twice during those first few days. During those brushes with death, I had two Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) that promised to change the way I look at life, the way I experience life, and the way I feel about the concepts of God and Spirit.

Before we go any further, let me say that I debated about putting this out there, but I realize that it has to be right now. I feel in my heart that it's not good to hold onto this experience. At least one of my friends is soon facing the final transition and I would hope this post, in some small way, helps her make peace with moving on to the afterlife. Also, I hope it helps others facing a similar situation.

My first near-death experience happened when the truck initially struck me. In human time, this NDE lasted just a few minutes. As I was struck, I realized that my consciousness was in two places simultaneously. One part, very scared and animal-like, was firmly inside of my broken body that was stuck on the vehicle's axle and being dragged under the truck. The other part, a very calm, dispassionate observer, hovered out in front of the truck, watching the whole scene unfold from a distance. This dual consciousness seemed quite normal to the observer part of me. The observer was calm about the whole thing, and I remember the feeling that this was all happening for a reason, that there was nothing to fear. The observer, me, watched as witnesses stopped, called for help, and as the paramedics arrived. When the paramedics started working on my body, my two selves came back together.

Once I was stabilized enough to move, they transported me to the nearest trauma hospital. It turned out that my head and spinal injuries were so severe that I'd need surgery. My lower spine would need reconstruction, but only after the bleeding in my brain stabilized. In the meantime, the trauma team admitted me to the intensive care unit (ICU). I pondered that initial split-consciousness experience for a few days in ICU while I awaited surgery. I had no explanation for being in two places at the same time, or for experiencing the accident from two different vantage points at once. In my scientific mind, I didn't know how consciousness could split apart with one part of me traveling outside of the body. Finally, I dismissed it as just an oddity of the crash and almost dying. It wasn't important, and it most certainly wasn't 'real.' Or so I thought.

Perhaps because the first experience wasn't enough to get me thinking about spiritual matters, three days later during surgery, I was pulled right into the thick of things. I had another NDE but this one was different. Instead of only experiencing events unfold from outside of my body, my consciousness was ultimately brought to a place unlike anything I have ever experienced. The beauty and utter peace of the Place defies human words. I felt totally calm, loved, and whole. I also felt a deep, profound sense of LOVE permeating everything there. It was big love, as if the structure of this place was somehow made of love. Love was everywhere because there was nowhere that wasn't love. I can't explain it any further than that. I, already, never wanted to leave this Place. A woman greeted me. She told me that “she” had taken a form that 'she' thought would make it easy for me to relate to her. She was a stranger to me, but I was somehow not a stranger to her. She moved with me throughout the landscape, telling me things that I and the rest of the world needed to remember; things we'd forgotten or perhaps never learned. These things were reminders that would help us live a beautiful life on Earth. She said she was a spokesperson for everyone in Heaven.

Somehow, she was acting as the conduit for the information I was being given, because if I met and communicated with everyone who wanted to speak with me, I would be overwhelmed. It felt as though we were together for days, even weeks. The amount of information she passed on to me was staggering. I am still processing it. But eventually she insisted it was time for me to go back to my life. The thought of that made me weep like a child. I didn't want to go back, not now, not ever. This Place was too beautiful and loving for me to want to leave. But she insisted that I had a life to live. It wasn't time for me to be back here. I argued up and down and even yelled a few times. Can you imagine, arguing with a Being such as this? But I did. I argued and cried. I insisted I didn't want to go back to a broken body and all of the repercussions from this experience that awaited me. She watched me with what I felt was sadness, but she insisted that it was my time to go back. As I opened my mouth to argue again, I was back in the surgical recovery room.

I was confused, weeping, and already missing that Place and the Being who I'd met there. I am no longer an atheist or agnostic. I was shown Spirit in a way that made me realize that I can no longer deny It for myself. These experiences have opened my heart to all peoples, all faiths, and all beliefs in a way that I would not have thought possible. I will share a small bit of the first thing she taught me. We are primarily here to Love, to practice Love, to show Love, to experience Love. Hate is not the language of Spirit, nor is fear. Love is. It is a Love that has no conditions or strings attached. It is simply Love in all of its forms.

I was asked to share this with as many people as possible, so that is what I intend to do. That's what I promised, after all. I am not sure yet how I will get out the information. Yes, this is all real. No, I didn't make up or embellish any of it. I understand that some of you will think I'm crazy or was hallucinating. Some of you may find other explanations to deny my experiences, because they feel uncomfortable to you. Some people I have known for years may choose to distance themselves from me. This could cost me much. I was an agnostic scientist until just a couple of months ago, after all. But this is me and my life now. I trust that telling my story and all that follows will help more than it hurts, that it gives people hope, and that it brings people together. It may be that telling the story brings new people or opportunities into my life as well. All is as it should be. While my time on the Other Side of death was brief in human terms, it felt as if weeks or months were passing. I observed an amazing amount in a couple of human hours.

The first wonderful thing that I experienced was the beauty of Heaven, both visually and in a feeling-sense. When I was there, a landscape of gently rolling hills surrounded me. Flower-filled grassy meadows spread out on the hills around me. There were huge, deciduous trees in full leaf. The trees were larger and grander than any here on Earth and surrounded the meadows. There was the barest sense of a light mist, as if it were a humid summer morning clinging to the tops of the trees. The sky showed a very light blue, similar to what you might see at the ocean's shore, with wispy clouds and a very bright but somewhat diffuse golden light. That was the visual. But there is more to Heaven than what we can see with our eyes. Below the surface visuals was a well of feeling fueled by love, peace, and an abiding Presence that I will call Spirit or God. Through the landscape around me I sensed a profound feeling of peace, brightness, goodness, and love. The Beauty I felt really does deserve a capital B. It wasn't just pleasing to the eye: there was something deeper to it, more harmonious, more blessed, and more powerful.

Everything felt tied together by love and peace, and the beauty of the scenes around me was the product of this unconditional love. While the beauty of Heaven took my breath away, the sense of love completely ensnared me and made me want to stay there forever. I felt a deep sense of that love flowing through all things around me: the air, the ground I stood on, the trees, the clouds, and me. I felt the love flowing around me, through me, and eventually capturing me by the heart. I felt supported by a loving Presence so powerful, yet so gentle, that I cried again. I had never experienced such unconditional love and acceptance in all of my years on the planet. It felt as though this place were built from love and peace on a very grand, cosmic scale. What I realized, and was later told by my Guide, was that love formed the structure of Heaven.

Almost overnight, what I learned there changed me from an atheistic scientist into an open-minded, curious believer and spiritual seeker. Not only did I meet a Divine, loving presence that you might call God, but during my time on “the Other Side,” Guides gave me lessons meant to improve my own earthly life and to share with others. A few of those profound lessons that I learned might help you, too:

There is a very real spiritual realm that isn’t a separate place you go when you die. It’s a shift in energy or “state” that, in part, exists alongside the physical world. The spiritual realm, which I also call heaven, holds incredible beauty, peace, love, learning, service, connection, and pure consciousness. At a soul level, that realm is more real than this physical world your body calls home.
Divine love and consciousness form the core of everything, both spiritual and physical. Loving Divine presence connects everyone and everything across all time, space, and levels of energy. It supports you just as the oceans support earth’s astounding variety of marine life. Think about how creatures as different as the beautiful tubeworms at the mid-ocean ridges and sea otters playing in kelp beds at the surface are linked by the ocean’s salt water. That’s how Divine presence works. It supports and connects us all. You can bring Divine love into your life in very tangible ways through understanding love as a verb – by extending compassion, kindness, and love to those around you.
Through your spiritual connections to God, you are intimately connected to all other people in ways that defy human logic. As one of my heavenly guides said, “If humanity understood the magnitude of connections that exist just among your kind, you would never raise a hand in violence against each other again.” In other words, whatever you do to someone else, you also do to yourself.
You absolutely can create a personal version of heaven on earth through spiritual practices such as prayer, meditation, focused awareness, releasing attachments, following your inner wisdom, and being of service. Start by choosing one practice and commit to doing it daily for at least three weeks. Does it help you, even in a small way? If it does, make it a regular part of your day. If not, find another to try.
Heartfelt gratitude is another form of love. Don’t underestimate the incredible value of feeling grateful for the life you have, and learning to love yourself, warts and all. How do you learn to love yourself? You can start by feeling a little bit of gratitude for the health you have, for your feet touching the floor when you get out of bed in the morning, or for the arms that allow you to hug your kids. Gratitude helps you learn to change your focus to the good in yourself and your life, and away from the things that aren’t going so well.
Don’t fear the challenges that sometimes come along as part of life on this planet. Challenges help your growth both as a human and spiritual being. Life isn’t always a smooth road, but each bump or obstacle can also hold a gift. Take a mental and emotional step back from the challenge. What can you learn from this situation? Practice finding positive lessons to take away from your obstacles, then say blessings of gratitude for what you learn.
Perhaps most important of all, know that heaven doesn’t want our lives to be all about seriousness and striving. Enjoy and savor your life as much as possible.

You only have one chance to live as the human being you are right now…make the most of it! Hug your kids. Say “I love you” more often. Build sand castles on the beach. Laugh. Enjoy the wildflowers in a meadow. Marvel at a hummingbird sipping from a flower. Taste the sweet nectar of life with all of your senses, and pass on that way of living to others. And remember that Mondays are a beautiful blessing.

Kathie B’s NDE in 1972---The light adapts to Kathie’s communication preferences.

My almost drowning experience took place almost a decade and a half before I ever heard the term 'near-death experience'.   It was the late spring in Kaukauna, Wisconsin, very close to my seventeenth birthday. I was a senior in high school and it was the day that seniors received their yearbooks. For some long forgotten reason there was no school and yearbooks needed to be picked up during the late afternoon. This gave my best friend since sixth grade and I an excuse to take our visitor from inner city Philadelphia on a rafting trip down the Wolf River. Being a confident swimmer and having rafted a few times on the same stretch of the river, I was full of that invincible self-confidence, a type of bravado that can affect many teenagers. I neglected to put on my life jacket.

We were having a lovely time showing our Philly friend one of the freedoms that small town kids frequently enjoyed. While floating along the current we began to pick up speed.   Up ahead a walking bridge crossed the river.   Our raft careened into the mid-span abutment of the bridge and folded up. We were thrown into the icy springtime flow. My friends and the raft headed right -- a fact that I was unaware of until much later, while I headed left and directly into a whirlpool.

The whirlpool pulled me under. I couldn't tell if I was swimming up or down. I was swimming frantically to try to get out, and I was quickly running out of breath, beginning to panic, and feeling desperately cold. Soon I was breathing in water. A voice or thought came into my head; it said something like, 'Let go. Go with the flow. Let go.' I immediately stopped swimming. It felt like a release, surrendering to something greater than myself. There was a deep element of trust involved -- an inner feeling that all would be as it should be. Everything went black.

My life began to play before my eyes, like a movie made up of vignettes, both snapshots (like still photographs) and video clips (like the quick movie segments that make up a TV commercial). There wasn't any sound that accompanied them. They progressed in a chronological sequence from my birth to my current age. I can still remember a few of the flashes, including: when as a toddler I received my first bee sting by swatting what I thought was a fly; a tantrum I threw on the dining room floor when my mom wanted to go to the grocery store; getting a lady's electric shaver from my dad for a sixteenth birthday present.   It felt as if the images were flashing, moving, and almost dancing directly across my eyelids. Similar to what I imagine virtual reality goggles might feel today. This 'life flashing before my eyes' experience happened very quickly. I can only guess it was a matter of seconds.

(Later on, I questioned my mother about the early flashbacks that were not a part of my current memory. She confirmed that I did indeed swat a bee at about age three, and I threw an enormous tantrum at the foot of my mom's old sewing machine that sat in our dining room right around the time that I had started school. Some of the other flashbacks I asked about, she did not remember).

Then it was dark, complete and total blackness. I looked side to side and saw more blackness. I thought my eyes were closed so I consciously checked to make sure they were open. The voice inside my head said, 'Turn around,' and when I did, I saw a pin prick of light.   I remember thinking, 'I'm in a cave,' and then a calm, persistent thought urged me to move toward the light.   It reassured me to be unafraid. I don't recall making any effort to move my body.   It was smooth, slow, peaceful, and without a sound, like floating. I merely glided along through the dark.   Looking around me, I would occasionally see people. I saw an older man walking along with a burro. I saw my grandpa (my dad's father, who had been dead for a number of years). I saw other people that were heading in both directions, some slowly, some a blur.

The light at the cave entrance grew larger and larger, the closer I got to the mouth.   It was incredibly bright. Unlike the light of day, that often has a tint to it, this particular light was pure white.   As I entered the light, I was surrounded by an immediate feeling of ultimate peace. I was home. I was surrounded by pure love and acceptance. I was fully connected to this peace and love. The closest I have come to feeling this sensation again has been at the birth of my two children.

A thought came into my head. It asked me why I was here so soon. The thought was surprised by my appearance. I was unsure, uneasy. I was becoming disoriented, thinking to myself, 'Where am I? What is this place?' The thought in my head sensed my uneasiness, and as if it were reading my mind, began to reassure me that I was fine, that I was somewhere that was safe, and it redirected me to the feelings of peace and love that I had originally felt. So I felt at ease, but I was curious and confused, thinking back: 'Can you   really read my mind?' The thought seemed to realize that I needed a more concrete way to communicate in order to feel completely comfortable.

So the thoughts came into my head: what kind of form or shape would make you most comfortable?   'What do you mean?' I thought back. Some individuals, of different races, ages, sizes, or species, require me to take the shape of a wise old man, others a woman, and still others an animal. What about you? I thought without hesitation 'Human.'   With that, the light began to simultaneously separate into amazing rays of color and intensify into a more solid form. Once the light reached the stage where it looked like a human form, a rather generic looking cookie cutter shape, like a gingerbread man, I thought, 'That is enough, I am comfortable with this form.' The shape could move and was three dimensional. It was composed entirely of light, and rays of luminescent color emanated from every part of it. I saw these colors again, many years later when I first saw iridescent material. The feelings of safety, love and peace were even greater in its presence. We were still communicating through thoughts.

This Being wanted to know what voice I preferred: man, woman, child, etc. I chose that of a man, an interesting choice to analyze later on.   I don't recall any communication about what language to use.   I wanted to know what to call this light form.   It began to tell me some of the many names for God that our world cultures use.   I interrupted; 'God' works for me, even if I wasn't sure at that time in my life if I even believed in God. Whatever the light truly was, I recognized it as a pure energy form. I never actually called it God, but I also recognized that many of the people I knew would have called it that.

We began to communicate. Where was I? Home. A familiar place where I had been many times before. What was I doing here?--the light wanted to know. I wanted to know too! I was then told that I was too early.   I still had work to do. What work?   I would be able to figure that out. I would have to go back. I didn't want to. I really wanted to stay. I was immensely saddened.   I understood that it was my duty, and that I wouldn't be asked to do it if I weren’t capable. I realized that I must go back, but I was afraid. The light provided me with an escort to guide me safely back. I was still reluctant to leave, but I felt comforted by my guide. I took a moment to bask in the all-encompassing love, peace and pure light before I turned, ready to go.

I quickly traveled back into the darkness of the cave. It seemed like faster than the speed of light. I don't remember seeing anyone as I traveled through the darkness. The next second I was back in my body and I popped out of the darkness and up to the surface of the whirling river.   I was able to take a breath of air rather than water for the first time.   Everything that had happened to me took place in a very short time.   I was released from the whirlpool, and the current was taking me quickly into a series of rapids.

I was ready to fight for my survival. I began to navigate the boulders so that my legs were in front of me. I felt that I could live with broken legs, but not with a squashed brain.   Now I was like a log floating through the rapids.   I floated like this for a while. I pulled my head out of the rapids occasionally to take a breath and then try to grab onto rocks as I rushed by. After what seemed like an eternity and many, many tries, my technique was finally successful. I snagged a boulder small enough to wrap my arms around and shallow enough that I could lift my head high enough to not suck in the rushing water. I rested there for a while, my legs and body too exhausted to stand, my lungs aching from the water I had inhaled. I eventually stood and struggled clumsily over to the side. I was thrown to the right bank, which had actually flooded. I held onto the small trees and shrubs that were covered with about a foot of water.

This was when I first thought about my friends. Were they alive? Where could they be? The blush of spring had been a sight to behold at the start of this trip, but at that moment, when I was safe, and could begin thinking about others, the planet took on a whole new color scheme. The sky, the trees, the leaves, the river all glowed with the light from within that I had seen while trapped inside that whirlpool. The greens were greener, the blues bluer and the browns were browner. It was as if everything were alive, even inert objects like rocks and water and sky. They all pulsed with life. This feeling stayed with me for weeks. My friends jumped up and down, hugging one another and screaming once they spotted me.

My experience was definitely real I did not believe in God, and now I accept that we all come from the same light and are part of the light.

John S's near-death experience

I was swimming in Lake Michigan about half a mile offshore when I got into trouble. I was swimming free style, like I had done at swimming competitions, when I turned my head to breathe and accidently inhaled an oncoming wave. My lungs were full of water when I wondered if I could swim half a mile at top speed without breathing. I tried. What resulted was an extraordinary near-death experience and my miraculous return to life. This is my true account of my experience.

I had only gone a few yards when my head began to buzz and I felt dizzy. A few yards more and I heard a loud snap. Suddenly the world was calm and clear. I could see the shoreline, still in the distance and noticed the sun shining overhead. It seemed brighter than usual. When I looked down, I got the surprise of my life. There was my body, still swimming toward shore, moving as straight and smooth as a motor boat. I watched for a while, indifferent to the plight of my body. I was far more concerned with trying to figure out where I was.

I noticed a light coming from somewhere behind me. It was a peculiar light. It had feeling. When I turned to see where this light was coming from, I could look right into the light. The light was delicious. I soaked it up like a dry sponge soaks up water. I felt like I had been sealed up in a vacuum packed jar for as long as I could remember. Now the jar was opened and the pressure was gone. I could breathe again. I could feel energy flowing into me, loosening and softening parts of my being that I did not even know I had. My whole being thrilled with well-being and joy. A feeling that I had known before, though I could not remember where or when.

Time itself seemed to be softening. For as long as I could remember, the minutes, days and years of my life seemed to be fixed, like the markings on a steel ruler. Now, the measuring stick of time was becoming soft and flexible. It would stretch and shrink, like a rubber band. I could return to events of my past, examining them with greater clarity and detail than when they had originally happened, lingering there for what seemed like hours. But then, when I would return to where I was, it seemed like no time at all had gone by. Back and forth I went. Deep into episodes of my personal history, and then back into the light.

Time could also be contracted, I found. Centuries would condense into seconds. Millennia would shrink into moments. The entire civilization that I was part of passed by in the blink of an eye.

"Look at that," I marveled. "The whole civilization is no more permanent and no more important than a patch of wild flowers! It's so simple from here, and so beautiful. Whether it is a patch of wild flowers or a mighty civilization, the process is the same. It is only life, trying out different shapes and then returning from where it came."

I was being pulled into the light. Or was it that the world and the life that I knew was receding, the life that I had come to assume was the only life there is. All of my certainties and all of my doubts, all of my pride and all of my guilt, all of my pleasures and all of my fears, were fading away. All that remained was the light and the awesome feeling of well-being that the light contained. It felt like I was waking up, like I had been in a deep sleep, dreaming an intense and detailed dream when somebody came into the room and turned on the lights. Now I was waking up and the dream was fading away.

As my sleepy eyes slowly became adjusted to the brilliant radiance, I could make out shapes in the light. There were people there! People that I knew and loved. The place was completely familiar, as though I had been there just a few moments before.

"Did you have a nice rest?" one of my friends asked. My other friends broke out into roaring laughter. They were making a joke. They all knew what a grueling ordeal such ventures into the material world can be. They had all made such ventures themselves, many times before. I joined in the laughter. How good it felt to laugh so freely. How strange, to be so open, and yet it was all so familiar. I was totally alive again -- an aliveness that was beyond beginning and ending -- an aliveness that was eternal. I felt no fear.

The world that I had entered was now as solid and real as the world that I had left behind, but the light was still visible. It was a living light. It had vitality and feeling. It was focused in every living thing, just as the sun can be focused to a point with a magnifying glass. There were colors too, not only the colors that I had known on earth, but many octaves of color. Surrounding all my friends and every other living thing was color, arranged in intricate geometrical patterns, each pattern unique, every pattern original. Permeating the colors and patterns was sound, countless octaves of sound. It was as though the colors could be heard. Octave upon octave of invigorating, vitalizing sound. It was very subtle, practically imperceptible but immense; it seemed to reach to infinity. Superimposed on this vast life-giving hum, was the melody, which was created by the individual sound of every living thing. Light and sound, color and geometrical patterns were all combined into a totality of harmonic perfection.

It seemed like years had gone by. There was no way to tell though, whether it had been minutes, hours or years. Where I was now, Be-ing was the only reality. Be-ing, which was inseparable from the moment, inseparable from the eternal NOW, inseparable from the life that was in all other beings. Even though this place was as solid and real as the world I left behind, time and space were not an obstacle.

To an animal, a closed door is an insurmountable obstacle. They do not have the faculties necessary to overcome such a barrier. In the world that I had left behind, time and space were just such an insurmountable obstacles I did not have the faculties necessary to overcome such barriers. Now I was free, like an animal that had learned how to work a doorknob. I could go in and out of worlds without getting stuck. I could stay inside as long as I wanted. I could become acquainted with people that lived there and get to know their particular customs and their curious opinions, conclusions and beliefs. Then I could leave that world and return to a world without end -- a place where there were no opinions, conclusions, or beliefs. It was a place where there was only be-ing, a place of awesome beauty and joy.

Images of my former life began to flicker in my mind. Fleeting images at first, but now they were growing stronger and clearer. Visions of people who were dear to me that I had left behind. Visions of things I wanted to see and things I had wanted to do. From somewhere deep within my being, a powerful voice welled up: "You have seen enough of eternity. It's not time yet for you to stay. Return now to the Land of Shadows, where the mortal creatures play and be a puff of dust in the wind without being blown away"

Whoooshshsssss, whoooshshsssss. I raised my head to see what was making that sound. It was tiny wavelets breaking along the edge of a mirror-still lake, rattling the small pebbles that lined the shore. I was lying in the sand on the shore of Lake Michigan, just a few inches from the water. I felt good, like I just had the best rest that I had ever had.

Dr. John’s NDE---as told from his hospital bed to the ICU physician

In his eighty-seventh year, Dr. John discovered that he had cancer and decided to decline medical intervention, choosing to let nature take its course. As a physician, he knew all too well how chemotherapy and radiation had sometimes wrecked the lives of his patients, particularly those in their elder years, often robbing them of whatever functional ability they might have left. Now in a bed at our hospital, weak from malnutrition and failure to thrive, it was clear that cancer was winning and, per his request, palliation was in full swing as we sought to make him as comfortable as we could until his inevitable passing.

Finding a chair and pulling it to his bedside, I sat down facing him. He reached out his hand to me and I took it. We sat there for a moment with him looking down at the covers and I could tell he was gathering his thoughts to speak, so I waited for him to break the silence. “I’m not afraid to die,” he said softly, “because I’ve died twice before.” Tilting his head slightly and squinting his eyes, he regarded me, weighing my reaction. “Tell me,” I said. In 1944 he was fresh out of medical school when he enlisted to serve in World War II as a field physician. Barely three months into his overseas assignment, while heading out with part of his unit for duty at an outpost triage area for the freshly wounded, their transport jeep was hit by mortar fire, killing the driver and severely wounding the rest of them. Two of his companions died before help could safely transport them back to the hospital, and Dr. John sustained extensive abdominal trauma. Bleeding heavily from his wounds, he passed out en route back to the Army Hospital they had left barely two hours earlier. His next conscious memory was that of floating above his body in the operating room, watching as blood rushed in and pooled in the crevices of his open abdomen as quickly as they could clear it away. He knew all of the doctors and nurses as friends and colleagues and he found it incredibly strange to be watching them in such a detached manner as they fought intensely to save him. “I can’t find the damn bleeder!” he heard the surgeon say in frustration. “Keep the blood coming.” Dr. John heard it all; he saw it all. He was astonished at how aware he was as he looked on.

His next awareness found him completely and peacefully enveloped in what he could only describe as a soft shroud of mist. He felt completely weightless and peaceful, void of any fear. The feeling of love was immense, almost unbearable, and recalling it now, Dr. John’s voice became fragile as he paused to fight back tears. Regaining his composure, after a few moments he continued. He described floating in such a beautiful and bright place of total peace that he lost all thoughts and concerns related to anything connected to his physical existence. He was aware of nothing except how good it felt to be there where he was – wherever that was. How long he lingered in this space he could not say because time had immediately lost meaning for him.

Suddenly, though, he heard a very distinct voice say gently but firmly, “You can’t stay, John. It’s not your time to die.” Still feeling peaceful and detached, he felt himself descending, and slowly his body came back into view as the mist surrounding him dissipated and he could once more hear the clamor and tension of the operating room. Hovering above the scene, he watched the weak representation of his pulse on the monitor slowly gain strength as the resuscitation efforts of the surgical team reclaimed their hold on his physical body. This was Dr. John’s last awareness of that particular episode. What he had seen and experienced had been so real. He knew that under the effects of anesthesia, he shouldn’t have been able to see his body or the surgical team the way he had. Yet it had been so clear.

As he began to recover and gain strength, he was started on a clear liquid diet to test the ability of his damaged gut to handle oral intake. While sipping tepid broth from a cup one day, it suddenly went down the wrong way and he began to choke. In the violent paroxysms of coughing that ensued, he popped some of the sutures that held his abdomen together and blood began seeping from his belly, soaking the bandages and leaching onto the sheets beneath him. Frantic calls for help erupted all around him. A nearby surgeon grabbed a gurney and began issuing orders to get him back to the operating room. That’s the last he remembered until he was once more in the surgical suite staring down at his body. He watched as the team quickly set up a sterile field and began breaking down the rest of his abdominal sutures. He saw them dive deeper into his belly to reach the repairs from his previous surgery that had broken loose during his intense fit of coughing. Once more, he lost a lot of blood and became very unstable. That’s when he died for the second time.

With vital signs losing hold, his body quickly decompensated into an unstable cardiac rhythm and required several minutes of resuscitation to bring him back. Again, he saw the whole thing from above his physical body and watched the team fighting to keep him alive before he drifted away once more into what he referenced as a beautiful space of total love and acceptance. This time he described the reunion with the cloud of total peace as euphoric. It was like coming home after being away for so long. He then slowly became aware of another presence that he could feel but could not necessarily see. He knew he was not alone, but what was strange to him was that the presence seemed so familiar – he knew it intimately and it knew him. He was certain of this without knowing why. Again, the voice spoke and told him he must return, that it was not his time to die. Once more he descended toward his body as the resuscitation efforts succeeded, and blinked into sudden unconsciousness only to awaken sometime later on the surgical ward.

Working out for himself that the most logical explanation must be that his medical catastrophes had resulted in some mental imbalance, he decided not to breathe a word of his experience to anyone lest they think him crazy. He had invested too much of his life and energy into becoming a doctor. It was too great a risk to his career to admit that he had perhaps, as he ultimately determined, suffered some type of psychosis. He worried that in talking about his two deaths, as he now referred to them, he would lose credibility and potentially his license to practice medicine. So at age twenty-six, he made an intentional decision. He would not say a word – not to his colleagues, for fear they would question his credibility; not to his wife and family, for fear they would question his stability and basic sanity.

I’m still not sure why Dr. John told me what happened to him, but I’m so glad he did. I was impacted by how reluctant he had been to share his story with even his most trusted colleagues and closest family, and yet I was familiar with the predicament. With the sort of barriers and judgments, we, as a medical community, impose upon ourselves around phenomena that we cannot readily explain, it is the rare caregiver who would be open to receive such a story from a colleague.

As he lay dying, Dr. John confessed to me deep regret about how he had let the thick veneer of professional code restrict what he shared with others. When his patients had shared personal stories with him of their own near-death encounters, he confessed that even then he was afraid to tell them what had happened to him. “If I had only had the courage to tell my patients that the same thing had happened to me,” he confessed, “I would have done them a great service. It remains one of the greatest regrets of my life, both professionally and personally. Even as my own wife lay dying,” he continued softly, “I didn’t have the courage to tell her that I believed something wonderful waited for her on the other side. I just couldn’t find the words, and in her last moments I didn’t want her to wonder why I had withheld that from her all those years.”

Marlene’s NDE---as told by Marlene, a Native American, and her doctor.

Marlene was a young Native American mother who was pregnant with her second child. It had been a routine pregnancy and she progressed without difficulty to labor and then delivery of a healthy baby boy. The problem occurred when she suddenly became unstable with what was later surmised to have been an amniotic fluid embolism. This occurs when a bolus of amniotic fluid enters blood vessels that are perhaps torn or otherwise compromised during childbirth. It goes to the lungs through the right side of the heart and, like air injected into veins, obstructs vital blood flow, causes instability, and not infrequently leads to cardiac arrest. This is precisely what happened to Marlene. Her resuscitation was prolonged, with several periods where she had flat-lined and didn’t have a heart beat or pulse at all. After nearly an hour, the code was deemed unsuccessful and she was pronounced dead.

After several minutes, as the doctor was removing his surgical gown and gloves and preparing for the grave task of having to inform the family of the tragedy, the nurse announced with alarm, “She has a heartbeat! And a pulse!” Resuscitation efforts resumed and this time were successful, but because she had been clinically dead for several minutes, her medical team warned the family that she would most certainly have anoxic brain injury due to the prolonged time that her brain had no blood or oxygen supply – at best they could expect her to be in a persistent vegetative state. But fortunately for both Marlene and her family, that was not the case. She awakened nearly four days later, as her worried family held vigil at her bedside, and shared an incredible story.

She recalled being in labor and giving birth to her child. Not long after that, though, she related experiencing the feeling of an incredibly warm wave washing over her while her point of view sped swiftly backward to the corner of the delivery room, up and to the left of her body. From there she observed the team panicking, starting to do chest compressions and concerning themselves with the business of trying to save her. She heard shouts and orders from the staff below, but felt strangely calm and detached as she observed them. She felt overwhelmed with emotion and intense feelings of peace, love and complete safety, and she began to have a sensation of ascending. She felt a density difference as she moved through the ceiling of the delivery room. She saw large silver pipes and industrial wiring as she moved through the spaces in between floors then briefly paused in another patient’s room. There she saw a man sitting up in his hospital bed. He was eating a meal from a narrow, wheeled tray table while a woman, reclining in a chair beside the bed, was reading a magazine. She noted a couple of vases of flowers on the windowsill and perceived, more than actually smelled, their intoxicating fragrance. The flowers were the most vivid colors she had ever seen. After lingering in the room for just a few seconds, she and her amorphous companion began to move again through other floors and finally to the roof. She saw the flat, pebbled surface and the tar patching that reached out in streaks and twists along seams and in circles around pipes and supporting structures.

She saw the parking lot several stories below and was aware of a delivery truck, with caution lights flashing, where it was temporarily parked for unloading. Again she homed in on the blinking lights, noticing that the colors and motion of the illuminated blinkers were so intense. Once more, she perceived the sound a blinker would make even though she was too far away to actually hear it. She observed that when she looked at the blinkers, she could hear them and when she looked away the sound faded. She saw the deliveryman come back to the truck and, when she looked at him, she could hear his padding footsteps on the pavement. When she looked away, the sound was gone. As her attention drifted from the visual scene below her, she continued to rise. Soon she noticed a shift in the environment and could see that she was skimming a vast body of water. She could even feel the briny spray coming up from what seemed to be a slowly roiling ocean. It was real water, real ocean. She was fascinated, but at the same time, puzzled by how she got there. Tossing these questions around, she heard a reply to her internal question. “You thought yourself here,” she was informed. “In this reality, we are not limited by physical matter. See?” With that query, she was instantly skimming across a rippling field of golden grain, moving at incredible speed across the top of a wheat field. To Marlene, it was very real. She could smell the sweet, dusty aroma of wheat and hear the soft, shucking whispers as the heads of grain whipped and twisted against each other under the influence of her travel. Glancing behind her, she saw the turbulent depressions in the vast grain field in the wake that her movement seemed to create.

Suddenly, she reported, they came to an instant stop with absolutely no sense of deceleration into a vast void that was incredibly silent. But even the silence seemed to have texture. Suddenly and without warning, Marlene felt overcome with emotion without really understanding why. She looked up to see her deceased grandmother, mother and a favorite uncle moving toward her. Oddly, a man with a severe limp came forward next. At first she didn’t recognize him, but then remembered he had lived in the same neighborhood where she had lived as a newlywed. She was surprised to see him because she didn’t necessarily feel a particular connection with him. She recalled helping him occasionally when he needed a ride, some yard work or a few groceries. But that was her nature with anyone she encountered who was in need of assistance. Why he was there, she couldn’t imagine, but in a brief flicker of infiltrating thought, she understood that the help she had offered had meant so much to him when he was alive. The deep gratitude he had held for her actions all those years ago had caused him to show up in this moment.

But her attention quickly returned to her dear loved ones. Weeping as she embraced them, she recalled her mother smiling as she gently wiped tears from her face, and the love in her eyes was overwhelming. Then her mother uttered three words that ripped the moment apart. “You can’t stay.” “What? But why?” Marlene exclaimed through choking sobs. “You were allowed to come here to learn, to perceive things differently and understand. You will be different when you return,” she was informed. It was then that Marlene perceived herself beginning to move slowly backward as the gathering of loved ones faded away. Her loved ones waved to her and smiled gently, even as they receded further and further into the mist that surrounded them. Then, with incredible speed, she was hurled back into her body. She had survived the grueling mechanics of resuscitation from death, felt the wrenching pain of broken ribs from chest compressions and the limp exhaustion of having given birth. She lay there, feeling sad and helpless that she had been made to return. She could hear the hurried excitement of the medical team around her, but could not bring herself to respond.

After a few days of assimilating her experience and gaining strength, she dared to share her story. While her family was fascinated and even felt encouraged to hope that loved ones live on, the response she received from her physician was lukewarm and dismissive. “The brain can do funny things when it doesn’t have oxygen,” her doctor remarked, insinuating that this vastly rich journey beyond the physical had all been a hallucination. That was the last she spoke of it to anyone outside of her family until years later when she told me.

Naomi’s NDE---told by Naomi and her doctor.

“On the night it happened, I wasn’t feeling well,” Naomi began. “I was tired and nauseated. I also felt a bit light-headed. I thought I was coming down with something, so I took some Tylenol and went to bed early. Then I woke up in the pitch darkness feeling like something was squeezing the life out of my chest, and it was hard to breathe. I knew what was going on. I knew I was having a heart attack, so I woke my husband up and, as calmly as I could, told him what I thought was happening and to call the ambulance. Then I started fading in and out. The next thing I remember, the ambulance people were there, hooking me up and telling me I was having a heart attack and that they were taking me to the hospital. “I’m a little bit of a smarty pants, so when they told me I was having a heart attack I tried to say, ‘Do you think!’ But nothing came out. I could hardly breathe, and I realized then, when I tried to talk, how bad it was and that I was probably in a lot of trouble. That’s the last thing I remember until I was in the emergency room.

I remember seeing my husband’s face at home, though, and how scared he looked – and then everything blanked out. “In the ER,” she went on, “I was aware again, but this time it seemed different. I couldn’t figure it out at first, then I realized I was up above my body watching everyone rush around. I saw them pumping up and down on my chest and putting a breathing tube in my mouth. I saw my closed eyes and how limp I was with one arm hanging off the bed. I actually thought it was kind of funny how my arm was bobbing up and down when they were doing CPR. It’s crazy that I would find that amusing, considering the situation, but hey, I did.

“I felt so peaceful and detached, though, floating up above my body, so I thought I must have died. And you want to know what’s strange?” she asked. I nodded my head, certain that I did want to know what she considered strange, given that she had found it amusing so far. “I didn’t feel bad about it – about being dead. I thought I felt pretty good for being dead. No pain, very light and kind of floaty. It was so peaceful. “ What happened next was a big surprise, and that’s when I knew I must have died. I became distracted by a growing, bright light to my left, and when I turned my attention to it, it became bigger and brighter. It seemed like it should have been a blinding light, that’s how bright it was, but it wasn’t hard to look at, even though it was so intense. The more attention I gave to it, the closer it came and then, suddenly, I wasn’t concerned at all about what was going on with my body in the ER. Not one bit. In fact, in an instant, I forgot all about it. In just a blink, it was all about that incredible light for me.

“It was coming closer and I wanted it to, because the closer it came, the more intense love I felt.” Naomi paused for a moment and looked away as if she were trying to find the right words. Then I realized she was starting to cry. Her animated voice became soft and frail. I waited, and eventually she continued. “It’s so hard to explain that kind of love. It was very intense and so real. More real than this,” she made a sweeping gesture of the room. “Whatever it was, I wanted more of it, so I moved toward it and was suddenly drawn into it so fast. Lightning fast, like that.” She snapped her fingers. “I went with that light, that love, and I wanted to. I never wanted to leave it. “It felt like I was moving fast and standing still at the same time. Oh, it’s so hard to explain,” she said, clearly flustered, “but that’s how it felt.

I didn’t have a life review like you hear people talk about, but I did see random flashes of scenes from my life. Then I realized, by the sequence of things, that I was traveling backwards – in time, that is – because the scenes and snippets of conversation were of me getting younger and younger. “Then I felt myself floating in a void of sorts, and there was no more sound.” Then far away, or at least it felt like it, I saw something growing closer. I had no idea what it was, so I just watched. Then I was aware that as it moved toward me, just like before, I started moving toward it. Then I was running, because all of a sudden I was aware that it was my mother, who had passed away. I couldn’t get to her fast enough. “When I got to her, I hugged her so tight.” Naomi choked on her tears, barely able to get her words out. “There were others there, too. People who seemed familiar, but I couldn’t quite place them. I saw their faces and felt like I should know them, and they certainly seemed to know me, but I just couldn’t remember who they were or how I knew them.

But it seemed no sooner than I’d arrived there that she told me I couldn’t stay, that I had to go back. That really upset me. I even tried pleading with her to let me stay. I told her, ‘It’s my life, I should get to choose. I should have a say-so.’ Then she told me, ‘It’s not that you don’t get to choose. Part of you, in fact, is choosing and participating in this decision. It would be easy for you to choose to stay here, but you understand on a level you can’t quite comprehend just now that there is more from your family relationships you need to experience and learn. And more they need to learn from you. When choosing is not an act of escape but an act of completion, then you will stay.’ I knew what she said was true, but in that moment, it didn’t make it any easier.” Naomi paused to reflect, then continued, “So I came back.”

Again, after she returned, Naomi had a cardiac arrest in the ICU while I was placing her central line. Afterward, she described it to me, and, astonishingly, even reminded me of something I had forgotten entirely. She saw members of the resuscitation team try to tilt her whole body sideways to put a long, flat board under her and me saying, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, my stuff,” as I grabbed the things I had set on top of the sterile field to prevent them from falling onto the floor. She couldn’t understand the long plank, so I explained to her that it is called a backboard. “It helps us do more effective chest compressions to circulate blood if there is a hard surface under the body as we press down,” I went on to explain. “Otherwise, your body would sink into the soft mattress and the pumping wouldn’t be nearly as effective.” She nodded that this made sense to her, but I remained amazed that she had been aware of that happening and saw me reacting to the shifting field by grabbing my supplies to keep them from falling off the bed when I knew, for a fact, that she was totally unconscious.

After that, Naomi’s conversation began to wind down. She seemed tired and peaceful. Reaching out for my hand to give it a gentle squeeze, she expressed gratitude at being able to share what had been a life-changing experience for her. She finished up by saying, “Now that I know what’s coming, because I’ve experienced it first hand, I’m not afraid to die.”

In a field of research like the study of near-death phenomena, none of us is an expert. We can’t generate randomized, controlled double-blind studies to collect data to prove or disprove the occurrence of the experience itself. We have no choice except to either choose to believe the person experiencing the event or not, and collect our data – their stories – where we find them.

Rachel F’s Wonderful NDE in 2006

When I was 20, I went into early labor with my first baby. After 4 difficult days, I was given an episiotomy from which I lost a huge amount of blood. Two days after my daughter was born, it was decided that a blood transfusion would be started.   Roughly two hours into the transfusion, I felt I needed to use the toilet and hauled myself up, dragging the bag of blood beside me. Never before or after this experience, have I felt so very weak and floaty.   It was a great effort to move.

I shuffled myself back from the toilet to the ward and slowly and carefully lay myself down. The ward was empty except for one other new mother who lay opposite me. I smiled at her and realized I was shivering. I have always felt the cold, so at the time, I assumed I just needed to warm up.   I tried to lie still for a moment and quickly realized my whole body was shaking. The woman opposite me asked me if I was ok.   I tried to tell her yes and that I was just cold, but my teeth had begun to chatter and my jaw felt too stiff to control.   Instead, I nodded, still not understanding why I was trembling.

I reached for my buzzer to ask a midwife for an extra blanket. As soon as she saw me she pressed a button behind me and within a few seconds I was surrounded. The transfusion was immediately stopped. I saw the woman opposite me staring at me; I was acutely aware of how scared she looked and the curtain being drawn around her.

I wanted to ask what was happening, but I could not soften my jaw to speak and almost immediately an oxygen mask was placed on my face. I remember fighting for breath. I remember how hard my chest was thumping. My thoughts seemed scattered, my eyes somewhat frantic, and when I noticed my fingernails turning blue I very calmly, internally thought to myself 'Oh, I'm dying.'   It was very matter of fact with a hint of 'oops'.

I tried to keep myself calm internally. I was talking to myself in my mind, thinking of my family, trying to gain strength from thinking of them. I remember feeling frustrated, annoyed that they weren't there with me, that I couldn't tell them goodbye. I tried to keep my eyes open but suddenly felt so very tired. My eyes were so heavy, so I let them rest---and then I was up, out of my body!

I briefly hovered over my newborn baby, hoped she'd remember me; then I was travelling.
It felt like I was shooting through a tunnel, but I couldn't see any sides to it. It was dark, but illuminated. I was not alone; I could sense a presence with me. I was tumbling forward/upward at an unfathomable speed. It felt like wind. All throughout me. Inside of me. I likened it at that age to being on a rollercoaster, that rushing feeling. It was wonderful. I felt so light, so free. Simultaneously, I experienced this fully and watched myself experience this with clear vision from a little distance. I can still see myself tumbling if I concentrate on the memory.

This traveling went on for some time, until I became aware that I was in a new place.   Like a room without walls, without a ceiling, without a floor.   I had 360-degree vision and could see all around me, but not with my eyes.   Again, there was darkness, but I did not feel afraid. Again, I felt a presence, and also felt complete trust in this presence. A 'movie,' for want of a better word, began to play. It was black and white and huge. As if I were staring at a giant screen that filled the whole of every which way I turned. The 'movie' was my life from birth to death, every minute of it, every event I had ever experienced. I watched it and I relived it. It was at this point I realized Time no longer applied.   It was as if I were projected into a moment, or dragged through time, backwards before forwards, to re-feel my life. I witnessed at this point, the sexual abuse I had experienced and suppressed as a young child. While watching/re-experiencing each moment, I found I was now able to experience each event through the emotions present at the time.

I watched my own poor mistakes and learned from every episode. I watched myself as a child, bitten by a guinea-pig, and in shock, half launch it onto the sofa. I felt shame at this time. Because I felt the fear of the guinea-pig. No one condemned me. I was asked only, what I had learned.   I was comforted at this time.   Consoled and reassured. I learned so much. How big an impact my seemingly small actions had on a large scale. How my choices and behavior rippled through the lives of countless others. How the Love I showed spread like wildfire. How the way I mistreated others, deeply hurt and affected them and also how that pain, fear and confusion would then impact the lives of others too. In the 'time' I spent in this re-living, I developed a deep gratitude for many things, especially the experience of life. The people and the hearts that had touched my soul in beautiful ways and the fragility of being human. My newfound wisdom seemed satisfactory, and we again were moving.

Again, we traveled through the illuminated darkness until I saw a pinpoint of light in the distance. When I saw it, it was like a remembering. I knew where I was headed and I wanted to get there, fast.   I can't recall if I was moving myself towards it or if I was being 'drawn' to it, but somehow it was a 'need/desire' within me.

We moved faster and faster toward this light. It grew in size in my vision, in intensity. I felt like I was flying.
We burst into it. And it was indescribable.   It was every incredible feeling that I will never be able to describe. It was immediate peace. Absolute, whole peace, all throughout me.   No pain, no fear, no shame. I felt completely accepted. Totally whole and loved. Loved beyond comprehension. Loved in my entirety. Loved with a Love I have not felt here. Loved with the purest love there can be.

I felt I was 'home'. I felt I knew this place/space/being. It was light. It filled every space of my 360 degree vision. It had no form that I can recall, which for a long time left me with other questions, but it was beautiful, and not blinding in the slightest. It was as if I 'merged' with the light, it absorbed me, I absorbed it, we became One, completely. In these moments, I learned so much. About our existence as humans, about our planet, and what we as a species need to do to resolve its problems, the healing that our planet and us as its people need.   I knew I had become One with all of existence because at the time I knew everything there was to know. I think in a way, it may have been somewhat similar to a 'download.’    It seemed the answer to all of creation was so simple, almost as if, if I could have, I would have kicked myself for forgetting it.

I was communicating with the light as well as experiencing being within it and being One with it. A conversation began, mind to mind, I assume, and I was asked if I would like to return to my earthly life. The absolute truth of my soul is that I felt completely insulted at this suggestion. I was horrified at the thought and felt myself loud within me, respond No! There was a pause and I felt a little confused, wondering why this was being asked of me. Again, the same question repeated within me, 'Do you wish to go back?' Again, I said No. There was another pause and then I was shown the baby I had just birthed, lying in the crib beside my body. I was shown much from time to come. Various outcomes that depended solely on whether or not I returned to my body. There would be countless lives that would be touched with this Love if I returned and many that would not know it if I did not. I remember taking what can only be described as a deep, soul sigh. A knowing sigh. An understanding.

Immediately after seeing this, and holding the vision of my newborn daughter in my 'sight', her possible future if I stayed, I said 'Yes'.   I asked for a moment more and it was granted. I soaked all the love I could into my entire being. It felt glorious. I felt pure and light and whole and loved and loved and loved. In this 'moment' I understood everything. Creation, purpose, love. physics, numbers, existence. I was completely at One with all of existence.
And then I was shooting backwards and it was cold and dark and I was grieving even before I hit my body.

It was another 2 days before I could hold my baby. I spent 48 hours lying naked as the day I was born, in and out of consciousness. I couldn't speak. I just lay there and cried quietly. I hurt, everywhere. I felt trapped, restricted, lonely. I missed the light, the love, immediately and immensely.

It took my spirit longer to recover than my body, though that in itself was a long time. I was very depressed, for many years, and often dealt with suicidal thoughts because the desire to be 'home' was so great. I was confused for the longest time. I was afraid; I found being in a body painful, restricting and limiting. I am still greatly uncomfortable with it; however, I have learned to love and be grateful for my life and breath.

I was at my father's bedside when he passed on 7 years after my NDE, when many pieces seemed to fit into place in my mind. I started meditating at this time and rapidly forced myself to recover. From the sexual abuse, the loss of my greatest friend (my father) and the excruciating loss of the Light.

I remembered my purpose at this time. I started an online community called 'Bruised But Not Broken', and over the following 6 years built a community of over 700,000 individuals that had experienced sexual abuse, trauma, addiction, loss. Together, we work to heal our wounds and strive to be the best version of ourselves we can be

It is hard to recover from an NDE; it is hard to re-establish oneself as a person, as an individual in physical form. At first, it was extremely painful. Touch was painful, sound was painful, the separation was incredibly painful. No one in my life could understand this, or the great depression I experienced for so long after.
My NDE was without doubt, the most incredible and transformative experience of my life. I have never forgotten a single moment of it and doubt I ever will. It took me time, but I allowed it to transform me in the most beautiful of ways and I try every day to live and love the way I was loved in those very sacred moments.

NDE from August, 2020---The Love we share is all that truly matters

As a young pre-teen, I became ill with strep throat and pneumonia, with a relentless high fever. I had been very sick for a couple of weeks with an increasingly sore throat, cold-like symptoms, coughing, and mounting breathing difficulty. (I had always had breathing problems and after this event was formally diagnosed with asthma.) I eventually became unresponsive and was taken to hospital. There, during medical assessment, I was first stripped of all clothing and was wrapped in cold, wet sheets in an attempt to alleviate my soaring temperature.

After diagnosing me, they gave me an injection of penicillin, to which I had an allergic reaction, resulting in an “anaphylactic shock-induced death.”

I found myself out of my body and floated into the upper corner of the hospital room. As I looked down, I saw a long, skinny body wrapped in white sheets—my body, but the body wasn’t “me”. I felt a complete and total disidentification with the body, while I, the real me, was dispassionately observing the hospital staff frantically attending to it with an intense and increasing flurry of activity. The concern and attention they had for this body was interesting, yet no one noticed I was there, watching from outside of it.

Through the wall, I could see my distraught mother in the hallway. On some level, I sensed and felt her distress, and I wanted her to know that I was all right, that she needn’t worry or be upset. Her upset was no doubt heightened by the fact that, prior to my being in this room, the doctor had sternly and angrily chastised her. Why hadn’t she brought me for medical attention far sooner?

We had been at my great aunt’s cottage. It was summer. My illness progressed to the point where my fever remained high and constant—at least 104 degrees for two days—and my body would shiver uncontrollably. Though hot to the touch, I kept saying how cold and freezing I felt.

So my mother heeded my great aunt’s advice and covered me in blankets and put a woolen hat on my head. In addition, my aunt slathered me with Vicks VapoRub and wrapped a sock around my neck. All this naturally raised my body temperature, which is how I became unresponsive. The doctor was angry with my mother for bringing me into the hospital in blankets and a woolen hat, with a sock around my neck. He made a comment that she was cooking me to death and sternly sent her away to wait elsewhere. (My mother only told me this years later.)

As I continued to disinterestedly watch all the activity, a light began to fill the room, enveloping everything in sight, making its way to me, wrapping itself around me. I no longer saw anything else but this light. The physical scene below had now faded and disappeared. The light grew brighter and brighter. It was gorgeous, magnificent. Brilliant white silvery light swirled and glided, forming and melting around me.

Exquisitely soothing and flowing, it invited and welcomed me into itself. I offered no resistance, as it felt so inviting and completely natural. Then I merged with the light; it was me, and I was it, without differentiation.

As the light now, I/we moved along this shining tunnel. The light was so intense that nothing can compare with it on earth. In this pulsing brilliance, there was such a soft gentleness. I felt profound LOVE....a joining and remembrance of being this Love, this true and perfect essence. I was and am that. All was perfect and whole. It felt unceasing and limitless. And I was at peace. Complete peace. There were no thoughts, only blissful, peaceful silence and contentment beyond words. Only oneness prevailed.

At some point, there was what seemed to be a soft hum in the background and a gentle sound of whooshing air or wind all around. Yet it was not distracting or disturbing. It was beautiful. I was part of it too. Before me appeared a magnificent being radiating forth pure Divine Love. This being was formless and was softly pulsating. I seemed to recognize this being as an entity “other” than myself. And yet at the same time, it was also an aspect of who I was, with no sense of separation.

Our communication was silent, absent of words. This form of communication was all-knowing, like windows into the heart of the soul. We read one another’s thoughts instantaneously. There was no room for even a smidgen of miscommunication. I had a sense that this being was God, the Creator. All was perfect. I felt that I was at home, basking, enfolded, and cradled in the heart of the source of all Love. Home in the heart of God.

I then recall an ever-so-slight discomfort, a reluctance to agree to that which was next asked of me. This was to consider taking a look at my life, to review it, and then decide whether to remain in this loving embrace of divine perfection or to return to my body.

The idea of returning to the physical was definitely a highly unpleasant one, to say the least, and I attempted to refuse entirely. Patiently and with loving understanding, I was informed that indeed I could remain and not return to the physical, if that’s what I chose. Then I experienced a very vivid life recall.

It was both painful and exquisitely beautiful. It was like viewing a film, filled with precise detail. Every single thought, word, deed, decision, and action of my life was re-experienced and re-examined. It was self-evaluation, with total transparency and honesty. Throughout, I was never judged. I was simply held in Love, with complete compassion and acceptance.

In this review, I felt exactly the feelings of every single person I’d ever encountered or thought of, of all they experienced as a result of my loving or unloving thoughts and actions. I saw it all from their point of view, not only how my actions affected them, but then through them, others they encountered, as the effects kept on going. I saw that the love we express ripples out, creating an everlasting beauty that is often unknown to us at the time.

In our essence, we are powerful and loving beings, and we are given countless opportunities to act from that love, endless chances to learn and grow by offering and receiving love. It felt as if we are living inside a grand game, which is perfectly designed to always give us another opportunity to get it right this time.

I saw that everything we do makes a difference. I could see that the effects we impose on others by our unlovingness become our personal hell. Hell is not a place we’re banished to as punishment. There is no punitive God. Hell is the self-judgment that keeps us imprisoned. We do it to ourselves.

In the life review, there was an interlude in which I was taken by the hand and led into another realm. It resembled earth because there were trees, sparkling sand, and aquamarine water. There were fruit-laden trees, lush foliage, and vibrantly colored birds. Everything was alive—each flower and every glistening grain of sand. Floral fragrances filled the air. (Even now, when I smell lilies and freesia, I’m transported back to that memory.) It was all soft and ethereal and vivid at same time.

I was nearing more readiness to agree to return to the body, but was still reluctant and leaning towards saying no. Then I was asked, still without words, would I look at a few more things? And I agreed. I was then given glimpses of life ahead still to be lived. Those included the seeming challenges I would face, along with all the precious beauty that was inherent within them. I was shown the children that I would birth into the world. I felt my love for them and theirs for me, along with the love between me and many others yet to come into my life. I saw how my mother would be devastated if I “died,” never forgiving herself, thinking that she was responsible for my death.

Then I walked into an enormous open space where I encountered a vast sea of people, and I was awestruck. As I looked around, I saw my family, close friends, ancestors. But also present were many people I had interacted with everywhere I ever went in my life. I looked over the sea of faces, and the message that came from all of them together was, “Welcome home. Welcome, we’ve been waiting for you.” (My God, the profoundness of this brings tears to my eyes, tears of overwhelming gratitude and joy.)

This experience forever instilled in me a deep, knowing sense that no one is or will be left behind. We wait for one another. We wait for everyone. It’s as though we play an unconditionally loving witness to one another’s lives. There was so much Love infused into this reunion that it is indescribable and brings me to my knees in remembrance. We then went on to excitedly reminisce in a way, in mind-to-mind communication: “Oh yes, I remember, when I said (or did or thought) that to you, you said (or did or thought) that to me.” “And then I felt and did…,” etc., etc. It was incredibly funny as well to see how I had often taken things so seriously. The whole thing felt like a celebratory party.

Once this “reunion” felt complete and I understood what I was meant to fulfill going forward, I then chose to return to the physical. I felt I had been given a great assignment of responsibility, and I vowed to fulfill it. Going back into human life to play out this earthly “game” was still tinged with reluctance, though this was tempered by the magnificent Love I’d just experienced and the knowledge that we’d all meet again. As soon as I said yes to the choice to return, I had a sensation of falling backwards into the light, like it all happened in reverse, but faster now, as if I was being pulled, sucked back through it all, falling backwards. And then I was back in my body.

This experience has remained a touchstone for me my entire life. It has walked beside me the whole way. In particular, it has given me a sense of the preciousness of every interaction and the opportunity for divine love to pass between us in the smallest of exchanges.

Martin J’s NDE in 2013

My NDE involved an UNBELIEVABLE series of medical errors!---->Cardiac catheter error resulted in bypass graft spiral dissection and iatrogenic heart attack followed by urinary tract infection related to non-sterile Foley placement later leading to urosepsis, septic shock, congestive heart failure, pneumonia, renal failure, and subsequent neurologic injuries with loss of sensory-motor functions of the right side of my body. I lost pulse and blood pressure for about four minutes and was intubated, started on medication, and maintained in a comatose state for eight days.

I have no memories of about two weeks of the month-long hospitalization, but I do remember with clarity my “experience” when I died for four minutes.

I remember thinking, ‘So, this is what it is like to die.’ Then I felt myself released from my body. I saw my wife at the bedside and the people in the room working on me. (I later described who was there, where they were, and what they were doing. My wife verified what I told her. She was quite surprised to hear me describe it so clearly.) I wanted to tell them I was OK, but I couldn't. I felt as if I were being lifted away and then I started to experience what I have come to call 'my tour.' I was surprised that I could see clearly without glasses. I could see distant and near without restrictions, even though in this world I am legally blind even with glasses!

I started traveling to all sorts of places. Some were familiar. Others were not. I remember them, but I have a problem clearly describing all of them. Mostly because words alone cannot adequately convey the existence of them. They were all wonderful, remarkable, beautiful, and interesting. Some were landscapes. Some were places I remembered as a child. The easiest to describe were the landscapes. There was a valley with lush mountain sides and an exceptionally spectacular waterfall. There was a lush green field with flowers and children laughing and playing. There was a beach with crystal blue-green water and blue skies with a cool breeze and gentle lapping waves. I was shown places with other galaxies, stars, and planets. I lost my sense of time and space as I was instantly transported from place to place. I traveled to many places. I can't recount the number, but I do recall having a sensational sense of joy and happiness during the travels and did not want it to stop. As I traveled, I received an endless download of knowledge!

Eventually, I reached an area of darkness with a faint light in the distance. I felt a strong compulsion to travel to this light. The closer I got, the brighter it became. As I neared the light, I became aware of other spirits or souls present. I could not see them, but I sensed them. I could see what appeared to be a mixture of clouds, fog, smoke, and an ethereal mist connected with the spirits and the light. They were as if they were all one and the same. There were hazy outlines of indistinct figures present. I knew them. I was communicating with them, but we weren't talking. We just did it. It was instantaneous thought transmitted between us.

I saw my sister who had died years ago from sudden cardiac death. I saw my mother who died of cancer five years ago. I was happy to be with them, but I was also drawn to the light. It was the most brilliant and bright golden white light, and it permeated the entire area. As I got close to it, I felt an overwhelming power and presence that I realized was God. I communicated with God. I asked questions and had answers immediately. I was filled with love, joy, and happiness and felt myself surrounded by unconditional love, forgiveness, and acceptance. I wanted to continue and to proceed on through the light to the other side, but I received a message that clearly said, ‘No, go back. It is not your time’. It was accompanied by visions of my wife and children. I did not want to go back, but I did not feel I was given a choice, and then I awoke as the pulmonologist was shaking me.

I am a bit vague after that, but I remember him asking me if I was OK and did I want to be intubated. At that moment, I felt extremely sad and wanted to go back to where I had been, but I couldn't. Then my wife and children came into the room and I realized that I was alive and had been sent back for some purpose, although I still don't know what that is yet. I've been told by the minister that it may be to share my story. Maybe it is, but I'm not so sure. I'm learning that there are a lot of stories like mine. A lot more than I ever thought before. In fact, I was skeptical about such stories. I thought they were just the manifestation of some weird biochemical reaction in the brain that resulted in an hallucinatory experience; but now I think that I did experience a glimpse of the afterlife and was allowed to discover that God is real, Heaven is a paradise, and that we are all a part of it when we transition to the Other Side.

Brian S’s NDE in 1989

In mid-April, of 1989, on a Sunday, I was driving back to my home from a trade show at a resort. As I drove, I thought of the beautiful early spring day, the leaves beginning to show on the trees. The weather was beautiful, with temperatures about seventy-five degrees Fahrenheit, or so. I was driving Northbound on the highway. On the radio was a great song, and I was happy to be going home. I saw a car on a gravel road, approaching the highway from the West. In looking back, I realized that the car never stopped at the stop sign before driving across the southbound lanes of traffic---and also ignored the stop sign before driving across the northbound lanes of traffic, directly into the path of my car.

Everything slowed to slow motion. I said or thought an expletive. I recall that my right hand pulled the automatic gearshift backward. At the same time, I turned the steering wheel hard left, as the green car was traveling from my left to my right. I remember thinking, 'If I can just hit this car in the rear axle, it will spin the car on the front axle out of my way, and maybe we, the elderly man driving the car and the elderly woman in the passenger seat), will live through this thing.' My mind processed the image of them in the car spinning on its front axle, then processed the image of them in a car being struck dead center, at the passenger door, with my car.

I remember there was no sound other than wind. I recall thinking, 'That's really weird, where's the wind?' Then I thought, 'Ok, there isn't going to be any sound until the cars hit.' Then I wondered why my car wasn't turning. I had turned the wheel hard left with my hand, but nothing happened. I reached a point, as the cars neared, where I realized that there was absolutely nothing I could do to affect the outcome of this event. I was just there and it was going to happen all around me. That was the first time in my life that I had come to that realization.

I watched the people in the other car getting closer and closer, at first a few feet, then inches. The man was looking forward through the windshield, the woman was turned slightly toward him, and I believed she was talking to him. She held what I thought was a small transistor radio in her right hand near her right ear. I thought, 'I haven't seen a radio like that since about 1971 or so.' Then contact was made, (and sure enough, I heard the sound of the impact) and the view of the other people was immediately obscured by steam from the radiator of my car bursting. I remember knowing that's what it was. My car began to spin slowly. I could not see at all because of the steam, and I remember thinking, 'All I really need is for a tractor-trailer to plow into us with this going on; boy I'd sure like to see THAT one coming.' Then, I reasoned that since my car was spinning, the steam would probably no longer block my vision. Sure enough, the steam was carried out of my field of view and I could see down the highway from the direction in which I had just come. I remember thinking, 'Man, am I lucky there isn't a truck bearing down on us!' Then my car stopped.

Realizing that my car had stopped moving, I thought, 'Man, I've got to get out of here!' I remember my head bowing and my chin striking my chest, and then there was a big “Phooofing” sound. I recall feeling as if I was phoofed, like I was a spit-wad being quickly forced through a straw. I heard and FELT the phoofing!

Suddenly I was floating outside of my car. I looked at the guy sitting behind the wheel and thought, 'Hey, that's me, and I'm sort of a mess. Not too bad though, it doesn't look like anything was torn off the body; it all looks pretty much there, but it is dead.' (I had worked in a funeral home for about a year and a half and was quite familiar with how bodies look when they're dead).

At this moment, I heard a voice behind me and turned. There, standing (or floating) were two friends of mine who had been killed in a car wreck in 1983. They had been together when they were killed (as was fitting since they were always inseparable), and the three of us were closer than brother and sisters. (I went to both funerals and swore to myself that I would really like to have those two gals come to collect me, if that was how it was done, when I died. Well, here they were.) The amazing thing (looking back on it) was that I wasn't surprised in the least to see them there!

I remember “saying” (for lack of a better word) 'Hey Lisa, Hey Susan,' in a nonchalant manner, as though I had just met them in the Student Union after a break in classes. I began to tell Lisa about my body. I said, 'Hey Lisa, get a load of this,' sort of amused about the situation and sort of nodded toward myself seated in the car.

Then I remember a feeling of total and utter freedom. There really aren't words to describe this feeling, but it was occurring to me that I could do anything I wanted in my current state. I could go anywhere and no laws of physics dictated what I could do. I realized I could even go to the Eiffel Tower if I wanted (which was my exact thought; however, I don't ever recall wanting to go to the Eiffel Tower or even thinking anything about it prior to this, other than maybe to answer a question on a fifth grade geography class quiz). I began to revel in my current feeling, a feeling of such well-being that even now I miss it.

Lisa said, “Brian, you must listen closely;” then she said, “You must look”, and she directed my attention to the Western horizon. (It's hard to describe exactly HOW talking, moving, standing, etc. is done in this state.) In the Western sky I saw my life! It was like seeing it on a movie screen (widescreen) in color, on a videocassette recorder that's stuck in fast-forward; but rather than seeing it only, I was also FEELING it like I was in the life being shown on the screen, but also 'standing' with Lisa and Susan at the same time. The life played literally from my birth to my 'death'. I saw my mother giving birth to me. I hadn't seen that before that I recalled. I saw myself running my pedal car into the door facings in our hallway and being 'banished' to the garage with it. I hadn't remembered that. (I later found the mark on the door trim where my car had hit.)

At the end of this life screening event, I was not left with anyone telling me, You're a sinner! You did this and this and this that was bad and against the Ten Commandments!' Rather I was left to form an opinion of the life I had lived. Not so much in terms of 'I was a bad person or good person', but rather, 'That was a good life', as objectively as though I was commenting on a special meal or the completion of a project that pleased me exceptionally. I knew at that particular moment that there had been other lives. When they were completed, I had gone through identical or similar reviews but was not curious about these other lives since they were done. I had completed them, leaving them of no further consequence. I knew that this life would be of no consequence once it was done.

I realized that I knew everything. There were no questions; all knowledge was instantly present in my thoughts. I knew that this was my actual state of being. I was a being who had, for some time, used the lifeless piece of meat inside the car. (I did feel somewhat sad for my body though; it not being of any further use sort of seemed like a waste, and it had performed well for me. Like the nostalgic feeling you get when you trade in a car.)

None of this seemed to take long; in our time, possibly a period of about twenty seconds or so. All this occurred to me, was thought of, and happened in that amount of time!

Lisa said, or rather communicated, “You must listen (there was urgency in her words), you have accomplished enough that you can go with us, (she paused), or you can stay, but if you stay we have to know why, and you have to tell us. You must also know this, if you stay, it's going to be very, very hard.”

I said flatly, “I have to stay.” Lisa asked, “Why?” I stated, “I don't have any children yet.” (This was important, but it was not emotional; rather, like a house which I was supposed to paint and did, but it had started to rain and I was telling someone that I still needed another day to paint around the windows.)

I was aware that Susan had said nothing during this, only Lisa; I noticed that beyond Susan, there was 'Someone' else? I realized that this 'Person' was listening intently and that I was not allowed to see him/her.

This 'Person' appeared only as a huge presence that was perceivable only as waves of distortion, shielded from my consciousness so that I could not see him/her directly. Lisa said, 'Alright, you have to know that your heart stopped when you hit the steering wheel, but you will not have permanent injury from this. Your injuries will be a broken sternum, a cut on your finger, and you'll lose a couple of teeth. I said, 'Okay,' and heard “Phooof.” Everything was black, and I was at first confused; I couldn't figure out exactly where I was. Then I heard a sound, like a far off boom. There was then silence and then another boom, then another, then another closer together. Then I realized that the booming was my heart starting. Then the realization hit me that I needed a breath of air really, really badly. (Like the feeling that you get when you're deep under water for a while, finally reaching the surface and gasping for breath. I took the longest, deepest gasping breath that I can ever recall taking. When it was finished, I opened my eyes and observed the scene, and saw my hand begin to bleed.

I shall not repeat all the particulars of the accident; however, I kept lapsing into and out of consciousness. Many times, I could hear people talking but couldn't seem to react. At least three times that I recall, people felt my neck and said, 'This one's gone'. When I finally raised my head and made a statement to a state trooper who was bent over at the driver's door of my car copying my V.I.N. number off my dash, he leapt back and yelled, 'Hey, this one's alive, get over here!' I remember an emergency medical technician in my car and vibration from extraction equipment. Later, in the emergency room, the emergency medical technician from inside the car came and said, 'You look much better than you did a while ago.' I told him I felt better. He said, 'In all the years I've been doing this, I've never checked anyone and been mistaken about them being living or dead, until now.' I told him, 'Who says you were mistaken?' He had appeared concerned, but now he grinned and said, 'You be cool man,' and left.

THE AFTERMATH OF MY EXPERIENCE:

My experience taught me that life here on earth is merely a method of increasing our knowledge for our ACTUAL existence on the Other Side. Now I don't really follow the dogma of any particular religion, and I feel like religious ceremony as seen in churches is not part of who or what I am. The best part of my experience is my knowledge of what's coming at my death, the verification of eternity, and the feelings of being ‘home.’ The worst part was being back in this body; it's like trying to move while weighed down in a pair of mud-laden, wet coveralls! That was quite a readjustment.

I told my wife several days after this happened, and she stood there shocked and said, 'That didn't happen,' and walked away, maybe because she’s Catholic. That didn't help our relationship much. I've told my sister, who cried, said I had been given a great gift, and then thanked me. Now, I'm not afraid of dying. Life is clear, and there's purpose to all things.

Roger C’s NDE in 1990---from Canada

Coming back from Quebec City September 3, 1990 at 3:15 local time, my friend was driving my car. At a certain point she lost control of it, and we had a head-on collision with another vehicle. At that moment, I left my body right away and was looking at my friend and my body inside the car. I noticed there was a little fire in the engine area but nothing too severe at the time. Both of us were not moving and appeared to be dead!

I remember wanting to tell my parents and friends about the accident at that moment and that my life was over (and say goodbye). Immediately, I was in front of them! However, my friends and parents were not able to see or hear me.

From that point, I thought there was something else waiting for me besides visiting the living, as I was dead! I just let myself go. I went into a dark place with nothing around me, but I wasn't scared. It was really peaceful there. I then began to see my whole life unfolding before me, as if a film were being projected onto a screen, from babyhood to adult life. It was so real! I was looking at myself; but, better than a 3D movie, I was also capable of sensing the feelings of the persons as I interacted with them through the years. I could feel the good and bad emotions I made them go through

At the end of the “film” (life presentation), everything went black for a while, almost like in a real movie before they turn on the light. I then understood through the knowledge I had gained in these interactions that I deserved a place in what we call heaven, without knowing what it would be like or where it is! I felt a wonderful feeling of peace, which became stronger and stronger, such a nice feeling.

In the darkness, I began to see a light in the distance ahead of me. I was attracted to it, but I remember thinking that I could also go away from it, if I so chose! I came closer and closer to it; the feeling of great peace became so strong, so good! In real life, I am the type of person who likes to go into details to see how things work. I didn't want to go too fast and wanted to understand what was going on here. I then got into orbit (that's the best terms to describe it) around the Light.

It was like a cone of Light. I heard the words (Peace, Joy, Happiness, Love, Eternity) while I was in orbit around this great, really HUGE cone of LIGHT! I remember that those five words (as a whole) became the only important thing in the universe for me, and I had to get rid of everything else in order to enter into the Light.

The feeling of peace was replaced with a feeling of love. I remembered that something was preventing me from entering the Light at that moment, and after having analyzed it, I felt like it was grudges I had kept towards a few persons. I had to forgive them in order to purify myself from all negative thoughts I had toward them. Now that I had the permission to enter the Light, I could almost touch it, and I wanted to enter it, but I was holding back in order to see more details before actually entering the Light. I remember also that I was at the bottom of the Light cone. After a certain time, I let myself go and BANG!---an explosion of love!

The feeling I had before going into the Light was GREAT, but still a feeling I could explain with human words -- but once inside, NO WAY! No words can explain that feeling. I thought I might die because these feelings of love were so strong! I was amazed I could still think like I did on Earth, and at that point I started to laugh as I thought, how can I die, as I am already dead! So, bring on all the love you can, I said! Because I knew the Light could understand me.

I thought at that point, there was nothing better, but it might be dangerous to increase the love sensation! As it was already far better and stronger than any expectation of heaven I had ever had! As I mentioned, YES, more love please. The sensation of great love grew even stronger, and I noticed there were different levels in the Light. I noticed then that I had the complete knowledge of the universe available to me, and I simply had to ask to know! HOW GREAT, I THOUGHT! So, I began to ask my questions of the Light:

My first question: Is there life elsewhere? --- YES!

My second question: Are there many planets that have more superior life forms than we have on earth?
The answer is thousands of planets have a higher evolution than you know on Earth.

My third question: Are there many planets with a lower evolution than earth?
YES, thousands too!

My fourth question: Can I SEE what it looks like on a planet with a higher evolution?
YES! In an instant, I was on another planet! I was able to see my body there. I was in the presence of people and was able to TALK TO THEM! HOW GREAT, I THOUGHT! They were amazed to see me in front of them. I was in some sort of city with flat ground; there were buildings with no windows or doors, just like big boxes. They had a special way to enter them but it wasn't important for me to know it! We weren't communicating with voice, but through our minds. I was able to understand each word, and while I was talking, I know I was using another language with them. This was all done automatically.

They were asking me where I came from. They wanted to see in my mind the stars I could see from my planet! The result was good! They were also asking me where on earth I was born, and what I liked to do on earth? They wanted to see in my mind what it looks like and a map of those areas! The result, again, was good, as I was capable of mentally showing them the map! They asked me how I had the energy to survive; I knew right away that they were talking about food in a strange way. They asked if we ate what used to be alive? I said yes. They told me, We knew there were primitive civilizations but not as bad as that! They were really surprised that someone coming from such a primitive world could meet them on their own planet!

I asked them, 'Do you sometimes travel to other worlds?' They said, 'Yes we do, and showed me a space ship that used a “gravity generator” to get almost unlimited speed!' Physically speaking, they were shorter than us and walked slowly compared to us. Also, they didn't have any hair. They told me, we might go to see your planet sometime, but it is very far from here. I said goodbye and thanked them for the information. I left them at night, taking the time to look at the stars. It was nothing like on Earth, and there wasn't any moon also, but the sky was beautiful with lots of stars.

I learned when I was back that we could not interfere with primitive worlds, and it's the main reason there's a great distance in between planets, to prevent us from reaching their world, as it could be very dangerous to their evolution. At that instant I formulated a wish that I'd like to return to Earth in order to share this knowledge with as many people as possible. I suddenly realized I could see my body once more. It's then that I saw my friend who had been driving my car. She was coming toward me and the Light behind me. She was dressed completely in white. As we came closer, our hands touched and our bodies fused together. We could read each other's thoughts perfectly without any possibility of error.

She explained to me that she would be staying in the Light and that her time on Earth was over. She knew that I, however, was returning to Earth and would never forget this experience as it was so much better than what we had known on earth. Suddenly, I was back in the car, flames leaping all around. I turned and saw my friend's body and knew beyond doubt that she no longer inhabited it. The Light had given me just enough time to exit the vehicle before the flames would reach me. My healing process was nothing short of miraculous, despite the many broken bones. The attending physician was stupefied by my recovery!

HERE IS AN AMAZING NDE FROM THE JOURNAL OF AN EIGHTEENTH CENTURY SEA CAPTAIN!

Sea Captain David Perry’s NDE about 1760----who was told about the Revolutionary War years before it happened; and who also relates the NDE of a Polly Davis of Grantham, NH (in the last paragraph).

“While I was on board that vessel, it appears to me that I died -- that I went through the excruciating pains of the separating of soul and body, as completely as ever I shall again, (and such a separation must soon take place) and that I was immediately conveyed to the gate of Heaven, and was going to pass in; but was told by one, that I could not enter then, but in process of time, if I would behave as he directed, on the set time I should have admittance.

It appeared to me that my feet stood on a firm foundation, and that I stood there for the space of about a half hour. In this time there appeared to be a continual flowing up of people, as we suppose they die; and none stopped, but all passed off, one way or the other. One person appeared, with whom I had been intimately acquainted, and it appeared to me that I knew him as well as ever I did: it was Doct. Matthews -- [and whether I saw him or not, he died, as I afterwards learned, while I was sick on board the ship].

The one that talked with me, told me about the Revolutionary War [which was to happen some years later], and showed me the British vessels in the harbor of Boston, as plainly as I saw them when they later came. And during the first year of that war, I was down there in Gen. Putnam's regiment, and I went on Roxbury• hill to see the shipping in the harbor, and they looked exactly as they had been shown to me many years before.

This transition (as I firmly believe) from life to death, and from death to life, which took place nearly sixty years ago, is as fresh in my mind now as it was then; and not many days have passed from that time to this, which have not brought the interesting scenes I then witnessed, clearly to view in my mind. But I never dared to say any thing about it, for a great many years afterwards, for fear of being ridiculed.

But about the [last of February or first of January, 1763], peace• was declared between England, France and Spain, and the people rejoiced exceedingly on account of it. I told them we should have another war soon. They asked me why I thought so. I told them the British had settled peace with their foreign enemies, but they could not long live in peace, and they would come against us next.

But I never told my own wife, nor any other person, of what happened to me on board the vessel, as above related, for nearly thirty years afterwards, when a great deal was said in the neighborhood where I lived, about one Polly Davis of Grantham,• N.H., who was taken very sick, so that no one thought she could live long, and many times the people thought she was dying. In one of these turns she had a dream or vision, by which she was assured that, on a stated Sunday, she should be healed, and go to meeting the same day. On the Saturday night, previous to the time appointed, many people stood round her bed, expecting every moment that she would breathe her last; but when the hour she had mentioned arrived, she rose from her bed, and said she was well; and Captain Robert Scott carried her some distance to meeting, behind him on horseback, the same day she recovered. There was so much talk about it, that I ventured to tell my own experience as before described, and have since told it to a great many people; and some believe it, and others do not.”

Colonel Fahad’s NDE in 1966---from IRAQ

1. My father’s name is Fahad Al Sadoon. He was a Colonel in the Iraqi army. He retired in 1974, because he was independent from the Al Baa'th party.

2. To my knowledge, in Iraq I don't hear about such experiences as my father’s NDE. Sometimes we hear rumors, but not a real story. As you know, the society and the regime do not allow such stories. I remember when I was with my father in 2002 at the Al Orphaly conference, many people tried to make jokes, and only some of those present believed the stories.

3. The near death experience of my father happened in 1966, but he spoke about it in public the first time in 2002 at the Al Orphaly Conference Hall, in Al Nusour, Baghdad-Iraq, 2002.

4. In 2005 his story was published in media. A channel named Baghdad Iraqi TV, Satellite Chanel, interviewed him. The channel asked the help of Doctor Al Qurashy, who is a well-known Iraqi psychologist, to comment on this near death experience. Doctor Al Qurashy approved it and mentioned that such experiences had happened since the Age of Grace (one of the Dispensations in the Bible). And all this is in a media video.

An officer political detainee, Colonel Fahad wrote the following about his near death experience while in detention:

“I was detained in a military police cell in the Ministry of Defense. It was a very small room with no facilities except a bed and a pit as a lavatory. There was a small window.

Two guards were assigned to me; one of them lived in a small far away village and was always on duty. With time, he began to sympathize with me. I used to send him to bring me my meals from a nearby restaurant.

There was a drug called ‘antibar,’ which was a light tranquilizer. I asked the guardsman to bring me a packet of these tablets and he did. So, I repeatedly asked him to bring the tablets until I had around three hundred of them.

I would like to draw attention to what had taken place later, which I could not find any explanation to until now and was beyond my comprehension as a human being. I am stating what happened without any comment.

One day I started to take the tablets, emptying the packets one by one and swallowing their contents. It was around three hundred tablets. I started to experience dizziness, pain in the stomach, and my vision was distorted. I looked at the veins in my arm. They were turning dark blue.

Realizing that, I tried to lie down on my bed but lost balance and fell to the floor. I lost consciousness. When I regained consciousness, I saw my body on the floor so I stood up. To my surprise, my body was still on the floor. I, in my ‘new’ body, was standing by it. My attempt to understand what had happened ended when I felt I was ascending upward, leaving my body on the floor. On reaching the ceiling of the cell, I tried to stretch my arm to avoid to hitting the fan, but nothing happened. The fan kept rotating. My body kept ascending upward past the ceiling, and was climbing up into the sky vertically. Looking down, I saw the ministry of defense buildings. Then I passed through the layers of clouds over the city of Baghdad and was in the clear blue sky.

All of a sudden, I saw two men in bright white robes. One man was taller than the other. One of the men raised his hand and my ascending stopped. The man made a gesture to me to go nearer to him. Without thinking, I moved towards the beings until he signaled with his hand for me to stop.

I was neither afraid nor disturbed. I did not feel cold or hot, I had only had a feeling of tranquility. One of the men asked me, ‘Why did you do what you did? Don’t you know that getting rid of your life (suicide) is not your right?’ I replied, ‘I am very sorry. I was tired, and couldn’t take any more in my solitary confinement.’ While I was answering, I tried to see who they were but couldn’t.
The same man said, ‘We are satisfied with you now, we are going to forgive you for what you did and return you to earth. Do not do what you did again.’

He went on to say, ‘Look, do you know any one of these?’ I understood that he wanted me to turn around and look, which I did. I saw eleven men standing near me with their backs towards me. I said, ‘I do not know any of them because I don’t see their faces.’ The man signaled and three heads turned to face me. I recognized President Abdulsalam Aref and the one standing beside him was his bodyguard Abdullah Majid, and the third was Abdul Latif Al-Darraji. The man told me, ‘You were supposed to be with them but we forgave you. Now we are sending you back to the earth. As for these eleven, they will leave your world and come to us in two days.’ Once again, he gestured with his hands and the three heads turned.

He asked me, ‘Do you know why we have forgiven you?’ I replied, ‘No.’ Then he said, ’Look toward earth.’ I saw a MIG-l7 jet fighter flying low in the Barzan region and heading toward the rocks on the road where Kurdish rebels were. The rebels were forcibly gathering women and children, threatening them with their weapons to stay close to them. When the MIG fighter flew low towards them, the women and children were screaming with horror. Mothers were hugging their babies and terrified children were trying to hide under women’s clothes. It was a very horrifying scene of the fear from death. The MIG passed over them without firing at them. The plane returned and then I realized it was my aircraft. It was me, defying orders to attack.

The man said, ‘We want you to see with your own eyes the humane deed you did. Do not panic.’ The plane did another pass over them without attacking and headed towards its base in Kirkuk. I saw the faces of the women and children wondering what had happened and the same on the faces of the rebels.

Then the man said, ‘This is the deed for which we have forgiven you. You will descend to the earthly world. That was a great humane deed. Now before you return, do you want to inquire about anything before you are sent back?’ I replied, ’Yes, I have some questions to ask. What is time to you? Is it like what scientists like Einstein say it is?’ He replied, ‘We here have no time like you have. It does not exist. How old are you?’ My answer was, ‘30 years.’ He then said, ‘Again, look down.’ I saw my mother putting her newly born baby, me, to bed and standing by her an Indian doctor. All that was in Basra city in 1934 on March 13. Then I saw my entire life passing before my eyes. He said, ‘You just saw your own life in less than a fraction of a second, which for you was 30 years. Do you have anything else to inquire about?’

I asked, ‘Will there be war between us and the Jews and what will the result be?’ He told me, ‘Yes, shortly it will take place and you will lose.’ He pointed his finger down for me to look. I saw Isr'li aircraft taking off from their bases and heading for the Sinai desert and the Suez Canal flying very low. Then they were bombing Egyptian bases destroying the aircraft on the ground. It was the 1967 war. I was horrified and asked the man, ‘Why don’t you help us to avoid such catastrophe?’ He replied, ‘No, because you were a great nation and you were fragmented. You were people killing each other while scattered in ninety different locations with no unified language. They got together, unified themselves against you. They had one cause and they succeeded. If you want our cooperation, you have to unify your nation and go back to the time when you were a great nation. Unify under God and pray to him as much as you can.’

I asked, ‘Can I tell my folks of what I saw so they can be careful?’ He told me, ‘Yes, but nobody will believe you, because you only saw a small part of the future and you are living in the past. They will not comprehend the future. You and your people are living in the past and cannot comprehend the future.’

He then said, ‘Now we take you back to the past world.’ Before he raised his hand he asked, ‘Why don’t you do your prayers?’ I could not answer and remained silent. He raised his hand and I started my descent towards earth. Then I passed through the layers of clouds and saw Baghdad. I recognized the buildings of the ministry of defense and the cell I was detained in. On reaching the top of the building, I did not feel any fear and passed through the roof into my cell. I saw my body lying on the floor and was joined with it. I started screaming from pain and began to vomit blood.

On hearing my screaming, guardsmen rushed into the cell and tried to tell me that I had fallen from it. On seeing the blood I vomited and that I was shaking like a leaf, they hastened to call their commander, Colonel Bahget Said, with whom I had a very close relation. He tried to help, but feared the people from the intelligence service and in particular, the assistant head of the intelligence, Major Abdul Razzaq al-Nayf.

Later, I was transferred to the military hospital and was admitted to the mental and nervous disease wing to rest for a while. I don’t remember how long I was there. One day the doctor who was treating me came and told me that I was unconscious for days and now I was recovering.

A person one day came with a cat and introduced himself as ‘Abu Layla,’ and said that he was asked to look after me. Because I was a detainee, he told me that he will stay outside near the guards. Days later, my friend Doctor Nezar Al-N'b visited me from the Air Force Hospital. We chatted about various things, and then I told him of what I had experienced. I told him of the eleven people I saw with president Aref. He couldn’t believe what I was telling him. He thought that I was hallucinating. Then he stood up and said, ‘Don’t talk to anyone about that or else they will think you are hallucinating.’ He then left the room muttering, ‘Illusions and hallucinations.’

The prison authorities demanded that I be returned to my cell now that I had fully recovered. Orders came to that effect. In August 1966, I was released from prison after many people intervened and pleaded with the president.

ALTHOUGH THE MOST COMMON FEATURE SHARED BY ALL NDErs IS THEIR “AWARENESS” EVEN WHILE DEAD; ANOTHER COMMON FEATURE THEY SHARE IS THE “WONDERFUL FEELING” THEY HAVE ON THE “OTHER SIDE”! HERE ARE TWO FRAGMENTARY NDEs WHICH ILLUSTRATE THIS:

Pia H’s NDE in 2006---From Belgium. Original in Dutch

I was given a general anesthetic in the artery of my right arm. Suddenly I'm sitting upright; I find myself in empty, cold but bright and dead quiet surroundings. I cough but can’t hear my cough. I begin to feel claustrophobic.
Suddenly I noticed that I'm without a body and am overcome by a feeling of wellbeing; and I felt I knew everything! It is impossible for me to describe those feelings. I felt so connected to everything; it was so wonderful and easy! I didn't have to breathe; I didn't have to do anything; only BE! This wonderful feeling was so overwhelming I was almost glad to be dead; it will be heavenly at life's end.

----------------------------------

John S’s NDE in 1974

I was the first baseman. Catching a grounder, the third baseman threw the ball way over my head. I jumped up to catch it anyway. When I came down, my jaw landed on the top of the onrushing runner's head. I remember standing up. I was told that I mumbled, 'I'm okay. Let's keep playing', but there was lots of blood, and I was clearly not okay. Then I vaguely remember my mouth feeling “out of place”.

The next thing I recall, I was looking down at myself lying on a bench in the emergency room. The girl who brought me over was seated next to me. A doctor was kneeling in front of the 'me' on the bench, moving my mouth around. He said the jaw was broken clear through. I later found out the left side was also broken in pieces. As I looked down, I was aware of an endless continuum behind me, but I did not turn around. Indescribable, all-encompassing love surrounded everything. It was perfect peace and well-being beyond imagination. There was someone or something communicating telepathically with me. It's hard to explain the feeling of intimacy, care, and connection I felt with it. We were almost one, but what was behind me was so much greater than me. Looking down at the 'me' on the bench, 'we' felt such compassion for the poor guy. He didn't know that he was surrounded by love. Telepathically I heard, 'If only the dear one knew how much he was loved!', and I agreed. I stayed up there for a while and then suddenly returned to the body.

LEONARD'S NDE, LIKE OTHERS I HAVE READ, TRIES TO EXPLAIN WHAT HE THINKS HE REMEMBERS LEARNING ON "THE OTHER SIDE."

Leonard’s NDE in 2009

I had a heart attack with cardiac arrest in the emergency room. I felt myself coming out of my body. Once outside, I saw the hospital staff working around my body to revive it. I had 360 degree vision; I could see above, below, behind, on my right, and on my left. I could see EVERYWHERE at the same time!
I also could zoom on a particular point. I travelled at the speed of thought! I just needed to think about a place or somebody and I was instantly there! I could go through walls. I went through matter, and it was VERY EXCITING!

I heard people's thoughts. Even before they opened their mouths, I knew what they were about to say! Because I heard their thoughts! Besides, it was quite a cacophony in the room, but I just had to focus on one person and then, I heard just this person! I moved about. I visited my mother at her home. I went into the deep universe. I climbed very high above the earth in space, and the sight was WONDERFUL! At some point, I felt sucked away into a long, dark tunnel at an incredible speed! At the tunnel end there was a glowing pinpoint of light. In this tunnel, there were other beings like myself, and we looked at each other saying, 'I believe we are dead!'

The more I went forward, the more the light grew. I arrived into this light. The light was wonderful and very bright. But what hit me the most is that in this light I felt peace, joy, but most of all an incredible love! This light loved me! This light talked to me! I asked it if it was God and it answered me, 'Yes I am the light!' This light being (whom I did not see) knew EVERYTHING about me; it knew my life from beginning until end! Once in this light, I remembered who I was, I also got answers to all questions I ever wondered about, like who created the universe and how, how does the cosmos work, physics, etc. Oh yes, I did not learn it, I remembered it!

Being in this knowledge was a divine state. God then showed me all my life from birth up to the present.   I felt and experienced again all these events, and I also felt emotions I had raised in others.   I was my only judge! This experience was very painful. I dare not imagine what Adolf Hitler underwent when feeling the pain he caused millions of individuals! God showed me when I had generously done things without thinking about it beforehand, and when I had done unloving things. I even saw myself stealing sweets in a shop, thinking to myself, 'Whew, nobody saw me!' Indeed, somebody saw me. Yes, God saw me! But he does not judge me. In fact, this is what hit me the most. God does not judge, he just loves us with unconditional love. This love is indescribable, it is not like what we feel on earth, this is rather a force-of-love.

The light and I talked for quite a long time. Oh, yes! On the other side, communication is done via thought transfer. I must tell you that God has a fantastic sense of humor; I never laughed so much in all my life! We laughed about the way I had so seriously reacted to an event. Life on earth is a big drama! It should not be taken too much in earnest! As for the universal knowledge I got, I was not allowed to come back with the answers.   I remember I knew, and I recall some little things like the fact we are eternal beings, we always existed and we shall always exist!   Each time we incarnate, we lose memory of who we are.

Prior to the creation of the universe, there was only us, united in just one small point of awareness. This consciousness had knowledge but we could not experience it; then we separated into billions of individual consciousnesses and we created the universe to go there and have fun! One day we shall all be reunited again, and perhaps we will explode again and everything will start again.   True life, true reality is on the Other Side. I remember the light told me that there is more than one universe; there are billions of them, and earth is not the only planet we may choose to incarnate on.

I recall that when I was out of my body, I wondered what I looked like without a body. Then I looked at myself and I was light; I was made of light!   At some point God told me, 'You must go back to earth.' I refused then; no way I should go back into that sick body. Then God showed me a vision of my mother who cried because I was dead, and then I was willing to come back. I went back through the tunnel, and I had to reenter my body through my head. The feeling was very unpleasant; it was like putting on a tight diver’s suit.

Lynne S’s NDE in 1970---a cardiac nurse

I had a spinal anesthetic during a long and difficult labor. I was lying on the stretcher after delivery, when I began to feel a tight band around my chest. A nurse checked my blood pressure and said it was 70/30. She opened up the IV line. Suddenly, I felt so better so fast that I thought I should reach up and close the line to further medication, but I couldn't move. I wasn't worried at all, and but before I knew it, I was out of my body floating face down. I saw my body lying on the stretcher, but I was “out-of-my-body,” completely unconcerned! A doctor ran up and yelled, 'What the hell happened? She was fine a few minutes ago! Get the cart!' (Crash cart.) Other doctors and nurses came running. I just didn't really care what was happening down there. As a nurse, I had participated in many codes, and it was pretty boring to watch my own!

I felt wonderful, no pain, no worries. I noted that the tops of the walls faded into blackness and I could see the stars above the hospital. Suddenly, I was lying with my head and shoulders slightly elevated, in some kind of tunnel, moving toward a light. As I approached, there were two beings in front of the light. I felt that soon I would begin to move very fast toward the light. I was ready to go. The beings seemed rather flustered, and they had thoughts like, 'It isn't time for her.' 'How did this happen?' Finally, one of them settled down and began to communicate with me. They gently told me that it wasn't time, that I had many more years to live. I knew somehow that the ultimate choice was up to me.

I decided to go on (to the Other Side). Then, they said, 'But, you will have to do this all over again. If you stay on earth, you will live a long life, and you have lots of work to do.' That gave me pause, and as I was trying to decide, they said, 'Who will take care of your new baby?' I looked down and saw my son lying in a crib in the nursery. He was battered and bruised from the long labor. My resolve to go forward began to waver. I found myself fighting, sort of like swimming backwards, to get back into my body.

All of a sudden, I was back in my body. It felt cold, damp and painful. For a moment, I was sorry that I had returned. I was angry with the nurses and doctors for bringing me back. However, I knew that I had done the right thing.

I did not share my unusual experience for several years. I was afraid that people would think I was crazy. I still had a yearning to return to my “real home” (on the Other Side). In 1977, I was working on a cardiac step down unit and patients began to tell me about their NDEs. I learned of Dr. Moody's book, and then I realized that I had had a valid “near-death experience” like he had described. After that, I began to share with others. Most people are very interested; some are skeptical. It doesn't matter to me; I know it happened.

I have worked in many areas of nursing, but never with the dying exclusively or in hospice. Although I have an interest in this area, I was afraid that being around the dying would cause my longing to return home to become too strong, even though I would never commit suicide. I know that I need to live in the present and continue my work here on earth.

Duane F S’s NDE---description of our multiple lives

What started out as a minor health annoyance took a turn for the worse. The doctor handling my case called in a doctor from the Stanford Medical Center. After a thorough examination, my doctor was optimistic. He said they were developing a new breakthrough operation for what, until now, had been an untreatable condition. Stanford University was about to do another test case operation and my doctor felt I might be an excellent candidate for the new procedure. The surgery could offer significant relief if all went well. And if the surgery didn’t work, my prognosis wasn’t good anyway. To my wife and I, there was no question as to our decision. Without the surgery, where would I be?

More testing began. I was poked and prodded everywhere and relieved of bodily fluids I didn’t know I had. In spite of what the doctors had initially said, once all the tests were completed it seemed the prognosis wasn’t so bright after all. The doctors felt my condition had deteriorated too far for me to survive the operation. Apparently, my medical situation led to an extreme vulnerability to heart attacks and strokes. There was a distinct possibility that I would die on the operating table.

Even if I were willing to risk the new procedure, no doctor wanted to operate on a man whom they felt might die on the operating table from a stroke or heart attack. Though they didn't admit it, they didn’t want to jeopardize their whole new program by having one of their first patients not survive the process, even if the procedure itself went without a mistake. Their advice to me was to go home and get my affairs in order. At best, they said I had about five months to live. Being only forty-one years old, what they told me really didn’t sink in; at least, not at first. My wife and I knew we had hit a rough patch of sailing in our life, but, as of yet, we didn’t really understand what was ahead. Our future was full of our dreams and plans. Nowhere in those plans was there room for one of us dying. After all, I had several real estate projects underway and had commitments to fulfill.

I guess it started to soak in when we were driving home and we realized that I hadn’t been asked to make any future appointments. At first, the death verdict had less impact on me than I would have expected. Maybe it was because of the bone-numbing fatigue I was feeling after months of little or no sleep caused from my condition. I then began to wonder, even if I did beat this problem, would I be able to find real, lasting happiness in the years to come? I asked myself, again and again, was life really just about having more new cars, airplanes, bigger houses, and more vacations? But the life-road just got steeper and rockier.

Since I held no spiritual beliefs, my agnosticism provided the relief I needed. I believed it would all be over when I died, and I looked forward to the oblivion and sleep it would provide. Since I believe that our beliefs form our reality, I had no fear of death. Once I became comfortable with the idea of oblivion, the world could go on without me: I had nothing to fear. From the beginning, I had known my life was going to end in death eventually. It wasn’t a question of if I were going to die, it was just when I would die. I rationalized, what difference would it make a thousand years from now? Finally, I could sleep for a long, long time. It was amazing how appealing that thought became. While I hadn’t reached the point of actually wanting to end it all myself, the idea of finally having plenty of sleep and eternal rest had a very strong appeal.

One early morning, in the darkest part of the night just before the dawn, I sensed the end was near. Struggling to breathe for months had left me feeling that nothing else mattered anymore but just being able to breathe and sleep.   Each day was worse than the last, with tomorrow promising to be worse than today. All I wanted was relief at any cost. My medical condition had been getting progressively worse ever since I was told I only had five months to live thirteen months earlier.

For some time now, the only way I could sleep at all was sitting upright in a chair. Now, even that was no longer working very well. Also, the noise I made while trying to breathe made it impossible for my wife and I to be in the same room at night. Since my daughters were light sleepers, I now slept in my office downstairs. There, I would spend the night, sitting in my old recliner, propped straight up and trying to sleep. I was all alone in my old recliner that night when, between a moment of sleep and a gasp for breath, I was suddenly falling through space.

I just kept falling, tumbling through a black sky, gripped with paralyzing, stark-naked terror. Instead of waking up, as I had in other 'falling dreams' in the past, I just kept on falling and falling. I was tumbling out of control as I plummeted through the blackness. Gradually, as I tumbled, I became aware of a soft light in one part of the black sky. My attention was drawn to the light, and it seemed to calm me. As I watched the light, my attraction towards it grew stronger and stronger. Even though I was struggling to keep the light in my vision, the more I focused on it, the calmer I became. Then I realized I was falling toward the light. The closer I came to the light, the brighter it grew. A feeling of profound peace and warmth spread upward throughout my entire body as the tumbling slowed.

On the distant horizon, silhouetted against the light, I saw what, at first, looked like an uneven line across the night sky. As I drew closer, it grew into a line of people that spanned the horizon. As they came out to greet me, backlit against the light, I knew them all. Some of them were from my life on earth; others were not. There was my grandfather Amos, along with my favorite dog, Butch, his tail wagging in greeting. Both were central characters in the idealistic part of my childhood. There also was my wise-old-granddad Frank with his wry, bemused grin. Included in this welcoming was my sweet Aunt Eleanor and my favorite uncle, Sidney. There was even a man who lived on a ranch up the river from us, who always had been nice to me. He gave me a job, even when he really didn’t need the help. I saw my favorite schoolteacher and various other people who had played a part in my life on earth but had gone on ahead. As wonderful as it was to see those whom I loved in my current life incarnation, there were others. There were others I had known and loved from other lifetimes and other places not of this incarnation.

As we all met, the warmth in the pit of my stomach continued to grow. Soon, I was flooded with the most intense feelings of love I had ever known. The love flowed through my core and back out to those around me. In a small way, it was like the 'coming-home' feeling I had experienced back on earth as a young man returning home for the first time from Europe. The Army had taken me away for three years and I was looking forward to seeing home again. As I drove up that old familiar road to the ranch, where I knew Mom and Dad were waiting. I felt that 'coming home feeling' of warm, deep, unconditional love waiting for my return. However, to compare that with what I was feeling now would be like comparing a drop of seawater to the ocean.

If I had thought death just led to oblivion, I was wrong.
My death was not just falling asleep into a state of nothingness forever. Rather it was an awakening to a reality I couldn’t imagine. As I was greeted by those I loved, I felt as if I were dissolving into the most intense love I had ever known. The love rolled over me like the waves of a great tsunami, a happy, joyous love full of anticipation, promise, and closure. No words were exchanged. Thoughts moved instantaneously, with perfect clarity, from one part of the eternal mind to another, without the ability to withhold or judge anything.

It was all an expression and celebration of love. On earth, this reunion would have been unfathomable, between members of an ancient soul group who were celebrating the return home of one of their own. Slowly, as I looked at those gathered to greet me, I realized they were all there. Surprisingly, they were not only from this life, but also from prior lives, like one in Germany. I realized that the same souls have possibly played different parts in my multiple lives. Sometimes these souls had been my daughter, my wife, or my mother. While at first this idea had startled me, I was soon humbled. Who was I to tell God what he could or couldn’t do with his creations? The fact that some Sunday school teacher had different ideas about how things worked didn’t really matter.

My joy deepened as I realized that I had only left behind an earthly vestige of those I love. The essence of each of those souls, was also here with me now. Besides my friends and family, there were the friendly Germans who had been hauntingly familiar while I was a young soldier in Germany. Now I knew why they seemed so familiar at the time; I believe they had been my friends and family from a prior lifetime there. I now understood that I had left nothing behind on earth. The eternal essences of all my loved ones from that life, as well as all other incarnations, were all here to greet me. All I had left behind was a character, playing a role in a drama that we had chosen to experience. In the meantime, our real eternal essence remained in God’s realm. Suddenly, it was all so simple.
As I was shown around, it was explained to me how most of our celestial, eternal knowledge is blanked-out during our chosen life spans on earth. We must temporarily forget most of what our higher-self already knows, so we can immerse ourselves in the roles we have chosen to play. Furthermore, they said that it might take a while for all my knowledge and memories to return. To ease the transition back into this realm, I was told to think of my time on earth as an extended visit to the ultimate theme park. Consider it a place with thrilling rides and various adventures that I could choose to experience or not. I was also reminded that the reason we leave the celestial realm at all was for the excitement, variety, adventure, and entertainment that different incarnations offer. However, to take all our celestial knowledge with us on our various adventures would have ruined the very experience that we had chosen to live. Someone there said that I should think of our trips to other realms as choosing a new novel to read. I can choose a new book, depending on what I am in the mood for. Furthermore, if I knew every turn and twist of the story, line by line, prior to reading it, it would spoil the fun.

As one entity explained, 'If the eternal, divine part of us grows tired of singing and playing harps, there are thousands of other universes created for our spiritual growth, amusement, and entertainment.'
As my orientation went on, they explained how on that celestial side of the veil, anything we desire is instantaneously provided. We just need to feel the desire. However, within us lies the reason for all the realms outside of heaven. Having everything we want all the time develops within us a desire for variety and change for a challenge. It would be like a game in which everyone was a winner. Soon, the game would become boring, and we would look for another, more challenging one.

After what could have been a few minutes or several hours of orientation, a deep silence began to descend over everything. An all-encompassing Presence overshadowed the soul group as its members faded into the background.   As everything else faded, a Voice, which really wasn’t a voice at all, said in resonating tones, 'Welcome home, son, you have done a great job.' In a continuing sense of profound love and acceptance, the Voice continued, 'But, as long as you still have a body back on earth, would you like to get 'another one' out of the way?' I instantly knew what he was referring to. I was being asked to return for some important scenes that were coming up in my current earthly drama. When I reincarnated in that lifetime, I had agreed to play the role of father to my two daughters. And now I was being asked if I were going to continue honoring that commitment. Additionally, at the time of my death, I hadn’t believed in any form of reincarnation or anything else religious or spiritual. In spite of that, I instantly knew that I was being asked if I wanted to return to the earthly drama I had just left.

Now my Sunday school teacher had always told us that there is no pain in heaven. I can tell you now, at least in my case, she was wrong. I can still hear the agony of my echoing, 'Nooooo' still rattling around somewhere in those celestial realms. I knew in my heart of hearts and in the deepest core of my soul, that I did not want to go back. After escaping 'the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God,' as the poet John Gillespie Magee put it, I wanted to stay. After experiencing 'Heaven,' in no way did I want to go back to earth anytime soon. If earth was a theme park, then they could have any part of my 'unused ticket' they wanted; I had had enough drama for a while. I was finished with that petty, trite, hellhole of an earth-game it all had become. Obviously, my view of this world reality had slipped in the latter parts of my adventure. It was as if I had gotten my foot stuck in the track of the roller coaster.

Even though I had people there, whom in earthly terms, I had loved as dearly as earthly conditions allowed, I had no desire to return once I had seen the alternative. From that vantage point, I could see how trivial the world I had left was. Here, on the other side, I would always be with souls who had loved me from the beginning of time, and always would continue to do so.   Plus, I now knew that the loved ones who lagged behind on earth would join us momentarily. It might be years to them, but it would only be moments to us. Time is funny that way from a celestial view.

What can a father say? With a tremendous sense of loss, I went back to my life. I didn't realize that my real journey was just beginning. At the time, I could never have fathomed what was ahead. I didn't understand that I would be led to the kind of happiness on earth that I hadn’t wanted to leave in heaven. It is ironic that I would experience the happiness that I had to die to discover.

Lonny F’s NDE in 1988---He chose how the Presence manifested itself, and his NDE saved his life!

When I was fifteen years old, I lived in Southern California on Coronado Island. Often times I would sneak off to the beach without my mother knowing. I would tell her I was going to walk around the island and meet up with friends. The day of my NDE was one of these days. I was an expert swimmer, a member of the swim team, and very at home in the water. Going to the beach by myself wasn't something my mother approved of, but I thought she was just over-cautious -- after all, I was a great swimmer.

The day before my NDE, California had a pretty good size earthquake out off its coast in the Pacific Ocean. Most people didn't think anything of it, because all we had felt on land was a slight tremor. Earthquakes were just a way of life for us, as long as the buildings didn't shake excessively. The day after the quake, I was off to the beach for a swim. It was a beautiful day. Like I always did, I looked at the lifeguard tower to see how the swimming conditions were. A green flag for 'Good,' a yellow, for 'Caution,' and a red one for 'Stay out of the water.' Today it was yellow. The waves did look a little rough, but nothing I couldn't handle, I thought.

I swam out through the waves, enjoying myself as I dove under each of them as they rolled toward me. After swimming for a while, I was caught in a rip tide. This had happened to me many times before and I knew what to do. I turned around and swam out to sea a little, and then I started swimming parallel to the coastline. I did this to get away from the tide that wouldn't allow me back to the shoreline. But something was wrong this time. The rip tide wouldn't end; I was being pulled further out to sea. At this time, I tried to see if I could touch the ocean bottom, and I could not. Facing the shore, I watched it shrink away from me into the distance. Just then, I turned my body and saw the largest wave I'd ever seen in my life.

I had absolutely no time to react. The wave hit me head-on with such force that my body tumbled head over heels for what seemed like minutes. My bottom hit the ocean floor; and the current kept me pinned there in a seated position, unable to move. Once the current let go, I immediately pushed off the floor and headed toward the surface for air. My lungs at this point were already burning. I was finally about to break the surface, when I was met again with just as much force by a second wave. Again, I went head over heels and was completely disoriented. I swam up to the surface, only to find out that I was actually swimming downward. My hands slammed painfully into the sand. By now, I was in intense pain, and my lungs burned frantically. Once again I pushed off the ocean floor, only to be met a third time by a current so strong that it again held me on the ocean floor in a seated position. As I sat there unable to move, I felt my body become weak, and I let go and breathed the water. I drowned right then, and died.

Everything was completely black, and then suddenly pure white replaced the black. It was a white so bright that it should have blinded me, but it didn't. Note that I started separating from my body moments before everything went dark. I could see my body hunched over on the ocean floor. As my eyes adjusted to the light, the brightness started to soften, and I could make out images. I saw through my eyes, as well as through thought. I could either choose to turn my head to see something, or else I could just simply see it. Vision brought me either closer or further away from something. I found myself walking alone along a beautiful white sandy beach. In the distance were beautiful trees and flowers. I felt incredible peace and joy.

Suddenly I remembered what had happened on the ocean floor back home. I thought to myself, 'Did I die?' Just as I finished the thought, I heard a voice and felt a presence. I heard with my mind, not with my ears. Everything was clear and crisp. After we agreed that I would see him in physical form, he appeared. I think that having me make the decision to communicate with him, instead of him just appearing in front of me, was more for my comfort than anything else.

Off to my left a man materialized. He was an adult of an indescribable age. He could have easily been twenty or forty. His hair was completely white and very short. Its texture was that of silk. He wore a well-trimmed half-long beard, which appeared to be as soft as silk. It's important for me to point out that he didn't materialize until he had my permission. Our conversation began.

When I asked if I was dead, he said very simply 'Yes'. We never opened our mouths to communicate; everything was by thought alone. So, many words were exchanged so fast that it would be impossible for me to account for them all. He made me feel very safe and welcome. He comforted me and let me know that he was there to assist. He asked me if I wanted to still live, and very quickly, without even having to think, I said, 'Yes I do.' He smiled as if he had expected me to say that. I don't know why, but I felt as if we had always known each other, and that it was funny to him that he already knew my answer.

I asked him if he could help me get back. I was made to know and understand that he couldn't interfere, but what he could do was to show me what I already knew. Just then, I was pulled away from that bright beach and pulled into a void -- a black, empty space. Then suddenly a review of my life flashed before my eyes. I reviewed my whole life from my earliest memories to the present time. The only purpose I can remember in having a life review was to find a way to save myself. I have always felt that I saw much more, that there was more meaning in it for me. I just can't remember. I flew through every moment of my life, as if they were a series of photos lined up like a serpent in space. Once I came to my earliest memory in this life, I then went in reverse. As I flew back through my life review, I could hear him say, ‘Now find it.'

I stopped on one particular memory of a time when I was eight years old. I was again at Coronado Beach, swimming in the waves, this time with my family. Swimming by next to us, there was a man who was doing something called body surfing. He was surfing with no board, only his body, and this truly amazed me. I asked if he could show me how. He explained that you wait until the wave is almost on you, then you swim freestyle, kicking as hard as you can. Once you get speed, you pull your arms down to your side, and arch your back. Then you ride the wave toward the shore. I tried and tried that day, but never mastered the art. After that day, I gave up and never tried again. After having traveled back in time and reliving that memory, I again heard the white bearded man speak. He said, 'You have it; now use it.' There was no doubt that I was supposed to use this memory to save myself; I simply accepted it. I had no other option, considering my situation.

Immediately I came back to consciousness at the bottom of the ocean floor, where I had died earlier. Still in great pain, I used an unforeseen burst of strength and again pushed off the ocean floor toward the surface. This time I thought nothing about breathing, or trying to recover. Instead, once I came to the surface, I immediately began swimming freestyle and kicking as fast as I could. When the next great wave hit me, I didn't give up. I kicked and swam, and when I couldn't kick and swim any more, I drew my arms down to my side and arched my back high. My body shot, however ungracefully, toward the shore. As the wave died down, I stood up in shoulder-high water and headed toward the shore. I looked up at the lifeguard tower and saw a red flag waving.

As I walked through the water toward the shore, a lifeguard came to assist me in getting to the beach. I sat there in the wet sand, exhausted and coughing up a small amount of water, while trying to breathe at the same time. Once I started to calm down, the lifeguard looked at me all wide-eyed and said, 'That was the most amazing thing I have ever seen!' He said that they are trained not to go out into the waves until they can visually spot the victim, especially under the kinds of conditions that were taking place today. He said that he had been watching me until that first wave shoved me under. He told me that I disappeared for at least six to seven minutes. Just when he was about to go get more help, he said, he saw me shoot out of the water like a torpedo with arms a-flailing. It was very ungraceful but it saved me.

I found out later that what happened on the beach was called 'aftershock waves.' I heard about these waves on the news the day after my NDE. Tidal waves were reported in excess of seventeen feet. That quake off the coast created a ripple that changed me forever. It took weeks for me to be able to get in the water again. When I would try to take a bath, I would hyperventilate. Showers were worse. It was as if my body had a mind of its own. With a little time, I was able to overcome this fear. A funny thing about this whole experience is that now I can body surf like a pro!

This is my NDE. The body surfing thing may seem corny to some, but remember, this story truly happened to me, and it changed me forever. I was shown how I could save myself and live. The only life experience that my fifteen-year-old mind could remember was the one that saved me in the end. My conversation with my bearded friend included many answers to questions I can't even remember. All I know in the end is that God is real, and life goes on after death -- period. I found out that when we die, we all are met with love and caring. I used to always be in search of that perfect, correct religion. Now I know that God isn't in a book. He has always been with us and always will be. I was allowed to live because I had something left to do in this life. I'm still trying to figure out what that is.

Michael O’s NDE in 2010

It was after my second surgery. They had been trying to determine where my internal bleeding was coming from. I stayed in recovery for a while and was later taken to my room in the critical care unit. About ten that night, three vascular surgeons came into the room. I was lying half-awake, listening. They began to tell my wife, brother and parents, that they should stay close, that there was a good chance that I would not make it through the night. The two nurses in the room began to cry. I had made friends with them. When hearing this, I became very calm and peaceful. The only thing I remember thinking was that I wish they could fly me home so that I could die in Pensacola. I didn't want my family making that drive if I was dead. I just lay there waiting; really thinking this isn't so bad. I was looking forward to relief from the sheer pain of the bleeding that was filling up in me. I had nine blood transfusions.

The next thing I knew I was sitting on the end of the bed. I mean in an instant. It took me a second to reorient myself. The bleeding was in my hip area, so my legs were not working, and I remembered this fact. I could not figure how I was on the end of the bed. I could hear everyone talking, and I began to look around. I could see myself lying there, and nobody was looking at the “me” at the end of the bed! It took a minute, but it dawned on me. That was it; I’m dead. I couldn't help but think how painless and easy death is. Evidently, God takes good care of us at that moment.

As I sat there for a moment, not really knowing what I was supposed to do next, everyone's voices began to fade. Then a large being, which I will call a “guy” for the sake of this conversation, walked into the room. Still a little disoriented, I assumed it was another doctor, except for the size. He had an orange garb that was brilliant. I guess he wore a halo so that I would get the gist of what was happening! He had a perfect lit up white halo about three inches above his head. He stood in front of me sitting on the bed. I suddenly realized that I knew him better than I knew anyone in the room. It was as though I had known him forever. He looked at me and gave me a choice to stay or go. Without hesitation, I said ‘let's go’. I was ready.

I had been battling illness for three years. I had been through chemo and tons of drugs. Not to mention the worst pain ever with what I was currently experiencing. I looked back with no regret, knowing that my family could not lose in the end. I was tired and wanted terribly to be with this being. He cared for me and loved me so much. I made my choice to go. In almost an instant, my head was flooded with images of my two children and how hurt they would be. I know he did it, and I'm glad. I told him that I would have to stay behind.

We talked briefly; I told him that I was overwhelmed by the fact that, considering all the life I believe is in the universe and all the people that are on this planet, that they had not forgotten me in this little room in Birmingham. He responded that no one is forgotten. He also told me that the only thing important is how we treat one another.

With that, I was back in my body, feeling terrible. I kept saying to my wife, ‘did you see the man with the halo?’ That night my blood count went up on its own. The bleeding stopped, and I was released from the hospital four days later. The hospital is publishing the case. They are great doctors, but I've got news for you; I know who fixed things.

I have trouble finding words that truly convey this experience, especially for the emotion and utter peace. The feelings of total acceptance are also hard to explain, along with trying to explain a lack of the sense of time. The sense of not having to be anywhere at any time, as though there was nothing you had to do, created a sense of no time.

Now I feel the best I have felt in three years. It is like I am high on life now. I didn't realize how sick I was the past three years and had gotten used to it. They now have me off the medications that caused this bleeding, and I feel better. I have years of treatments ahead of me and a transplant in the future. However, I have no fear.

Wayne M’s NDE IN 1972

This experience happened to me almost thirty-five years ago. Some of the details are lost to me. Part of the reason for this is that some information was apparently deliberately removed from my memory. It was 1972 and I was seventeen years old and had mixed some drugs I shouldn't have. I was with some acquaintances and lost consciousness for a period of time. I don't know how long the time actually was.

I became aware of an extremely loud buzzing or droning noise and realized I was moving at a fast rate down some dark, long corridor or tunnel. I had an overwhelming thought in my mind: "I will learn the secret meaning of life". I emerged into a brightly lit, extremely colorful garden. There was beautiful music playing. The flowers and plants were huge but not threatening. In fact, the feeling was one of perfect peace and contentment. I was simply amazed.

I was approached by what I would now call spiritual beings. But at that time, I was just aware I was in the presence of some sort of gentle and all-knowing guides who I trusted. I was not aware of having a body. I remember that my guides were either made of, or surrounded by, light of a very bright type. I was also aware that when I thought or felt something, the meaning of these thoughts and feelings was instantly absorbed by them. They communicated to me in the same way. This communication was multi-faceted: it was understood intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally in a complete way, a way that simply isn't possible in earthly life.

I was taken to a place where I could observe the world, literally, as in watching the earth spinning in space! Then a tablet or something similar appeared before me, and in seconds I watched the entire history of the planet. I saw civilizations rise and fall, armies clash, and birth, death, and destruction over eons. I learned that every thought, vibration and feeling resounded throughout creation and had results, even though we couldn't begin to fathom them.

At some point, I communicated that I was interested in knowing if there was life in other areas of the universe. I was transported through millions of light years of space in moments and shown many planets and places where complex life existed, whole cultures and societies that flourished unknown to us.   I was allowed to view these beings living their daily lives. I seemingly went from place-to-place with my guides simply by willing myself.   I could sense I had a presence, but didn't perceive that I was a body. Time itself didn't exist. It was as if a year could be perceived in a millionth of a second, yet still, somehow, fully experienced. In fact, knowledge of millions of pieces of information were absorbed by me effortlessly.

At some point, I returned to the area I had first come to, and I understood I was about to meet a being of the highest order. I saw a light in the distance that grew brighter and brighter as I drew closer to it.   I understood I was in the presence of an all-knowing spirit. Whether this was actually God or not, I can't say with certainty, but I I thought so!   This being communicated complete acceptance and love in a way I had never before (and have never since) felt. I understood for the first time that everything was as it should be. I had been a deprived and confused kid for many years, and I had a lot of anger before this experience.   I asked (thought), "But what is the secret meaning of life?" The answer was given as Love. Nothing more and nothing less. I can still recall the sheer joy of understanding this simple and complete idea.   I understood it at that time in a way I've never come close to understanding and feeling it since then.   I felt as if my entire being was expanding and emitting the joy I felt. The great spirit seemed to take joy in my experience.

I communicated that I wanted to stay and could never return to the horrible life on Earth. I was told that I had a great mission to fulfill and that if I didn't return, nobody else could fulfill it. Whether I was shown what this was or not, I can't recall. What I do recall, and what I can never forget, is what happened next. I made the decision to return. Angelic beings rose all around me and began to sing a song I couldn't recognize. It sounded spontaneous and improvised and the closest sound I can imagine to hundreds of the world's best choirs singing perfectly together at the same time. It was the most beautiful and majestic sound I had ever heard. I hesitate to say it, because it sounds so egotistical, but they were praising and honoring me!   ME!   A teenager from the projects who had dropped out of high school. A kid abandoned by his father and drifting aimlessly. These great beings were paying tribute to me. I was virtually lifted up and displayed to these wonderful beings as a hero. It was so powerful to me.   I'm still in awe of this when I think about it today.

The next thing I knew, I was back in my body. The dreary black-and-white world had come back. I remember how depressed I was. I felt like I wanted to kill myself. Not in despair, but in order to return to that wonderful place. But I understood this wasn't an option I should take. I told my then-girlfriend (now wife of 34 years) of the experience and she understood just how real this all was. When I told other people (with the exception of my two daughters who I talked to when I felt they were old enough to hear my story), they thought I had suffered a delusional episode or a dream of some sort. Then, in 1975, I was watching television when I saw Dr. Moody discussing his new book, Life After Life. I ran out and bought the book. I can't tell you how relieved I felt to realize others had experienced similar events. Of course, now with the internet and mass recognition (if not acceptance) of near-death experiences, anybody can at least know of experiences similar to mine.

What was my great mission? I don't have a clue. I'd like to say that I grew up and went on to do great things. The truth is, I'm just an average guy. I know that after the experience, I got married, joined the military, had kids, became a cop. My daughters had children and now I'm a grandfather. The experience I had all those years ago continues to grow and dominate my life. It has become more important to me throughout the ensuing years. I now understand that a basic human act of kindness amounts to so much more than being president of the United States or a brilliant scientist. I think my earthly job is only a platform to my real job: To accept and spread love. I know I have a long way to go, but I no longer fear death. I know we'll all meet again on the Other Side in a land where sorrow doesn't exist.   It really is a land of love, and love is all we need.

Glenda G’s Father's NDE (Sherman G) in 2004

My dad, Sherman G, had been diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma and had his right kidney removed. Roughly a year later, the cancer returned, and this time it showed up as a large tumor wrapped around his spine, mid-back. During surgery, the surgeon cut an artery and my Dad bled to death.

Two days later, my dad (who was not religious at all) told me that he had felt his spirit come out of his body. He had looked down and wasn't afraid to see what was going on. He then became vertical and found himself standing to the left of the doctor, at his physical body's head. The nurses and attendants were running around getting instruments to try to get the bleeding to stop. While telling me this story, up to this point, my Dad had had a faraway look in his eyes, but then he paused and told me that he could tell me the names of the instruments the doctors and nurses were using, because he could remember every detail of his journey.

He watched the commotion for a while, and then he took a few steps backward into the corner of the operating room, as if to give the medical staff room to work. As he was standing in the corner, he then found himself remembering events in his life, from his birth to a time at age 3, living on an old farm. “I was standing in my overalls and barefooted, in the kitchen, next to Mama. Mama told me that she had been missing two hens and thought they were up in the loft of the barn. She told me to go to the barn, climb the ladder, and, if I found her two hens, to shoo them out and bring any eggs I might find. I told her, 'Yes, Ma'am.' So I climbed the ladder. Up in the loft, the loose hay was almost as tall as I was, but I saw the hens, made my way over to them and shooed them out of the loft. I even found two eggs. I proudly put them in my overall pockets. When I tried to get to the ladder, my foot got tangled up in some rope. When I yanked my foot to try to get loose, it pulled hay on top of me, where I felt like I couldn't breathe. My brothers finally rescued me.”

He then told me another story. He said, “Sis, I never knew how much my words have hurt people. When I was about nine, I was throwing dirt clods at my cousin, Luther. We started calling each other names and we both thought it was funny to hurt each other. But while I was dead, I not only heard myself call him names, but I was also in his head HEARING the words I was saying to him and feeling how they affected him! I made him feel real bad, but I never realized itI”

“I heard every conversation I ever said to anybody, and I was also given the gift of being in every single person's mind to know how I've hurt people by what I've said.” [He apologized to me (through his tears) for making fun of me as a child for stuttering. Now he knows every time it happened, because he had been able to be in my mind during his NDE.] He said he also remembered all the times when he chose not to forgive people for something they did or said to him. After this reliving of his life, he said, he came back to watching the medical staff work on his body, attempting to revive him.

As he watched, he said, he started drifting vertically upward. The operating room is on the first floor. He went through the ceiling and kept going up and up into the darkness of space. In the far distance, he saw what looked like a small area of green fog. His spirit started moving towards it, until it formed into a meadow with wild flowers and small trees. It was bright daylight. He was thinking, 'this must be Heaven and I'm here because I've tried to be good to people.' But right at that time, the doctors brought him back to life.

Our family did not know that Dad had died in surgery until the following day. I went to see him in the intensive care unit at the hospital. The anesthesiologist was standing by Dad's side, saying to me that he had wanted to come to check on his patient. He said to me, 'They did tell you we lost him yesterday, didn't they?' I was shocked and said, 'No!' He told me about the surgeon hitting an artery and that Dad had bled to death. He also said that he was clinically dead for twelve minutes and very lucky to be alive.

While trying to soak all of this in, I turned to Dad. He had tubes in his nose and mouth, but he opened his eyes and started crying. I asked him if he was hurting and he shook his head. I asked him if he needed to tell me something and he nodded. I reassured him that maybe tomorrow, he would be able to tell me. The next day, I went to see him in his private room. When he saw me, he started crying again. Up until this time, I had never seen my dad cry, not even when his parents died or when he found out he had cancer. I went over to his bedside and he said he had a story to tell me. When he finished telling me (what I've written above,) he said that he had led his life all wrong and no longer would he have bitterness in his heart.

We had him for two more years, but I believe those were the best years of his life. After his NDE, Sherman was a more loving and forgiving man, loving his family and not afraid to show it.

THIS IS A VERY LONG, COMPLEX NDE. RON K HAS OBVIOUSLY DONE A GREAT DEAL OF REFLECTION AFTER HIS NDE. WE ARE LEFT TO QUESTION HOW MUCH OF WHAT HE SAYS WAS REVEALED TO HIM---AND HOW MUCH OF IT IS HIS OWN CREATION? IT SHOULD BE NOTED, HOWEVER, THAT MUCH OF WHAT HE SAYS CAN BE FOUND IN OTHER NDEs.

Ron K’S LONG AND COMPLEX NDE in 1962---death by car accident

Dying sometimes is hard, but death comes easy.

My buddy, Ron, and I hitch-hiked to another small town about eight miles from our hometown so that we could posture like adults at a bar known to serve minors. I was 15-years old. At about 1 a.m. we arranged a ride home with a young man from our town named Richard. Drinking recently had become legal for Richard, and he was exercising his rights to the fullest extent.

I sat in the front passenger seat. Ron was in the back with Richard's friend, whose name eludes me. Instead of taking the highway, where police might notice weaving, Richard traveled the back roads, speeding down a straight and flat blacktop. Fence posts became a blur as the car reached 90 miles per hour.

Richard's car was fairly fast for the late '50's, but it was old and loose, and at that speed the road noise drowned out our conversation and most of the radio. We all fell silent, and my head began nodding.

I'm not sure if Richard fell asleep, too, but he didn't see the T-road and never touched the brakes. I blinked and noticed it just as we hit the ditch embankment. This jolt took out a barbed-wire fence as we hurtled through the air.

The impact of the ditch slammed my head against the windshield. This knocked me silly, but not out. My head was buzzing as the car rambled and bucked across 50 yards of pasture. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. We probably crossed that distance in a couple of seconds, but it seemed like many. I glanced at Richard, who was slumped over the steering wheel just as we crashed.

The car was probably still going 50- or 60-miles per hour as we slammed into an old and immovable hedge apple tree. My whole body jerked forward, gaining momentum as I approached the windshield. I remember my head tilting as my face met and smashed against the glass. There was no pain -- just pressure. Then I blacked out.

Upon impact, my head slid up the windshield and behind the metal brace that held the rear-view mirror, leaving my face attached to the brace! Ron later told me that when he and Richard woke up, they saw me hanging there, soaked in blood. Richard wanted to pull me loose, but Ron stopped him for fear they would sever my head in the process. They looked at me and thought I was dead already.

Both their injuries turned out to be quite serious, but they trudged off on foot to find the nearest farmhouse, leaving me hanging in the front and Richard's friend unconscious in the back seat.

When they returned with help, Richard's friend and I were gone. In the interim, this young man in the back seat, probably confused and scared, woke up and pulled me from the wreckage.

I don't remember being pulled free, but I do recall pieces of our journey. Like a fuzzy dream, I heard the car's horn blowing steadily as we walked away. I remember stumbling down railroad tracks and wanting to lie down and go to sleep, but this guy kept insisting that I keep going. I think I did lie down, or pass out, and he must have carried me.

Still like a fuzzy dream, the next thing I recall was lying prone on the ground. Lights were flashing and people were standing over me in a circle. One of them said: 'This one looks pretty bad. We better get him to the hospital quick.' I thought it was raining, but was told it did not rain that night, so I must have been totally soaked in blood. I sank back into unconsciousness.

Suddenly I was totally alert---more alert than I had ever been in my life! I was totally free of worry and doubts and bothersome physical sensations and limitations. I was floating near the high ceiling of a room in the Breeze Community Hospital. At the time, this seemed perfectly natural and normal.

There are those who think of death as a long sleep or rest. Sleep is only necessary for the living. The dead are so energized by the overwhelming, self-perpetuating, and unlimited Force that sleep is never needed.

From my vantage near the ceiling, I recognized Dr. Ketter in the room. He and two nurses worked feverishly on someone. Blood and fluid were flowing into one of his arms, and another jar of blood was flowing into the other. One nurse was doing chest compressions. The other firmly held his chin in one hand and pressed her other hand against the side of his neck to slow the bleeding. Dr. Ketter was stitching wounds with a dexterity and speed that was admirable.

It was then I realized they were working on my body. I had to look closely to be sure. A lifeless body without a soul has little distinctiveness. In fact, most of the differences we notice in the faces and body shapes of our fellow men are largely exaggerations of our minds. They are the ego's habit of isolating ourselves from our fellows and of judging others based upon appearances. When we die and realize a universal connection to all mankind through the same life force, these distinctive features blend and blur into a general shape and look of man.

I realized then that I was dead, and that actually pleased me. I also gratefully knew that what the doctor and nurses were doing was not working. The last thing I wanted to do was go back. The body lying there meant nothing. It was just a lump of meat. The physical body is just a tool, and I could discard it with the same passion I would have for a broken hammer.

'Let the dead bury the dead,' Jesus had said. And I remember thinking that a lot of prime burial ground and tons of money are wasted on funerals. Better to donate your organs to the living or your whole body to science.

Throughout my 15 years I had been in superb physical condition, but never had I felt this wonderful. There is no experience, or chemically induced state, on Earth with which to draw a parallel. The best I can come up with is this: On the best day of your life, you are in excruciating pain in comparison to this 'out-of-body' state. I felt a supreme sense of peace and an absolute lack of fear. I was basking in the glow of complete and absolute security. Simplicity and purity ran through me like osmosis. Everything evil, fearful, or confusing remained behind in that lump of meat. My true identity was intact, and I felt wonderfully humble and pure and loving.

Being dead blesses us with the absence of all sensory information. We are left with our true thoughts and emotions - our true conscience - without the overwhelming influence of the ego's beguiling survival instincts. All human sensory stimuli, on the other hand, is confusing clutter. Ironically, the very things that make living real (our sensory perceptions) are the very things that make living hell. The Buddha was right: life is about suffering. While alive, we are captors, chained by the pains and pleasures of our neurons. As long as we pursue sensory pleasure, we must endure pain. Spiritual peace, on the other hand, is the ultimate bliss that floats in the absence of sensory perceptions, ignoring the confusion of 'good' and 'evil.'

The way I just described it may sound like non-existence to some, but it is the only true existence of grand and unspeakable peace, security, and understanding. The ego's perception of the world is a collectively reinforced illusion. To be without want or desire is not non-existence. It's a state in which all our wants and desires are fulfilled.

As I hovered, I felt a wonderful force beckoning from above. I was going home. All I had to do was will it and follow the force, or, rather, let it draw me up. I thought about my brothers, my sister, my mother, and my father. I knew their pain, their problems, their confusion. I knew the simple solutions for each. But I also knew they would have to find their own way. Happiness is empty if someone simply hands it to you or leads you to it blindly.

So, I turned my attention and my will toward the force and started to rise. The ceiling dissolved, and there was a quick sound, like a large vacuum release, and instantly I was in another dimension. I traveled into a brilliant light. The trip was like a blink. I met no one along the way. I knew the way well.

What I'll call the 'Heavenly Plains' was full of loving peace. An infinite expanse of glorious light enveloped and permeated everything. This light was evenly distributed and seemed to undulate gently with a force field. Directly in front of me, but slightly below, stood a group of more than 50 spirits. Each spirit had an identity of sorts, but they were part of each other --- a single entity, a single awareness, all part of a single force. In the center of the front row were three oriental women. I realized that all of the spirits comprising the entity were my past lives, and that the oriental women were my most recent lives.

Their faces were clearly humanoid, but from their shoulders down, their forms blurred gradually. Their arms and legs dissolved near their ends. Hovering on the same level, in rows, they seemed loosely joined at the shoulders. Their identities were of both sexes and all nationalities. But, I recognized none of them from my recent life.

Each of the spirits had lived once, but the truth and experience and wisdom of each lifetime was integral to the entire group. When each soul returned, their lives were absorbed by all, so there were no distinctions between thoughts and attitudes within the group. Each of them shared completely every experience and the knowledge of every lifetime into a single consciousness. Like spices and other ingredients added to a Mulligan Stew, each added to the mix, but the resulting flavor was one. I was them, and they were me. They were all of my past, and they were my present.

They communicated with me as one, not with words, but by a kind of telepathy. Every thought, whether it was one simple emotion or volumes of information, came packaged with instant and complete understanding. No message could suffer misinterpretation, the problems of syntax, or the variance of intelligence.

Words are primitive, unreliable, used more to deceive others and ourselves than to communicate truth. Language may be evidence of our superior intelligence on Earth, but on the Plains they are equivalent to grunts and squeals. We created words to label, distinguish, and separate everything. That's why we think of everything and everyone as separate. Words form the thoughts and communications of the world, but they are totally inadequate to describe or explain the emotional communication of the spirit world.

On the Plains only truth exists, but they are expressed not so much as concepts, but as emotions. On Earth, we not only communicate in words - we think in words - and although we may be able to give lip service to the concepts of 'oneness,' 'wholeness,' and 'the unity of all that is,' we do so with incompatible words designed for separatism.

The languages we have developed to create our separated, finite reality is the reason for our inherent loneliness, for in it we are emotionally and intellectually separated for a short time from other spiritual entities and the universal connection of Supreme Love. This separatism makes us fearful and judgmental. It leavens the entire culture and morality of the world. Because we place ultimate faith in our sensory reality, the capabilities of our own intelligence, and the sciences we create with it, we are doomed to live the reality of the life we create while on Earth. Because we believe it so strongly -- it is our reality. We have, indeed, tasted of the proverbial Tree of Knowledge and have been cast from the emotional Garden of Eden.

On the Plains, everything is infinite. Knowledge of this and your place in the eternal moment provides infallible security. It is a place of infinite being and infinite joy.

On the particular Plain I visited, there was no need for rest. Nor was food or water or anything solid of Earth needed. Every need, want, and desire was supplied by the all powerful force of Love. This Love was so powerful, so extremely fulfilling - everything else was immaterial. This all-mighty power of Love goes well beyond our egotistical interpretations of the emotion. It is the very force of life and all creation. It is not neutral, but equal to all -- the good and the bad -- because everyone who still must endure Earth is a blend of the good and the bad. Only we make the distinctions of degrees. The ultimate spirit is an impartial force of universal and unconditional Love.

This supreme Love flooded me from the entity as a whole, and I felt the same for them. This giving and receiving of truly unconditional love was indescribable. Nothing on Earth can compare. It is truth wrapped in total dependability. Not only did I feel this tremendous force of Love from my entity, but from all entities throughout the Plains. There are many entities and many levels, but they are all connected by the same force field of Supreme Love -- which also is the basic substance of the universe.

The ultimate achievement of science is not to insure immortality by discovering and mastering the basic laws of universal nature -- its destination is to prove the existence of God and to insure the knowledge that immortality is ours in another realm of existence.

Instead of restricting the mysteries of love to psychological or philosophical studies, science will someday discover the all-powerful force of love and measure it as they now do electricity, gravity and geo-thermal forces. When science discovers the forces of love and learns how to release it from the bars of the ego, they will have the answer to every question and ill that has plagued mankind.

The love we feel on Earth is limited. We deal it out piecemeal to a few, with conditions. But on the Heavenly Plains, love is boundless. Male and female identities are equal because the human sex drive does not exist to complicate emotions. On the Plains, we love our neighbor as ourselves, because our neighbor is ourselves. Every spirit everywhere, on Heaven and Earth, is equally deserving of our love.

I was made to understand all of this in one flash of communication, in one emotion, from this entity, and I realized that my mother, father, and siblings were no more important than the most distant spirit on the Plains, but neither were they less important. True universal love can't have favorites. I remained just outside and slightly above the entity for a while, exchanging love. They had me to understand that they were waiting for me, and that I was returning to mentor them. They beckoned me to join them and share my experiences for the benefit and advancement of the entire entity.

The sole purpose of life is spiritual growth, and that, put simply, is the process of learning the wisdom and power of universal, unconditional love. All of the dogma of various religions just get in the way by infusing a judgmental and egotistical brand of separatism that satisfies man's archaic and barbaric disposition. In the end, the only things that matter is the people we help and the people we hurt. This revelation is not fully understood until we return to the Plains and examine it under the light of absolute truth.

My entity stretched their handless arms out to me, and I started toward them, again floating through space simply by willing it. I would have entered them through the oriental women, but, just as I started, I felt the force of God beckon me. The entity felt it, too, and dropped their arms. Instead of being disappointed, they were extremely excited and pleased that I was going to Council. I turned to the left, willed it, and I was there instantly.

It is the center of everything seen and unseen. An unimaginable force radiates as a brilliant light in all directions. This light is infinitely more brilliant than the sun, yet it did not hurt to look at it. The color defies a specific description, but a combination of white and silver comes close. It is perfect love -- unconditional and universal. To describe it is difficult, because to describe it is to give it structure and nothing structured can be unbounded or infinite. So we err every time we try to define an infinite God within the parameters of our structured minds, using structured words and structured thoughts.. We only can feel it. The simplest answer to the grandest mystery of all is the common cliché “God is love.”

The image of God in human form is false. Why would a being who can shape the universe with thoughts need such simple tools as hands? The only way we can create is with our hands, so we imagine God with hands. What man is doing is creating an image to which he can personally relate. The more I study religions, the more I suspect that the only thing man has ever really worshipped is himself!

I was given a life review. This review is the climax of our present lives. It is where we glean the maximum benefits from our earthly experiences. During the review, we revisit scenes from our lives and feel the actual pain or anguish, pleasure or love that we have inflicted upon others. We become the object of our actions. Understand, however, that these experiences last only a short time, just long enough for us to get the point. The purpose of the review is not for punishment, but for spiritual growth through understanding the ramifications of our actions, thereby gaining increased compassion for others. The ultimate irony, however, is that every time we hurt someone else, we eventually hurt ourselves.

We still have free will in the spirit realm, but, because total honesty prevails, our wills more closely resemble God's will. The darkness of doubt cannot invade the light of truth. We know, or sense, the simple truths, and faith becomes fact. There's no need to intellectualize, analyze, compare, rationalize, justify, or practice any of the fearful survival thought processes that make up our earthly existence.

In the light of absolute truth, we review our own lives for enlightenment. This 'final judgment' that we all have been taught to fear has nothing to do with a decision between Heaven or Hell, though it is easy to understand how this misconception has been promoted by ego-driven people who lack full knowledge of God's love.

The events of the world are not predestined by God. There is a fail-safe law of eventual good (evil is a destroyer, eventually destroys itself, and only good remains), but what happens along the way is a direct result of the choices we make as individuals and as societies. Nevertheless, just as we have a limited knowledge of cause and effect, God has supreme knowledge of cause and effect on a universal scale.

Toward the end of the session, I was made to understand that I could affect the impact, maybe even the outcome, of these future events -- if I returned to Earth. That was the only time during my death experience that I felt apprehension.

Flatly and firmly, I refused. After seeing the Heavenly Plane, Earth was the last place I wanted to be. Besides, I knew that what they were suggesting involved great pain -- much greater than what I already had experienced. Couldn't they send someone else?

They had me to understand that each spirit is important in its unique contribution to the scheme of things. They exerted no command, and I was made to understand that the choice to return belonged to me. But they counseled me further with truths I could not dispute, appealing to the enhanced compassion and love I had gained from the life review.

When I felt my will beginning to comply, I resorted to the most drastic measure I could muster. I was struggling with myself, not with them, and I sank to my knees and begged them to relieve me of this task. I wanted to stay. They met this action with an overwhelming burst of love that permeated my being like a strong, warm wind, and they made me to understand that whatever I chose would not diminish their love for me.

Then, I am embarrassed to report, like a little child, I threw myself down, kicking and screaming in an emotional tantrum. God only smiled upon me and filled me with another burst of love. I was calmed. My choice was made. I spent more time in their presence, exchanging the Force. They were patient with me to no end, because the whole history of the universe is but a blink of an eye in the face of eternity, and a council with God is like a time out, where no time exists.

After a while, I felt renewed and strengthened and brave. So I turned to the right, willed it, and left.
Instantly I was back on the Plain, back in front of my entity. I began to share with them what had happened in Council, but I realized that some of it already had been blocked. Maybe they had shared with me knowledge that either cannot be retained or cannot be understood, by anyone returning to Earth. Or, maybe they shared insights that I had yet to discover on my own. Such is the responsibility of free will.

My entity was disappointed by my departure, but they accepted my decision without reservation. Though I was aware that much of what the Council had revealed already had been blocked, I did not realize at the time that much of the knowledge I had retained from my death experience would make little sense once I returned to Earth. I was going back with knowledge that I would not be able to decipher for many years.
Worst of all, I was going back without knowledge of exactly what I was supposed to do.

This caused me to hesitate, but only briefly. I had made some kind of pact with myself and with God; because when we are true to the deepest urging of our soul, we are true to God.
I turned my will below, and, with another large vacuum sound, I was back in the hospital room.

As soon as I exited the hospital, the beauty of everything overwhelmed me: the trees and the sky and the sun and the grass, and how the wind affected it all. I could see the wind -- how it swirled and curved and danced in the trees. I could see the life force in everything, and how everything is related and connected and sustained by one Ultimate Force.

It was like seeing the world for the first time. I felt great energy, tempered by supreme peace, so I walked along slowly toward home, savoring every step and sight of the walk. I felt very light, almost as if I could float.

A death experience not only removes one's fear of death, it changes one's entire outlook on the final process of life. The process leading up to it may be frightening, but death is a wonderful release and transition for us all. It is a great blessing.

Chantal L’s NDE in 1991

On May 15 1991, I felt extreme pain in my abdomen. Friends took me to the emergency. The doctor there examined me briefly. He said they would keep me under observation for the night. He gave me no medication or anything. He did not even take my blood pressure. The nurse wheeled me into my room where I was alone. She put the buzzer next to my pillow, saying to press it if I needed anything. Within one hour, I went into shock. I was in a great deal of pain. I felt like I was burning up with a fever or something. Breathing was increasingly difficult. I reached a point where I became aware that death was near. So, trying to muster all my strength, I was able to press the alarm button next to me but no one came. Turns out a cyst the size of a grapefruit inside my pelvic area had ruptured.

All of a sudden, I felt as if a mountain had collapsed on me. I could no longer move. I had the sensation of sinking into the mattress. I watched as my lungs deflated. I could not take a breath. I felt that I was dying. I watched as I exhaled my last breath: amazingly, I was not afraid. I was a Code Blue. Then I felt a vibration in my body. My consciousness left my body by the crown of my head. I found myself floating, like in a cloud. I felt so wonderfully well! All of my pain and worries just melted away. I was bathed in love.

All of a sudden, I noticed movement to my left. It was a light coming towards me. As I looked at it, I noticed that this light was a being! As this Being of Light was approaching me, I started experiencing all kinds of images in my mind. At first, I thought it was communicating with me telepathically but then I realized, all these images were my memories. I was remembering who I really am. I was like an amnesiac who regains their memory. I had total recall of who I really was. I was this old, old being, who had always existed. I was wise and loving. I remember knowing everything. Not so much from an intellectual point of view. I knew what it was like to be a flower, to be an animal, to be an insect. All the knowledge of the universe was inside my being.

It was important to my soul to come to earth and experience mortality. I remembered having agreed to accomplish a mission. I came to earth to accomplish a mission. All of a sudden, I realized that I had not accomplished this mission. My joy and serenity turned into anguish!

The Being of Light, sensing my anguish, asked me, 'Would you like to stay or would you like to go back?’ I immediately replied (with thought, as our communication was by thought). ’I must go back; I have not accomplished my mission’. In that moment, I sensed I was going backward into a tunnel and I found myself back in my body. The medical team was able to bring me back to life.

The first thing I remember is hearing the words, ‘she is coming back,’ uttered by a nurse. I opened my eyes and could see three nurses and the doctor that I had seen at the emergency. I was hooked to machines. The doctor came to me, put his hand on my forehead and said, ’Don't worry; we are not going to lose you again. You are a very sick girl but we will not lose you again. We will transfer you to a different hospital in another city, and you will remain in intensive care until we find out what is going on’. They put me in an ambulance and sent me to the other hospital. It is during the ambulance trip that I realized that I could no longer remember my mission. I had forgotten! I came back from a heavenly state to accomplish this mission and I forgot what it was shortly after re-entering my body!

It is like a veil of forgetfulness that closes again. It drove me crazy. How could I forget my mission when I remembered so clearly other aspects of my NDE? I sought the help of a hypnotherapist to help me remember. He believed in NDE and had attempted to regress other NDErs without any success. He told me he doubted it would work. He asked me this question: ‘Have you ever considered that you are not supposed to remember?’ I must say that that thought had never crossed my mind, but it made sense.

The ‘other side’ was nothing like I expected. Even though I had always believed in an afterlife, I had not imagined it this way. The feeling of oneness is outstanding! I was totally surprised when I ceased to be Chantal and became the one I really am. I remembered everything about the life of Chantal, but that was like a role I had played in a play. In fact, I actually was this very old soul who had always existed, older than time itself. The other surprising thing was the feeling of being part of a ‘collective consciousness’. I sensed that everything was part of this consciousness. It retained the experiences of each being in its collective memory. This is why I knew everything; the knowledge of this collective became mine. It is a different kind of knowledge though. It is not intellectual but experiential. Furthermore, it was not limited just to human experiences; I ‘knew’ what it felt like to be a flower and to be a stone! I realized that inanimate objects also have consciousness. They are made of atoms and particles just like humans are. The memory of participating in the creation of the universe was definitely the most unexpected! It sounds like a sacrilege just to mention it. And yet, the collective consciousness that I was part of had simply willed it into being!

Matter simply formed at our command. One minute it was energy and the next it was matter. It formed in the shape that we willed it to be. I remember how important equilibrium was. Every particle had to be in perfect balance and harmony with the rest. There was great joy among us, for this creation had a purpose of the highest importance. It would allow us to experience mortality. Each being of this collective consciousness asked to come to this earth to experience life, knowing that each experience would benefit the collective. We each agreed to accomplish a certain mission. And then I forgot what my mission was upon re-entering my body! I have since found out that forgetting is very common when NDErs return. On the Other Side, I did not have to account for the good or bad things I had done. I was loved and cherished no matter what.

Josef P’s NDE in 1990---from the Czech Republic

Before my experience, I was more or less an atheist. However, religion was interesting to me, so I tried to read the Bible. I did not understand it, but I can say that I had no worries about hell and heaven and was able to take life easy. The factors in my childhood that affected me tended to be positive, nice ones rather than negative bad ones, so I had developed into a positive sort of person. (This is my own personal opinion.) On February 1990, I was at a public party where I drank a lot of alcohol. There was some trouble during the party, so officials called the police to help them.

Two policemen escorted me from the party and took me outside the building where they asked me to remove the sign from my jacket which said 'Havel for President' (He became president after that.) This was immediately after the Velvet Revolution in the Czech Socialistic Republic, at a time when every policeman had to be a Communist. The situation at that time was unclear, both for the revolutionaries and for the police too. So our discussion was quite difficult. 'But I have been a hero!' I was thinking. No wonder I disagreed about removing the sign. They decided to remove it by force, and that's when the fight started. Well, a drunken man without weapons has no chance to win against two policemen with truncheons ('Billy clubs'); I got hit again and again, the last blow landing on my head (probably, I am not sure.) I do not remember much because I was drunk. I do remember that I fell down. I was thinking in my mind that this was the end of me, so I continued lying there on the frozen grass. I heard one of the policemen saying to the other, 'You killed him.'

I lay there for some time until eventually I noticed this sleepy, drunken man lying alone on the grass. I thought to myself, 'Why he is lying here? He could freeze. I'd better wake him up or get him indoors off this frozen grass. I must do something before something serious happens to him!' But as I examined his appearance to see if I could identify him; I thought, 'That's strange, this man has my shoes and my jacket on, and he has the same hair as me, too.' It took me several moments to comprehend that the man was ME. It was the first time I had ever seen myself from a distance. It was a shock! Then I realized that I had no idea how to get back into my body, so I decided to find somebody who could help me.

My wife? As soon I got the idea of going home, I was home almost in that same moment. My kids were sleeping in their room, and my wife was reading a book in the bedroom. She twitched when I came into bedroom, turned her head in my direction, trying to figure out what she had felt. But she was in no way able to see or hear me, so I decided to return so I could rescue my body. When I got back, my body was still alone in the same place.

Suddenly I got a feeling of freedom and peace! I felt completely well and my panic was gone.

Soon, I saw a small bright point above me, which seemed to beckon me to go nearer to it. I felt myself being pulled toward that light and my movement toward it increased in speed. Right at the start I was moving quite slowly, but the speed increased until I was flying along! The speed was so high that I thought it might kill me and I felt that I was flying to the end of space. I was going so fast that all the objects, which were passing me, created in my mind, the impression of a tunnel. During my flight, I had a special experience of knowledge, because whenever I had a question, immediately I got a nonverbal answer.

When I reached the bright light, I was immediately surrounded by it and became a part of it.   I was engulfed by a feeling of extraordinary love. I became aware of a being which was an ingredient of the light and which was nonverbally communicating with me. During our discussion, there were no secrets, because the being knew all my secrets!   In fact, he knew everything I had ever done. This is a place where lies do not exist. The being knew all my life from the time I was born up until that present moment (every second of it!) and everything I had been thinking that whole time.

Suddenly there appeared a panorama of my life.   We both watched it and communicated about it nonverbally. This was strange for me, watching myself as a separate person.   So, when 'the other person' (me) did something bad during my panorama, I immediately thought, 'That person was cruel or ugly, etc.'   It felt really horrible for me to be making these judgments of myself.   I felt the influence of words I had said and things I had done to other people in the past, so I was crying a lot.   Fortunately, the being was comforting me with a lot of love.

After the panorama was over, I was informed that I had to go back, because I had to do more on Earth.   I started crying again, thinking, 'Why do I have to go back, when I am feeling so wonderful?   I do not want to go back to that dirty world!   Here it is so beautiful!' The being showed me some things from my future to convince me that there were urgent reasons for me to return. I didn't know how long I had been there, because there was no time there. It could have been one hour, but also ten years. Then I found myself above my body, which was being tended to by an emergency doctor.

Suddenly I was back inside my body, lying in the grass. Two or three sneezes and I was back to reality!   The policemen probably would have liked to have taken me to a hospital, but I stood up and just walked away.

The next morning I woke up with a thick head and what seemed like a strange dream in my mind. I thought it was very strange that my spirit had not been drunk. I could remember very clearly everything from the time I was in my spirit, but nothing of what was going on with my drunken body. Two or three years after my experience, my life had returned to the way it had been before. I had almost forgotten the 'dream,' until one day I opened a small publication in which was written some sentences from the new edition of Raymond Moody's book, “Life After Life.” I immediately recognized that the 'dream' had not been a dream! At that moment, all the love and the whole experience resurfaced into my conscious mind. I was shocked! I experienced a strong feeling of the invisible presence of somebody full of love. I started crying and I asked, 'What do you want from me? Tell me please. What shall I do to become as loving as you?'

Since then, I've always tried to be as helpful as I could, to be an example of love, and to make whomever I could happy. However, it was too hard on my body and in October 2012, I had an infarction (heart attack). Now I no longer have enough strength to continue my ascetic life (life of self-denial), because I need to start thinking about taking care of myself. But I know I really have nothing to worry about from death. It will be so nice for me to meet the 'light being', so full of love, again. Even though I may have built a nice home for my wife and three kids, have two grandchildren and a successful life, my real home is there. It cannot be forgotten. I think about it every day!

Tyrone’s NDE in 2011---former pro football player

I grew up in the worst neighborhood in the city. I rarely, if ever, went back because of the crime. But a friend of mine from high school was dying of cancer and was in hospice care at home. I was back in the area for work and made it a point to see him. I pulled into the neighborhood in the evening. The sun had just set. As I got out of my car and stepped onto the sidewalk, a man approached me and accused me of ripping off his boss from some drug money. I thought, ‘My God, this is too ironic. I am going to die on the street I was raised on.’ He pulled out a gun and said, ‘What do you have to say?’ I told him my name. I used to play pro football and was known around that part of town. He replied, ‘You're driving the same car and you look exactly the same as the person who ripped off me and my boss. Then I felt a tightening in my chest. I knew I'd been shot. I was shot in the chest at point-blank range.

My adrenaline was flowing so hard that I did not feel any pain. I had a ringing in my ears. I thought it was fear, but it was the sound of the gunshot. The gunman ran off and I stood there holding my chest on the right side. I looked down and saw blood. My shirt became drenched in seconds. Then I was having a hard time catching my breath. I went to my knees and then lay down on my side. I was still very conscious, but things seemed to be going in slow motion. Several people gathered and I heard, ‘Oh, my God! It's Tyrone! Lord Jesus! Tyrone is shot!’

Time seemed distorted and I started to feel sleepy. I heard yelling, crying, and then a siren. I could see the police car arriving. I heard the policeman talking to me personally and telling me that an ambulance would be here within minutes.

I saw the ambulance come and then I was out of my body, looking down at the scene. I saw the blood puddle and three friends from my childhood days. The policeman was an older cop that I knew. I could see what was going on, but could not hear what was being said. When I saw the paramedic starting CPR on me, I thought, ‘Oh, crap, this is my death. I am seeing my own death.’ My last sight was a big piece of bubble gum on my shoe. I thought, ‘I wonder if it left a mark on the carpet in my car?’

I then went through a tunnel at warp-speed and saw the most amazing light. I knew it should have been too bright to look directly at, but I was looking at it without pain. I felt so good that I thought, ‘Wow, this feels sort of like when I broke my leg playing football and I got a morphine shot!’ Then I was all the way through the Light, and my best friend, who had been murdered, was there, and my grandma, too. Both talked to me and told me that I needed to go back to my body now---and not ‘home.’ Then I realized, ‘Wow! This is home!’ My grandma said, ‘You have such a lovely wife and child, and you are such a positive force in a cold world. This is just too soon.’ She even called me by my old nickname. My friend told me I had much more to give, and I would change more lives for the positive than I could imagine.

I then felt a strong pull at my soul, and I woke up in the emergency room. There was mass chaos around me. I was in my body and could see all of the activities. I heard my name and the emergency room folks talking about my football days. I heard that I was ‘critical’ and for someone to call my wife as soon as possible because I might not make it.

Then I was in the tunnel again. I saw in a flash everything I did in my life up until then, compacted into what seemed liked seconds. I thought, ‘Wow! Now I understand what 'My life flashed before my eyes.' means!’ I walked back through the light. My friend and Granny were there again. This time they were both very angry, saying, ‘You are giving up! You have never given up! Why would you do so now? Your wife and daughter will struggle without you!’ I tried to be tough with my granny, because I really wanted to stay there, but she yelled, ‘No, go back to your family, now!’ I then saw two parallel lives: me living and raising my family, and then me dead and my family without me. It was such a striking difference that it scared me. I knew I had to go back.

I again woke up in the emergency room. I pulled at the tube in my throat. The emergency room doctor exclaimed, ‘He's back! He's back!’ That's the last thing I remember until I woke up lying in a bed. My wife and child were sitting beside me, holding my hands and praying.

It was eleven days after the shooting. I was on a ventilator and could not talk except by squeezing my family's hands. They said, ‘One squeeze is 'yes' and two is 'no,' and then they asked me questions. We went through what happened and within minutes, the police were there asking me questions. Then I realized I was ok, for sure! The doctor came in and said, ‘You made it! You made it!’

It took me five months to feel normal. But I am ok now! That Christmas was so special, because I knew that I have a family that love me here, and a home waiting for me when I pass.

Dr. Bell C’s NDE in 2004---Cognitive Psychologist from Hong Kong

I am Dr. Bell C.F. CHUNG, PhD in Cognitive Psychology from a University in Hong Kong. I experienced a near-fatal glider crash in New Zealand in 2004, falling over 600 feet. When I smashed into the ground, I was dead for eleven minutes, during which my soul came out of my body, and I had an amazing experience.

On November 3, 2004, I arrived in Durary, a rural town near Auckland in northern New Zealand. I came there to take an advanced cross-country glider training program. Unlike an airplane, a glider does not have any engine and relies on upward air currents to lift and carry it, remaining sometimes in the air for hours. At the start, a small airplane is used to pull the glider by rope to altitude before releasing it to glide. Finally, the glider lands on its own.

I was born and grew up in the metropolis of Hong Kong, a bustling concrete city. I loved nature as it brought me a sense of freedom. To fly high in the limitless sky was one of my biggest dreams. A year earlier, I attained a glider pilot license, and this year I came to New Zealand for the advanced cross-country glider training. I thought this must be the best time of my life.

November 9, 2004, the sixth day of the training program, was a sunny and beautiful morning. I jumped into the glider excitedly. It was my first solo trial flight in this high performance glider model. I completed the safety check systematically as usual, and then sought permission from the flight traffic controller for the takeoff.

Permission given. The glider moved forward on the runway as the airplane tow rope pulled it to takeoff speed. As I moved the handle, the glider began to rise. Before me lay clear blue sky with light scattered clouds. What a beautifully clear day with excellent visibility.

Although I thought the model I was using had much better performance than my previous training models, I immediately realized that it was rather difficult to control, especially in the strong wind. When the glider quickly soared to over 600 feet high, I noticed that it was lifting way too fast. At the same time, the glider began to shake and tilt to the left severely. It just kept climbing, reaching a dangerous climbing angle. I was losing speed. In that moment, I felt like Icarus inching too close to the sun.

I was alarmed by the danger. I tried to keep my wits and to stay calm and focused. I recalled what I had learned in the flight simulator. I tried to release the glider from the ropes, hoping to stabilize the glider and prepare for an emergency landing. However, it didn’t work. The glider was lifting too fast and losing control. The wings could no longer support the weight of the body, and the glider plummeted down like a broken kite. It crashed, smashing the cockpit into pieces. Though the seat belt prevented me from flying out, it pressed up underneath my ribs. My head suffered a hard blow from the back.

Before I was able to feel any pain, my five senses seemed to shut down simultaneously. I was swallowed by a world of silence and darkness. As if the power had gone out. Then quickly, the light switched on again. I felt reconnected. My vision was somewhat fuzzy for a second. Then a glimpse of light, bright, yet warm and gentle, greeted me, just like the first rays of sunrise. I found myself bathed in a sea of golden light, so peaceful and calm. I was fully embraced by a comforting love and gentleness. Warmth and love saturated me. I felt a part of the light, complete and infinite. I still had a body shape, but there was no boundary, like how we can see the sunlight, but cannot tell its boundary. It was incredible!

The second thing I noticed was that I was not breathing and my heart had stopped beating. Or I should say I no longer needed any breath or heartbeat? I was floating, wondering if either my own weight or gravity was lost. I looked down and saw the trashed body of the glider. I looked closer, and saw a broken young man lying there, dead, inside the cockpit. His shirt was covered in blood. His wounds were bleeding badly. His forearm was broken. A white bone jutted out from his wrist. Even worse, the right ankle joint was horribly smashed and distorted. In horror, I realized this man looked just like me and then realized it was my body! I knew I was dead.

I had been knocked unconscious and my heart trembled weakly and stopped. The brutal pressure from the tightened seatbelt on my ribs stopped air from going into the lungs. But, while my body below showed no sign of life, consciousness, or feeling, I felt completely well and comfortable, floating up above. I didn’t have any wounds or feel any pain. All that I felt was joy and peacefulness. In that spilt second, my “soul” had come out from my body, floating above the glider in the air. “I” was in dual existence. I felt like a new being, leaving behind all my old senses, thoughts, and emotions. I no longer had any bodily boundaries or physical limitations.

I was captivated by how the cognitive experiences of our body differed from that of the soul. While our body is connected to the surrounding world through the five senses, relying on sensory cells to detect outside stimuli, mapping these bodily sensors to particular regions within the brain where the signals were received and interpreted, our souls does not require sensory cell to connect to the universe at all. Instead, it works in a way similar to telepathy. In that state, my vision and hearing actually followed my changing mind. In other words, I saw and heard what I thought about! I was in active rather than passive cognitive processes. My perceptions were no longer restricted by any physical object or distance, because in that state I comprehended things through their basic forms, similar to energy. That was a brand new cognitive experience to me.

Apart from the cognitive, my emotional responses were also significantly different. I now had no fear, worry, grief, or any bad feelings, but only absolute peacefulness and harmony. My emotional responses were disconnected from outside circumstances and environments. If I were severely injured, normally I should feel painful or sad. But there I only felt extremely calm and peaceful. That situation reminded me of the Schizophrenia disorder, which is characterized by the breakdown and disconnection of thinking, behavior, and emotions.

I no longer relied on sound, technically the vibration of air molecules, to communicate there. Instead, communication worked through an ultra-sensory channel. It’s a pure and direct communication through thoughts, not prone to misinterpretation and misunderstanding.

“But where am I?” Through the light, I was fully embraced by the overwhelming, non-judgmental and unconditional love of the universe. Greater than anything. More beautiful than anything.

“Would you like to go or to stay?”

A question awakened me from my deep thought. Someone was speaking to me from the source of light. “To go or to stay?” “This is the last question of your life.” He seemed to be able to comprehend my thoughts. I never thought that I would have an option. Should I stay? Should I go? “Before making your decision, you may wish to see your life in review.”

I saw myself when I was a baby, surrounded by light. Then the light spread out in all directions, like a spider spreading silk to build an intricate spider web. My web was only one of many others. Each of the individual webs was linked by silk threads, connecting our relationships with one another. In front of me was a giant nest of webs.

I stepped forward and leaned down into the nest. I opened my eyes, and found myself in a cinema, with thousands of screens around me. Playing on every screen were episodes of the different moments in my 30 years of life, from early childhood till the present, some of which I remembered, some of which I had long forgotten. The life review deeply enlightened and awakened me. I realized that my whole earthly life was interwoven by one core value: Freedom.

I had traveled to over thirty countries by the age of thirty. I drove, motor biked, scuba dived, skied and climbed. I pushed beyond my physical boundaries or bodily limitations to pursue greater freedom. When those activities could no longer satisfy my increasing desire for freedom, finally last year I realized my biggest dream of flying. I got my glider license and flew high in the sky like a bird, through white clouds across the clear blue sky. I became totally free. I had accomplished all my dreams before turning thirty. It was on my thirtieth birthday that I didn’t make a wish for the first time, and it was then that I realized that I was contented with my life.

“Let’s go,” was the first idea that flashed through my mind. All my dreams were accomplished. I had no regrets. If I were to die at the best time of my life, all that I left behind would be bright and beautiful memories. But just when I was ready to leave, all of a sudden I felt emptiness and pain! An overwhelming sense of emptiness and remorse saturated me. I realized that I didn’t need anybody, and that nobody needed me!   I realized how lonely and empty this made my life. I had created one dream after another to escape from my inner emptiness. All that I ran after was recognition, to prove that I could do anything, to prove my existence. In my entire life, I was living under other people’s values and expectations. I was not truly free.

It’s the first time in my life that I was standing between two extreme feelings, contentedness and loss, joy and sadness. Half of my heart was bright red, filled with dreams and freedom; the other half was empty and dark, lonely and confused. I experienced the two sides of life’s coin.

“Is it the final judgment?   The Light answered: “There is no such thing as final judgment, or evaluation for right or wrong, good or evil. All these things are purely human convention, existing in the world of polarized ideologies. We are now in a united world, everything exists in its pure and basic form.”

I looked down to my lifeless body trapped in the trashed glider. I still kept my last breath. But I didn’t know if I should keep it. Some time passed and I was standing still, unable to make up my mind.
“It seems that you are not ready to answer your final question. Your wisdom and vision are not fully unlocked yet. Your heart is still chained. This is your own question, so only you can answer. In that case, come back when you are ready to make the decision.”
“Will I come back to choose again?” I asked.
“When the time is right, you’ll find the way back.”

All of a sudden, the screens dissolved and the golden light quickly vanished.   My soul was pressed back into my body. I sucked back the last breath into my lungs. I couldn’t move my body, but I could feel my heart pumping gently. At the same time, enormous pain flooded through every part of my body. But pain also assured me of one thing; I was alive.

One year after the accident, I was able to walk freely without any aid again. I created a miracle beyond medicine. I rewrote my fate! I went back to the crash scene in New Zealand and found the sunglasses I had lost at the accident. This lost and found marked the beginning of an amazing adventure leading to spiritual liberation and wisdom. On the second year after the accident, I could enjoy swimming, jogging, hiking and traveling. I also pursued my doctoral study in psychology. On the third year, I jumped into the beautiful Pacific Ocean and became a licensed scuba diver trainer. On the fourth year, I had an incredible time skiing down the slopes in Hokkaido, Japan. On the fifth and sixth years, I traveled around the world. I won several medals in an international gun shooting competition and a Latin dance championship. My life had reached the most liberating and fulfilling moment ever!

From the fatal air crash and the enlightening near death experience, to the long self-healing journey, miracles unfold in my life because I believe in them. How about you?

Multiple NDEs during the 1976 Tang Shan Earthquake---from China. Original in Chinese

On July 28, 1976, a small village in northern China named Tang Shan was struck by a catastrophic 7.8 magnitude earthquake that resulted in more than 240,000 people dead and 160,000 wounded.

After this dreadful disaster, a Chinese medical team conducted a survey on the survivors of the 1976 earthquake. Most of the survivors were hit by the debris and buried under the wreckage. More than half of the survivors remember that while they were buried, that they were fearless with a lucid mind, felt calm, profoundly comfortable, and they felt no sense of panic. Despite this calamity, some people reported feeling blissful and filled with euphoria. They reported seeing a rapid thought image of many clips, like a movie from their past showing joyful moments, happy childhood memories, scenes of getting married, job promotions and rewards, and etc. They were reporting a life review phenomenon.

One lady, Miss Liu, who was then 23 years old, was knocked out by a collapsed house that crushed her spine. Consequently, she would never walk again. She recalled her near-death experience, “My consciousness was vivid. Some happy moments ran like a revolving lantern as they flashed back before me. I remember merrily playing with my childhood friends, dating my boyfriend, and getting a merit at work.”

It is most interesting that nearly half of the NDErs experienced a separation of consciousness or souls from their body, feeling the “self” had left his/her physical body. This is called an out of body episode. They emphasized their consciousness existed outside of their body in another dimension, instead of dwelling in their brain.

In addition, they reported they were floating up in mid-air over their body or looking down from the ceiling while watching their body. One NDEr explained, “I noticed there are two “selves,” one is lying on a bed like an empty shell, while the other has a human form in a weightless state as light as air, hovering in space cozily.”

Approximately one third of the experiencers traveled through an area like a cave or a tunnel. A light became visible when they were moving toward the end of the tunnel.

About one fourth of people who took the survey were met by non-human forms or spiritual Beings. Mostly they were deceased relatives, whose life continued after death in this realm. It could be the people they knew on Earth or just complete strangers. They reunited with the deceased. Some people described the spirits as “brilliance”, whereas others thought the beings to be religious figures.

The surveyor summarized that among all the survivors, there were 81 cases that have been validated as near-death experiences. The majority of these cases, experienced at least two or more of these: a life review, separation of the consciousness from the body, weightlessness, alienation to their physical body, integrated with the universe, and cessation of time.

According to the survivors of the Tang Shan earthquake investigations, although only 81 incidents were verified, it is the largest-scale sample of near-death experiences in the world. Among these 81 participants, 47 of them underwent personality changes by “becoming mellow” afterwards. They were “less controlling and less judgmental”. They also became “optimistic and less uptight” after meeting the unearthly beings or souls. Even 10 to 20 years later, many of these people still remember their near-death experiences as if it happened yesterday. It is amazing the similarities among China and other countries as a result of the NDE experiences.

Victor Philip DP NDE in 1973

Weeks before the event, I had this foreboding that something major was going to happen to me, but I did not know what. Saturday morning 10 AM, my brother-in-law, his friend, me, and my 3-year old daughter, drove to the hardware shop. We needed to buy insecticide to spray on the garden plants that seem to have an infection. The shop was at a busy traffic light intersection corner. I carried my daughter and all of us went into the shop, but they did not have the product we were looking for. My brother-in-law suggested that we cross the street to another shop down the road to look for the product. I was feeling uneasy but decided to go on condition that my brother-in-law carried my daughter. Off the four of us went. While crossing the street to the shop diagonally across the road, I walked in front of a mini-bus taxi that struck me from behind.

Next, I was standing on the sidewalk, looking at myself lying in the road. My brother-in-law was on his knees at my side in the road. He seemed very upset, to the point that he seemed to be crying. I had this very euphoric feeling and could not understand. Everything was so colorful. I could see all round myself at once depending on where my attention focused. It was not blinding and hot as summer normally was, everything was just right; except, where was my daughter? Not really all that anxious, I found myself next to her. She was safely with my brother-in-law's friend and I had no worries about that any further.

Then I felt a feeling of unease coming from a gentleman standing next to me. This clashed with my very euphoric feeling. He was worriedly looking at me lying in the street. I tried to reassure him that I am fine by talking to him, but he did not seem to hear me. I then put my hand out to touch his shoulder and found that my hand went right through him! By now there was a small crowd on the sidewalk, all anxiously looking at me, lying in the street. I noticed an older lady carrying a pink pillow and a very colorful patterned blanket. She was hurrying from one of the buildings, towards me lying in the street. I could not understand why everybody was making such a fuss since I was OK and could not have felt better.

Suddenly, I found myself in a dark tunnel like a vortex. I was moving fast towards a small point of light at the end of this vortex. There was no one else near me and I felt quite relaxed, speeding towards this light. As I progressively got closer to this light, it became bigger and bigger. It was getting brighter and brighter, like a massive sun but without hurting my eyes. I had a very euphoric feeling that was further fueled by the feeling of love emanating from this light. I was drawn towards this love, like a moth to a candle. This is not humanly describable; very difficult, sorry. It was complete, penetrating, love, understanding, acceptance.

The light communicated telepathically with me, indicating that I am very welcome but it is not my time to be here yet. It was authoritative but with a loving sense of humor. It did not come to me that this was GOD. It seemed to be a higher Being, but not Jesus. It was so natural. We discussed my life while I relived portions of it. We reviewed my life, proceeding from older to younger events and only stopping when I seemed to be uncertain of my own actions at the time. There was no condemnation and no right or wrong. There was complete acceptance and understanding with only one loving comment, 'Don't you think you could have done it this way?' I was judging myself.

I was not given the option to stay there. The light entity lovingly informed me, 'You have to go back now.' I protested, indicating that I had only arrived and needed to know more. Then firmly, with humor, the light said, 'There are some more things you have to go and do still; you must go now. ' Rather upset, I asked, 'Please explain what still must be done?' The final loving, and understanding comment from this indescribable entity: 'It will be made clear to you as you go on in your life'-- and that was it.

My brother-in-law confirmed that I momentarily woke up in the ambulance on the way to the hospital and passed out again before arriving there. Four days later, I awoke in hospital. It took months to get back to where I could really say, 'Hello world, I am back and feeling normal.'

ADDED COMMENTS:

What I previously described regarding the accident scene was confirmed by my brother-in-law afterwards. I clearly left my body and existed outside it. All that happened then has never been erased from my memory; even after all these years, it is still as clear as then. Everything was so clear and vivid as never before. I normally have a ringing in my ears, but while I was out-of-body, it was gone.

It took me a long time, a couple of years, to first share my NDE with my wife. She did not react negatively, but she stayed neutral, suggesting that I discuss my problems with my pastor or doctor. I did that and decided not to talk to anyone again about it after the negative reactions I got. There was no internet or Google at that time, and living in South Africa did not help either to collect information about what had happened to me.

Before my NDE, my religious life was not too important to me, although I was a Chief Deacon at a Christian church and very active in organized religion. Afterward, religion did not work for me anymore. The Church says you die and go to a place of rest and on the last day will be woken and be judged. It is definitely not like that.

I am not materialistic any more. I believe in live and let live. I have no fear of death and look forward to it. Everyone is on their own path, so I don't judge others. I love more and let others know the truth. The truth shall set you free. I had an urge for knowledge after my return. I have stronger faith in God and my neighbor. My wife and kids are of the opinion that I changed into a wise old saint. My NDE was a happening in my life that I am so thankful for. I would not change anything about it and I am privileged to have experienced it.

Laurie L NDE in 1986---kayaking accident

It was 1986, and I was 19 years old when I had my NDE. I was in Oregon at my new duty station in the Navy. I wasn't a great swimmer, but my co-walkers pressured me to sign up for a white water rafting trip on the Rogue River because everyone in my watch section was going.

The current that year was historically higher and swifter than normal. I uneventfully traveled through the Class II and III rapids in an inflatable one-person kayak during the morning. The paddling seemed easy and the flow of the water and conversation around me was rather relaxed. We stopped at midday for lunch on the shore and to take a rest break before continuing our trip to much more challenging sections of the river.

The Class IV section of the river, Blossom Bar, was clogged with huge boulders, and swirling hole-like vortices. The standard route through the churning water to pass the boulders required me to make a crucial left-to-right paddling move to avoid being swept into a lineup of rocks known as the 'Picket Fence.' My failure to do that quickly, caused me to slam into the boulders, and roll out of the kayak into the freezing water.

I wore a life vest, but the current dragged me right into a boiling hole of turbulent water. The shock of the cold water caused me to gasp, and in doing so, I inhaled river water deep into my lungs. I could see the sky above, but couldn't reach the surface to get air. The current dragged me down though I fought against it. My lungs burned as panic set in. I suddenly believed that I was going to die there, and the last thing I remember was saying, 'God please help me!' Without oxygen, I grew weaker and eventually stopped struggling entirely. I went limp in the cold darkness of the water, and suddenly I could no longer feel the burning and ache of the water in my lungs. The darkness around me grew completely white, and I felt like I was rushing at light speed through a tunnel. I felt warm as the pain left me, at peace with myself and the environment around me.

Unconditional, pure love radiated all around me and into me. LOVE covered me like a warm blanket from an unknown source. As I left the tunnel, I was aware of parts of my body that were visible like my hands, arms and chest. Looking down, I couldn't see any feet. Looking around me, I could see a room that appeared to be formed from pure white clouds, yet wasn't solid. In the room were three beings, made of shimmering crystal. Light shone through them like a glass prism, forming a rainbow. One was larger than the other two, but all of them spoke to me. When they spoke, their messages were sent telepathically. They could read my thoughts. Looking into their eyes, they were shades of intense colors that changed and shifted. Love radiated from their eyes, as if I were the most precious creation God had ever placed into existence. It was as if they knew me intimately.

The larger angel said, 'You have arrived too soon; the time has not come yet for you to be here. You must go back and finish your work on Earth. But since you are here, we will show you some things.' The larger angel held a large book, but its pages were like images instead of words. I saw scenes of my life from the moment of my birth to the moment I fell out of the kayak into the river. The pages flipped rapidly, like watching a movie. I was instantly reminded of all the things I did for others, or failed to do for someone. They showed me a man I didn't know, whose face I could not see clearly, and many children that were still yet to be. One of the smaller angels said ‘I have been with you and I will always be with you. You must go back; you have to be there for them. I will show you what you can look forward to until then; then you have to go back to your body.'

Instantly, we moved to the center of a vast golden field. I could hear the most beautiful music, and I could feel it moving through me. The breeze blew against the tall golden wheat stalks, and as it did I could feel the spirit of all things living around me: animals, plants, the elements. I was one with them. I looked up and saw a huge ball of light that cast the purest warm light all around me and I felt God touch my skin. He knew me; he loved me no matter how imperfect my Earthly life had been. I was perfect and whole; I felt no pain.

The angel took me up higher, and I felt like I was soaring. I could see a huge waterfall with no beginning and no end. Love and peace reigned here. I sensed the presence of loved ones that had passed on, but I didn't see them. We moved over the golden field and at the end of it was a country fence, and beyond that was an enormous tree with a canopy of golden leaves. When the breeze touched the leaves, they would fly off the tree's branches in the shape of colorful birds of all varieties. There was a lake beside it, and it flowed on both sides of the boundary. I looked down into the water, and it had a gloss to it like liquid mercury does. But when you look through it, you can see people that are living on earth.

I was told, “You cannot cross the barrier. It is time for you to go back to your existence on Earth. You have work to finish first.” Words could not express the sorrow I felt to have to leave that place. I cried and begged for him to let me stay. He said, “When it is time, I will come for you. But now…”--and with that, he wrestled my spirit back into my earthly body with so much force that I was popped clear of the rocky hole that was trapping me under the water. All the water I had inhaled came flying out of my lungs, as I gasped and took a panicked breath of air. I became aware of the pain almost immediately in my chest and of the hand of a rescuer grabbing me by the back of my life vest. I nearly knocked him out of his kayak, and then someone else on a bigger boat pulled me up into the boat and back into this Earthly dimension.

It took me a long time to understand why I am here, and still I question. 'Why me?” I even did research about the Rogue River after my near-drowning. Over 21 people have died at Blossom Bar since my NDE! They died, and I survived. Because of my NDE, I am closer to God, and realize now that life is not a series of consequences, but of parallels and choices. My choices directly affect those around me, and we are all interconnected.

My NDE has and will continue to be the most profound experience I've ever had. I was brought to tears writing this memory of my experience, because my words pale in comparison to all the things I saw, felt, and heard during my journey into a heavenly realm. I'm not religious, but I remain closer to spirit than ever because of my NDE. I know that there are dimensions beyond this one, and that I am here for a reason. I have a purpose, and until it is fulfilled, I will be here.

Melinda G’s NDE in 1990

When I woke up the morning of October 31, 1990, I noticed that my period had arrived and I was bleeding heavily. I was surprised at this because I had been breast feeding. I called the Doctor's office and they said that it was probably normal but to keep a watch on it. I packed up my newborn baby girl and book bag. Then I took a city bus to the University to attend classes that morning with my baby. I felt fine. It was only on the bus ride back home, at about 10:30 AM, that I felt something roll out of my body and down my pant leg when I stood up to get off the bus. Much to my horror, I realized it was a blood clot the size of a softball.

I picked my clot up as people gasped and stared at me. I made the decision that I wasn't going to be able to make the few blocks walking to make it back home. I crossed the street to the Hospital. I only made it as far as the grass out front of the emergency room. I was gushing blood and started to get dizzy and light headed. I tried to get the attention of two emergency room paramedics who were smoking out front. But, I couldn't make a sound louder than a whisper. I tried to fall with my arms outstretched so that I didn't fall on my baby newborn girl. I passed out while falling to the ground with my baby in my arms.

Next thing I remember was waking up in the emergency room. I was receiving emergency blood transfusions and told that I had probably retained placenta from birth. They told me that they would need to do an emergency D&C to help scrape my uterus. I then was taken to surgery. I was in surgery three more times that day, yet they couldn't stop the bleeding.

I was given an experimental drug that was supposed to 'seize' my uterus and make it 'clamp' down to get the blood loss to stop. It caused me to stop breathing instead. They were able to revive me and thought that they had 'fixed' me. They took me to the maternity ward to recover and be reunited with my newborn daughter who needed to be breastfed.

The nurse who had helped me to deliver my daughter on October 1st was just starting her shift. She brought me a plate of food to try to get me to eat. When I tried to sit up to, the hemorrhaging started again and it was even worse than before. I was pretty weak. They called a crash cart and asked me for my parents’ phone number. I was shaking, cold, and going into shock. They weren't able to get a reading on my blood pressure and my resting heart rate started to elevate. It was going 130 beats per minute and then it was going over 150 bpm. I was in pain because the blood was leaving my head and arms and legs. They stuck a big needle in my neck and started pumping blood directly into my neck. I knew that I was dying and not going to make it.

My heart went up to 180 and then over 200. The amount of pain was unbearable. I was scared and didn't want to die but couldn't take pain anymore. Every cell in my body was screaming due to the lack of oxygen. I was given over 56 units of blood. I was scared and so were the doctors and the nurse. I remember a doctor told me that they were going to operate and take my uterus out. He said that I might not survive the operation because I was so weak. I was asked to sign a medical waiver. A Catholic priest came into the room to give me last prayers. I could no longer move or talk or blink. The pain was too much. When my heart rate hit 220, I heard them say I was in fibrillation. They were trying to shock my heart. I couldn't even use my eyes anymore. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't breathe. I learned what it means to lose total control.

At this darkest and lowest and saddest moment of my life, I realized that I wasn't alone. I realized that I had a guardian “angel” just beside me. He was holding my hand. I then realized that there was a second angel. Then I rose out of and above my body. I could see the doctors were very scared. I could see that my body was blue in color and in very grave condition. I tried to comfort the doctors and nurses. I wanted to tell them that it was okay, but they could not hear or see me.

I was drawn into the hallway because I could hear my daughter crying for me. I could hear and see that nurses were fighting about me in the hallway and upset that I been taken up to the maternity ward. I should have been in the intensive care unit (ICU) or the emergency room. At some point, a veil lifted. I was drawn into a long, dark tunnel that had a very bright, white light that was shining love. I could hear music and I saw my great Uncle Harry and Aunt Vickie. I was in total bliss and happiness. I was home. I didn't want to go back.

Then I had a life review, where I saw every single event of my life. I saw every act of goodness and kindness. I saw every act of spite or ill-will. I also got to see it from the other person's point of view. Time did not seem to exist, because this life review seemed to take forever, but in earth time it was only a blink of a second. I didn't want to go back to my life, because I was surrounded by God’s love. I realized that we are all brothers and sisters. We all love each other very much, but we live in fear on earth and that prevents us from realizing and remembering that we’re all connected. I felt such incredible love.

I saw courtyards with beautiful vibrant roses that were more colorful than on earth. I saw colors that I’ve never seen before. I understood infinity and all the knowledge of the universe. I saw white buildings that were open and in the sky. They reminded me of buildings from Greece and Athens. I saw the future for my children and me, where I came to understand that their father was not to play a role in our lives. I was told this so that I could be strong and still love him, even if he was no longer with us. I was liberated. I knew I had to go back, but I really wanted to stay. I knew that it would hurt to go back to my body. I truly knew that this was home. The bright light filled everything and was totally God's unconditional love -- and I was filled with such joy and peace!

I woke up in the ICU. After resuming my life, I found that nothing in life was as hard as coming back into this body. But, after that, I found that school was easy and all of life's challenges are a breeze. Many wonderful things have happened to me. I am not afraid of death! I was not surprised when the father of my child died a few years later. I had already been given that knowledge. I learned that everything we do matters. Even the person you smile at on your way to the work. Even the creatures that you bend over to pet. Nothing goes unnoticed. It all matters. My purpose is to stand up for the meek, to be compassionate, but most of all, to love.

Bill V’s NDE in 1968---shot to death in Vietnam.

I was in Vietnam about ten months and had seen lots of death and dying and had been in combat and had lost many friends. And I had two good friends and we always said that as long as the three of us were together, we would cover each other’s back and nothing would happen to the others. And one day, they got called up to go on R&R, rest and relaxation, and wanted to go to Thailand for a week for a little break and come back. That left me all alone to manage my squad. And I thought, “Well, that’s no big deal – I can manage a week on my own.”

So we were headed back to our base camp, I was in charge of the squad, and we had a call on the radio that said a helicopter had been shot down and they wanted some volunteers to go rescue the pilot and copilot and crew and destroy the equipment before it fell in the hands of the enemy. So I volunteered my squad and the minute that we showed up on the scene -- they flew us in by helicopter -- I knew that things were not going to go well.

So I got my squad off the helicopter and we were taking fire (from the enemy) almost immediately. The commander motioned for me to take my squad around the base of the hill and to search for the downed helicopter and try to find the crew and he was going to take his group and go around to the other side.

Well, my squad got pinned down (by enemy fire) about half way there. I motioned for the men to move forward and get some cover and I stayed back so I that I could see where the enemy was firing from and fire tracer bullets in that direction so my squad could shoot in that direction. And things were getting pretty hairy – we were taking a lot of fire and we couldn’t move and I knew that something was going to have to happen before we could get out of there.

The next thing I know, I heard some jet planes flying over and I realized that the company commander had called in an air strike. So I looked up and I watched, and as they dropped the bomb, I realized that they were going to come right down on my position. And I was out in the open. I got down as low to the ground as I could, but shrapnel from the bomb hit me in the face and crushed my face and tore out my right eye. And I knew that at the ripe old age of 19, I was going to die. This was it; this was the end for me. I now knew what war was all about.

The next thing I knew, I found myself inside a dark tunnel. And I was very peaceful, very calm, even though my body was still wounded. I was no longer bleeding and there was no pain and there was no concern about this injury. And as I moved forward in the dark tunnel, I passed into a bright, white light. And it was the most incredibly beautiful, peaceful, calm, loving place I had ever been in my life. It was full of this unconditional love and this great knowledge of the universe. And not knowledge like, “One and one is two”, but knowledge of why we exist and who we are and the vastness of our spirit and our spirit being that exists in this universe.

And I felt very comfortable and I was being approached by a being – a being of light. And as he came to me, I recognized that it was my grandfather who had passed away about five years prior to that, so I knew that that was not a living situation but one that was in another dimension. I spoke to my grandfather; we communicated for a short time. He told me that this would be all right; that this was a wonderful place and that I should just relax and take everything as it came.

Beyond me, I could see that there was a beautiful setting. It was this pristine meadow and I wanted to move there. I had this feeling that I needed to move toward that. But as I did, another being approached me and said that I couldn’t go on, that I had to return – go back where I’d come from. And he told me that I had a higher purpose to fulfill and that I’d be fulfilling that purpose and that at some point, I would return to that place. And I was told that, regardless of what happened that day, I would not die and that I would live a relatively long and productive life. It didn’t mean much to me at that point.

So being the good soldier, I turned around and walked away and I was back in the dark corridor moving away from the white light. And again, I had this sense of peace and calm, but unlike the going into the light, this time, coming out of the light, I was still bathed in the light. I felt like I was surrounded by this white light and this peace and this calm and this sense of unconditional love and a sense that there’s nothing to worry about – that everything comes as it should.

So, I was back on the battlefield. I was conscious again. I was still bleeding, but now there was no pain, there was no concern, no worry. My right eye had fallen out and my face was very badly wounded and I was wounded down the right side. And as I lay there on the ground, thinking about getting up and getting help, one of the men from my squad came crawling out of the bushes, shot in the chest.   I laid him down and took his pack off, and as I did, he had a big hole in his back where the bullet had exited. And I knew at that moment that he was going to go where I had just come from. So I took him in my arms and I held him and I looked into his eyes and he died in my arms.

And, immediately, afterward, we communicated. We spoke telepathically. And I told him that everything was fine, everything was all right, just to let go – to go there and that everything would be taken care of, he wouldn’t have to do anything. And he seemed to be at peace and ease as he left, as his spirit left, and I could no longer communicate.   But I was still bathed in the white light. I was still feeling quite comfortable even though badly wounded. And as I tried to stand up, the man that had just shot my friend, my comrade, came out of the bushes and shot me, five times, through the arm, chest and through the neck. I saw the bullets coming out of the gun, in slow motion. I could feel them enter my body. I saw the blood, I saw the tissue tear and yet, I was not concerned. There was no fear, there was no worry; I was still bathed in the white light. I had no pain, no sense of dying again. There was nothing in me but a sense of life and living and moving forward. And I picked up my weapon and I fired back at this man, but I don’t think I hit him; I think I just scared the hell out of him. After that, no one shot at me, no one came after me.

Somehow, I managed to walk about 300 yards, back to where the other men were. And I was able to see where they were. I could walk directly to them, even though there were obstacles in my way. They didn’t get in my way – I walked right through them – I walked through the hedgerows without anything – without any concern that I was going to have to stop and fight my way through it. I could also, at that time, see my body, my wounds, and it was as if there were two of me: one looking from outside my body, and the other, looking from inside my body. The spirit part of me could see 360 degrees around.

And when I finally found the medics and the radio van—or they finally found me, the other commander and his group, a couple of men came rushing over and they put their hands on me and I went right back into my body. And I was at peace; I was at ease. I could hear everyone around me just in a panic: “Oh, we’re going to get an airway started. Watch that arm! Be careful, don’t move him too much.” I could hear them all talking. I could hear the panic in their voice and yet, I was perfectly calm. I wanted to say to them, “Don’t worry, everything’s going to be fine. I’ll be alright.”

And yet, I couldn’t speak. The bullet had passed through my neck, and torn out my vocal chords and damaged my larynx, and I was unable to speak to them. So I just let go and I relaxed. And they put me on a helicopter and sent me to an area field hospital. And they really couldn’t do much for me there. They looked at me and said, “This man is probably not save-able. And we have many others that we have to treat.” And so I was set aside, basically to die, and if I lived long enough to get to surgery, fine, that’s what would happen.

And I don’t know how much time passed till someone came out and they said, “Oh, he’s still alive.” And they gave me some more blood and more IVs and a couple of men had come from my company to identify me, and I remember seeing them and wanting to talk to them but they just got close enough to say, “Oh, yeah, that’s him. That’s Bill.” And they left. So when the doctors got to me, basically, there wasn’t much they could do, so they did the best they could in the field hospital and sent me to a bigger hospital, where they did what they could and sent me to an even bigger hospital. And eventually to a hospital ship in Da Nang Harbor.

Where by this time, I’m getting tired of laying down on the stretchers and gurneys and the tables and I’m still very conscious at this time. In fact, throughout the entire ordeal, I never lost consciousness. When the doctor came in, I’m sitting on the exam table. And he looks at me and he looks at my wounds and he starts pacing back and forth, shaking his head and saying, “You shouldn’t be here. You should be dead – look at you; you’re a mess. And you’re sitting on my table.” He was amazed. The next thing I knew, they were putting me under and taking me into surgery and doing the best they could to repair some of my wounds. It took another several weeks before I was able to leave the hospital ship in Vietnam and I was sent to a hospital in Japan, where I underwent further surgery and I was there for a little over a month.

The doctors were not as positive as I was. They were looking at me from a medical perspective, which said, “You’re not going to recover, you’re not going to speak, you don’t have any vocal chords. We’re probably going to have to cut your left arm off because of all the damage. You’re going to have to breathe through a trach (tracheotomy) tube for the rest of your life.   After about a year in the hospital, I was able to get out a little bit more. The army had discharged me, actually were very kind to me – gave me a full retirement at the ripe old age of 19 – and sent me to a VA hospital.

Eventually, I did get out of the hospital. Later on, I went back for some plastic surgery. They rebuilt my face and gave me an artificial eye and used some cartilage from a cartilage bank to build up my face and made me look pretty much the way I looked prior to the injuries. And I went about my life. And I wanted to tell people about this near-death experience, this out-of-body experience. And at the time, I didn’t even know that that’s what it was called. In fact, I didn’t even hear the term “near-death experience” until 1989.

So, I got a job with the state of Washington as a vocational counselor; after that I went to work as a counselor in a clinic that treated Vietnam vets for post-traumatic stress. Everybody else that I worked for had master’s degrees and Ph.D.s and M.D.s and I had a degree in auto mechanics! Thus, I went back to school. One of my professors said, “I want you to get into small groups and talk about your most profound experience with death. So I continued with the meetings and the next thing I know, I’m appearing on television shows, radio talk shows, people are writing newspaper and magazine articles about me. And I followed the spirit, and it took me to a wonderful career in the mental health field.

Tricia B’s NDE in 1995---senior at THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS in Austin

"I consider the moment of my death the greatest gift of my life. However, anyone who heard me screaming at the top of my lungs in pure, unrestrained panic in the emergency room would not have believed that twenty-four hours later I would be filled with the wonder and peace of the afterlife. I had a head on collision on my way to run the Austin, TX 10K run. I broke my back in several places and sustained several internal injuries. I didn't have health insurance at the time, and had to wait 17 hours for a surgeon to work on me. I didn't have painkillers or anything to numb the pain.

During surgery, I popped out of my body and had a full NDE experience. No one, except possibly the most committed atheist, could have been more surprised than me at the beginning of my near death experience. The first moments outside my body felt exciting and electrifying. My spirit danced a bit of jig realizing that there is more to existence than the physical. I felt like a child again, happy to see what came next and glad that my spirit body retained the essence of who I am.

I was a little concerned about the physical body (my body) on the table. Soothing music played on the radio, and my back had a long, bloody incision. Surgery appeared more brutal and bloody than I imagined it would look, especially from a 360 degree vantage point. I could see the doctors and the entire room all at once without blinking or relying on eyes. There, in the room with the doctors, nurses, surgical technicians, anesthesiologist, and others, I felt incredible joy and shock as I realized all does not die with the body.

After rejoicing a moment, I noticed two of the most intelligent beings I had ever seen. Their presence gave me indescribable peace. They were very large, approximately eight or nine feet, androgynous, with long shoulder-length hair and composed more of light than solid form. I will call them “angels” only because I have no other term for them. They did not have wings. These “angels” were part of an added reality and nothing like a dream.
I’ve experienced thousands of dreams, and this moment was more real than any waking moment in my lifetime.

Most of what I realized outside of my body in the operating room came through immediate impressions, like the way a child sizes up whether an adult is trustworthy or not. The “angels” were trustworthy and there to help and comfort me, so I did not question their authority. They sent waves of light which transferred messages to me in the form of completed thoughts and feelings, not individual words. This allowed me to access information instantly. The “angels” were not only able to interact with my spirit body, but they were also able to interact with the two neurosurgeons and through them. The surgeons, most likely, did not realize this interaction. I knew that my awareness, understanding of the world, and my ability to experience joy was growing exponentially moment by moment.   Just before the monitor started to beep, which signaled that my heart had stopped, the “angels” slowed down their communication. They looked at me intently and said loudly and with force, 'Watch this!'   The same light that they beamed into my spirit body, they sent through the back of the doctors, through their hands, and into my physical body. My physical body was instantly altered and healed in ways that the doctors might not have been able to heal me. I knew that I would walk again, that the fragments of bone would be picked out of my spine, and that I would feel healthy and run again at some point in the future.

The “angels” turned back toward me, letting this moment sink in. While the angels continued to work on my body, I considered how the surgeons were conduits of their energy and that the angels’ energy was an essential part of my healing. Perhaps the surgeon’s egos wouldn’t like to hear that or perhaps they would be pleased to know that “angels” worked through them. I only knew that I needed to remember this moment vividly. The angels wanted me to be aware that they could work through me in the future. As the “angels” continued to work on me, my physical body shimmered with light and energy. After a few more moments, the machine signaled that my heart had stopped. I no longer wanted to look at my physical body since it was technically dead, so I sped through the walls of the hospital.

I paused only because I caught sight of my stepdad standing at a vending machine and getting a candy bar. He walked around the hospital and returned to the waiting room with a snickers candy bar. After I saw my stepdad, I felt a oneness with everyone I had ever known.

After experiencing a sense of oneness and understanding with people I knew, I spent a few moments with my grandfather, Clyde. He was the only person close to me who had died. My grandfather, a poor country man, had spoiled me to the best of his ability. I hopped in the back of his blue Chevy truck and he drove us slowly towards the light. My feet dragged the ground through bright clover and grass, greener and more intense, light-filled, than any grass I had experienced on earth. Grandpa was younger and healthier than when I knew him, and he leaned his head out the window to ask if I wanted to keep going. I nodded 'Yes.' The truck lifted off the ground and headed toward the light. At some point, I was no longer in the truck and my grandfather was not with me anymore.

I was very close to this love that I can’t put it into words. I have tried to write about this experience so many times, but I break down and can’t write the words. I miss the love. I miss the light. A large part of me never wanted to leave the safety and love of that place.

In that place, I felt no stress and more love than I imagined possible. I felt more joy and contentment than even the brightest moments in this life ever provided, and I didn’t want to return to my body.   If a soul could smile, then my soul smiled. I was comfortable and without worry. I felt complete and utter trust in this experience. As I got deeper into to the light, I felt the prayers of my mother, father, grandmothers, and a couple of my aunts.   I especially felt the prayer of a great-aunt who lost a daughter in a car wreck. I very clearly heard her pray and beg God that my mother not suffer the pain she suffered when she lost her daughter. This touched me, and I almost wanted to return because of her sweet prayer…

One of the most important lessons that was transferred to me by the light is that love is all that matters. Though this seemed like a hippie slogan or a paraphrase from the Beatles, the message sunk into me on a deeper level. Every interaction is meaningless if love is not attached to it in some way. A prayer is meaningless without love. A sermon is meaningless without love. A religion is meaningless without love.   I was raised in an evangelical Christian home, but I didn't connect with that religion. Though I had heard, 'God is love,' I saw more judgment than love in those around me. The light was truly the most loving force I had ever experienced. At the time of my accident, I was agnostic and not interested in spiritualism or religion.

I’ve always been an adventurous soul, and this was the greatest adventure I’d ever been on. When I returned to my body, it felt like a dark wind had engulfed me.

If I had to sum up, the main lesson of my NDE is that God, or the light, is a loving force that doesn’t want people to harm others and wants us to feel joy and happiness in our lives. Love and kindness are the greatest gift we can give others. We are all a part of that light, but we forget how to love because of fear. We forget how to walk through this world as the light. We are all closer to God as children because love comes more natural for us. We are able to be gleeful about pets, a bird in the sky, looking into our parent’s eyes. We are in love with the world, and the world is in love with us. We breathed easier as children, and lived more extended, intense moments as children.

NDE in 2014---The void, my grandmother, and a changed life.

Nearly three years ago, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder called idiopathic anaphylaxis--- which is a fancy way of saying that I go into anaphylactic shock without being seriously allergic to anything. It's sort of a glitch in my immune system.

I suffered such an anaphylactic shock in 2014. My story begins as I lie in a coma, on a ventilator, in the intensive care unit.

My mind begins to wake, pushing me up from what feels like deep sleep, into full consciousness. Opening my eyes, I see total blackness, and perceive that what lies before, behind, above and beneath me is a deep and endless void, through which I am unable to navigate. A crushing sensation pushes around and against me, though when I move my arms, there's nothing physical touching me.

I'm alone in this place, as though no one else has ever existed, and I wonder if I've been in this soul-oppressing purgatory all along. Maybe I'd dreamed it all, my life and family...the world? Could that have been a place and time I'd created in my mind to provide some relief from this darkness? It was too terrible to consider

Finally, after what seems an eternity, something changes. I've moved through the void, and now find myself on one side of what seems like a barrier. There, in a hospital bed, lies my physical body. How can I be there and here at the same time? The wall doesn't yield to me, but as I approach it, the scene on the other side becomes clearer. My body is hooked to wires and tubes.

Ah, I must be sick! The realization gives me hope...It wasn't a fantasy. I hadn't been dreaming it all! Squinting my eyes, I see my daughter standing beside my bed. To the right, a ventilator pumps and churns behind her. What's wrong with me? Why am I in ICU? Then I return to the void, all alone.

Lamenting my situation, and aching for another chance at life, it dawns on me that perhaps the barrier is of my own making. Perhaps ts bricks were ones I'd stacked to keep people out and my feelings in. A barrier of my own construction, built brick-upon-brick with each hurt I'd suffered. My efforts to protect myself had made me less...less real, less vulnerable, less joyful.

When I finally realized the void was a prison of my own design, it suddenly split open with a thunderous BOOM! A bright light shone before me. The darkness was still there, but now it was behind and beneath me. I was being pulled, drawn, as if by a powerful magnet, into the arms of a glorious spirit. Am I finally being rescued from this terrible place? Oh, let it be so!

The spirit, bold and adorned in light, held me tightly to her breast. I felt her energy swirling around me, like a great funnel cloud, holding me effortlessly. Looking up, I see the face of my champion; her features, soft and feminine, her eyes a brilliant green, returning my gaze and knowing me completely. Our spirits unite, like two rivers meeting and converging to the sea. My eyes draw upward, to her hair...her brilliant red hair, like nothing I've seen before. Her hair is like fire on her head. It has an energy that defines her, powerful and bold and...in an instant, I remember her. My maternal grandmother! Tears spring to my eyes, and my heart leaps in my chest. She was an amazing woman in life and clearly, that same spirit followed her to the place where she found me. Laughing and crying, my tears came in torrents, purging me of the grief of her loss that I wasn't aware I still harbored. She hadn't died! No, she's more alive here than she was in her body. The realization took my breath.

Her gaze, soft and sweet, relaxed me completely and I melted into her arms. For the first time in a long time, I felt safe. How is it possible to feel such unity and still feel the uniqueness of all that's me?

Finally, she speaks to me, with her spirit, directly into mine. "Calm yourself, Dear One." My spirit embraces her instruction. Finally, I can see who I really am, and it's clear that I'm much more than I ever believed I could be. I understand in a deep way what it means to be dear to someone. Understanding this in such completeness overwhelms me and I weep in her arms. I weep for pain and sorrow and joy. I weep for all the suffering I'd known in life and all the suffering I'd seen and felt unable to change. I weep for the wall I'd built, the isolation I'd willfully imposed on myself, when I was in my body. I weep for those in the earthly realm, those who are without hope and believe that there's nothing but what they call the here and now.

A question comes to mind as I rest in her arms, and I move to ask her, to speak the words, but as soon as the thought forms, the answer appears, from her consciousness to mine. "You are not dead, there is no death, except that the body becomes useless and is cast away. You are either alive in the body...in the earthly realm, or super-alive here...or a mixture of the two as you are now; part of you there, and part of you here on the side of the spirits. Your body lies near death in the hospital, and your spirit has left it, but not completely. A sort of...cord, binds you to it still. If it did not, you would be fully here."

Another question springs to mind, and as before, it is answered without my having to speak. "Your consciousness exists outside your body. It's not contained or housed in the brain. It's eternal and cannot be held inside anything. It exists whether your physical body does or not. Consciousness endures despite the body

My consciousness is eternal? Not dictated by whether my body is alive or dead? I'd never imagined such a thing. I thought that when I died, I would still have some sort of physical structure that defined me. It's difficult to comprehend that my body isn't me. Finally, I understand who I'm meant to be. I ponder the complexity and simplicity of it so deeply that I don't realize my grandmother has gone, leaving me floating alone in the bright white light.

An all-powerful energy shook me as two words formed in my mind....I AM.

I was with the Spirit of God. The white light of God’s energy couldn't be dimmed. God’s vast, white presence, soaked into every part of me. I lay myself bare to this energy, letting it fill every empty place inside me. It took up all those spaces without diminishing me in any way, filling me to overflowing, filling my body with intense warmth and vibration that was an indescribable joy.

Then, I saw my life before me, as though watching a movie. I saw people I'd loved, and people my love had affected, without my knowing it. The ripple effects of the good I'd done in my life played out on the screen and filled me with joy. Seeing all the deeds done by others, because of love I'd shown them, made me weep with joy. I had no idea such small acts resulted in such profound expressions and manifestations of love. God allowed me to linger and watch the scenes over and over again.

Situations that had tormented me, in the earthly realm, were brought to my memory. The dread and sadness that held me captive to the pain of those transgressions was vanquished. Each truth became peaceful and clear in my mind. The weight of each of those pains left me, replaced by His peace, like a tender hug from father to child, assuring all is well.

I surrendered myself completely to God. He held my entire existence. God was drawing me back to His core, where I had belonged all along. I allowed myself to move closer and closer to His center. For the first time, I understood that God was vast and personal and, at my invitation, had taken up residence in my spirit. I felt as though I might burst with joy! Then suddenly I was stopped. I knew that I couldn't continue this path...not yet. I longed to stay, to make it to the spark of my existence, but it was not to be. The light grew dim and distant and I became fretful, crying out to God, "Please! Grant me at least the memory of this! I feel I will lose all hope if I cannot at least have that."

I woke in my hospital bed...the memory of my time on the other side held deeply within.

I've experienced significant changes since my NDE and now see life in a whole new way. The most important lesson learned since my experience, the message I need to share with the world, is that we are all connected. Life, at least in western culture, teaches us to be independent. From the moment we draw our first breath, we are cast into a society of separatism. We build fences and walls, both literally and figuratively, to keep others out. As we grow into adulthood, those separations become battlefields, further dividing us...even from the God who created us.

If we, as children of God, are ever to make a real difference, we must first come to the understanding that we are linked to each other by our Creator. I am connected in spirit with the criminal, the beggar, the infirm. It is by recognizing this truth that I realize that I too could have gone the way of the thief, the impoverished, or the afflicted.

I came back from my NDE with a truer understanding of the strength and power endowed in each by our Creator. We need not sit idly by, staring up at the sky, waiting for God to fix the problems here on earth. God is right here with us! Equipping us with His love, so we can work together and get the job of caring for each other done.

Pamela K’s NDE in 1993--- Pamela's understanding is mirrored in other NDEs, but she expresses it so clearly.

My near death experience happened in the early 1990's. I had an apnea episode while I was sleeping that went on a little too long. [Apnea is when breathing stops.]   I know I won't be able to do justice to the experience in explaining it, because the feelings were so beyond what is normally thought of as Love, Joy, and Bliss that there really are no words to capture the intensity of the sensations. It was truly amazing, however.

While I was still in a twilight sleep, I felt my throat collapsing and closing off, and I couldn't breathe. I struggled quite a bit to begin breathing but wasn't able to open my throat. It felt the way I imagine it would feel to be drowning. One second I struggled for breath, panicked and agitated, and the next second the need to breathe disappeared, even though I still had not begun to breathe. I quickly realized that my consciousness was no longer tethered to my brain. I felt the 'I' part of me free-floating in what felt like the darkness of deep space.

I mentally 'turned' to look back at my life, like a life review. I was given an overall sense of what my life had been like.   It was like everything was shown simultaneously, and I felt apprehension. Then I began 'laughing' when I realized that 'I' was not the personality of 'Pam' anymore; in fact, I realized that the entirety of my life had just been a kind of game, like Monopoly (guess I just passed Go and collected $200!), and 'Pam' was the equivalent of one of the game's playing pieces, like the shoe or the car! All the troubles and joys, the accomplishments and limitations that made up the story of my life were revealed to be an illusion. I realized that in truth, the 'I Am' was who I really was and ALWAYS had been and always would be. What exultant bliss!

I realized that I had a choice---to recognize and rest in this truth of who I really was and stay on this 'Other Side', or I could continue to re-enact the 'game' of being ‘Pam’, an imaginary personality. With the dawning of that realization, I mentally 'turned' around again and saw a Light that was brighter than a million suns, but it had a softness to it.   It radiated the most all-encompassing, unconditional Love I've ever experienced. The Light 'felt' sentient-- it had Presence – God; and the feeling of love it emanated was like that of the father in the Bible welcoming home his prodigal son. The light radiated a sense of great joy and bliss like it was dancing and twirling in ecstasy, now that I was finally coming home. God had been waiting for me and was overjoyed to see me. It felt like the whole universe was opening its arms to welcome me home with bubbling delight, lighthearted laughter, and great joy.

Then suddenly I had the thought, 'It's not fair that I'm having such a wonderful experience while the rest of my family isn't', and with that, I felt myself zip at warp speed back into my body!

When I 'woke up' in the next instant with a great gulp of air, I began to sob; my entire body throbbed with Love as though each cell of my body was a separate heart overflowing with Love. There was so much love pulsating in my body, I thought, 'That's where my heart is! I can't even begin to describe what this bliss of Love felt like. It was the sum and more of EVERYTHING in this world!

I now no longer think of myself as someone small. I am a fragment of the Whole and contain the Whole. I feel the Light always within me, and I need only to attune my full attention to it to recapture the memory of the greater bliss that awaits each of us on the Other Side. This experience has totally changed how I look at the world. Experientially, I now KNOW that Love is all there is, manifesting in the limitless forms of creation -- and there is no place in which God is not.

Life is truly a divine gift, precious beyond measure, because it is through our lives that we learn to rest in the heart of God. God is as close to us as our own skin, bones, heart and breath. What this experience has taught me is to stop projecting a longing for God into some distant future. God is in the present moment, completely accessible, and it only requires a willingness to turn within to reveal Him as the very fabric of everything and every moment. Bliss is our natural birthright and most of the time we are like beggars who open our hands to receive but then snatch our hands away at the very instant we see the gift extended to us. We deny ourselves this great love because we can't believe that we are worthy enough or large enough to hold it. And so, we have been blessed with life in order to unlearn the limitations that our egos use to keep us actively engaged in this maddening game of hide and seek.

In our life review on the Other Side, we are not judged by anyone but ourselves. WE are the ones who deny our own selves the glorious ecstasy of union with God by our continued identification with our ego-based limitations and fear. WE are the ones who allow ourselves to return to a heavenly state when we've learned to embrace everything in life as a manifestation of God, including our very own hearts.

Benny M’s NDE in 2006

I do not know how to write this but I will try.

On Tuesday, July 17th of 2006, I had an experience in the emergency room of the hospital, surrounded by several emergency room staff and a few doctors that I recognized from over the years. My heart stopped beating, and I went unconscious. This is very hard to write. It is hard for me to explain, but I entered another plane of existence at the exact moment I passed out, and I realized I was floating in a multidimensional space. This was not a dream; dreams for me have never had well defined time and space relations or even make cognitive sense. I was one hundred percent aware of my mind in the situation. I was not quite sure where I was or why I was here. I was there, wherever there is.

Time, distance, and space, as we know it, acted very different. Movement was not limited, as it is here in everyday life experience. For forty-five seconds I traveled what seemed like thousands of miles from my entry point and had an experience like no conscious moment on earth or remembrance of any state of mind or any dreams I have ever experienced. This was totally new and real. This was a transition into another realm.

I saw a tunnel from the outside as I was floating in space from several thousand feet above it. The space all around me was the color of a warm soft sky blue. There were wisps of soft white light moving within my visual range and far off in the distance. The tunnel appeared as translucent blue and white and it seemed as though I could look through it.

The tunnel opening was below me, yet the tunnel itself flowed up and way above my visual plane and merged into a beautiful blue and white light where everything came together. It was the most incredible view I have ever seen in my life. I could feel this area around me, and it seemed comforting and safe. I felt love all around me. As I looked at the tunnel entrance, I moved at the speed of thought immediately to the opening of this tunnel.   I was drawn to it by nature or fate as if I knew what to do.

Just to note, with no loss for the incredible beauty of the experience, the colors, my peace of mind, and the painless and comforting feeling I experienced in this event, I will not try to describe; they were incredible.   I know I would struggle to include every detail, which is impossible to do.

The tunnel was large, with soft rounded edges flowing into it. It was soft blue in color, warm comforting, and inviting. As I entered the space around the entrance, I floated in and started to move forward. I began to see events appearing along the surface of the tunnel, like a million large screen TVs lining the walls, but that is a poor description.   The events on the screens seemed to surround me from all sides. I felt a connection to these events.

Within a few seconds, I realized it was my life, memories, and events that only I would understand and put meaning to.   The color and clarity were exactly as I had remembered them. These memories and events were passing through my mind with incredible visual perspective; each was alive and in absolute detail, and I could touch and feel them all at the same time. These events had been my existence, as if all of my being and soul were there and connected at one great moment. My thoughts moving at light speed seemed normal. My visions, memories and feelings took hold and held me in a state of wonder. During all this, I was moving further through the tunnel.

Then I was distracted for just a moment.   I had observed an experience with my son and it caught my attention. I was able to slow my movement through the tunnel long enough to stop and see him; it was his birthday, all there in absolute detail. I floated out of the event with my son and back into the tunnel. My passage seemed to move more rapidly after this, and I stopped trying to hold on to every memory as it went by.

To this point I had not thought about what was going on. What was happening to me was so wonderful it consumed me.   I had not thought of the purpose or reason I was experiencing this.   It was at that moment in time I had a brief pause in my thoughts, away from the passing events, and then I realized very clearly that I had died.   No event in my life has ever been so clear to me. This experience was exact, with meaning and purpose.

This was natural order. My body had or was well in the process of dying. I do not want to sound harsh by saying this. No events in my awakening state of mind have ever reached this level of conscious awareness. I briefly remembered the emergency room and that something had gone wrong, but it did not matter. It was the most profound moment of my life.   Very emotional for me to admit.   I was not of my body any longer; I was of my soul.   I was not frightened; I was satisfied with my life and very content.

As I was thinking all of this, I was moving faster and gaining speed through the tunnel towards a bright white light. The light was so beautiful, it is impossible to describe in human terms. I wanted to keep going. That scares me a little, but I heard someone calling my name, and I responded to that voice.   My movement slowed down, and as I turned my thoughts towards the voice, my direction reversed, and I moved again with incredible speed back along the tunnel to its entrance. This was not my decision. I woke up in the emergency room disappointed.   I had not had a heartbeat for forty-five seconds, and I felt as though I had come back from a very long distance to awake in my body.

I told my wife about this experience within hours. Most of my friends consider me a smart person. I told a lot of them; they believe me, and many asked interesting questions about the experience and wanted to learn from it. Most have gained comfort from my experience.

Amro’s NDE in 2003---From Egypt in Arabic

I often suffer from diabetic comas, as I am an uncontrolled diabetic since my childhood. This time my coma was different. I had stopped taking insulin, because it was not available in the pharmacies; and I had no food schedule to follow. .

On that night, I was sitting alone on the balcony, just before midnight. I was very tired and exhausted, when I felt the beginning of the coma. I wanted to enter my room, lie down in the bed, and tell my wife to do her usual job to relieve me and wake me up. But before I could stand up to walk, my two children came to play with me and make some jokes. I didn't want to stop them. I participated with them in their playing around me, despite feeling that my health situation was getting worse. I kept my feeling inside me, as I wanted to look healthy and good in front of them. Then my vision started to diminish and I couldn't move my hands or legs. I tried to speak loudly to my children, but they didn't hear me. They continued in their playing with each other. I tried again but they didn't hear me at all. Finally, I surrendered.

I knew that something strange was going on with me. Suddenly, everything disappeared. All I could see was a long, dark, rectangular tube. I was surprised to find myself floating towards a hole in the tube. In this moment, I heard the voice of my child calling me. I turned my face. I saw myself (my body) sitting in a chair with my head on my chest. My two children were trying to wake me up and were weeping. I knew that I had died. I didn't feel afraid, but the opposite. I felt a kind of relief I hadn't experienced in all my life. I suddenly felt that I understood all science and human knowledge, such as medicine and engineering and chemistry!

When I reached the end of the tube, I saw my dead father and my cousin in their full appearance. My father looked in good health and younger, though with white hair, and my cousin looked like the day he died, when I washed his body and buried him. Both of them were wearing traditional Egyptian Jalabia. My father was wearing white, my cousin grey.

In Arabic: نعم شاهدت أرضا مخضرة يقف عليها أبى و أبن عمى و كان يبدو ورائهما سهل متعرج مكسو بلون أخضر لم أشاهد مثله من قبل .. و شاهدت كما لو كان يوجد جبل صغير فى الخلفية ..

Translated to English: I saw a green land on which my father and my cousin stood, and it looked like a winding plain behind them. I had never seen anything like it before. And I saw a small mountain in the background.

They were smiling at me and motioning me to come towards them. They were standing in a brilliant lighted circle at the end of the tube. The light was like the big lights in a football stadium, very bright but not harmful.   I felt a strong willingness to join them, especially my father, who died years before.

I suddenly heard many mixed voices.   I felt like they were forbidding me to go further to join my father. In the background, I could also hear the voices of my wife and children, crying and calling me to return. I felt deep sorrow and pain. I looked to my father who seemed okay. He spoke to me, 'Go back to them my son; tell them my greeting.' I had a desire to return to my children.

I found myself suddenly flying back to my body!!! I saw myself lying in the bed and my family around me crying.   I called to them that I am still alive, but they didn't hear me. I saw my older sister quickly entering the room and someone with her. I knew he was a doctor, and there was a girl with him. I knew from her features that she was a foreigner. The doctor took out of his bag a syringe and put it into my chest. I was shouting because of the severe pain, which I felt at that moment, while the girl was trying to fix wires to my heart. Only my sister, the doctor and the girl were in the room now.

Then I felt a strong hit in my heart, shaking my body. As I decided to return to my body, everything became dark. I knew that I had passed through an experience that only few people have had. I felt sad as I tried to get back all the knowledge I had gained during my death, but I couldn't.

I want to add that, since this experience, I feel more peaceful towards myself and more love for all the world. I feel I have become wiser and more rational. I have a more philosophical viewpoint. I knew death, I tasted it, I described it to people around me. I always say to them, ‘Don't worry, there is no pain at all when it comes’. Instead, It is a feeling of calm relief, happiness, and quietness.

Chen M’S NDE IN 1999---from a woman in China. original in Chinese.

[Chinese translated to English, sorry that there may be some errors in the translation since my mother language is not English.]

An NDE that happened to me eight years ago has completely changed me.

I had a family and my father was very strict upon me. I believed in Marxism. I joined the Chinese Communist Party when I was in university and I had a great ambition when I was employed. I deeply believed in materialism and I strongly rejected anything that related to idealism. Neither did I believe in God.

I arrived at the clinic around 8 am and the nurse told me I had to inject penicillin. I told the nurse that I have an allergic reaction to penicillin but the nurse told me that it would be okay. The nurse then offered me some other medicine that may reduce any possible allergic reaction. I was injected and the nurse left the room to treat other patients.

About thirty seconds, I experienced a strong tinnitus and I dropped into a dark tunnel, rushing with an incredible speed. I was extremely frightened because I didn't know what happened to me. I could neither shout nor stop, and I couldn't go back or ask for help. I then realized that it was caused by the allergic reaction. I was in despair, floating in the tunnel. I couldn't imagine why I did not lose my consciousness and why I still exist.
However, my fear gradually disappeared. I felt myself floating somewhere and it was comfortable.
An indescribable 'stream of consciousness' was accompanying me. He gave me the answer to my every question and he comforted my frightened heart.

I didn't know how to describe him. He had no shape or voice, but he was bright and broadminded, warm and gentle. He could answer every question. He surrounded me and guided me. He communicated with me through telepathy. He revealed everything of the universe.

I was no longer in the tunnel but I was in the bright warm world. I felt a complete relief from pain and suffering. I felt the existence of everlasting harmony and happiness.
He told me everything that I wanted to know. He told me the world consisted of molecules and atoms and they keep moving. Then he showed me a tree that was beside my window in my room. What surprised me is that I had greatly improved my vision incredibly. I did see a world with moving molecules and atoms. The feeling was extraordinary and I felt my consciousness was much faster than ever before.

I asked him whether I'm a part of the world too and he said yes. He told me everything is moving, there was no death, there was no birth, everything is just cycling eternally. He said that this is the very truth of universe.

He then told me that the so-called 'death' is nothing but another stage of life. Consciousness still exists even if you died. Our flesh is like a TV set and our consciousness is the signal. The signal still exists even when the TV set is broken. The consciousness of human beings is a kind of energy and it will never diminish.
But he also told me you cannot communicate with the living and your parents cannot realize that you are still alive. I suddenly realized that I must take care of my parents and my baby.

I felt my soul and my body both exist in several dimensions. My soul was communicating with 'a consciousness stream' and meanwhile I could see everything on the world with unimaginable agility. I could hear, but the sound was distorted and delayed. I heard an old man complaining and people walking. I could even see through a closet and discovered some coat hangers inside it. Soon I heard my mobile phone ring. I could even predict what the doctor is going to say, and I was correct!

Yet I could still control my body. I controlled my lung to breathe in order to show that I'm alive. I realized that I still have my parents and a baby to take care of so I must draw the attention of the doctor and he might bring me back. I controlled my hand to grasp the doctor's hand tightly.

Then I felt a heavy stunning and the world spun around. I found myself returned to my body. I started to vomit. I vomited a lot and the doctor could not believe it, since I didn't eat anything at all. I told my doctor about my NDE and he was frightened.

After the NDE, I was no more afraid of death at all. I know how the world runs and I had a thorough understanding to the universe. I cared for neither fame nor money. I started to have concern about the suffering in the world. I comfort others who are in despair. I make them realize that death is not horrible. I filled my heart with love and joy.

Thomas M’s NDE in 1984

I was a passenger in a car in Dallas, Texas when a van came across the yellow line and hit us head on. My seatbelt broke, and my head went through the windshield, and when the ambulances arrived, I wasn't breathing.

They brought me back, but I had amnesia when I regained consciousness in the hospital and didn't know who I was.   My memory of the Near Death Experience soon came back, but my memory of the accident never came back completely.   I remember the morning of the accident, and I remember the Near Death Experience, but to this day twenty-five years later, I cannot remember the actual accident. I feel this is a gift.

I had broken my neck in the top two vertebra, and the doctor said it was a miracle that I was alive and that I could still walk. Anyway, right after the accident, I realized I was floating above a car wreck. I had an altered type of vision, because even though I was above the car, I could 'see' inside the car with a sort of 'super vision'. I saw my body, and I saw the body of my friend at the wheel. I had no real emotion about what I was witnessing. I had a calm sense of detachment, and I remember looking at my body as if it were a sweater or a suit I had worn and now had cast off.   I remember thinking, 'It was cool being Thomas,' like it was some fun excursion, this life I had lived. Then I remember being transported up quickly away from the accident. I couldn't see anything, but it did not matter. Sight suddenly seemed like some primitive tool as I felt enveloped in some kind of 'knowing' that surpassed the human senses.

Suddenly, I became aware of a Presence that was at once familiar and loving and kind and all-powerful and so very immense that there will never be any words appropriate to describe it.   My first thought was, 'It knows my name!' I was in awe that this amazing Presence knew me!   It was exciting and exhilarating that something so immense and important took the effort to know little me. I felt like a little baby, nuzzled in the warm embrace of my mother. I felt really tiny and helpless but completely relaxed and trusting. I knew that this Presence was all-powerful and knew everything---and that everything would always be alright, no matter what happened ever.

I became aware that the Presence was prompting me into a dialogue. I remember bits and pieces of a 'conversation' without words. I remember asking questions and receiving answers. The first question I asked was very impertinent: 'Why is there so much pain down there?' (Meaning on earth). The answer was laughter. So much joyful laughter, like a mother laughing at the amazing questions only a small child can ask. The laughter was followed with something like, 'Don't you know I have the power to take away all the pain? I can rewind the universe and start all over again with one simple wish. The pain is left behind on earth. It does not travel with us, but the lessons we learn from it are eternal.' I immediately accepted this, without a doubt.

I remember there was so much more I learned. It was like an eternal moment, which seemed to last one second as well as an eternity. I was shown many things, many realms, and many spirits of people and other beings. It was magic. This is the hardest part to communicate, as this part of the experience was wordless but filled with imagery that cannot be communicated. I honestly feel such things are not for this world and can never properly be explained or explored in this world. Like a child hoping for the perfect Christmas present has many images in his head, but until Christmas morning, he can never be quite sure what it will be. Until it is our time, I feel that the answers we seek will never be entirely revealed, which forces us to have faith, which forces us to change.

Suddenly I was given a choice. I could go back to earth and back to the human body that I was living in, or I could stay in these realms. I wanted to stay forever and stated just that. I was shown once more the scene of the accident. I saw my friend with blood pouring out of her nose and she was struggling to breathe and the blood was making bubbles out of her nose as the air was forcing its way through. For the very first time in this experience, I felt anxious. I felt as if I had to help her. I was concerned about what was going to happen to her. I turned to the Presence and said that I wanted to return, and the Presence said I could return, but I had to do something. I had to make a promise before it would let me return. I promised and swore on my heart with all my might. The next thing I knew, I was back in my body, and my body was uncontrollably saying, 'Oh God. Oh God. Oh God!' That was the last thing I remember before coming to in the hospital. To this day, I cannot remember what I promised to do!

I believe I was not meant to remember the promise cognitively, that instead it is somewhere written on my heart or encoded in my DNA like a program that I agreed to have downloaded in myself. Whatever it was, I believe that it was a very good thing. My friend suffered intensive nerve damage, and for three years we took care of each other, often joking that between our two damaged selves we made up one whole person that could do anything! Against all the doctors’ advice and parental concern, we both returned to college in the Fall. We helped each other through some very difficult times.

I believe I came back changed. I saw my previous life in a way I never thought of before. I saw myself as this self-seeking, self-protective, self-obsessed person who was headed down the wrong path in life. I believe this experience gave me a new realization of how amazing and fortunate it is for anyone to be alive. I believe the person I was before the Near Death Experience no longer exists, and that a new me had returned in his place -- a better me, a kinder me. I also know that, whether or not others believe the experience was 'real' is completely irrelevant. I believe it was real, and it changed me and altered my entire life for the better. Maybe the time is coming that I am supposed to do what I promised. I just pray that I am ready, willing, and able to do whatever this Sublime and lovely Presence wishes for me to do, for I know that no matter what, this Presence knows all of us here on earth by our first names and knows everything about us and loves us unconditionally one and all.

Stacy S’s NDE in 1987

HERE IS WHAT HAPPENED TO THE PUBLIC “ME”:

I was thirty-six years old at the time, playing pick-up basketball, full court, with men fifteen years younger than me. My competitive style, my life style, was to play hard, win at all costs, and ignore the pain or consequences to my body while doing so. I did not hydrate with water nor leave the court for over three and a half hours. We were playing under the mid-day sun, a weekend in August of 1987.

After playing, I left with my spouse to go shopping. I entered a store and blacked out. My hidden experience then began, as detailed below. When I woke up from this experience, my wife was clutching my arm, while I was hooked up to monitors and glucose packs in a hospital bed. She informed me that I had experienced a grand mal epileptic seizure in the store, that it required two large emergency medical technicians to hold me down so I wouldn't hurt myself or swallow my tongue. (I am a fairly big guy, height six feet, four inches and 200 lbs.) I had been in the hospital in a coma for a full day. Doctors checked me out and released me within three hours of my awakening.

HERE IS WHAT HAPPENED AT THE SAME TIME (AS ABOVE) TO THE “ME” THAT WAS UNSEEN:

I did not talk with anyone about what I had experienced while I was unconscious. Initially, the first five to six months, I thought it had all been a dream that I remembered, lasting maybe twenty to 30 minutes. Upon reflection, however, I realized I had experienced something unlike anything I had ever encountered. The events went accordingly:

I am floating above my body, which is in an ambulance upon a stretcher. Two emergency medical technicians are slicing my clothes off to hook up heart monitors to me, taking my pulse and attempting to insert a needle with glucose packs into my arm. The ambulance is bouncing and they fail at several attempts. Blood is running down my arm from the puncture wounds. They are saying on the phone, 'We have a white middle aged male in arrest. Direct us to nearest emergency room. Stat.' I think to myself, 'Hmm, looks like I might be dying. I wonder if I will make it.' Then I am back in my body, open my eyes briefly and ask one emergency medical technician, 'Am I going to die?'

He looks at his partner, they exchange a glance, and then he says to me, 'Don't worry. You are fine and are not going to die.' I leave my body and return to floating above the ambulance. I think to myself, 'It is not his decision whether I leave or not.' I was beginning to feel wonderful! --- joy, bliss, peace, calmness, total love and awe. There was a complete absence of fear, guilt, shame, anxiety, anger – or any other negative feeling.

The scene below me is bright and vivid with lots of activity. It is like I am looking through a translucent membrane at live theater, but I am not emotionally connected to it, other than I am curious and interested. All around and above me is black, a void; I look over to my right and see a long dark tunnel leading off into infinity. In the farthest reaches of this tunnel, I see a small, singular bright light. In front of the tunnel are two figures, my grandparents on my mother's side of the family---Jack and Sonja, who had died when I was in my early twenties. I loved them deeply and without reservation and knew they felt the same way about me. A Voice asked me a question. The Voice came from everywhere, inside me, around me, back in time, forward in time, everywhere. It asked, 'ARE YOU FINISHED?'

I instantly comprehend that it's really asking: 'Are you finished living in your body on this material plane in the manner of depressive self-disregard and emotional disdain for yourself and others that is interwoven throughout your being?' I comprehended that the way I had lived my life up to now would not allow me to stay in my body on this plane of existence. It was not the way of things, God's things, God's universe. The question was asked matter-of-factly, as unemotionally and non-judgmentally, as loving and accepting, as if I had been asked to pass the salt at the dinner table or take off my shoes before entering the house. No blame, no shame, no guilt, no criticism, no anger -- just a question. “ARE YOU FINISHED?”

I felt I had all the time there ever was, and ever would be, to answer. My earthly perception of time was different, an illusion of our material and bodily senses. I felt totally relaxed, calm, peaceful, and I knew in that moment that everything about my life, existence and love was comprehensible and totally reachable. I was home in God's arms, and I was being given a peek behind the veil at Universal Knowledge through the eyes of God. I continued to float.

After a while, or a long time, I remembered my wife was waiting for my return, and that we were not finished with our time together. She was waiting for me. Slowly I turned my head away from the scene before me, not to my left where the tunnel, the light, and my grandparents were, but towards the void on my right. Then I awoke in the hospital to my wife clutching my arm and the IV drips and other intensive care unit lines connected to my body.

A year later, my wife and I were divorced. I was no longer married, my career and work were in disarray, I was actively seeking different alternative ways to heal the chaos of my life, and I continued to review my near-death experience.

Temperamentally, I am a skeptic by nature, but I finally came to accept it for what it was, as time went by. My experience was a gift and a chance to live the second half of my life in a radically different fashion. Love, recovery and spiritual peace were now more than just an idea or a goal to pursue.

Now that I have this new understanding of my experience, I am more spiritual in my daily activities. I meditate and pray more, I listen better, and I am more compassionate to the pain of others as well as myself. I am kinder with others and myself. I laugh more, and though I still work hard, I enjoy my work. My religious beliefs have been exchanged for more direct spiritual knowledge. I am very happy about that.

Tom N’s Veridical OBE in 1968

I spent a year in Viet Nam with the 101st Airborne Division. I was assigned to 'B' Company of the 502nd. In the year I spent with the 'Oh deuce,' we sustained 97% casualties and fatalities. It is hard to understand death on such a grand scale, and the experiences caused me to reexamine everything I understood and knew to be true. I had many unanswered questions.

In April of 1968, as we advanced on a village in the northeast portion of I Corp, the trooper in front of me struck a wasp's nest with the butt of his rifle. The wasps swarmed on me and stung me eleven times in the head. I was evacuated by helicopter to the MASH unit at LZ Sally. By the time we arrived, my facial features had completely disappeared because of the swelling from the stings.

As they carried me into the emergency room the doctor looked at me and said; 'What in the hell happened to him?' I realized I had bitten one of the wasps that had stung me in the mouth; I removed the wasp from my mouth and offered it up for anyone to see. I then went into anaphylactic shock; and suffered cardiac arrest and complete respiratory failure.

As soon as I flat lined my spirit/soul left my body. From above the operating table, I watched the efforts to revive me. There was no fear, no anxiety, and no concern, just watching and waiting. I was, however, aware of my existence, and I knew it was still me. The surgical team withdrew blood from one arm and put new blood into my other arm, while they were administered shots of adrenalin. As soon as they resuscitated me, I returned into my body.

The next day in the recovery room, I was thinking about the supernatural phenomena I had just experienced and wondered how I could empirically verify my experience. The emergency room orderly came by and said, 'Oh, I see you're coming around.' I asked him, 'Why were you putting blood into one arm and taking it out of the other?' With a very surprised look, he replied, 'How the hell did you know we did that? You were gone!' This was the empirical verification I needed. My experience had not been a dream or induced by stress, shock or some other means. I was fully conscious through the entire experience, and the experience was real!

Therese B’s NDE in 1998—from Sweden. Original in Swedish

I was 18 years old. I had been living a very destructive life for the last few years, and I was staying in an institution for problem youth. I was very egotistical and tough, and I did not care for others or myself. I smoked and drank alcohol, and had no plans for my life. My life was in chaos, and psychologically, down deep, I felt very bad.

One day in 1998 a woman from the personnel department at the youth home took me shopping in Karlstad to buy me some clothes. We were finished shopping and were on our way home. The two of us, as well as some other people, were standing together at an intersection, waiting for the light to turn green so we could cross the road. Suddenly a van stopped and waved for us to cross. I was the first one to walk out in front of the van. I passed in front of it and stepped into the next lane. Suddenly, I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a red car bearing down on me at full speed. I remember realizing that it was going to hit me and that I might die.

Instantly, I was in a different dimension–-in a beautiful place, filled with gorgeous white and golden rays of light. In front of me, there was a large group of people, looking so happy, all welcoming me. I felt right at home, as if I were returning to my real family after a long trip away. I felt love for all of them, and they loved me. I could not see their faces, but all of them were surrounded by white light. I felt that I knew them and that they knew me. They communicated love, safety and family.

My past life flashed before me. I saw, and even experienced, different times in my life. I understood why I had acted in certain ways, or why some things had happened to me. I found out that there is a purpose and a meaning to my life. I could see everything, all at the same time, both near and far. As soon as I was aware of wanting to see something, or be somewhere, instantly, I was there! I felt everything that was happening so deeply, and I understood everything!

Another Consciousness spoke directly to me, and it felt like our Father. This Being was Love, happiness, understanding, consciousness and freedom!   I become aware that I now understand everything and have answers to all my questions.   Everything was very clear to me!   The Higher Consciousness showed me what my life has been so far, and I realized that I have not yet done what I am supposed to do. The Consciousness helps me understand that I can choose to go back to my life on Earth, or to be finished with it and move on.

As I reflect on the choice, I realize that I have not found my purpose in life but that I want to find it. I want to fulfill my purpose. I know that once I have lived my life, and have done what I am supposed to do, I will again return to this place, so I chose to continue my Earthly life and do the best that I could with it!   Very quickly I was back in my body on the asphalt.

I could hear someone talking to me in a worried voice. I told her that everything will be fine, and that she should not be sad. Then I remember being in an ambulance and someone asking me for my social security number. Witnesses say that the van stopped and that I crossed in front of it. The red car hit me on my side, and I flew up on top of its hood, then up in the air, and dropped down to the ground, bouncing on the asphalt twice. Then I lay completely still. Everything happened in just a few seconds, but I experienced being in the other dimension for a much longer time. The woman that had taken me shopping was sure I had died, and was very shocked. I spent two days in the hospital and was fairly good, considering.   I only had a concussion, a broken tooth and some bruising.   After the accident, I became totally different and started loving life, and now I believe that we come Home only when our physical body dies!

Now I believe in God, and I know that in the other world where I saw God, there is an existence that is much more real, wonderful, clear, and self-evident than the life we live here. I learned that I was loved, and that if I really I wanted to live a good life, I had the choice to do it. I've always been sure that my experience was definitely real. I was very happy and excited about it afterward.

Arshan’s NDE in 1996---from Iran. Original in Farsi

I was not feeling well and I wasn’t paying attention to my driving. I reached an intersection and looked to both sides of the street without much care. I did not see any cars coming, so I continued along my way. Suddenly, I heard a loud car horn followed by a loud crashing sound. At that moment, I found myself floating in a dark space. I was outside my body, floating in the air and just looking around.

I saw a body lying in the middle of the street next to a car. I was looking at it from several feet away. It took me a little while to recognize that it was my own body that I am looking at. I had no feelings for it; I was just an indifferent observer. I thought to myself that I must have died, but I was not sad at all. I didn't know where I was supposed to go from there. My thoughts and mind were the same as when I was in of my physical life, but I could not imagine the earthly thoughts.

After a short while, I gave up the worry of where I need to go from here, because I was enjoying the peace and silence. I was immersed in that moment. I was just watching from several feet up in the air as people were rushing towards my body from every direction. I couldn't hear their voices clearly, yet I was able to comprehend what they were saying. When I looked at these people, I knew their thoughts and what they were going to say.

Since there was a hospital on the same street where the accident occurred, it didn't take long for the ambulance to arrive. The medics put my body on a stretcher and transferred me to the ambulance. The driver turned on the sirens and sped towards the hospital. Nevertheless, I was not feeling discomfort or pain. At the same time, I was feeling that I was going higher and higher each second.

I was floating and felt so light. Out of my body, I was transparent and non-physical, yet it was similar to a human form. Although I saw the new form, I wasn’t giving it any thought. I was feeling pleasantly warm, could not smell or taste, and did not have any bodily physical senses. I could not feel physical things, but my eyesight was greatly enhanced. I felt like I had turned into energy.

I was flying and trying to reach a light that was moving in front of me. As I got closer to this light, it became brighter. The light was formless and had colors of blue, orange, yellow, and gold. I didn't know what it was. I was pulled towards the light with great force. The closer I got to it, the more joy and peace I felt. After a while, I noticed Beings similar to me but they were more brilliantly colored and were moving slower than me. Then I was surrounded by my deceased relatives. I was feeling so much joy and lightness from seeing them. I felt they were there to help me. Their bodies were transparent and luminous. It never occurred to me to ask them questions like where am I?, where am I going?, what will happen to me?, am I dead? They didn't talk to me either.

A halo of light surrounded me into itself. My life and all of its events started to play in my mind, but it was very clear, real, and alive. It was like a slideshow, but I experienced all the feelings in these events again. Everything was shown in chronological order. Although this whole life review only took minutes, it was pleasant and interesting to me. Once my life review stopped, my mind started to analyze my life and my actions. I felt that, overall, I was relatively kind to people.

After that, I felt freedom. The halo of light left me and I felt like I have to return to the physical life. I was trying to avoid this from happening because I was experiencing new and pleasant things. But I automatically left that environment and moved into a grayish-blue environment and returned back into the ambulance. The ambulance entered the hospital and they transferred my body into the intensive care unit. My floating Being could easily pass through the walls. It was like as I got close to a wall, it would go away. I could not feel any physical thing or barrier. I knew I was moving, yet I could not feel the motion. I entered the operating room, positioned somewhere close to the ceiling. Doctors and nurses were surrounding my body, but no one noticed me up by the ceiling. They were massaging my chest area. A nurse inserted a tube into my throat and used that to give me breathing. Another doctor injected something in my body. But my body was not responding. I heard a doctor shout, ‘code pink!’

Right then, as I was floating in the air, an immense feeling of loneliness, depression, and fear engulfed me. I knew that my communication with others was cut off and I could not speak to people. I felt if I don't enter my body again, I would die forever. I was sad for my family and friends and how they would feel after my death. I could imagine and feel their feelings. On the other hand, there also were important works I needed to finish---and I thought I am too young to die. Nevertheless, I wanted to stay in this pleasant non-physical environment. I felt I need to decide quickly whether to stay in my body or outside of it. I felt that I cannot stay outside for too long or I would die permanently. So I decided to return.

During all this time the medical staff were trying hard to save me. Several times, they gave me an electric shock, but I didn't feel anything. However, I then felt I am getting heavier and being pulled down towards my body. It was like their effort was working. When they shocked me again after several times, my body jumped up. I felt I entered my body like a solid object, with a jerk. I felt I am inside my body and heard the nurse shout, "Wow, it worked!" After I entered my body, I felt lots of intense pain. When I healed a little bit, my doctor told me, "You passed a critical state." I said that I know and told him my entire experience from the beginning to the end. He was amazed and speechless.

This experience has changed my life and my thinking. I am no longer afraid of dying, as I have experienced it once. --- Gonbade K, Iran -Winter of 1996

Ana Cecilia G’s NDE in 1989---from Mexico in Spanish

I was born with a heart condition: major cardiac vessels were in the wrong place, and I had only one ventricle. From birth my parents were told I wouldn't live very long. I never had surgery or treatment for this illness.

I did survive, but a few months after the miraculous birth of my baby girl, I felt very ill. They had to operate. After surgery there were serious complications, one of which was that I was full of Staphylococcus aureus. My life was in danger. In order to try to extract the fluid from around my lungs that was drowning me and crushing my heart, they had to operate. Then, after a second surgery, I had a near-death experience.

After anesthesia, some patients are able to hear and feel much earlier than others. While still in surgery, my anesthesia wore off; I was alive, but it wasn't agreeable because I could hear everything. The doctors and nurses in charge of cleaning me at the end of surgery and to prepare me to return to intensive care carried on talking. I heard how they lamented and mentioned that I had a little girl 10 months old and maybe I wouldn't ever see her again. They were speaking about my family, my two sisters, father, and my husband.

Why were they talking about me and my family in this way, as I was still alive? They shouldn't talk like this; they should see me, here I am, listening! From within, I cried desperately.

The situation was very delicate. I hung by a thread; my entire body was invaded by spores of Staphylococcus aureus. It was very complex to eradicate this bacteria under the circumstances in which I had found myself. Maybe during the first surgery, the area had become contaminated; nobody was sure.

I awoke in intensive care in a private cubicle; I was on the brink of death, but inside in my soul, my spirit was as strong as ever. There was no way to communicate this confidence and strength to my family, because I was intubated, on a respirator, and there was no way to communicate, other than making signals.

The doctors asked me how I felt, and I raised my arms in a triumphant signal, but in that very moment they tied my hands to the rail of the bed, because of the danger of running the risk of ripping out the respirator tubes. I saw the doctors retreat with my parents and husband to talk a distance away from intensive care. They hoped that medication would eradicate the Staphylococcus aureus.

In my cubicle I tried to signal that the tube in my throat was hurting a lot, but I couldn't make myself understood.   I made a nurse give me a pen and notebook to write what I wanted to say. I was only able to say 'My throat hurts.' One of the two nurses, which were always in charge of me, touched my head and said ‘it was natural that it should be a little uncomfortable, but they have to leave the tube there'. It was impossible, no one would listen to me and the pain I felt wasn't normal. I had previously been intubated and hadn't felt any discomfort at all. It was no use continuing to try to tell them that the tube was badly fitted. With the secretion of some phlegm, the tube was blocked, and the moment arrived when I could barely breathe.

The respirator alarm began sounding, and an army of doctors and nurses entered my cubicle. I heard the cries ‘Respirator! Respirator!’ They were calling the specialist team. Meanwhile, some nurses held my legs and tried to calm me in the bed; the doctors tried to suck out the phlegm. I continued struggling in order that they could help me breathe. The desperation to receive a little air and the adrenalin made me writhe so badly that four people couldn't hold me down. My body hung onto life in spite of being weak, infected, recently operated on, and deprived of oxygen. Then the dizziness started. I began to lose consciousness, and my body began to surrender. I stopped breathing and my heart stopped. Then, I left.

Suddenly, I opened my eyes and felt totally liberated.   I saw my body in a hospital gown, doctors around my body trying to resuscitate me. The sensation was strange because I saw my body, but I floated alone. No one tried to hold down my painful legs and arms. The relief was enormous. I couldn't control that which had happened; I let go. Then, there began the most wonderful journey.

I floated inside what seemed like a tree. First I saw something like a layer of branches that sheltered little animals. There were squirrels, rabbits and birds amongst them. All of them were harmonious. They radiated a love like I had never felt. I continued floating; meanwhile my body relaxed, my muscles stopped hurting, I breathed freely, I no longer felt tired. The relief wasn't just external, but internal also. Straight away, I saw a second layer of various extensive branches; the scenario was incredible. There were big animals, horses, giraffes, elephants, lions, and many more. The scene was beautiful. The colors of the skins of each species amazed me. For the first time I saw these wild animals, like never before. It was as if we knew each other and were part of the same family. I felt love for these beings and was aware that they loved me as well.

I continued rising. I saw a third layer of branches. These were full of children of all races and ages, everyone unique and at the same time beautiful. Everyone was happy. Smiles, songs, and small, sweet voices.   The children played and ran in the field; they splashed in the water that cascaded from a fountain in the center of the garden. I wasn't able to talk to anyone; at least I didn't try.   I was content to observe and enjoy this beautiful countryside that emanated love from every side. The communication I had during the journey wasn't verbal, but I felt flooded with love, so that I didn't say anything. I enjoyed, and was delighted with this beautiful spectacle.   I was like a balloon that leaves the hand of a child, and is not concerned with that which it leaves behind. It goes wherever the air takes it.

At this moment, I remembered my life as Ana Cecilia. But I wasn't worried, I knew that she would be fine. Then I was able to see her in bed sleeping peacefully. I realized that I had the power to see everything in front, behind, up and down or everywhere at once. Without needing to turn, my eyes could see as if in three dimensions. I didn't feel worry or anxiety. It was a lot of information at once, and all of it was assimilated and fascinated me. I felt that there had been magic in this place.

A little further up, I saw another large layer of branches. This time there were teenagers, people of middle age, and people just growing old. I saw harmony, serenity, and happiness. People smiled and I felt strengthened. The voices were clear, harmonious, and fluent. The communication flowed in a natural manner. The atmosphere was total peace, and completely full of love. There was also a fountain surrounded by flowers of every color, in the center of a large garden. The water cascaded in different rhythms, forming images, and its sound was in harmony and was amazing. The people sat down and talked and smiled at one another. They didn't talk with sounds from the mouth. It was as if just with the mind they could say everything and I could hear them. There were people in the garden reading and just enjoying the Sun. The countryside was fantastic.

I continued being carried along on this journey. I didn't feel ill. I didn't hurt in any way, absolutely. I remembered my parents and my husband. I knew that they were suffering, but I also knew they would be OK. I wanted to console them, love them more and more. Nothing, absolutely nothing worried me. It was as if I knew that sooner or later they would enjoy this excellent feeling of well-being that I had, and I stopped worrying.

I went on a bit further towards a layer of branches; but this time, I could see a large group of old people. The elderly people smiled, they looked strong and vigorous. Many were set down talking but without saying anything, just enjoying the countryside. They were in the middle of flower-filled gardens, trees of various species, and rivers flowing with clean fresh water. They walked along paths and shared stories. Suddenly, I realized that my body felt it was filled with electricity, that it was able to radiate light. My soul filled up with happiness.

Then I looked up and saw a light so intense that it attracted me. I believed that I would be able to live in the light that was within. As it filled every part of my body, I became blinded and was in complete ecstasy. It was impossible to describe the sensation of being embraced by this light that filled me with this complete love. It was like being at home with the whole of the family of creation.

Almost immediately, I felt the stroke of a hand on the upper part of my head and heard a gentle, beautiful, almost mystical voice say to me, ‘Stay calm and go in peace. Do everything that I have asked you.’ In this instant I began my journey back.

Again I saw myself far away in the hospital bed and the doctors surrounding my body trying to resuscitate me. Suddenly, I was in my body, feeling pain, anguish, and anger. I felt a great heat in the chest from the electric shock they had used to get the cardiac rhythm back. In this moment I heard the doctors shouting, ‘She's back, again with us.” But then, ‘She's gone! She's gone! Try again.’

‘No! I don't want to return, Leave me in peace!’ I shouted inwardly without anyone hearing me. I was desperate. I didn't want to be here. I fought to return to where I had been. There was no reason to stay here, where there had been so much pain and suffering. I just wanted to return to this light, this immense love and fullness that I had felt. I couldn't think of my daughter, my husband, my parents, or my family. All was left behind in importance after having lived in this place of peace and restfulness.

After a battle of around an hour, with electric shocks and CPR, the doctors managed to reestablish my heart beat. I was here again in the hospital, full of tubes, sounds, respirators, and a large group of doctors around me. Some hours passed before I was able to understand and accept what had happened. I had been in another place, in another dimension. Something had happened; I had left my body. I didn't understand where I had been, but I knew that I had been alive and had been given a foretaste of the amazing world which comes after death.

Heather V’s NDE in 2016

I was in hospital about to get an intravenous (IV) drip with anesthesia. There was a problem with the dripline, which had been kinked for 40 minutes! When the IV line unkinked, the anesthesia drugs came pouring into my body. I felt my heart immediately go into extreme tachycardia. 'My heart!' I yelled, 'My Heart!' The nurses came running toward me.

Suddenly, I was floating about 8 feet over my body. I was watching the scene below as the nurse scrambled through the cabinet looking for something. She was pulling things out and onto the floor. The nurse assistant ran into the surgery room. She grabbed the doctor, who ran over to me and started doing compressions while the nurses got the big needle out. They were arguing about whether it would be better to put it into my chest or into the IV line. I thought I was in a dream state until I looked at the EKG and saw that it had flatlined with the alarms going off!

I said to myself, 'Oh Fuck! I am Dying!' I could see the doctors down below, trying frantically to bring me back. I said, 'I don't want to die! Oh My God! NO!' I tried to dive back into my body, but instead I was falling backward through a tunnel at what seemed like thousands of miles per hour! It was horrifying until I started slowing down. I realized that it wasn't a dark tunnel. It was a tunnel with many lights. There were so many colors I had never seen before. I wasn't afraid any more.

At the end of this tunnel was the most awesome and beautiful place in existence! I felt pure and total love, lightness, deepest compassion, and pure joy. It was complete and total perfection. I seemed super-sensory in this other realm. It seemed very clear to me that in our existence as human beings, we don't have the receptors to process this beauty, this unique kind of light and sound. There seemed to be a music that each living thing possessed. I could actually feel, not just hear, the trees, animals, birds, grasses and skies in this other reality. This place is where things have a song which you can feel! It sounds bizarre, I know.

Then, I seemed to have arrived back in the hospital room, but in another dimension. I was looking at everyone and everything in that hospital through what I can only describe as “through the eyes of God.” I felt the Love of God for all these people in the hospital: the patients, the staff, and the receptionist. I never saw my own life, but I saw everyone else's life pass before my eyes. I saw the receptionist and everything about her. I saw her heart. I felt her love for her babies. I felt her pain and her thoughts. I saw the technician and everything in his life right then. I saw each person for who they really truly were. I saw what motivated them and I saw their beautiful hearts. I saw their souls as if through the eyes and heart of God. I saw them and I loved them, each and every person. I seemed to pull back from the room and up, out of the building. I saw people on the street and knew their pain. I saw them with pure love.

Then I began getting an information download. There was no talking, just information going into me with absolute love. It was very clear, very loud, and very certain, that WE ARE ALL VERY IMPORTANT TO GOD. We are all deeply, deeply loved by God, and that life is supposed to be hard, but that it is some sort of proving or training ground for God to use in our creation. The message was that our lives are deeply important to God and to the existence of the universe. The love we have and the love we cultivate on earth, especially for people we have a hard time liking, that love somehow is very important. I felt that there was something at stake, that we have an important job to do. Human Beings are beloved, and our choice in how to act is given to us to prove God. I don't know how to describe it, I am trying hard to explain it here, but it's hard to explain. It may take my lifetime to explain what I learned.

IN this place we go after we die, we will have lightness, laughter and joy, and our soul family is there waiting for us. Our jobs on earth are to find out how to break through all these illusory walls everywhere that we erect to hide who we are. We need to really love each other and love ourselves. I felt as though God has a sense of humor, too, a deep appreciation for our lives and even for our failures. We are supposed to learn from our failures and not beat ourselves up over them. We need to find a way to forgive and love ourselves, because in reality, in the real place of creation, there is only Love. It seemed the message was that if we couldn't find a path to love, then we are destroying something very, very precious.

I recognized a big crowd of people around me, but they didn't have human form. I recognized their souls. They had misty-pink shapes, smiling with joy and resonating with love. I felt my great-uncle Steve there. The love was incredible, and the beauty was so absolutely, outrageously incredible. When I was looking down at all these people and the doctor who was trying to save me, I was thinking, 'OK man, let's get back in there! I love these people! I wanted to go back so badly and tell them how loved they were. I was standing alongside this soul family of mine and in the presence of what I would describe as total love from the one who made it all. Yet, I wanted to go back!

The next moment I was in my body, and I squeezed the doctor's hand who was holding my hand. He was crying to have me come back. I said, 'Don't let me go! Oh, Doctor, don't let me go!' Later I was told that my heart was stopped for 2 minutes and 45 seconds. This was when I was having my NDE. But time seemed to have stopped altogether on the Other Side!

What matters in life? A true heart which is motivated by loving compassion. Our job is to try to love one another no matter what. It matters very much if we can love or not, because that is our job in this world. This is what we live for, and it doesn't mean we must only love our spouse. It means we need to find out how to love our enemy because that is why we are here.

Jeffrey C’s NDE in 1985

I was part of a motorcycle club called the 'Wheels of Man.' It was some of the best times in my life riding with that wild bunch, but this is not a story about being a biker; it is a story about my wreck on a vintage 1965 Harley Davidson Panhead ex-police Motorcycle.

I was at the club house about to leave when one of the brothers asked me if I would take his son home. Well, since I did not drink that day, I told him, 'Sure, no problem.' I met Frank and we went out to the bike. I started the bike, he got on, and we headed a few blocks away, so he could get his bike and go back to the clubhouse, because he did part time work there. I was only 1 block from his house when it happened.

A drunk guy made an improper left turn in front of me while I was doing 45mph. He hit us with the front of his truck on the passenger side by the front bumper. When the bike went down, Frank was pulled under the truck and through the back passenger wheel, breaking his back in about 15 places.

When the motorcycle wreck happened, I was knocked out of my body, and that’s when the NDE happened, right away on impact. I was outside my body, watching everything happen in slow motion to me, the bike and Frank. All I could think was 'Poor Frank.' I saw the drunk guy hop out of his truck and run over to me kneeling down over me, when I saw myself grab his hair and start punching him in the face! I remember seeing people and an ambulance pull up and a couple of paramedics running over to where my body laid in the road, motionless. I was again back in my body in tremendous pain. I remember seeing a paramedic over me, flashing a light in my eyes, and then heard another siren (most likely a cop car or fire truck). I was in the ambulance now.

I was going in and out of consciousness, when I remember hearing one of the Medics say, 'We're losing him!' I actually heard the flat-line tone on the heart monitor they had placed on my chest. I went from horrific pain and suffering right to Bliss and Happiness, and that’s when the pain stopped

Everything started turning a brilliant white, until there was no form, only bright light. Then the brilliant white light of love, that felt like I was being hugged, started fading out, revealing the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen! I started seeing flowers, vibrant flowers. Some had colors I have never seen before, going off into the distance along the rolling hills. I was moving towards them, gliding along the ground. Then my vision started to change, and I was by a river looking at a gazebo.

The gazebo had two high back wicker chairs with a glass table between them. On the table was what looked like a full pitcher of lemonade. Two empty glasses sat there, waiting to be filled. Soon after that, I started having the overwhelming feeling that I am not supposed to be here right now, but later, when I cross over again, this is going to be my home. I started to look to my right, and I saw the most beautiful cabin I have ever seen. I only got a glimpse of it before the brilliant white light returned to fill my vision. I heard a whoosh!---and I was back in my body, experiencing horrific pain. So after I came back, I passed out. I woke up a few times before they induced a coma. I do remember awakening out of the coma and wondering how a spirit that was so infinite is now crammed back into this body.

Now I appreciate the little things in life. I feel that when you’re born into this world, you cry because you have gone from a place that is complete bliss and happiness, to a world of pain and suffering. Feelings, emotions and the pain of being born to this world is like a huge wave that you come out of. I also realize how rare and precious life is, and that we as a species take almost everything for granted, when it is all a gift. The Gift of Experiences! This planet is so full of diversity and adventure, yet most of us never get to understand the adventure without governments or religions getting in the way of living true life to its fullest.

Life is full of ups and downs; these experiences make us who we are. Not how many people we can convert to our faith, or make them think and see things the same way we do. That only makes the converter feel more comfortable and stronger in their faith. In the end, it does not serve anyone or anything.

I could ramble on and on about the ethics of humanity, but my NDE was a personal experience, and I have said enough for now. Peace to all who have and have not experienced life on the Other Side of Death.

ANITA M’S NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE

About three and a half years ago, I had a needle biopsy on a swollen lymph gland at the base of my neck where it meets my shoulder on my left side, and the results indicated I had Hodgkin's Lymphoma. A scan then preliminary staged it at 1A at that time; however, more tests still needed to be done. If I can explain some details, which I did not think was necessary in my earlier account as it had nothing to do with the NDE itself: My best friend had just died of cancer -- she had a sarcoma in her chest area. The sarcoma had been removed surgically, and then she was given chemo. Her physical condition deteriorated very badly after starting the chemo, and continued to deteriorate until she died. Her family felt very strongly it was the chemo that killed her, not the cancer. I was with her through her experience, and watched her suffer through her chemo experience, which was horrific, and then watched her die. This was my friend whom I had known since grade school, and we had grown up together. When I was then subsequently diagnosed the same year she died, I was shocked, as were many people in our circle of friends. I was very, very afraid of chemo, so I refused treatment, and tried naturopathy, colon therapy, and herbal remedies. All of these failed.

Around one year ago, I started to develop fluid in my chest area, and also my left arm became swollen. My doctor then performed a pleural effusion, and then the fluid came back and he performed the effusion several more times. During this time, my glands were getting more and more swollen, until January, 2006, when my health deteriorated dramatically in a span of two or three weeks. My breathing became more and more labored, I was always out of breath, and I needed to carry a portable oxygen machine. I was losing weight, I could not eat, as I felt full all the time, my muscles were deteriorating to the point where I could not walk and was using a wheelchair, I had skin lesions, which were oozing, and by February 2nd, I could not move. I could not open my eyes, get out of bed, let alone even walk.

So, my husband rushed me to hospital, where, after doing scans, they diagnosed me with grade 4B lymphoma (the highest grade). The scans showed that the lymphoma had spread throughout my body, and my organs were compromised. My feet and hands now began to swell like balloons, and my face was all swollen. The senior oncologist looked at my report and told my husband that it was too late, and that my organs were now shutting down. I only had thirty-six hours to live. However, the oncologist said he would do whatever he could but prepared my husband that I would most likely not make it, as my organs were no longer functioning. They started me on a chemotherapy drip as well as oxygen, and then they started to take tests, particularly on my organ functions, so that they could determine what drugs to use.

I was drifting in and out of consciousness during this time, and I could feel my spirit actually leaving my body. Unbelievably, I was suddenly able to see and hear conversations between my husband and the doctors taking place about forty feet down a hallway. I was later able to verify this conversation to my shocked husband. Then I actually 'crossed over' to another dimension, where I was engulfed in a total feeling of love. I also experienced extreme clarity of why I had the cancer, why I had come into this life in the first place, what role everyone in my family played in my life in the grand scheme of things, and generally how life works. The clarity and understanding I obtained in this state is almost indescribable. Words seem to limit the experience - I was at a place where I understood how much more there is than what we are able to conceive in our three-dimensional world. I realized what a gift life was, and that I was surrounded by loving spiritual beings, who were always around me even when I did not know it.

The amount of love I felt was overwhelming, and from this perspective, I knew how powerful I am, and saw the amazing possibilities we as humans are capable of achieving during a physical life. I found out that my purpose now would be to live 'heaven on earth' using this new understanding, and to share this knowledge with other people. However, I had the choice of whether to come back into life, or go towards death. I was made to understand that it was not my time, but I always had the choice, and if I chose death, I would not be experiencing a lot of the gifts that the rest of my life still held in store. One of the things I wanted to know was that if I chose life, would I have to come back to this sick body, because my body was very, very sick and the organs had stopped functioning. I was then made to understand that if I chose life, my body would heal very quickly. I would see a difference in not months or weeks, but days!

I was shown how illnesses start on an energetic level before they become physical. If I chose to go into life, the cancer would be gone from my energy, and my physical body would catch up very quickly. I then understood that when people have medical treatments for illnesses, it rids the illness only from their body but not from their energy so the illness returns. I realized if I went back, it would be with a very healthy energy. Then the physical body would catch up to the energetic conditions very quickly and permanently. I was given the understanding that this applies to anything, not only illnesses - physical conditions, psychological conditions, etc. I was 'shown' that everything going on in our lives was dependent on this energy around us, created by us. Nothing was solid - we created our surroundings, our conditions, etc. depending where this 'energy' was at. The clarity I received around how we get what we do was phenomenal! It's all about where we are energetically. I was made to feel that I was going to see 'proof' of this firsthand if I returned back to my body.

I know I was drifting in and out between the two worlds, but every time I drifted into the 'other side', I was shown more and more scenes. There was one, which showed how my life had touched all the people in it - it was sort of like a tapestry and showed how I affected everyone's lives around me. There was another which showed my brother on a plane, having heard the news I was dying, coming to see me (this was verified to me as when I started to come round, my brother was there, having just got off a plane). I suddenly became aware he was on the plane to come and see me, and felt 'I can't do this to him - I can't let him come and see me dead'. Then I also saw how my husband's purpose was linked to mine, and how we had decided to come and experience this life together. If I went, he would probably follow soon after.

I was made to understand that, as tests had been taken for my organ functions (and the results were not out yet), that if I chose life, the results would show that my organs were functioning normally. If I chose death, the results would show organ failure as the cause of death, due to cancer. I was able to change the outcome of the tests by my choice!

I made my choice, and as I started to wake up (in a very confused state, as I could not at that time tell which side of the veil I was on). The doctors came rushing into the room with big smiles on their faces saying to my family 'Good news - we got the results and her organs are functioning - we can't believe it!! Her body really did seem like it had shut down!'

After that, I began to recover rapidly. The doctors had been waiting for me to become stable before doing a lymph node biopsy to track the type of cancer cells, and they could not even find a lymph node big enough to suggest cancer (upon entering the hospital my body was filled with swollen lymph nodes). They did a bone marrow biopsy, again to find the cancer activity so they could adjust the chemotherapy according to the disease, and there wasn't any in the bone marrow. The doctors were very confused, but put it down to me suddenly responding to the chemo. Because they themselves were unable to understand what was going on, they made me undergo test after test, all of which I passed with flying colors, and clearing every test empowered me even more! I had a full body scan, and because they could not find anything, they made the radiologist repeat it again!!

Because of my experience, I am now sharing with everyone I know that miracles are possible in your life every day. After what I have seen, I realize that absolutely anything is possible, and that we did not come here to suffer. Life is supposed to be great, and we are very, very loved. The way I look at life has changed dramatically, and I am so glad to have been given a second chance to experience 'heaven on earth'.

Anna G’s NDE in 2011

My husband, 2 children (ages 2 years old and 5 weeks old), and I were driving to Wal-Mart.   I was in the backseat between our children in our Ford Expedition; I was not buckled in. My husband swerved and lost control of the car, and we smashed into a tree.   I remember my brain slowing the whole incident down. I looked over at my son to the right, then looked to my left and saw my 2 year daughter looking frightened and confused. I saw us sliding towards a tree on her side.   I just remember panicking and jumping towards her to shield her; it was more of a reaction or mother instinct.   My legs ended up lodging under the seat, being twisted backwards and shattering both femur bones. The front driver's seat broke, coming back and crushing me. It shattered my right arm, broke 5-9 ribs, broke my cheek bones, nose, and jaw.   My lungs collapsed, allowing fluid to build up on the inner and outer linings.   Fluid also built up in the right frontal lobe of my brain.   My forehead was diagonally split from my eyelid to my hairline, resulting in my eyebrow being in my hairline and my skull exposed. I was instantly knocked unconscious.

Firefighters were running at me. The door was forced ajar, and I was hanging head first out of the door, over the top of my daughter.   I was bleeding profusely and was unconscious.   I tried to look back in the car but can't remember what I saw. All I knew is that I could not move and it freaked me out.   I fell unconscious again. I was in a coma for over a week.

My out-of-body experience began while my body was lying on the ground.   I stood up and looked around. I was extremely confused. What I saw is so hard to describe. I had feelings of peace, calmness, pure love, and bliss all around me. What I saw was the most beautiful hue of a bright golden light all around me. The space I was in was a never-ending, soft hue of golden light with no walls, ceiling, or floor!   It was similar to being in a sunset in the clouds!   It's so hard to explain. There was nothing around me. I remember feeling at peace but still confused. I had my arms crossed and was walking around, trying to figure out where I was.

Then, I heard a man's voice. I turned around and saw my husband smiling at me. At this moment, I did not know that he had been killed. He looked so happy and healthy. His hair was nicely cut, even though I was supposed to cut his hair that day but never got around to it. The confusing thing for me was that he had a long-sleeve, gold shirt on. I remember thinking, 'He never dresses like that.' I walked up to him and he put his arm around me. We sat down. I'm not sure what we sat on because there wasn't any type of furniture or buildings or anything around us. When he put his arm around me, I could feel his breath. He was alive, like you and me. He kept saying to me, 'You gotta be strong. . .You are going to make it. . .You have to be strong for the kids.' He continued, 'I won't be here in body, but I'll always be here in spirit. You gotta be strong.' At that moment, I didn't know I had even been in a wreck! So I kept replying over and over, 'Chris what are you talking about? Be strong for what?' He wouldn't tell me anything else except he kept repeating what he was saying.

I then woke up in the hospital. I remember seeing my mom and asked, 'Is this real?' She said, 'Yes.' I then asked, 'Where are my babies?!' She said, 'They are okay. They were uninjured, thanks to you jumping on your daughter. She didn't get hurt at all.' I sighed in relief and then asked 'Where is Chris?!' She shook her head and started crying. Then I realized that he must have not made it. All I could say was 'NO! He was just here with me!' I could still feel his warmth and where he had just put his arm over my shoulder. I said again, 'We were just sitting together!' She said 'No, Anna, he died.' I was in disbelief.

That's the best I can describe my experience. It's hard to describe what I saw and felt. I know my experience was real. Nobody can tell me otherwise. I feel like that was God's way of pulling me through. Today, I realize that my time on earth was not done. I am here for my children and my family. I am here to spread the love and compassion in my heart, that has grown so strong since that day. I am here to help others through similar experiences, or even losing a loved one. Now I know that life is so precious. We need to care for and love others, even sometimes when they don't seem to deserve our compassion and love.

Anna W’s Amazing NDE in 2009---from the Netherlands. Information from her deceased grandfather, who had been a medical doctor, enabled Anna’s surgeon to save her life!

After my hysterectomy surgery, I was discharged from the hospital to home. However, six days later, I was back in the hospital again because of severe pain and a high fever. The re-admission exam revealed that my blood was infected and that I had peritonitis. A scan showed I had internal bleeding in two places. The infection rate had gone way up to a high CRP. [CRP is the measure of a pain-reactive protein in the blood that rises with inflammation.] The pain was incredible. I needed emergency surgery to drain and wash the infected areas inside my abdomen. Fifteen minutes before I was taken to the operating theater, I was lying in my hospital bed feeling overwhelmed with pain.

Suddenly my awareness changed and the room became filled with a bright light. There before me were my late grandmother and late mother-in-law floating toward me! They came to rest on either side of my bed. Only my mother-in-law spoke. She said it wasn't my time to come with them but that they were here to help me with my pain. So, they 'pulled' me out of my body and I floated straight upward a short distance where I stopped and remained hovering there. As soon as I left my body, everything was tranquil and I felt no more pain.

My mother-in-law pointed to a whitish translucent cord attached at one end to the floating 'me', and at the other end to my body on the bed. She instructed me to be careful not to break that cord as I was going to need it to get back into my body. [Only a very few NDEs mention such a cord.] From above, I could clearly see my husband and the doctors and nurses gathered around my bed. The room was filled with a beautiful bright white light. Looking through this white light, I could see vivid colors, as well as the ordinary objects in the room. I remained floating serenely above my body until I was taken to the operating theater. Once there, my mother-in-law and grandmother vanished.

In their place, beside my bed, appeared my late grandfather clad in a white coat. He had been a general practitioner/doctor during his life. However, I had never met him as he had died when I was seven years old! He spoke to me about the details of my medical issues and pointed out, in terms of centimeters, exactly where in my abdomen the three main internal infections were located. He specified this medical information in Latin. I don't speak Latin but I understood him. Then he too disappeared. I immediately re-entered my body and so I was able to repeat everything my grandfather had just told me while the surgeon wrote down detailed notes and my husband listened.

A couple of days after the (successful) surgery, I talked with the surgeon. He said he had never spoken to anyone in my condition, (high CRP – i.e. in such a lot of pain), who had been able to talk so clearly. He had never had access before to a surgery with such accurate information on where to find the main infected areas. He said that my grandfather's directions had told him to move certain internal organs aside to get to the third infected location. Without my grandfather's information, he could easily have missed it, especially since, at admission, they had diagnosed me with only two internal infections, not three. It was exactly as my grandfather had described it. He had said that there was an area of infected fluid in a 'hidden' part of my pelvis and had described, in terms of centimeters, exactly where to drain this infected fluid. It was beneath a bleeding point.

Ashley M’s NDE in 1989

It was nearly 28 years ago when I had my near death experience. I was twelve years old and in junior high school. I had an accident at a school function, and was accidentally hung by a rope around my neck. I was alone at the time of the accident, and I remember looking for something to stand on to pull myself up. I was frantic!

Then I remember looking at my body from outside my body!! The next thing I saw was a bright loving light. It looked like a million light bulbs close together, forming one huge, loving light. I went towards it and was pulled through to a place where I remember feeling peace and love beyond measure. I was then welcomed by so many people I knew and loved! Some were people I had previously known only in heaven before I came to earth. The love and happiness was so strong! I don't remember seeing bodies, only energies or auras. We communicated telepathically. They were surprised I was there so soon. Then I was shown to a spirit guide, who led me to a building that had Greek columns out front. It was a massive building.

Then I was brought to a room full of other people and their spirit guides. Each of us were standing around something like a circular table. It had a dome in the center of the table. I looked into the dome and started my life review. I could witness and experience my life from many different perspectives. I felt what others felt from my actions in my lifetime from their point of view. It was hard to go through, but I knew it was to learn and grow from my time on earth. I remember hearing others cry, laugh, and other things because of what they did on Earth. My spirit guide told me it was okay, and that we are all loved; that this was not a judgment. I was told that we all learn best by experiencing it ourselves. God does not judge us. We are all learning beings. The hardest of part of judgment comes from feeling our lives from so many different perspectives. I could take as long as I wanted because this review was to learn and gain empathy.

Then, I was taken to a room where those humans (energies) that had a really hard time with the life review were put to sleep to recover and heal. They were surrounded by a loving white light. I was shown a place where everyone has a pre-set life on record, chosen by us. I was shown my life path. Reincarnation is real, but it is our choice to incarnate. We do so to learn and grow. God is Love. We are sent to Earth to love and be loved unconditionally. Heaven looks just like Earth, but it is unbelievably beautiful. I could travel anywhere just by thinking about it. Time doesn't exist in heaven. We are all beautifully and wonderfully made. The image of God is the emotion/energy of Love.

I was then told that I would have to go back to complete my life on Earth. I didn't want to go back, and I fought it. But, I was told my mission was to speak to the world about my experience and to teach that God is love and our purpose here is to show love and kindness to everyone. Heaven is REAL.

The next thing I knew, I was on the ground being given CPR. For months later, I remember being depressed because I wanted to go back. I have shared this experience with only a handful of people. However, I am feeling the pull to share my story. It is difficult because I am a teacher, and I live in a very conservative area. Many of the things I experienced even go against my Christian religion. I do not have all the answers. I believe in God and that Heaven exists.

I remember what I personally experienced in my NDE, but I still find peace going to church or hiking in the mountains, etc. It is my connection to God's Love that matters. I feel blessed to not fear death. I know we are all here for a purpose. Now I am more aware of my actions and behavior towards others. I try to show kindness and love to others. Life is a constant work in progress. I hope this gives some of you comfort.

Augustin’s NDE---from Spanish city in North Africa

I was on active Military duty in the Spanish city of Melilla (on the northwest Mediterranean coast of Africa). At that time, I was sick with a high fever. I was very weak and trembling, so I sought relief in the infirmary. There, they decided to inject me with penicillin, which produced a fading of consciousness until I fainted. This I found out later, because the liquid entered my body at the same time that I fainted.

Without feeling pain, I saw myself falling to the floor. The orderlies were alarmed. They picked me up and placed me onto the cot, to revive me. Then, the room seemed to fold in from the ceiling as I started rising, out of my body, faster and higher, until I was no longer in the hospital.

It felt like an extraordinary liberation. It was as if I had been released from a lifetime sentence; as if my body had been my jail, even though I had not been conscious of this before! Everything that connected me to my body was heavy and burdensome: having to breathe, having the weight of gravity, etc., as if the bonds that had tied me to my childhood (to my family, friends, acquaintances, the town, etc.) had finally been released, so that I returned home, to unite me to everything which I had sought from birth.

I soon found myself in a space and place unknown to me, arriving there at a velocity beyond my imagining, pulled with a force of attraction like that of metal to a magnet. I entered a place where it started to turn dark, as if I were inside a cloud. It became denser and darker, and in that darkness, which became almost total, I glimpsed a tiny star light.

This light attracted me without hesitation towards it at the same breakneck speed as before. At the same time, the most marvelous feeling of love that I have ever experienced increased as I approached the light. As I got closer, my exultation overflowed in the brilliant light. Then, I entered the light. It was so brilliant, so white; it was pure energy, force, love, life---I felt I was at home. The sensations were indescribable, as an unknown world was opening up to me. I felt I understood things I had never understood before….and I whispered, “my God, how you love”.

And then, I felt as if someone approached to receive me, until I felt this presence directly in front of me. With a human form but without a physical body, everything was light and energy and love, and we communicated perfectly, speaking only with thought and mind. I started to be aware of more beings surrounding us and receiving me. I could not be contained in my joy and contentment; everything was peace and harmony and I began fully to inhabit that space which was mine.

But that way was denied me suddenly by something; they did not yet expect me, and this unique being said that I had to go back; it was not my decision, much to my regret. Then I heard clearly, "YOU STILL HAVE THINGS TO DO WITH YOUR LOVE"---which was a powerful bargaining chip.

As all my acquired liberties started to fade, I became conscious that I had to enter once again that body, to return to breathing, to become conscious again of who I was. I heard the voices of the nurses. I didn't want to open my eyes; I wanted to return to the light, but I was once again in the infirmary, desolate, sick; I couldn’t believe what I had just experienced. But the worst thing was that I knew that I must live here until I didn’t know when; but then I felt the happiness of knowing that I will return there one day, and that they await me. And it is so easy and simple.

Only LOVE!

EVERYDAY WE SEE/HEAR/READ FICTIONAL STORIES ON TELEVISION AND ELSEWHERE. SO, IT’S EASY TO THINK OF EACH NDE AS JUST ANOTHER FICTIONAL STORY. THERE ARE SOME DIFFERENCES, HOWEVER: PEOPLE WHO DESCRIBE THEIR NDEs ARE PRESENTING THEM AS FACTUAL, TRUTHFUL REPRESENTATIONS OF THEIR OWN PERSONAL EXPERIENCES. ARE THEIR CLAIMS AUTHENTIC?

CONSIDER SEVERAL FACTS: MOST NDErs MAKE NO MONEY FOR TELLING THEIR STORIES; MANY OF THEIR NDEs CONTAIN EMBARRASSING OR UNFLATTERING DESCRIPTIONS OF THE NDErs THEMSELVES; MOST OF THEM SHOW ENTHUSIASM , OR EVEN PASSION, AS THEY RELATE THEIR NDEs; AND MOST NDEs CONTAIN SIMILAR, THOUGH NOT IDENTICAL, ELEMENTS. THESE FACTS, ALONE, CAUSE ME TO BELIEVE WE ARE ENCOUNTERING TRUTH IN NDEs.

HOWEVER, GIVEN HUMAN NATURE, IT IS FAIRLY LIKELY THAT SOME NDEs ARE JUST “FAIRY TALES”, CONCOCTED FOR VARIOUS REASONS. AND MANY NDEs OCCASIONALLY CONTAIN ERRONEOUS INTERPRETATIONS OR PERSONAL OPINIONS OR DUBIOUS CONCLUSIONS, WHICH SHOULD BE RECOGNIZED AS SUCH. BUT, AS A SCIENTIST LOOKING FOR TRUTH, I PLUNGE INTO EACH NEW NDE WITH RELISH---AND WITH CAUTION.

Austin T’s NDE in 1976

It has been many years since my experience.

My Boss had told me he would "whip my a$$ and fire me" if I did not climb down into a tank and remove some paint that was clogging the tank. So I tried. However, when I climbed down, I was overcome by the chemicals that had been poured into the tank for days to eat away the paint clog.

The problem was that when I reached the bottom of the tank, I tripped over a pipe and died in the tank because of the corrosive chemicals there. Immediately I was gone from my body!

Although I left my body, I realized that I still “me”!! The first thing I can remember is the feeling. I could feel other beings' feelings of happiness, contentment, knowledge, overpowering wellbeing, no problems! I could feel their happiness going ALL through my being! The feelings were above human understanding. “Wonderful” is not sufficient!

People that I knew were there, waiting to greet and comfort me. I started asking questions like a child. As I did, I and everyone else suddenly KNEW to be quiet---and we All did!

Someone that I could not see spoke one sentence, one sentence that answered every question that I had ever asked and every question that I would ever ask forever!!! I guess the best way for me to describe it would be to say that I was immediately Enlightened!!! All of a sudden, I felt the same happiness as everyone else. I was now part of it!!!

I was enjoying it when one of the Ones that had come to greet me told me it was time to go back and reached for my right arm---and I popped back into my earth body as they were lifting me out of the tank!

I was not able to communicate with people at first, because of the chemical effects, but I held on to that sentence I had been given with every fiber of my being and repeated it over and over again and again to myself, and I understood everything, everything!!! (Unfortunately, when I returned to my body, I wasn't allowed to remember it.)

I knew that if I could communicate that sentence to one live human, it would take over their life too, and they would turn and tell another, and it would spread all over this world. If I could have remembered it, I would have had the ability to fix this world!

Barbara T’s NDEs---from Poland Translated from Polish

I'm glad that I can share with you my NDE experiences. I'm 65 years old and my NDEs happened when I was 23 and 26 years old, so it's been over 40 years since first one. They were such a strong and moving experiences that over 40 years I didn't forget anything, neither did I colorized nor added anything although this lays in human nature.
Every so often I recalled and refreshed my experiences.

My first NDE took place when I was 23 years old , during a gall bladder surgery. I have couple of unclear and hazy memories from this experience (bright light and shiny being) but one memory is very sharp and clear. I don't know what happened during surgery but suddenly I found myself out of my body. This was terrifying experience. From above I could see my body and doctors performing surgery. I, Barbara was a SPECK OF CONSCIOUSNESS in completely dark and empty space. I had nothing. I was a SPECK that could feel and think and my only thought was - how I will get back in my body ? At this moment I was overwhelmed by fear.

After surgery my arm that had IV attached got swollen like balloon, they had to cut my gown sleeve and gave me some medication. Nobody told me why this happened , I think that it was probably allergic reaction either to IV or whatever drug they administered during surgery.

I want to tell everybody who's researching human consciousness and is convinced or assumes that this must be something more than just brain matter function - YES, YOU'RE RIGHT ! I HAD THIS EXPERIENCE IN TIMES WHEN NOBODY WAS TALKING ABOUT SUCH THINGS. MY CONSCIOUSNESS WAS OUTSIDE MY BODY FOR SOME PERIOD OF TIME .I DIDN'T IMAGINE THAT. AT SOME POINT I WAS A SPECK OF CONSCIOUSNESS BEYOND MY PHYSICAL BODY !!

This is my experience and nobody's gonna take it away from me. Nobody's gonna convince me that it was a dream, hallucination or lack of oxygen in the brain. It was REAL .

My second NDE happened when I was 26 years old and married for over a year. I couldn't get pregnant because of fallopian tubes blockage.   I decided to go under surgery.

During surgery while under anesthesia I realized that my consciousness is awake. I didn't wake up but I knew that I'm dying. I felt sorry for my husband that he will be alone.
I'm not sure what was first but I remember having feelings like I'm collapsing inside myself and getting smaller and smaller like those russian babushkas... That's best comparison.

Then I saw on a big screen a film of my life, not whole life but most emotionally significant moments chosen and put together in a way that created logical puzzle.
This 'film' made me realize that my life has deep meaning. I never thought about my life this way.   Some great and all - knowing WISDOM showed it to me. Film showed my life in reverse, going back all the way to my early childhood where I saw my mother as a young girl, she was singing a song for me, after that was pink haze.

I don't remember how I got in the tunnel, I must have been pushed in with some great power. I was moving down the tunnel very fast at 45 degree angle. I heard loud noise, ringing and whirr. I didn't have body but the feeling of its shape somehow remained. I don't remember what I saw on my way through the tunnel, it's hard to describe. Tunnel ended suddenly and I found myself in big and bright place. I wasn't alone there. I think that on my both sides there were exits of other tunnels and people that came through them at the same time as I.

Then I noticed some beings that communicated without words , from mind to mind. I 'heard' them saying: 'FINALLY YOU ARE HERE. WE WERE WAITING FOR YOU '. I pretended that I don't hear those words. I was little afraid and curious at the same time because it was absolutely new, uncomparable with anything experience. Then one of the beings repeated ' WE ARE TALKING TO YOU, WE WERE WAITING FOR YOU'. Then I heard ' DOCTORS ARE FIGHTING FOR YOUR LIFE. IT'S NOT YOUR TIME YET. YOU HAVE TO GO BACK , YOU HAVE SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO DO '.

What happened next is hard to describe, for some time after surgery I had a memory of wonderful garden that I found myself in. Later on this memory started fading. All I knew was that I experienced new places and new mysteries, I reached ENLIGHTMENT. Those beings told me that later I won't remember what happened and that's how it was.

I was feeling so wonderful and blissful while being there, it's hard to describe. Then some powerful force started pulling me out of there, it was connected with pain and discomfort.
It happened twice and after second time I was back in my body. I was laying on operating table and doctors were putting stitches on my abdomen. I felt strange because here in THIS world everything seemed now ABSOLUTELY FLAT, AND IN THE OTHER WORLD THERE WAS SO MANY MORE DIMENSIONS.

I said - Am I alive, am I really alive ?
Then I heard woman's voice next to my head, I think she was anesthesiologist. She said: IT'S THE FIRST TIME IN MANY YEARS OF PRACTICE THAT I HAVE PATIENT WAKING UP AND ASKING IF SHE'S ALIVE. I HAVE GOOSE BUMPS.

Couple of days later doctor who was leading my surgery told me that things got really bad during my surgery and there was panic. They were resuscitating me and used defibrillator twice, I came back after second time. That agreed with my experience.

There is one more thing I want to say. For a long while after my experience, I couldn't find a word that would describe how it was over THERE. Several years later after reading book ' Life after life' I finally found this description in words of one woman. Over THERE everything was so TECHNICAL.   All I know is that a woman from a book 'Life after life' was in the same place as me.
Our life, sense of our existence--all that is astonishing and more complicated than we think.
I think that some physicists, astronomers and doctors are heading in a good direction.

All religions are merely searching for answers and although some think they know the ANSWER, the truth is it's beyond our knowledge and understanding.
I'm glad that I could share my experiences with you and that so many other people had experiences similar to mine .
I'm not afraid anymore that people will think I'm crazy, that's why there was a time that I I was reluctant to talk about that.
Greetings from Poland
Barbara

Benny G’S WONDERFUL NDE in 2004

I had a cardiac event called ‘Ventricular Fibrillation Sudden Death’ and was clinically dead three different times on two separate days. The first time I was registered as DOA (‘dead’ upon arrival) at the hospital. I was shown the paperwork.

I was instantly ‘on the other side’ and I instantly knew it, all three times. Each time I died, it was a similar experience.

However, the ‘knowledge’ I was given did not repeat; it just continued. I had no fear. The first thing I saw was a face. It was not a ‘religious’ face; it was like a ‘universal’ face. It looked like all the faces that ever were or are, male and female, it had the eyes like all the eyes that ever were or are, male and female. If a police artist asked me to describe it, I couldn't. It was very close, like two feet away. I was so transfixed by the eyes, I do not remember if it had hair or even a body. It didn’t matter.

It looked at me and very calmly asked me ‘What have you done?’ I replied, ’I don't understand’; and at that instant, like being hit in the face with a ball bat, I began to see things from my past. I saw specific things; some seemed trivial and some were serious. Several years ago, a hungry cat came to my front porch meowing for food and I made it leave. Things like that. Very real and very accurate. (Guilty conscience? I don't know.) Some were serious in the situation that I will not say, but there were some bad things I did in my younger life. And I realized that when we go the ‘other side’, we are not ‘judged’, but we ‘judge’ ourselves. Also, that we judge ourselves not so much on what we have done in our lives, but on what we have not done. That was very staggering in its concept. Because you cannot fool yourself.

In this unearthly realm I had entered, I felt incredible happiness, wonder, humility; it was totally mind boggling! What I saw and felt was not caused by a ‘lack of oxygen’ to my brain. It was as real as being kicked in the head by a mule!

Then, it was as if my head was opened and all the knowledge of the universe was being put into my mind with the volume and pressure of a fire hose. I understood everything. Everything. It was not ‘God like’; it was more of a ‘cosmic consciousness’ event. I could see the ‘Great Spirit’ (if you will) in everything. Everything is alive or is made up of this all-inclusive consciousness. The dirt, rocks, the breath of a mountain goat, the e-coli virus, the wind vapor on Mars, the varnish on my desk, the solar wind from the stars. Everything. Everything.

I am not trying to say that now I ‘know’ everything and you don't and now I'm better than you. That was another eye opener, now that I think of it. We are no better than the lowest microbe; we just think we are. It is our ego that hurts us. But I understood everything. It was like being tossed into an ocean of compassion.

I know this to be true, whether anyone believes me or not. I don't care. Nor am I going to shout it from the rooftops or go on the ‘Oprah’ show. In fact, I feel sorry that all mankind could not be shown this. But I also ‘know’ why all mankind is not shown during this life. I don't know how to explain this; all this happened just a couple of months ago, and I'm still wading through all that I was shown and felt. It is quite staggering, beautiful, and wondrous, and sometimes I find myself weeping for joy over it. Like now. That's why I am having trouble typing my story.

I have only told two people about this, the friend at work who resuscitated and brought me back to life in the office, and my wife. Three counting you. The wonder I felt was so overwhelming, I had to say something to someone or I felt I would burst! At the same time, I felt if I never mentioned it to anyone, it would be just fine. It's hard to explain.

I know this: I'm not afraid to die. And we should not mourn the dead. Miss them, remember them, but do not mourn them. My wife can't understand this part. But that's OK. I don't expect anyone to understand what I'm trying to say.

Beverly B’s NDE in 1970---from a Jewish family

Beverly Brodsky was raised in a conservative Jewish family in a mostly Jewish neighborhood in Philadelphia. She went through her teens as an atheist. Since learning of the Holocaust at age eight, she had turned angrily against any belief in God. How could God exist and permit such a thing to occur? In July 1970, her questions were answered when a motorcycle accident led to her near-death experience.

After the accident, an unexpected peace descended upon me. I found myself floating near the ceiling over the hospital bed looking down at my unconscious body. I barely had time to realize the glorious strangeness of the situation -- that I was me but not in my body -- when I was joined by a radiant being bathed in a shimmering white glow. Like me, this being ‘flew’ but had no wings. I felt a reverent awe and found that it had been sent to deliver me. Such love and gentleness emanated from this being that I felt that I was in the presence of the Messiah.

Whoever it was, this presence deepened my serenity and awakened a feeling of joy. Gently taking my hand, we ‘flew’ right through the window. I felt no surprise at my ability to do this. In this wondrous presence, everything was as it should be.

Beneath us lay the beautiful Pacific Ocean ... But my attention was now directed upward, where there was a large opening leading to a circular path. Although it seemed to be deep and far to the end, a white light shone through and poured from where the opening beckoned. It was the most brilliant light I had ever seen, although I didn't realize how much of its glory was veiled from the outside. The path was angled upward. Now, still hand in hand, we moved into the opening of the small, dark passageway.

I then remember traveling a long distance upward toward the light. I believe that I was moving very fast, but this entire realm seemed to be outside of time. Finally, I reached my destination. It was only when I emerged from the other end that I realized that I was no longer accompanied by the being who had brought me there. But I wasn't alone. There, before me, was the living presence of the Light. Within it I sensed an all-pervading intelligence, wisdom, compassion, love, and truth. There was neither form nor sex to this perfect Being, just as white light contains all the colors of a rainbow when shown through a prism. Deep from within me came an instant and wondrous recognition: I I was facing God!

I immediately lashed out at Him with all the questions I had ever wondered about, all the injustices I had seen in the physical world. I don't know if I did this deliberately, but I discovered that God knows all your thoughts immediately and responds mind to mind. My mind was naked; in fact, I became pure mind. The ethereal body which I had traveled in through the tunnel seemed to be no more; it was just my personal intelligence confronting that Universal Mind, which clothed itself in a glorious, living light that was more felt than seen, since no eye could absorb its splendor.

I don't recall the exact content of our discussion; in the process of return, the insights that came so clearly and fully in Heaven were not brought back with me to Earth. I'm sure that I asked the question that had been plaguing me since childhood about the sufferings of my people. I do remember this: There was a reason for everything that happened, no matter how awful it appeared in the physical realm. And within myself, as I was given the answer, my own awakening mind now responded in the same manner: "Of course," I would think, "I already know that. How could I ever have forgotten!" Indeed, it appears that all that happens is for a purpose, and that purpose is already known to our eternal self. In time the questions ceased, because I suddenly was filled with wisdom. I was given more than just the answers to my questions; all knowledge unfolded to me, like the instant blossoming of an infinite number of flowers all at once. I was filled with God's knowledge, and in that precious aspect of his Beingness, I was one with him. But my journey of discovery was just beginning.

Now I was treated to an extraordinary voyage through the universe. Instantly we traveled to the center of stars being born, supernovas exploding, and many other glorious celestial events for which I have no name. The impression I have now of this trip is that it felt like the universe is all one grand object woven from the same fabric. Space and time are illusions that hold us to our plane; out there all is present simultaneously. I was a passenger on a Divine spaceship in which the Creator showed me the fullness and beauty of all of his Creation.

The last thing that I saw before all external vision ended was a glorious fire- - the core and center of a marvelous star. Perhaps this was a symbol for the blessing that was now to come to me. Everything faded except for a richly full void that encompassed All that is. Here, I experienced the ineffable magnificence of communion with the Light Being. Now I was filled with not just all knowledge, but also with all love. It was as if the Light were poured in and through me. I was God's object of adoration; and from this love I drew life and joy beyond imagining. My being was transformed; my delusions, sins, and guilt were forgiven and purged without asking; and now I was Love, primal Being, and bliss. And, in some sense, I remain there, for Eternity. Such a union cannot be broken. It always was, is, and shall be.

Suddenly, not knowing how or why, I returned to my broken body. But miraculously, I brought back the love and the joy. I was filled with an ecstasy beyond my wildest dreams. Here, in my body, the pain had all been removed. I was still enthralled by a boundless delight. For the next two months, I remained in this state, oblivious to any pain. I felt now as if I had been made new. I saw wondrous meanings everywhere; everything was alive and full of energy and intelligence. Although it's been 20 years since my heavenly voyage, I have never forgotten it. Nor have I, in the face of ridicule and disbelief, ever doubted its reality. Nothing that intense and life-changing could possibly have been a dream or hallucination. To the contrary, I consider the rest of my life to be a passing fantasy, a brief dream, that will end when I again awaken in the permanent presence of that giver of life and bliss.

Bonita E’s NDE in 1969

I had returned from surgery. After being rolled into my recovery room, I was told that my C-section was successful and that I had a nine pound, 24 inch long boy.

Some time afterwards, in the recovery room, I suddenly realized that I was looking down on my own body lying in bed! Being a person who tends to analyze most situations before making a conclusion about them, I hovered a while above myself. As I looked down, I said, 'Oh, I have to lose some weight.' It was then that I realized that it is impossible for people to see themselves in three dimensions. Therefore, if I could see myself in all three dimensions at a time, I would have to be outside of my body. I reasoned that if I were outside of my body, then I'd have to be dead. This worried me greatly. I wondered who was going to take care of my baby. And what about my mother? This would break her heart.

Suddenly, I felt a change in my body temperature. It was a warmth that I had never felt before. It was a perfect temperature. For a few minutes, I worried over what would happen to my family without me, and then suddenly I thought, 'Oh, they'll work it out.'

It was then that I found myself in a tunnel. The tunnel was a bizarre experience, because I was lying flat on my back like someone on a stretcher, except there was no stretcher. I was heading feet first to my destination through the tunnel. There were other people traveling with me. All of us were traveling in the same direction and in the same manner. No one was speaking.

At the end of the tunnel, I came through a portal and was standing in a beautiful forest.   A woman yelled 'hello' to me, and I responded enthusiastically. However, I found this amazing, because I did not know her as far as I could tell. Then I thought, 'If I'm in heaven, then I want to see Jesus.' Just then, two women passed by. I asked them where I could find Jesus.

Their conversation went something like this as they addressed each other:   'That's the first thing they all ask,' the first woman said to the other.   'They're always in a hurry,' the other woman responded.

However, they kept on walking, so I thought I would have to start searching by myself. In the distance I saw a man who was wearing a hooded robe and sitting on a large rock.   At first, I wondered if he was Jesus. I never did get to see his face.
'Would you like to stay here?' he asked. 'No,' I answered. 'Why?' he asked.

'Because I am not really here. I'm in the hospital having a baby, and I have to take care of my child.'

He told me I could return. Suddenly, I was shot back through the same tunnel at lightning speed.   I supposed when I finally got back to my senses some days later, that, the lightning bolt might have been the electroshock of the defibrillator.

ADDED COMMENTS:

I have learned how to look at what people say---and then at what they actually do. Many of us on earth are so influenced by what people say that we don't look at what they do. We need to take a serious look at what is being done. In highly developed countries, the emphasis is on how things appear. Does this look good, do they look good? We judge the value of things on how they look. While in Third World countries, people who are the poorest often share the largest portions of what they have with other needy people!

What happened to people in the fat, rich countries of the world? I got busy, went to university, and attained a Ph.D. in Development Studies, which has a central focus on the conditions in Third World countries. I lived overseas for approximately 23 years after that and I am acutely aware that I see and feel things about the human condition that many people don't see.

I don't think I will ever forget this experience. I never disbelieved what happened to me for a second and I still don't and never will. A person doesn't have an NDE every day. Nor, do many people get to come back. When I came back, I realized that I have to do something worthwhile with my life. Many people just slip and slop through their lives.

However, when I stumbled on the brink of losing my life, I realized its value. Everything on earth and everything in nature has a purpose. Even non-living things have a purpose. The best advice I can give to others, from my experience, is that if you do not have a purpose, you need to find it because one day, you may be asked, 'so what did you do on earth to help alleviate some of the suffering you knew existed?'

Bonnie C’s NDE in 1975

At the time of my “death experience,” I was a busy young mum with a three year old and another baby on the way and an abusive marriage. I was scheduled for a cesarean section with my second child. I arrived at the hospital a little nervous but everything was routine and without concerns.

At some point during the surgery, I began to feel incredible pain under my ribs and I began to feel a sensation of spinning. I could hear people talking and laughing. I was distressed with so much pain. In my mind l shouted for help but I couldn't speak. I called for help and then began to call on God. Within seconds, the pain ended and I quickly realized I was out of my body.

It took me a few minutes to realize what was going on. I looked at myself in the hospital bed. I wondered how that could be me when l standing beside my body! I saw the doctor run in from the left side of the room and a nurse to the right. I moved out of the way to make space for them. The doctor was discussing me with the nurse, and she said to him, 'You have to go, because your next patient is now prepped in theatre.' He screamed at her, ‘how can I do that surgery when I've just lost this patient?!’ Hearing this, I moved further away from them and became preoccupied with the form I had taken. I was fascinated to see that I was somehow poured into a corner. I could see that I seemed to be some kind of silver-like fluid or silver thread-like being.

After hearing I had died, I said very matter of fact, “oh. So I died. I always wondered how I would die. But, I'm not dead. Don't they know I'm not dead?” Then I seemed to turn away and very quickly was sucked into a small tight tunnel. It was dark and I could see a small pin prick of light at the end. I moved through the tunnel for what seemed to be a long time. Somehow, I knew I was going to have to answer a question when I reached the light. I was also told, ‘don't say it’. The words rang through me as I wondered, ‘don't say what?’

As I went through the tunnel, I began to soak up knowledge. I understood everything! Physics, math, chemistry, life and death, why we are here, where we are going. All of my questions on earth were answered.

I was a super concentrated form of my physical self, with all of my memories and experiences. I worried about my mother. I wanted to let her know I didn't really die. As I slowed down, the light wrapped around me and I instinctively knew that l was home and that l am just a tiny part of this light, now reunited. I still worried.
I noticed a presence in front of me. It communicated to me, not by talking but just by thinking. We conversed for some time. The being was something of a teacher explaining things to me and showing me my life. It allowed me to decide if I was to stay here or go back. I understood the question. ‘Are you ready to come with us?’ I was scared. I asked for permission to go back. I said I was scared and I had to tell my mum I was okay, or she would be very upset. If I could do that, I would come back to the light. We had a discussion about some things I had wondered as a child and I still have that knowledge today. I was shown a short image of my birth and my mother and father. Then my grandfather’s death.

I was told if I am ever to speak of this then to give this message: “It's not complicated, don't make it so. And, we have it all backwards. We don't live and then die but we die and then live. Stop searching to answer the mystery when there isn't one.”

I was made aware of a definite boundary and that if I agreed to cross through the light I could never go back. It was my choice. I said I'll go back. I heard a loud swooshing in my ears and seemingly fell into my body. I woke up.

Minutes after l awoke from my surgery l was discussing ‘the message’ with the staff. I told anyone who would listen. The reactions were disbelief, discounting it happened, or thinking I had gone crazy.

My experience had nothing to do with any religion or God. I was more aware that this being was the greatest power of all, but not God as such. I now believe in reincarnation and I feel we are given the choice to return to the world as many times as we want to.

Chris B’s NDE in 2008---heartblock

While at home, my heart stopped from electrical problems (heartblock). I went into the hospital (full 911, ambulance, and the whole deal) with bradycardia (slow pulse) at 25 BPM. This eventually slowed to 17 BPM, until it stopped altogether. I was in full cardiac arrest for approximately three minutes, while an external defibrillator/shocking pacer was being connected with a flat line on the screen. I never lost consciousness. I was watching the heart monitor, and in a flash, I was out of my body and 'standing' in the hallway outside of the room, looking in from behind the medical team.

I felt warm and cozy all over, the most comfortable I've ever been. I was aware of a large male figure standing next to me, but I couldn't make out his face, and he didn't say anything. I could tell he was not with the medical staff. I believe he was wearing jeans and a flannel shirt that was brown in color. He was unshaven with darkish brown hair. Was it an angel or Jesus or….? I don't know. He never spoke -- just stood about a foot away and radiated warmth like a heater.

I could watch and hear the doctor yelling on the phone for someone to bring up a fluoroscope, and then he was arguing loudly about whose patient was more important. He told the person on the phone, 'You better get that God-damn machine up here right now! I have a guy in full heart block.'

Then my attention was turned to the hall. The hall appeared to be a hundred feet long and was dimly lit with a pair of doors at the end. I have no idea if this was the real hospital hall or a 'spiritual hallway'.

I continued to stand there, being fully aware that I could not see my feet (that area was dark and shadowy, but the floor was white tiles) and had the sensation of floating about six to ten inches off the floor. I could also tell that I wasn't breathing, and I was checking for my pulse, but found none. This, however, did not worry me, because I had the sensation that all was as it was supposed to be. I definitely had figured out that I was dead, and I was totally fine with it. I felt calm, peace, wellbeing, and happiness. All the while, I just kept feeling better and better.

Having a Christian upbringing, I found myself praying while my heart was coming to a stop; but as soon as I was out of body and standing there, I stopped and was almost surprised that the whole thing was so simple and there was nothing to fear.

No one spoke to me, and I watched as the doctor put this wire right into my heart through my chest, but I could not feel any of this. Next, the nurse put on these large, sticky shock pads, and turned on the defibrillator. I was instantly 'slammed' back into my body. This sensation was separate from the huge body-contorting shock that I was receiving every second to restart and pace my heart.

I was remembering what an awesome feeling I had just had. I thought it was so cool that I now knew how the soul went in and out of the body! I was now not regretting being put back, but I was eager to replay and dwell on that superb feeling of warmth and wellbeing. I was still a hundred percent conscious, and there had been no break in consciousness, as far as I am aware. After I was fully restarted, the doctor knocked me out with a drug, and I awoke in the intensive care unit a few hours later.

My experience was definitely real. I think about it every day. It was as real as I am sitting here typing this. Now I struggle to accept many teachings of the 'Church' because I KNOW DIFFERENT! Now I consider myself a spiritual seeker with no religious affiliation.

VERY RARELY, A PERSON HAS MORE THAN ONE NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE. I AM VERY SKEPTICAL OF THESE ACCOUNTS, SINCE THEY COULD JUST BE A WAY TO ATTRACT MORE ATTENTION. HOWEVER, HERE IS A MAN WHOSE STORIES HAVE A “RING OF TRUTH”. CHUCK M. HAS HAD 3 NDEs!!

Chuck M’s NDEs in 1969, 1978, and 2002

1) In 1969, Chuck died from strangulation in a fight. 2) In 1978, he died from a drug overdose, injecting too much cocaine. 3) In 2002, Chuck was crushed to death by a pickup truck in a motorcycle accident.

1) At school, with this guy on my back, his legs wrapped around my torso, holding me in a headlock (it felt like he was trying to rip my head away from my shoulders), I remember getting dizzy and passing out. In a few seconds, I was in tunnel with a bright light at the end. All of a sudden, I was watching what seemed to be an old flicker movie, but it was in color. It was me at that time and in an instant I saw scenes of my life from being an infant in my crib. The next moment I was floating above this crowd that I recognized as the staff and my schoolmates, staff were breaking up a fight and the crowd moved back. I saw me, laying on the ground bleeding from my eyes, nose, mouth and ears. Two of the men picked me up, carried me inside, and laid me on a couch. It was weird; while I was watching all this happening, I felt that I could just move through walls with no boundaries. One of the staff reached over and closed the room door, which made a loud bang when it shut. Suddenly I was back in my body to wake up the next morning in a hospital.

2) I had just shot up almost a gram of cocaine. Before I could get the needle out my arm, it felt like an elephant jumped on my chest. I fell to the floor and a few seconds later was in my spirit body, sitting on the floor, leaning against a wall looking at my body lying there on the floor, waiting and wondering how to stop this abusive behavior. It seems like I laid there for a couple of hours, and then I went back into my body and got up off the floor. I have since left my girlfriend Cali and eventually found recovery.

3) I was riding my motorcycle one afternoon in N.J. when I saw a pickup truck pull up to the shoulder from the right. I thought the driver looked at me and saw me, but he didn't. He pulled out in front of me. Rather than slam into the side of his truck, which was now in front of me, I decided to lay the bike down and kick it away from me. I slid up under the front wheel and the truck stopped on top of me. The driver got out, and I asked him to get it off me! He climbed in and backed off me, and when he did, I felt my chest breaking (like stepping on a package of saltines, slowly breaking). I knew immediately it was bad. I did a body check, and I had no visible damage, other than my right hand was bleeding. Then I tried to take a breath and couldn't breathe. I remember curling up into a fetal position and trying to meditate, to relax and to conserve the oxygen in my body.

I slid into what felt like a perfect temperature Jacuzzi, and I had the most incredible feeling of love, as all things material slipped away and were no longer important. The next moment I was standing there in this beautiful field looking at my mother and grandmother (who have been gone for many years now). They were standing about 40 ft. away from me wearing black dresses and pearls and looked wonderful, as if they were 35, or so. There was an azure blue sky behind them, and it was bright, but not eye-hurting bright. As soon as I looked at my grandmother, who seemed to have a tear on her cheek, I knew they weren't going to let me stay. My mom then said to me 'You can't stay'. I started running towards them (effortlessly, like I was running on air), and my mom said again 'You have to go back'; but I wanted to hug them and kept going. As I got within 5 ft. of them, I was stopped, and my mom said 'You have to go back, we are not ready for you'. I was turned around and took one step back towards where I was coming from.

I heard a woman's voice saying 'We have a pulse; Mr. M you gotta stay with us', and I got pissed and remember thinking 'Shut the hell up and do whatever you gotta do because I got nowhere to go'. I woke up six weeks later in the hospital. I was on the BIOGRAPHY Channel telling this story on Dec.5th at 10pm on the program 'I Survived Beyond and Back'.

Chuck’s Comments about his experiences:

During my experiences, I was more conscious and alert and my senses incredibly more vivid than usual. I felt complete euphoria, warmth, LOVE, and understanding. I was home, and it was all love and God. LOVE is ‘God energy’, one and the same, and in the end we all go home.

I was raised Catholic, but I couldn't understand the hypocrisy. Since my NDEs, I still don't buy into group rituals and standard religious practices.

I now view everyone as having specific tasks to accomplish in this life, and I am meant to be a part of it. This life is just a means of working out your karma, and the body is a vehicle in which we travel.

Colleen R’s NDE in 2012---Be prepared for horror!!

My experience was on March 20, 2012. I was ejected from a moving truck, and I wound up under it, somehow.

I don't really remember the accident itself, just flashes of images of me stepping onto the step of the truck, the tire really close up, then I saw black, red, and grey, and, as the tire ran over my head I could feel the pressure of it and tried to scream. I tried to brace myself somehow against it, but my head burst at the top! And then I felt when my hair was caught and the tire slid over my face, peeling almost half of my face off, including my ear! After the truck drove away down the road, I could hear screaming, not sure if my own, and cars honking. I realized I was still in the street, and if the truck hadn't killed me, whatever was coming next would.

So I sort of raised myself up on my elbows and knees and attempted to crawl to the curb. I remember my ear hanging by a string of flesh, hanging and dangling by my cheek. I looked up at the people and tried to say, 'Help me,' but I'm not sure if I got any words out. My friend driving the truck realized what had happened, turned around and came back for me. He picked me up in his arms and put me in the truck, then proceeded to drive me to the hospital as fast as he could. He ran red lights, staying ahead of the police, who were on his trail—he risked his life and many others' trying to save mine. I died sometime during that drive. Last thing I remember was blood squirting on the dashboard in front of me and on the window, and looking in the rearview mirror, for the last time…

There's a big gap I don't remember. They say I was combative and convulsing or something when the police got me out of the truck. But I don't recall anything but closing my eyes, lying on the seat of the truck. Then the next thing I remember, I was in the hospital, I heard beeping, a jumble of fast talking voices, all blurry, very blurry.

Then nurses and doctors were rushing around, trying to figure out what my injuries were, and how to stop the bleeding. Things seemed clearer and clearer, and suddenly I found myself standing behind the doctor, who was now cutting my jeans off my body. I looked at myself, lying there, with my head busted open, my new white sweater soaked with blood and getting cut off now, too, my cute jeans all ruined. I decided I wasn't going to stay around to help them resuscitate me, and I left.

I don't recall how I ended up back at my dad's house. He had passed away the year before. There I was, with him, and my mom and my uncle, my best friend, my Tio—everybody that had passed away was there.

But I only talked to my dad. I never accepted his dying. I missed him too much. So I was happy. I just stared at him and he seemed to glow. He looked so beautiful. But also, he looked sad. So I asked him, 'What's wrong?' and he said, 'You can't stay.' And I was like, 'But I'm here, I don't want to go back.' And he told me to think of my kids having to grow up without me; he said, 'Imagine if I wasn't there when you were little.' He'd died when I was thirty and even at that age, I'd lost my mind wishing he'd come back. Anyway, he was right.

And for the second time, my kids saved my life. I'm a mother of seven perfect little children. My oldest is about to turn sixteen, I have a twelve year old, a little girl who's about to turn nine, another little girl who's about to be seven, a five year old, a three year old and a two year old… So, when all of a sudden I felt them shocking me with those electric cables, I decided to go back. It was my choice the whole time.

Anyway, that's my story. Sorry if I ramble, but these nine months since the accident have been the best time of my life. I'm finally pursuing my dreams and living purposefully! Best thing that ever happened to me? Being hit by a truck!

QUITE AN NDE, WITH REMARKABLE EFFECTS ON CRYSTAL'S LIFE.

Crystal M’s NDE in 2009

On December 7th of 2009 I went into surgery for a routine endoscopy, and a stent was placed between my liver and pancreas. I developed pancreatitis as a result. I was hospitalized and placed on an IV pain pump of Dilantin.

December 8th I awoke throwing up and in very bad pain. My mother arrived shortly afterwards to spend the day with me. She bathed me and helped me go to the bathroom. At that time, she commented on the color of my urine. I later asked her to push the button on my pain pump because of the amount of pain I was in. I began to drift off. I remember waking up and asking her what year it was. I could hear myself ask this and I could hear her answer. I awoke a short time later and told her that I loved her.

The next thing I remember was being surrounded by the most beautiful light that human words can never explain. There were two slender beings with me, talking to me. I could not make out any features because the light coming from them was so intense. One was a little shorter than the other. At that time, I knew exactly who they were. I do not believe that I knew them on this earth. I remember communicating with the light all around me. I knew it was God. I could touch the light and it was communicating emotions and thoughts to me. I have never felt that much love and utter peace. I remember feeling that I knew everything!   There were no questions.   I had this overwhelming understanding that EVERYTHING was exactly as it was supposed to be. Everything that was or is was just perfect.

All communication was without words; it was just understood between us. Now I began to go through the light; it felt like a tunnel. The light was all around me.    The entire time I was communicating with it and the two slender beings, I remember moving toward a bright spot at the end of the tunnel. I was not afraid; I knew who I was and where I was. It was like being transported to your childhood home; you remember it.

I remember telling God that I wished I had done more for him, 'Why didn't I do more for you?' I remember seeing visions of war and of people suffering. There were African people crying and suffering. Although I was disappointed in myself, he/she was not upset with me. I was not being judged. It was just a review of my life.

I looked up and saw myself as a small child. Keenly aware that I was sexually abused as a child, I had always felt it was my fault. Now I saw myself wearing a white frilly dress and bonnet and carrying a basket, running, playing, and laughing in the light. I remember feeling so proud of the little girl I was watching, I loved her so much. I knew she was me. Now I realized that what had happened to me was not my fault, that I was innocent child.   After this experience, my life is no longer affected by my past, I have been set free.

I became very aware of the fact that I was not attached to a body; I was a soul, the soul of who I am now, and who I have been always.

We kept moving towards the end of the tunnel. The light became very bright at the end, and I heard my mother crying and calling my name. I stopped and looked at the two beings and asked if I could go and tell her that I was okay. I knew that she was worried, and I just wanted her to know that I was fine. I asked to go tell her and come right back.

I remember being told that the choice was mine. As I turned around to go and find her, they told me to tell her what I remembered. I thought that was odd as of course I would remember everything---AND I was coming right back.

I remember looking down, trying to follow my mother's voice. I walked back, retracing my path through the light and then saw her below me. As soon as I saw her, I was immediately back in my body.

When I opened my eyes there were a lot of people in the room, and my mother was crying and saying my name. I asked what happened, why the people were there. My mother said I had a seizure (which was not true). I told her and everyone in the room that I was in the light, that I had seen God, and that is when she started crying and telling me that I had left her, that I had died. They did CPR for four and half minutes. I had no pulse and was not breathing.

I did not suffer during my death. It was the most peaceful and beautiful experience of my life. Now I get to live the rest of my life knowing that there truly is something after this life, and it's more incredible than we can ever know. Also, since my experience, I believe life and love are more precious than ever; money and material things don't matter. This was the most amazing experience of my life!

Dale B’s NDE in 1992---I could be anywhere, any place, and at any time I wanted!

I had a heart attack because of a serious coronary artery blockage (“widowmaker”). Afterward, I developed lethal heart arrhythmias that forced the doctor to surgically install an AICD in my chest. [An AICD is an Automatic, Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator, i.e. a battery-powered device that can shock the heart to fix abnormal heart rates or rhythms and thus prevent sudden death.]

In the implantation surgery, they needed to induce an arrhythmia to get the device settings right. But after they induced the v-tac or v-fib arrhythmia, they were then unable to get me out of this deadly condition!

So, I had a cardiac arrest and required a “crash cart” with paddles to help them bring me back. After I was resuscitated, I had burns on my chest that I noticed had scabbed slightly. I do not know what all they did or how long I was dead.

During my cardiac arrest, I remember floating above my body and clearly looking down and seeing everyone talking loudly and scurrying around. Then I was aware that I was fine, actually better than fine! My first thought was that I felt no pain anywhere! I wondered: how is this possible?

I also realized that Time had changed. In my new experience, Time seemed to encompass “all time”---is the only way I can explain it. At one Time, I felt all there is, or was, or ever would be! I was a part of it all, and yet still a singular entity. I felt I could be anywhere, any place, and at any time I wanted! Knowledge was free, and I was a part of it all. There was love in abundance. I felt no hate anywhere and no confusion. I felt only incredible joy. I was not alone, but no one was with me. I was overjoyed. Then suddenly, I fell back into my frail body and was very upset.

ADDED COMMENT:

Although I was raised Baptist, I became an agnostic. I still don't care for organized religion. I have moved more to the Buddhist way of thinking. My experience was definitely real, and I didn't want to come back; but the choice wasn't mine and I regretted that.

David G’s amazing NDE

This is the true story about an event that forever changed David G’s life and that has been the basis for which he has since lived. When he was thirteen years old, he was riding his bike to school when he was hit by a concrete mixing truck. His resulting near-death experience revealed to him many of the secrets of the afterlife, like "Why are we here?" and "What is the meaning of life?"

“I remember the fear of impact (getting hit), however, I have no recollection of the impact or of hurtling over sixty feet through the air and landing in a canal. My next memory was quite a scene in the hospital emergency room. It was the most unique experience of my earthly life. Unique, because I was observing my own body in the emergency room and all the activity going on, except that I was not in my body. I was above it, looking down. I was feeling no pain.

Everyone was very busy. I knew by their activity that I was in serious trouble. There was much discussion about how to extract me from the tangled wreckage of my bike and/or whether they would need to leave me in it until I was stabilized enough to try. I could see and hear everything. It was gruesome. It was frightening. They finally decided they had me stable enough to get rid of the bike and they called for a welding specialist to bring a torch to help cut me out of the bike. Thank God my body seemed to be unconscious. All of this would have been quite enough for my young mind to endure --- until one nurse, whom I knew, said to another - "well - it certainly makes you wonder if it is worth saving this mess." She nearly scared me to death!

At that moment, it was more than I could stand to watch. I needed to escape. Quickly, I turned, took one step through the wall and found myself in total darkness. I looked back – at nothing but darkness! Before I could think "Now I've done it!", I apparently took another step; and I was instantly in the most beautiful garden I have ever seen. This garden was like a formal terrace which had been carved out of a rough mountain, just a few feet below the peak. Everything was white marble and evergreen. The air was so incredibly light and clear and fresh and cool. It seemed like I was breathing pure chilled oxygen. The garden was trimmed in evergreen shrubs, each a perfect specimen; and the fragrance of evergreen lightly scented the air. This place seemed so perfect in every detail. Directly in front of me, just a few steps away, was a marble bench which seemed to invite me to come, sit, and rest.

As I sat down and breathed in the fresh wonderful air, I looked around. What a wonderful place to rest. The floor was flat and smooth, polished to perfection such that it looked seamless. This garden terrace was surrounded by low marble pillars and a marble railing and looked like it had been formed right out of the side of the mountain in one seamless effort. I noticed the stark contrast between the formal perfection of white marble and the surrounding mountain that was rough and jagged by comparison.

Moments later, I noticed a very warm, kindly, old gentleman sitting beside me on the bench. I had not seen or heard him come -- he was just there. A light smile crossed his face, and I knew he was a friend. His face was warmly wrinkled, but soft. His eyes were a soft blue and sparkled with wisdom. He spoke to me in a firm voice, but which was soft and loving.

He said, "Well, you've had a rough day", as if he knew all about it.

With a tired sigh I said, "I sure have!"

No further explanation seemed necessary as we both sat there. Then, I asked "Am I dead?"

He smiled to assure me and said, "No, you are not dead. Your body is in a lot of trouble, but it is being well taken care of and you do not need to worry".

I remember I felt so relieved to be told that I was not dead. Life was not over. This was not the end. All these things ran through my mind like a whirlwind that stopped abruptly, and I was filled with a million questions about my current condition. I could not explain why I felt like I was sitting here in this place, feeling very much like I had a body and yet knowing very much that I had left it behind.

Again I looked at him, and his face looked so understanding, I knew he had the answers even before I asked the questions. It was like we could read each other’s thoughts ---even before words were spoken ---and I'm not sure but what a lot of our communication took place this way, mind to mind. Then a kind of panic set in.

I demanded of him: "How am I here, in this place, when I know that my body is back there in the hospital?" And "Where is this place? How do I see this place and you, if I'm not with my body? How can I be two places at once?" I began to feel very upset. "Who are you?" I demanded!

His voice calmed me immediately. He said, "You are in a very special place. You are safe."

He went on to explain that, though my body was in the hospital, it was my physical body and that each of us also has our spiritual and mental body.

He said, "It is your mental and spiritual body that is here. It is with your mental and spiritual eyes that you see this place. Likewise, it is through your mental and spiritual body’s senses that you perceive everything in and about this place. This place is in your mind's eye, your imagination; it is as it is because this is exactly what you need it to be. Your physical crisis and mental need caused it to be just as you perceive it. You see me as I see myself in my own mind's eye. A mental picture (a thought) from my mind to your mind's eye. I am as you see me because this is the way that I perceived that you needed me to be. Who I am or my name is not important. I am here for you on behalf of your Heavenly Father's love for you and to remind you where you came from."

Then I thought …’where I came from’… The hospital?

He smiled a smile of wisdom and patience beyond wisdom itself and said lovingly, "No, I mean your Father's House".

It was at that moment that I realized that I knew everything that he was saying was true and that I had known this consciously before I was born to this earth to have a physical body. I remembered that I was also a spiritual and mental body (being), and it all made perfect sense. I even remembered coming through the veil to find and choose my physical body. I was mildly puzzled that I could have even forgotten such things -- when he reminded me that to experience a physical life -- it was necessary to forget some of our prior knowledge so that we might more fully experience the physical things, be physically challenged, make choices of free agency, and yes, even make mistakes so that we could learn from them in ways that only a physical life could impart. If we retained all of our prior knowledge, we might not bother to experience the physical life for its fulfillment -- we might decide to skip the pain and thus miss the pleasure.

I also remembered the promise I had made to my Heavenly Father upon accepting the opportunity, challenges, and responsibility of a physical life. To make the most of this opportunity for myself and for him. To return to my Father's house with the knowledge and experience gained, such that likewise, my Father (Creator) could be enhanced by the experience. It was upon this basis that I realized why we need to experience a separation of our total reality when we take a physical body. That is because in order for us to appreciate, benefit, and learn all we can from our physical life, we must seemingly have to re-discover what we knew before -- now in physical ways. Likewise, through this physical life, we must discover how to return to our Heavenly Father. By the good that we do to each other here, by the ways we improve our minds, and by the ways that we learn to cope with a physical body and physical life, do we earn our right of safe passage back to our Father's House; and in so doing, do we likewise magnify and glorify (honor) our Father. It is our Father's love that sends us on the journey and it is our love for Him that will allow us to go back home to His loving arms again.

As soon as I had remembered all that I needed to know, my loving, special friend disappeared.

This was a wonderful place; it was everything I needed it to be. I not only remembered and could see from whence I came, I could also see and remember where I was going, and the many things that I was supposed to do. I knew when I chose this life that it would be challenging. I knew that I would be responsible for finding a physical lifemate and that, together, we would accept the responsibility of providing new physical life so that others of God's children (creation) could likewise share in a physical experience for themselves. I knew that I would be responsible for choosing between good and evil so that my life would serve to glorify my Heavenly Father upon my return to Him.

As I continued to ponder and re-affirm these things, I felt very refreshed and again more conscious of my garden place. I turned and noticed a small winding path leading up to the crest of this rugged mountain. I had not noticed this path before, but it was there now, and it beckoned me. I got up from my marble bench and began making my way up the steep access of the path. It was difficult and my footing was very unsure. As I reached the top, I looked down upon a beautiful meadow on the other side. It was so tempting. There were flowers of every description and color. A beautiful brook flowed playfully through the meadow, and I made my way through the lush grass to be by its side. The brook was only a few inches deep. The water flowed quickly. I picked up some pebbles and tossed them one by one into the water. I was about to turn away and leave when I looked on the other side of the stream and saw a beautiful white light, much like sunbeams. From this beautiful light a figure appeared. It was clothed in white robes and white light such that I could scarcely tell the difference. I could not make out a face -- but I clearly saw hands. These hands stretched out to me and a voice said: "Will you come with me?"

Without hesitation I stepped into the water, then I paused. I was shaking all over. Then I remembered that I had a life to learn and experience. I turned; and as I stepped out of the water, I said "No, I still have many things which I must do." I made my way quickly, running as fast as I could back up to the top of the hill and back down that winding path, nearly falling several times. As soon as my feet touched the floor of my beautiful marble garden, I was consciously back in my physical body, awake, and suddenly in more physical pain than I ever thought possible. My body was in five-way traction, and I was barely touching the bed. Everything hurt.

My first conscious thought was "Big Mistake -- boy, I've done it now! I've screwed up big time! I don't know whether I cried more from the physical pain I was in or the spiritual and mental torment I was having over this decision. I did not realize that my garden experience had lasted for twenty-one days, until I was told by my doctors and nurses that I had been in a coma all that time. It was from this experience that I was able to draw enough strength and energy to rehabilitate my body, learn to walk again, and do all the things that I have been able to do so far in my life.

Deborah K’s NDE in 1979

While on a driving vacation in the Colorado Mountains near Durango, our family's van was forced to the side of the gravel mountain road by other traffic. The van came to a stop, but then the edge of the road gave way, causing our vehicle to fly end over end over a mountain cliff. I hate to describe the incredible trauma inside that van during this seemingly endless ordeal. Worst of all, my two young children were in the van with my husband and me, and all the while things were crashing around in the van. I did not know if they would survive. A huge granite boulder eventually stopped the van's descent, at which point I immediately lost consciousness due to physical trauma. My spine had been crushed. When I returned to consciousness some time later, I was still strapped in my seat at a severe downward angle due to the steepness of the cliff side. I was literally hanging there, with two paramedics holding me in place. I did not know how long they had been there, trying to figure out a way of extricating me from the crushed vehicle. All the debris inside the van had landed on my legs, obscuring them nearly completely. I felt broken glass digging into my bare feet underneath it all, as well as a large amount of ice from the contents of our cooler. The pain from my back injury was severe, so much so that I had to continue to brace myself with my arms against the cracked dashboard and further press my feet into the shards of glass below, in order to support my back in a somewhat better position. My greater concern than the pain, however, was the fact that I could not turn my body to see if my children had survived the accident. I immediately thought that my five-month-old baby was dead, because he wasn't crying, and I had no idea what had happened to my three-year-old son. When I asked about them, however, I was told by the red haired paramedic who was positioned in front of me that both children had already been removed from the van and were safe and unharmed, being cared for on the road above the cliff. I could only hope that I was being told the truth. I could see that my husband was running around outside the vehicle, taking photographs of the damage to the van. If our children were okay, why wasn't he with them?

Due to the severity of my injury and the position of the van against the side of the cliff, the emergency personnel that had arrived at the site were having a difficult time figuring out how to get me out of the vehicle without causing further harm, including possible spinal cord severance and paralysis. After nearly an hour of struggling to keep my body at an angle that would decrease the pain, I suddenly felt myself become completely weak and stopped pressing my feet into the glass as well as stopped pushing against the dashboard with my hands. The red-haired paramedic who had been helping to hold me up suddenly had my entire weight. I remember looking at his crooked teeth as he asked if I was all right, but I had absolutely no strength to answer him. The paramedic behind me, who had apparently been taking my blood pressure all along without my awareness of it, said 'BP's 60 over 20.'

Suddenly ALL of my pain was instantly gone, and I was no longer in the van, even though my body apparently was. Instead, I was floating above it, watching with great clarity my husband continue to snap photos of the vehicle and occasionally speak with other people on the scene. I could see several places on the cliff side where other vehicles had apparently hit trees and rocks in similar accidents. I could smell the pine of the forest. I did not care about any of this at the time, but I rose higher still and saw, to my great relief, that my two young children were, indeed, on the road above the cliff. An older woman, acting like a mother herself, held my five month old on her hip with one hand, while shielding her eyes from the morning sun with the other, looking at the van far below her. My three-year-old son was squatting on his haunches next to her, drawing a small stick through a ridge of gravel on the road. My concern now was that he was too close to the edge of the road for my comfort, but he at least appeared to be mostly unharmed with just a few scratches on his face. The baby seemed to be completely unharmed, and, indeed, the woman holding him did not appear to be concerned about his welfare; it was almost as if she was just a designated sitter and her concern was completely focused on the van that had crashed against the huge boulder below.

I was enveloped in love, complete and unconditional love and compassion, with a gentleness I had never felt before in my life. I felt cushioned and cradled, as if I were the most precious of children. After observing the scene below, I realized there was a Presence with me, a very powerful but totally loving Being. I did not see anyone, but I knew He was there, even though I did not know for sure who it was. In His Presence I felt amazing joy, incredible bliss, love, lightness, and freedom! It was at this time I was given a choice, not through words, but just KNOWING. I could continue in this bliss and come back Home, across some sort of barrier I could sense was very close by, or I could return to my body, with all its pain and uncertain future. Oh, how I wanted to stay in that bliss! My time with the Presence in that incredible cradling of intense love and compassion, seemed to be way too brief. I wanted it to last forever.

Although the choice was the epitome of compassion and loving, I nearly scoffed at its cruelty. 'Thanks a lot,' I said sarcastically to myself. Just before driving up that mountain road, my husband had refused to take his turn strapping our children into their car seats, saying 'Nothing's going to happen, anyway.' I had taken on the task, strapping them in extra securely, just to make my point of how important it was. My husband had been physically abusive to me and verbally abusive to our little ones. Looking down upon these innocent little boys, what kind of choice was it to leave him to raise them? If I had had no children, there's no doubt in my mind that I would have chosen to stay with the Presence and the Bliss. As it was, even knowing I would have to return to the pain and whatever I had to go through to recover from the injuries, there really was no choice for me. All I could think was 'I have children to raise.' With that simple thought, I was sent back, back into the van into my broken body. All the crushing pain immediately returned and I began several months of recovery.

For years after my NDE, I searched for a religion or group that shared my spiritual focus and beliefs. I have, to date, not found one and doubt that I will. In a way, I feel 'homeless' when it comes to religion. So I turn to books, the Internet, DVD's and other venues to help me to feel less isolated.

My experience taught me that we're all connected; we're all from the same Source. Thus, we should all have compassion for one another. And this does not just mean people, but also animals, plants, all of nature. The most important aspects of this realm of existence are relationships and experiences, and we should conduct them in the most loving and compassionate way possible.

My experience was real --- Period. I have no doubt about it EVER in my mind. I can recall every detail vividly, even now, thirty years later. When I think about it, the feelings are intense to the point of causing a swelling of incredible joy within me and bringing tears to my eyes. I wish that EVERYONE could have such an experience, so they would understand what this means!

Deborah W’s NDE in 1984---A profound experience, resulting from a suicide attempt

MAKE THE PAIN STOP.

In December of 1984, I killed myself.   I wanted the peace of death. I wanted it now.

Like anyone, I had set my own path in my youth. Don't try to blame my parents or my family for the problems in my life. I know who made my decisions, it wasn't them. Pretty much, if you just pick something that humans call bad, I did it. If I liked it then I did it again and brought friends with me.

Like one little rock rolling down hill, my decisions had created an avalanche of events and situations that were beyond my ability to control. I didn't know what had gone wrong but I knew my life was not supposed to be like this.

Oblivion was a delightful thought compared to living any longer. I had heard suicide called everything from a deadly sin to the coward's way out, but I didn't care anymore. I hurt.
Those two words are so small they cannot convey to you how deeply in my heart I hurt. This desire for death was where my choices had brought me. I could see no way my life would be anything but the misery and useless struggle it had been since I was on my own. I wanted out of it; out of life, out of pain, out of hurt - OUT! I was twenty-nine and only wanted peace, whatever I had to do to get it.

I felt betrayed, deceived by my own heart. I couldn't trust it again. Just the thought of love in my heart, only to have it turn to dust, made me wince. I seemed to be cursed in picking whom I loved. This was just one time too many I had failed. I wanted the shame and hurt from it to stop driving me.
I only wanted the pain to stop. Just stop. 'Please let the pain stop', I chanted inside.   I cried all the time I wasn't with others. I hurt all the time.

I was living alone in a small apartment in Nebraska. It was nearing New Year's Eve. On a Friday night, I put together the things I needed, wrote the required note that told everyone I could think of that they were not guilty for my leaving and took the mixture that killed me.
I knew what I was taking would kill me. It was not an accident. I wanted what I saw as the gift of death. I reached out for it.

I Quit

I took the drugs. I got woozy right away. The hallucinations started. Friends appeared to try and to talk me out of what I was doing. I knew they were not there, that they were projections of my mind.
I understand what a hallucination is and how alive they can seem. I understand the differences between reality and drugged reality. I had done enough drugs in my youth to know the effect they had on my body and mind.
I had gotten up to try to eat a last meal. I stopped cooking after a small fire on the stovetop. I realized it was a trick to slow the drugs down. My survival instinct was using it on me to try to keep me alive. I wouldn't let it.   I put out the fire, threw the pan in the sink and walked back to flop down on the couch. I lay there against one arm of it like a discarded doll. I could no longer make my body move to lie all the way down or put my feet up.   The drugs overcame me finally. My breathing slowed, I could hear my heart beat slowing, and then it became erratic. I wasn't worried about anyone finding me too soon. I lived alone and it was Friday night. The hallucinations stopped. My eyes fell shut. I couldn't open them. I quit trying to open them. I quit trying to do anything. I quit on life.    I died.

Death

I did not 'almost' die.   I did not only ‘think' I died.   I was dead.
My body was dead, but I soon discovered that ‘I' was still alive.
My body stopped working. The ‘self’ that I am did not.

Life

It was quiet.   Complete silence.   It was so peaceful.
There was darkness all around me. It confused me that I was aware.
I also knew that 'I' was 'moving.'   I heard no sound of passing, but I felt I was going somewhere.
I was no longer in my body.   To discover that I was not dead, when I had just killed myself, left me confused and amazed.   A thought came to me.   I regretted the pain my death would cause my family.

Then something changed in me. That sad thought faded away and I was overcome by a deeply peaceful joy. It was like I left all the cares and concerns with my body. It was a healing of my heart and a removal of my pain and grief so complete, I felt like a rock was lifted from me.
I was all done with the responsibilities we create here for the living. I had no fears, no shame, no pain, and no broken heart, nothing left to do. I was released. I didn't have to pay the bills or go to work ever again.

All the hurt I knew in life was gone from me. I had no responsibility toward others now. They would be loved and cared for still. I would always love them. I had no shame or sadness that I had hurt them.
I was filled with joy by that knowing. It was a joy that was real.

The Meeting

I wasn't by the barrier any more. All I could see was the huge, brilliant light now directly in front of me. I felt examined. I looked right at it, in curiosity. The glowing, golden globe of light was alive. It was a 'self.' It was a living, aware, loving being.

We were the same! We were both living beings. It was huge, loving and powerful, strong and gentle all at the same time. It felt human to me.

I was aware that this being of light was aware of itself as alive and living. It was aware of me in the same way. We were alike and alive, but I was in awe of it. I felt the power the Being appeared to create and that was sent out from it. It was like standing in the sun, but instead of sunshine, LOVE warmed you. The Power of Love created and sent out by that Being was a force, like electricity is a force. I could feel it being sent out and touching everything around it. I try to write it and there are no experiences in my life to compare it to that capture the essence of what I felt. It was unlike anything on this world.
There was nothing in my entire experience with the other Divine Loving Being that was not totally 'good' and powered by 'love.' I knew I was safe and loved.

Communion

Now I learned it knew me. It knew me in all I was. I could not hide anything from it. I had no desire to hide anything. I felt no fear or shame that it 'saw' all of me. Then it dawned on me. I got the first hint of truly understanding the meaning of the word 'grace.'

That being knew all of everything I ever was or ever will be---and loved me anyway. I knew that I was precious to it and treasured by it. I was perfectly what I was supposed to be and it loved me just that way.
I didn't have to be anything but just me.

We began to communicate when I understood it was 'speaking' to me. Then I knew it could 'hear' what I wanted to share with it. It was not with spoken words but more like with complete thoughts with no possibility of misunderstanding. It was a true communication of perfect understanding between two spirits.
I have little memory of all that passed between us. We 'talked' for a time, in loving joy at being together. I was small and asking questions. It was 'answering' me, giving me what I felt a need to know as fast as I could conceive the question in my thoughts.

I was so loved! I was loved completely and just as I was, as all I was. Small, confused, dead by my own hand, I was cherished and loved. I was precious to it. I responded to that with my own thoughts of my joy in the peace, love and total acceptance it was giving me. I tried to love it back with my little self.
The being knew I loved it and that I was thankful for its love of me. Then it loved me more. I loved it more. A cycle of pure love between us grew. It was like the most wonderful, perfect joining of hearts between two beings you can imagine. I call it perfect communion.

The Showing

I saw the truth of what I was in its view. I was filled with joy in the knowledge that I was a loving self and I loved the being who showed me the love in myself. It showed me that, yes, we were alike, we are both living, and we both are of Love. I knew all of me the way that being knew me and I saw that each experience and person here was a part of me still. Each part of my life was needed to make me completely what I was. That is the meaning of Love's grace. You are loved as you are; not as what you wish to be, not as you should or could have been, not as someone else says you ought to be, but only for what you are now. It can show you that in the way it sees you.

I was at peace with myself. Nothing hurt. I could only see my life and self through that Being's Love. There was no negative in myself or from that Being for anything I had done, including killing myself.
I knew I was good. I saw I was good. I was not just 'okay.' I was perfect and I was loving and I was good, not just in its view anymore. It let me know that in my own judgment. It loves me so much it wanted me, little ole' 'killed myself me', to know it better and to love it, too. It wanted my love given to it freely, knowing all of it. It wanted to be loved by me the same way it loved me, knowing all of me and choosing to love it, with no limits. It was joy filled that I loved it. I was in a state of bliss from the love we shared.
I was HOME. That is what it felt like, the ultimate homecoming. I was where I was meant to be.

The Parting

Then came the blow I didn't know was coming. My loving friend had one more thing to tell me.
I had to go back; this was not my time.   I had no choice in this. It was not in mine to decide. It was in that being's power to send me back.   It was only done of love. That self could only do what it felt was the most loving thing for me.   My new friend, in its love for me, chose for me.   Then I was alone again.
I was coughing, gagging, and back in my body. My body wasn't dead anymore.

Alive Again

I woke gagging, crying, and gasping for breath. It hurt to breathe. Tears ran down my face to my chest. I started sobbing harder, in deep grief again. I still couldn't figure out exactly what was happening. I wasn't dead, I knew that much. I opened my eyes. I looked up to see a friend standing there, smiling at me.

Over time, I slowly started to feel connected to the world again. I went right back to thinking I had to do something, pay bills, work, move, something, to justify my existence. I went on with being here, being alive as we know it. I forgot about this experience for a long time because I knew it was not going to be believed, I didn't want to be called crazy. I shared it with a few friends just after it happened... they thought I was nuts. I quit talking about it for years.   My NDE was totally outside of my former religious beliefs and learning. But it was real.   For me it was a deeply spiritual experience that required no "faith" because I have seen it and experienced it.   I can't attend church without wanting to debate their beliefs. What I know now is that all roads lead to 'home,' and that we are here to love one another and help each other the best we can in the most loving way we can.

Esteban FR’s NDE in 1995--Original in Spanish

As a professor of theoretical physics, I had gone up to Madrid on work-related business, and there, in my hotel, I started feeling ill. I had never been sick (except for the classic flu and colds) but I knew from the first moment that my heart wasn't working right. Pressure in my chest and rapid pulse. I took an aspirin and felt better, but I decided to go to a specialist as soon as possible when I got home the next day. But when I returned to my office in Granada, at about noon, I started feeling ill again. They took me to the emergency room and hospitalized me right away because they diagnosed me as being on the verge of a heart attack.

Because of the apparent seriousness, they took me to the intensive care unit at the hospital and it was around six in the evening when neither the Nitro drip nor anything else helped me. It wasn't an intense pain, it was acute distress and my heart was firing in increasingly rapid bursts. I remember having to shift around in the bed to get comfortable -- but I immediately realized that the time they had warned me about had arrived and the heart attack was happening.

When I realized I was going to die, those first moments were painful, thinking about the grief my family would experience at such an untimely end. But I am a man of faith, and I began thinking that the serious moment of death had arrived, and I centered my thoughts on my inner self. I was afraid of the unknown because although, as I said, I am a man of faith, faith is not certain and there is always a degree of worry about what is going to happen after this life. At a time of intimacy with God, something that helped me at that moment, I noticed that the heart attack had arrived and my heart had stopped -- and I wasn't even aware when this happened as I fell back and hit the mattress.

At that precise moment, I disconnected from my body and was overflowed with a sense of fulfillment and weightlessness. I clearly understood that I had died and that I was free from all bother and heaviness, and I found myself alive and feeling wonderful with a sense of peace and incredible wellbeing. I was in a place of calm where I felt happy and euphoric to find that, yes, there is another life where death is no more.

When images of my wife and children came to me, I wasn't bothered by them, and did not sorrow for anything -- because if what awaits them is this eternal wonder, of what importance is pain and suffering in this life, if afterwards there is only peace and wellbeing? Such earthly problems and joys are seen as very insignificant from that realm. It's a perfect state. During this whole time I felt lucid and awake like I have never felt before. I felt incredible peace and wellbeing and was moved by immeasurable love for everything and everybody, bound by enormous joy since confirming the existence of life after death. Now I have knowledge, where before I only had faith. It is by far the most powerful experience of my life. I now have no fear of death.

So there I was, happy and awaiting events, knowing that someone would come to get me to enter into this eternal life, when suddenly I felt that I was returning to connect with my body, and I began feeling the illness I had forgotten about. The first thing I heard was a woman's voice with a Valencian accent saying, 'He's coming back, he's coming back!'
'I know I'm coming back,' I said to myself, and felt both grief and courage on returning here once again. It was clear that I had returned! If I left with much pain, I returned to my body with much more anguish. I didn't want to return, and I was filled with sorrow for having left that marvelous state where I had been immensely happy!

When I regained the ability to see with my eyes, I observed that doctors and machines, among them the defibrillation paddles used to bring people back to life, surrounded me. But I didn't feel anything. I returned to my body through the paraphernalia of instruments and medical personnel, and here I am describing this, 'my great experience,' that happened eleven years ago, although it seems like I am reliving it anew; it is so fresh.

On the Other Side I discovered that the only important thing is LOVE. I love people much more intensely and have created a charitable foundation. I even love myself much more, something I had completely forgotten to do during my intensive professional life, because the only luggage we can take with us from this life is what we do out of love for others and ourselves. Our soul is made for LOVE, and from that realization, I understand we are happy here when we love and unhappy when we hate, envy, are selfish, or hurt others.

My experience was definitely real, not a dream or the void of being unconscious. I perfectly understood my disconnection from my body. I was without breathing or heartbeat for more than two and a half minutes, and, since our brain loses activity after ten seconds without blood flow, I should have completely lost consciousness, including memory and understanding; but that's not what happened to me. My memory and understanding remained at a far greater level even than exercised here in this life. It was a real experience, unique and unforgettable.

Jack’s NDE in 1963---AMAZING EXPERIENCE!

In 1963 I was operated on to repair a massive hole in my diaphragm. It had actually disintegrated because I had been cooked internally by microwave radiation [which had leaked from a Radar that I worked on in the Navy]. Six and half hours of surgery. Then on the sixth day following the first surgery, the entire incision ruptured and opened with explosive force. Another five and half hours of surgery to repair the damage, and I was moved to the intensive care unit for recovery. Instead of waking following the surgery, I found myself looking down on a body lying in bed with all kinds of tubes coming out of it, and I could see that the body was already dead. It had already taken on that ashen blue gray pallor of death. I was not at this time aware that it was “me” that I was looking down on!

The problem was that my lungs had filled with my stomach contents during surgery. I had what was described as Aspiration Pneumonia. That was what led to the death experience. My understanding is that all my heart function was completely stopped for at least seventeen minutes that was recorded. No one knows how long it was before I was found to be not breathing with no vital signs.

I watched the Navy Hospital Corpsman that was on duty in the intensive care unit talking to someone on the telephone, and he seemed to be having a good time, because he was laughing. I saw him turn and discover his new surgical patient had stopped breathing. From that instant, from outside of my body, I watched and listened to everything that happened. I was able to view the room from above. [Later, I described medical equipment in detail that I had never seen in my life. I was even able to read any labels that were on top of this equipment.]

Then I watched my entire life pass before me. Not from within myself, but from the outside. I saw myself doing everything and anything that I had ever done in my entire life. I saw who I was, what I was doing, whatever it was, who with, and in addition to watching this pass before my eyes, I felt all feelings I had had. Not only my own, but also the feelings of those I was with when each event happened. Nothing told me what I did was either right or wrong. I just inherently knew and understood the good and the bad. But no one was pointing a finger of accusation at me for anything that I had ever done.

My life started almost at the womb and continued right on until the present time. I saw myself at my Christening in a little wooden church in New Waterford, Ohio. I was so small and young that I could not even crawl, let alone walk or talk. I was looking at a huge blue and white banner that was across the sanctuary behind the pulpit, only up high. It had two large white birds on it with markings which said 'God Is Love'. The birds were doves. I attended this church until we moved from that town when I was in fourth grade. I saw myself with several of my cousins when I was four years old, watching the construction of a new road. The earth moving equipment awed me. But I realized that I had messed my pants because we were gone too long. No one would walk with me because I smelled so bad. I saw myself crawling on the floor, lifting the cover over an electric outlet, inserting my finger, and getting my first electric shock. And the memories of life experiences continued to pass before me.

The next thing that happened was where I seemed to be taken up into the center of a whirlwind. The outside of it seemed to be cloudlike, but it took on a golden or amber glow. Somewhat like fog on a foggy night near the yellow or amber street lights that we used to have here in San Diego. At the end of this tunnel or whirlwind was the brightest white light that I have ever seen. And as I approached, it took on human form and appeared as a man dressed in a long white robe that had a gold sash around the waist. He had long flowing hair and the light was coming from where the face should have been. I was shown many things, many of which I was not permitted to bring back with me for some reason. As I would think of any question, the answer was already present with total and complete understanding before the thought was even completed.

I remember being told that I was dead before my time. Then I was told, 'TELL THEM! I was told that I was but one who would reveal the glory I had seen. Then I was told, 'Jack! You must go back. You have not finished your mission on earth.' I was not told what I was to tell them or what that mission was to be. Then, I was returned back through the whirlwind to my body at the hospital.

When I opened my eyes, the doctor was about to do a tracheotomy and open my chest to do heart massage. I told him I did not want either. I was a hundred days in the hospital. I had a fever of 107 degrees for eleven days, before it finally broke. They would take me from my bed, place me in a bathtub filled with pink alcohol, and then dump in ice to lower my body temperature to eighty-six and then back to bed. This was an ongoing routine for eleven days and nights without stopping. I did not fall asleep for about thirty days following the NDE. I weighed one hundred and sixty-seven pounds when I entered the hospital. My body weight dropped to about seventy-eight pounds before it reversed and I started to gain weight.

Afterward, I was changed. Now I look for the good in all mankind. I stopped being judgmental. I have zero fear of death.

Jang’s NDE in 2013---an atheist, raised in India as a Hindu

Jang was born and raised in India. He was Hindu, but he soon became an atheist. Here is his own account of his NDE experience during a heart/kidney transplant:

“Our senses are imperfect; our brain interprets partial and incomplete data, hence our thinking and our minds are skewed. If we cannot perceive things, it does not mean that they do not exist. Our imagination goes as far as our mind goes, and our mind is limited and dependent on our senses; hence our imaginations are limited too. If we cannot see other frequencies of energy, like UV or infrared light or hear ultra-sound waves, it does not mean they are non-existent. Dogs can sniff drugs, bats can sense in dark, snakes can pick up very small vibrations in earth, and fish can sense slight movements at distances. Human perception is more limited. We have invented some tools to compensate for the deficiencies, but they are nowhere near giving us a whole picture of this universe.

Our language is limited and unable to express everything we would like. We do not have, at least I do not have, enough vocabulary to express some of the things or situations or feelings I would like to express. Try explaining the difference between red and blue to a person who is blind since birth. The word INFINITY, as we all seem to understand, means limitless, or without boundaries. But when I really want to comprehend it, I get lost. First, I cannot imagine anything infinite, and furthermore I do not have the correct words to explain it. So, with my limited understanding and vocabulary, I will try my best to explain my death experience.

On 22nd Nov. 2013, I underwent a dual organ transplant, heart and kidney. The surgery lasted for about 12 hours. When I came out of anesthesia the next morning, I was very peaceful, calm, and happy, not due to the fact that I survived a major surgery, but due to what I had experienced during my surgery.

Before going into further details, I want to talk about my life before. Of East Indian origin, I was born in a traditional Hindu family. My parents were very religious and we used to have prayers and hymns every day at our home. Hindus are strong believers in life after death; of reincarnation. I had a formal education in science (M.S. in genetics and biochemistry) which led me to be an independent and analytical thinker. I started questioning all the rituals and beliefs instilled in me during my childhood. So much so, that I started questioning the existence of God. The more I tried to logically analyze this, the more my concept about any God or superpower disappeared. Up until my surgery, I considered God and related beliefs as myths. I was an antagonist and an atheist.

My cardiac issues started in 1989 when I was 33 years old. I was diagnosed with atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, and underwent angioplasty, which was a relatively recent technique in those days. From that time on, I struggled with heart issues, and doctors took all possible measures to keep me alive. I underwent angiograms a dozen times, endured more than 15 stent implants and a triple bypass surgery. I suffered two strokes which left me partially blind. Additionally, my kidneys failed in 2008 and I was put on home (peritoneal) dialysis and later on hemodialysis. In May 2013, my heart was failing and a heart machine called LVAD (left ventricle assist device) was implanted in me to enable normal blood circulation. At this stage I was literally a bionic man, being supported by machines. I was put on heart and kidney transplant lists and within months was on the operating table, undergoing a double transplant (Nov 22nd, 2013). During this tenuous period I had some very close calls.

I would like to mention one in particular, when I had an allergic reaction to Cipro, an antibiotic. I fainted within minutes of taking it and was rushed to the emergency department in an ambulance. Though I was unconscious, I could hear EMT technicians informing the trauma physician over the radio about my dropping blood pressure and non-existent pulse. I was given defibrillator shocks a few times to revive my heart. Though I was unconscious, still I was able to hear the EMTs conversation and, at the time, I did not attribute it to any out-of-body-experience.

Later, however, the experience I had during my transplant surgery was totally different and very interesting. When I regained consciousness the day after the surgery, I was a little surprised to find myself on the bed. Sometime during the surgery, I felt that I was somewhere else. I realized that I was in some kind of valley with hills all around. There were a few trees, and an old big one with two big branches stood out. There was no noise at all and everything was very quiet. There was shade where I was, like an overhead cloud on a sunny day. I could see some source of light over the horizon through the clouds. There was a crowd of people facing the light at the far end. I could see only the outline of these people as some light was filtering through them.

I was observing all this from one end of the valley. I was not scared, nor was I surprised. It seemed like a place I have known before, more like my home. I did not feel myself there physically, but I could feel my presence, my consciousness there. All communication was through the mind. There was somebody communicating with me, somebody at a higher intellectual level than me. Even before I could formulate and ask any thought or question, the answer or explanation would pop up in my mind. Someone greeted me by sarcastically saying, “So, finally you are here, you dog”. (In my culture, ‘Dog’ is used for a lower class of people.) Upon my surprise at being called a dog, I was told, “you bark a lot, but still you are very dear to me, you are my favorite dog”. I immediately realized that during my recent lifetime, I was very vocal about the non-existence of God, and my personality must certainly have been considered self-approving by those around me.

Then, I felt myself sitting in the same someone’s lap. The individual was stroking my hair. A lot of questions were racing through my mind. One of the things I remember clearly is that I was told that we know the answers to all questions. All we need to do to find the answers is by listening to our inner selves. The other thing I was told was, “you think you are the center of universe, and everything revolves around you. Come, open your eyes and have a look”. I went towards the edge, a gap in the hills surrounding the valley, and saw planet Earth spinning on its axis and moving very fast. It zipped across my eyes. Whole solar systems and many stars and galaxies passed by me. I realized how insignificant I was in the bigger picture of the universe.

Soon after that, I found myself standing alone, and slowly the cloud overhead started moving away and light rays started falling on me. The most intriguing part of this experience was the light. It was golden white in color, resembling light radiating from molten metal, and these rays were not associated with heat, unlike sun rays. It was bright and refreshingly cool, more like being under a cool shower on a hot day. When the light rays fell on me, something happened to me. My mind stopped wandering; I had no more curiosities, no more questions, and I came to a total rest and peace. It was such a fulfilling experience, which I cannot describe in words.

It seemed like I had reached home. There was no more turbulence in my mind, no thoughts, good or bad. While being soaked in that light, I felt as if I were melting and becoming lighter. Time just stood still, and I was enjoying this bliss. I do not know how long I was in that state. It was like time had stopped. It could have been a split second or eternity. Later, I was informed that during a heart transplant, patients are clinically dead for a short time while their new heart is being put in and started. As I was clinically dead for some time and felt my presence somewhere else, I call it near-death.

Ever since this experience, my life has changed considerably. I have become more understanding and tolerant of others and their beliefs. I have stopped thinking poorly of other people, and I am no more a grouchy, arrogant man. I love everything and everybody. I give lots of hugs and laugh a lot. Things do not bother me. I am not scared of the unknown or of dying. I know now that nature takes its own course, and worrying about it would only cause misery. My family is happy, and there is solace in the house. In short, I understand myself a lot better. I do not have all the answers and explanations, because I understand there are some experiences which are better left open-ended, rather than trying to dissect and make sense of them. I am at peace with myself and enjoying every moment of my new life. I am having a remarkable recovery without any complications or side effects, and my physicians and family members are really amazed. I do not take any credit for that, as I am well aware that it is not me. May love and peace prevail.

I am an insignificant part of this universe,

Jang J.

Jayne S's near-death experience---There are no sins!

Thirty-five years ago, Jayne Smith was in the hospital in labor with her second baby. In the process, she experienced clinical death and had a near-death experience.

WHAT HAPPENED---IN HER OWN WORDS:

“I was totally aware. I was in blackness. I couldn't see anything. I was thinking to myself, "This isn't the way it is supposed to be. I'm not supposed to know anything and I do. What on earth has happened?" At that point I felt something leave my body. It was a whoosh. It went up through the top of my head. I could feel it and I could hear it. Just a gentle whoosh. At that point I found myself standing in a kind of gray mist. Then I knew I had died.

The memory of this experience is seared into my very soul. When I found myself standing in this gray mist with the realization that I had died, I remembered feeling so overjoyed, so thrilled, because I knew that even though I was what we call "dead", I was still very much alive. Very much alive. I was totally aware. I began to pour out these feelings of thanksgiving. I wasn't doing it verbally, but it seemed that the very essence of me was saying "Thank you, thank you, God for setting it up this way, that I really am immortal. I was not annihilated."

I was involved in this tremendous pouring forth of gratitude and joy, as a white light began to infiltrate my consciousness. It came into me. It seemed I went out into it. I expanded into it as it came into my field of consciousness. There was nothing I was aware of, except this brilliant white light. The light brought with it the most incredible feeling of total love, total safety, total protection. I was just enveloped in it. I remember feeling almost cradled by it. It was so dynamic.

As I existed in this white light, in this incredible love, I began to be rapturous. The rapture built. The bliss built. My consciousness began to expand with the bliss of it all. Suddenly there came into my field of consciousness an entire field of knowledge. It was like a whole block of knowledge that just simply came in and settled itself on me. Suddenly, I knew that I was immortal, that I was eternal, that I was indestructible, that I always had been, that I always will be, and that there was no way in this world I could ever be lost!!

It was impossible for me to fall into a crack in the universe somewhere and never be heard from again. I just knew that I was utterly safe and I always had been forever and ever.

When that block of knowledge was digested by me, as it were, another block of knowledge came in. A whole field of knowledge came into my being and what I knew then was that the universe runs according to a perfect plan. Everything that we think about as hard to understand or unfair or cruel or whatever, all this was really without meaning; all of the things that we worry about and that concern us---we really don't have to worry about at all! There is a perfect plan, and the plan is working itself out in its perfection.

Then I simply remember that I became more blissful, more rapturous, more ecstatic. I was just filling and filling with this light and love. This light is not static at all. It is so dynamic and so much going on in there of love and joy and knowledge. As you take it into yourself, your ecstasy level just becomes tremendous.

I knew that I had lost all sense of having a body. It was just my consciousness, sort of pure and free floating, and I did not think at all during this part of the experience. I had no thoughts. I was a receiving station. I merely felt and absorbed and took in and did not think at all. I reached the point in the rapture of it all where I thought to myself suddenly, my first thought.

"I wonder how much more of this I can stand before I shatter?" With that thought, the light began to recede. So, the universe will not let us shatter. We cannot take in more of this bliss and joy than we are able to handle at a time.

As the light began to recede, the rapture that I had built up also began to dissipate. For a couple of seconds, I could not remember what was going on. I remember thinking to myself "I don't know how I got here. I can't remember what's going on." I didn't know if I had been in that light for a minute of a day or a hundred years. I think the source of all energy just produced a condition in me of amnesia for a couple of seconds. But that was not allowed to last very long either.

Within a second or two, I found myself standing in an absolutely beautiful green meadow. I knew then what was going on. I knew once again who I was, that I had died. My amnesia period was over with.

I stood there in this gorgeous meadow and I remember that the light there was different from the light here on earth. Though it was not that brilliant white light from earlier, it was a more beautiful light. There was a golden glow to this light. I remember the sky was very blue. I don't recall seeing the sun. The colors were extraordinary. The green of the meadow was fantastic. The flowers were blooming all around and they had colors that I had never seen before. I was very aware that I had never seen these colors before and I was very excited about it.

I thought I had seen all colors. I was thrilled to death of the beauty that was incredible. In addition to the beautiful colors, I could see a soft light glowing within every living thing. It was not a light that was reflected from the outside from a source, but it was coming from the center of this flower. Just this beautiful soft light. I think I was seeing the life inside of everything.

When I finished looking at this exquisite beauty, I started to walk. I had only taken a few steps before I saw that there was in front of me a low hill. There were perhaps 18 to 20 people standing on the hill. They were dressed in robes, very simple, I suppose, Grecian type robes. They were also in all these beautiful colors. There were both men and women there. There was no one that I knew, but then I had no close emotional ties on the other side so it is not surprising that there was no one there that I knew.

I felt to myself, "Oh, I want to talk with them." It seemed that immediately I was there on the top of the hill. I don't know whether I was able to just glide there effortlessly or whether I only had to think I wanted to be there and I was there. What I do remember was that I did not have to climb the hill. There was no effort involved in this.

As I found myself at the top of the hill, I saw that over on the horizon was a city. I realized in some way that this was more than just a city, that what I was seeing actually represented a world. I wondered, "Was that the world I just came from or the one I am going to?" I never had a chance to find out because right at that moment, 3 or 4 of the men that were in this group of people on the hill, came to me and we met.

I said to them "I know what has happened. I realize that I am dead. I know what's going on."

One man of the group did all the talking to me. He was quite tall, taller than the rest. I remember the robe he was wearing was purple. He had a white fringe of hair that went around his head. The top of his head was bald. He had an absolutely marvelous face. It was very noble, very kind, what we would think of as a very spiritual face. He also had about him a great deal of authority, so that I felt I was talking to someone that I could trust completely.

When I said to him "I know what's going on. I know that I have died," he said, "Yes, that's true, but you are not going to be staying here. It isn't time for you to be here yet." I must tell you that when we talked, we did not move our mouths. I can remember that I only had to have the impulse that contained the things that I wanted to say and he would immediately be able to get that and answer me. Even though he was not moving his mouth when he talked with me, I could hear the sound of his voice in my inner ear. I know what he sounded like. It was a mental transmission, yet I could hear what he sounded like. For a long, long time, I could remember the sound of his voice.

I said to him again, "Everything that has happened to me since I crossed over is so beautiful. Everything is so perfect. What about my sins?" He said "There are no sins, not the way you think of them on earth. The only thing that has any meaning here is what you think." Then he asked me a question. "What is in your heart?" Then, in some incredible way that I don't understand at all, I was able to look deeply inside myself, really into the very core of me to my essence. I saw that what was there was love, nothing else. My core was perfect love, loving perfection. I had complete love and acceptance for everything. I saw my own gentleness, tenderness, harmlessness. I simply was perfect and loving. Now this does not apply to just me. It applies to all human beings. That is what we are. That is our core. This love, this perfection, this Godness. I believe that our connection with God will always be there.” Then I said to him "Of course!" I felt I was connecting with knowledge that I had known before. I wondered how on earth I had forgotten anything that important. I have known that. I said "Can you tell me what everything is all about - the whole world - everything?" He said "Yes." He told me in only three sentences at the most. It was so simple. I understood it immediately. I had total comprehension of what he was saying to me. I remember again saying to him "Of course!" Then there was that feeling again of connecting with knowledge I had once had. I wondered how on earth I could have forgotten that.

I said to him, "Since I am not going to be able to stay, and there are so many people I want to take this back to, may I take this all back with me?" He said "You may take the answer to the first question back, the one about sins. But the answer to the second one, you are not going to be able to remember." Then I was back, and I opened my eyes. My doctor was standing over me and he was doing something that was extremely uncomfortable.

After the experience, I have never been able to remember the specific two or three sentences I was told. I have tried and I have tried for years after this experience to make a concerted effort to try, especially after I went to bed at night, when I would be lying there in that not quite asleep state. And I never could.

Jacky C NDE from Taiwan---Translated (with errors) from Chinese into English.

That summer when I was 21 years old I went with several friends to somewhere in Jinshan bay in Taipei to swim and BBQ. We are a group of boys and girls. Immediately after we had arrived at our destination, everybody was setting up the BBQ by the creek. Right there, one of the boys suggested that we go swimming in the creek first. However I thought we should grill the meat first then went for a swim afterward, but the majority of the boys had gone already so I thought as a boy I should go for it, too. Thus I went along.

There were two girls by the grill to prepare the BBQ. I felt sorry for them though. I wished I had not gone swimming, however it turned out to be a memorable experience that I could never forget. In fact, I did not know how to swim. I could only play in the water let alone swim. Once everyone was in the water, they all showed off their swimming skills such as breaststroke, supine, and silent swimming. Some of them would even go further to climb up on the rocks then jump off it. I knew I could not swim so I stayed in the shallow water side. However, they went even further to the deep water and I was catching up with them for competition sake. But the further I swam the more I was intimidated. At this moment, I could not reach the bottom of the water, and it was too late to turn back. The rush of the water brought me down deeper into the water. I thought I was doomed this time. The water kept bringing me deep down. I fought to swim against the current upward but I was drowned by the water. I could not swim out of it to reach the surface.

As I struggled in the water for a while, I heard my heartbeat become slower and slower. It was so quiet in the water that you could hear your own heartbeat. Momentarily right after the last heartbeat, I was sucked upward by a force or in other word it was like being squeezed out of it. I found out I was floating approximately one to two floors of a high rise building above the water. That instant, I was perplexed. I found myself had no body floating. Immediately I felt strange how this happened that I was bodiless and feeling light weighted. While I was floating up in the air I saw two of my classmates were on the surface. The way I watched them was like zoomed in on a camera. There was something in the water that looked like it was me. Feeling unsure as I thought, then I realized that I had died? Right at this moment, my surroundings turned pitch dark, and a light appeared in front of me. It seemed like a tunnel which was the entrance of the reincarnation in the spiritual world.

I was pushed forwards by a force. The whole process felt weightless, while I looked at my right hand and it was hand-shaped except for the edges of it were illuminated with transparent, blue light. I thought I must have died. I could feel a sheet of soft, white surroundings in this realm. There were ancient Chinese Palace stairs where on top of it was a bronze mirror and its size was bigger than TV cabinet. The edge of the copper mirror was decorated with a flower pattern in a Chinese Palace style. There was a force that pushed me in front of this mirror then put me down. I watched myself from the mirror and I saw myself had a head-shaped image illuminating with bright, blue light. Then, the bronze mirror projected my life from young to adulthood at a super high speed, which was playing hundreds to thousands of my life experiences in about 1 to 2 seconds.

When my life review was completed, that force lifted me up, detoured the bronze mirror and continued on forwarding. While I was moving forward, a picture appeared behind my head. It was a lady with black dress lying on her stomach on a rock by the creek, crying sobering. As the force pushed me forwards further, the louder the lady crying in the picture. I could feel that this picture tried to tell me “Are you sure you won't regret?” And I knew that once I passed the bright light then I could never come back anymore.

So I was telling myself that, “No, if I left, my parents would be weeping and sad. No, I have to come back.” Next, I made a left turn and broke away from that force. I looked back and found out it was the dark tunnel that I had entered into previously. In a flash, a force sucked me over. I was back and was able to feel the flesh again. However, I was still in the bottom of the water, I thought as for me it was not an easy journey to come back (the earth) so I would not want to go back there again. Surprisingly, I never knew how I had learned to tread water. But since I continued doing so I finally reached the surface. Once I was on top of the water, my classmates seemed to notice that I was drowning and they pushed me from the deep water to the shallow water. Eventually, I was on shore. (I would like to share with more people.)

The above contents are all true and definitely not superstition. My own experience.

Hera A’s NDE in 1997---A nurse meets her patients again!

I was on the operating table and noticed that my heart rate on the monitor changed to V-Tach (a life-threatening fast, abnormal heart rhythm). I then had a respiratory and cardiac arrest on the operating table.

Suddenly I was sucked out of my body like a vacuum and saw the anesthesiologist calling back my doctor who I saw in the parking garage; he quickly returned. I saw that I was lying on the operating table, and then “I” left the hospital and my body and went into the universe, travelling very fast through space. I was conscious and alert throughout the entire experience. My hearing seemed very acute, and I was able to see exceptionally well even without my contact lenses.

I stopped in a very cloudy place, and the people I saw gathering around me were my dead patients that I had seen die when I worked in the intensive care unit. I thought to myself that I surely had died, for these people were dead. I am a nurse, and patients had told me that they had these experiences, but I felt skeptical about believing them. Then, suddenly, I saw my father, who had died six months prior, and he talked to me ‘through my brain’ and led me to a tunnel.

As I approached the tunnel, I was engulfed in a large light, a light that was so beautiful and comforting and that filled me with unconditional love. I felt incredible peace and joy. While in the light I had a life review and saw everything I had ever done in my life. Every thought, word, deed, action, and inaction was shown to me.

Then my father led me into this rotating tunnel. At the end I could see a very beautiful garden. In the middle of the tunnel was a figure, who had his back to me. I felt immediately thrown to my knees, as my father stood next to me. My immediate thoughts moved to the Old Testament, where the Levites were attending the Ark of the Covenant (the golden chest containing the Ten Commandments), where the ‘holy of holies’ (the sanctuary where God was present) resided. I felt as if I were in this place and if the figure, who I thought was Jesus, turned around, I would surely die.

I heard three voices speak to me in unison. They said, 'You can stay or you can leave.' I remember, when I heard this, thinking, 'I can stay or I can leave?' A part of me wanted to stay, because I loved my father, and he was next to me, and I wanted to stay with him. Yet another part of me wanted to leave, to finish my life on earth. I replied back to the voices, 'But I am not good enough to be here.' The most beautiful voice said to me, 'Oh, but you are.' I remember I was so humbled by this that, even now, when I think of it, I cry.

I kept trying to decide what to do, but could not make a decision. Suddenly, I felt a pulling on my shoulders as if something was pulling me back, and it was revealed to me that the pulling was the prayers of my mother and my children. I immediately, said, 'I gotta go,' and I shot out of that tunnel so fast, hearing like a vacuum sound. I shot back through the universe and awoke, looking at the doctor who told me that I was going to die. I told the doctor that I had been in heaven and that I was not going to die. When I saw my mother, I immediately started to cry and told her that I had seen my father.

I ended up having five surgeries that year, but I survived. I believe what I experienced is true, for my life has forever been changed by this experience. I can still remember every detail of it in full recall. I am not the same, nor have I ever experienced the kind of love I felt in that light, and I know that there is life beyond this one. During my experience, I learned that the reason for life is to love and be loved without measure.

Mark W’s NDE in 1985--- an Oxford student

I had an allergic reaction (asthma) that led to clinical death (cessation of breathing and heart function). It was near Christmas. I realised my breathing was getting very bad, as though a stone were pressing on my chest. My eyes were closed and I was just concentrating on breathing. I stopped listening to anything going on around me. The ambulance was too late. There came a moment when it was too painful to breathe any more. I knew that I was going to die. As the ambulance was coming, I died on the kitchen table.

But, instead of becoming unconscious, I felt more conscious and alert than normal! All my consciousness seemed to lift from my body and became centered in my head. I was without any pain, although still in my body. I remember thinking, 'Nature thinks of everything!' The end was going to be painless. The body is a great deadening weight. One can think and feel more clearly without it.   Interestingly, I was entirely conscious during all of this, in the sense that my thinking mind was entirely clear throughout. There was no gap in consciousness.

Then I saw white sparks in my head, followed by red sparks. My mind began to flash like an old TV set. It was at his point that I thought I would simply lose consciousness and die. And then I seemed to jump out of the top of my head. I scrambled upwards.

I was suddenly in a black and velvety void. I remember thinking that if I was dead and had to endure an eternity of this, that it would be bearable, but rather empty. I looked back at my body and was repulsed by the dead thing.   It was also a relief to be out of it and rid of my body. I saw what a burden it had been all my life.

Looking about, I perceived a small spot of unearthly light in the distance, so I moved towards it. The light grew larger as I moved towards it. Whilst I felt safe, I was also troubled. I began to worry about the need to pray to a divine being. It concerned me that the truth might not be Buddhist or Christian, but something else. I thought I should pray to God to keep me safe, and worried over getting the correct name for God. Which religious tradition? All this seems quite funny to me now.

In all this experience, nothing came to me with a name or a placard around its neck. I also had a strong feeling that I had died and done all this before. The experience was very familiar. I remember thinking, 'What? Dead again and nothing done (with my life)!' I also had a keen sense that I had killed myself. In my earthly reality, I had not killed myself because I had died from a severe asthma attack.   But I believed that my life, and all the things that happened in it, had been caused by me. Even a random asthma attack from having asthma and poor health from birth, which seemed like chance, was in fact, self-caused.

I saw that my life had reached a dead-end in some ways. I had lost a sense of what it was all for. I was in my first term at Oxford at the time, so in many ways there was no reason to see things in this way! But I was unhappy. And so the end had arrived in this form. And I had done it.

The light became quite enormous now and was clearly some sort of Being. It was delighting in my return and seemed to know me well. I would say there was much laughter. The Being was a presence of overwhelming and quite astonishing love, joy, intelligence, and power. I seemed to be taken within it and experienced this amazingingly joyous existence and Being myself. I felt what it felt like to be this great conscious, intelligent light. Perhaps that experience was a gift?

At this point, I realised that I had really died. I was suddenly horrified at the thought of the suffering it would cause my mother. I begged and prayed to be returned, to go back. Which I then immediately did. It was a relief to come round as I was being carried into the ambulance. I suspect now that all of this took about five to ten minutes in Earth time. During my NDE, I had no sense of time.

This world seems less real by comparison with the other and is less solid. While there, I felt I understood everything about myself and others. There was much more clarity about the meaning of things. I saw my life as a whole. There was not much to report, only that I had not done much with it.

I came to a definite conscious decision to return to life because of my mother's potential grief at my death. Everyone else would have coped, but I sensed that my mother would have been destroyed by it.

One of the first thoughts I had after I died was that I had died before and that this was a familiar experience. My experience taught me that it is important to be compassionate. This is the most important and only thing. I remember the experience more accurately than other life events that occurred around the time of the experience. It's still tremendously clear and vivid and definitely real.

Motorcyclist NDE in 1980

Back story: Working at Forest Service, on a survey crew at the time.

Religious thoughts at the time: I would have told you I was an atheist the day before the accident, as a result of my step-father trying to force me into Catholicism; I had come to the conclusion that religion was nothing but a control mechanism – and I still think so today.

The event:

I was riding my motorcycle, a Honda 750K, in the hills, near La Luz (near Alamogordo) NM, with another biker I knew. We were riding on a 2-lane road, coming down from the mountain. I was ahead of him. I was, as usual, riding too fast for the road (but that's how I lived at the time).

I came around a tight curve, and the bike high-sided (center of balance lost, throwing all weight opposite of where it should have gone). My buddy, Perry, later told me he saw me hit a car, and both the bike and I went flying. He told me an ambulance took me to the hospital at Holloman AFB. At Holloman they put me into a Medevac helicopter to send me to WBAMC at Ft. Bliss (El Paso, Tx). All this time, my “body” was unconscious.

However, “I” became aware that I was sitting up, looking out the window, watching rotor blades go by, then became aware of all the sounds of the helicopter. It seemed sort of slow motion, but I did not perceive any other sensation. I thought: "Why am I in a helicopter?" And I looked around to see that I was sitting next to my body on a gurney!

My only thought was: "Wow. I'm dead." No fear, or excitement, just a matter of fact.

Then boom! I was in the presence of Consciousness. That is all I could call It. (There was no one else there, no entities, nobody. Just an endless sort of pale blue Light. At this point, I did not perceive myself to have a body.)

"It" said: "No, you are not dead. All is not as you've been told. You've been here before; you'll be here again." A very one-sided dialog!

Then, it was like "a wave of information was poured into me," is the way I describe it. (There was nothing memorable, or tangibly useful about it, but it seemed to be the source of insights as the years went by.) I then woke up in traction 4 days later in an ICU, with a broken left femur, and a few other nasty injuries.

After the event, nothing was the same. So much of the way I used to live, the things I found entertaining, the things other people find entertaining, all seem so frivolous. I lost my fear of death, but also my zest for life.

I have heard all the explanations from various sources: Endorphin based delusion, lack of oxygen to the brain, all the way to “You were deceived by the devil!” Um....No!

The NDE is as vivid today as the day it occurred.

Paul’s NDE in 1970--- A VIETNAM SOLDIER’S REMARKABLE NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE.

In 1970, I was hopelessly caught up in the tragedy and horror of the Vietnam War. My wife, Sue, was just two months pregnant when I received the dreaded induction notice.

On April 30, 1970, President Richard Nixon announced that U.S. Troops had begun a ground offensive against the Communist stronghold in Cambodia. I was shipped out and participated along with over forty thousand troops in this maneuver of the Army's Tenth Combat Division. On October first, my platoon was moving west when we were hit hard by a sniper attack. I was trying to retreat to safety when I heard a blood-chilling scream. I turned in time to see my buddy Pete go down in a hail of bullets from enemy fire. Every instinct told me to save myself and keep on running . I only had to hear his desperate cries to realize that I could not abandon a man who had gone out of his way to show a green recruit the ropes and given me hours of badly needed escape from our mutual war trauma and suffering by really showing an interest in my life and my hopes to rejoin my wife and new baby when the nightmare of war was finally over. I shared his dream of finding the right lady some day and starting a family of his own. He dreamed of becoming a teacher with the help of the G.I. bill for education. I turned around and went back towards where he lay moaning, screaming for a medic the entire time.

I had crossed the fifty feet between us in a few seconds when I was shot down by machine gun fire. Pain ripped through my legs and I fell forward. The next thing I knew, I was viewing the scene from about sixteen feet above my body!

I saw that my body had been hit several times in the right leg and once in the left. I was convinced that I was going to bleed to death and felt tremendous sorrow that I'd never see my wife and our unborn baby. My sadness was joined by a growing confusion and curiosity. So, this is death? I thought. No pain! No fear! How weird, I don’t feel any different. I still can think. I stared at my body and wondered what was coming next.

My buddy, Pete was lying next to my body. I was shocked to see a “mist” leave from his head, which instantly turned into an exact duplicate of his body. I noticed that his spirit or new body was whole and glowed a bit. (His physical body below was missing his hand and part of his forearm due to being hit by the sniper.) Pete looked dazed and I called to him. He immediately flew to join me and we discussed what was going to happen from that point. We noticed that a young black medic had discovered our bodies. First he checked Pete and then me. He began working on my body and Pete commented that he guessed that meant he was dead, but that I probably still had a chance.

He reached out and shook my hand and said, "I want to thank you for being a good friend and for trying to save my life. I don’t know why, but I just get this sense that I am not staying here. I am going someplace I’ve been before. It feels like home. I know this sounds crazy, but I think it’s not your time to go yet. I think I’ll try to say goodbye to my mom now, but you go on and have a groovy life and if your kid is a boy, name him after me. OK?" I said, "You got it Pete!" I reached over to give him a pat on the back, but he vanished in a blink of light. I watched several soldiers below help carry my body away from the scene while the medic continued to work on it. I was filled with a yearning to be with my young wife and my unborn child. Suddenly, I was slammed back into my body, as if I fell from forty feet above.

Due to my injuries, I was shipped home one month later. I had no opportunity to attend my pal’s funeral, but I did research his family and called his Mom. His mother, Thelma, answered and I offered my heartfelt condolences to her, and she said her son had come to see her on the night he was killed! She had a visit in a dream where he had stayed long enough to tell her he had passed over to the other side, but not to grieve for him as he was happy, and he had a job to do. He held out his arms, and a light appeared to come to him. A beautiful, radiant child formed next to him. He was a five or six year-old boy with auburn curls and hazel eyes. He had a sprinkling of freckles across his nose and cheeks. "Who’s that?" His mom asked. "Why, this is little Pete. He wants to know about his Daddy, what his earthly life will be like and what he can expect. I'm showing him the ropes. Little Pete and I will be together for a long time, HE CAN COUNT ON IT!!" He picked up the child and hugged him.

I told her about my wife’s pregnancy and the promise I made to Pete about naming a son after him. I suggested this might have been the child she was shown in the dream on October 1, 1971. I promised to stay in touch and send photos of my child when he or she was born in 4 to 5 weeks.

My son Peter was born on October 31, 1971. He was practically bald, but had striking hazel eyes. On his second birthday, I mailed photos to Pete’s mom in Colorado, and she called to say thanks. The photos resembled the little boy in her dream especially the mop of auburn curls. On Peter’s sixth birthday, she flew in to meet our family and burst into tears when she saw him. There was no doubt at all. This was the same boy she saw her son Pete with that awful night he died. We adopted her as "Granny Thelma" right on the spot. We stayed in touch through the years by phone and letters. She treasured each detail and photo of Peter.

She passed on recently; however Peter, his wife Karen, and their two sons visited her in the hospital the week before. She knew she'd soon be joining Pete and his Dad (who had died in WWII). She was anxious to be reunited, and thanked ‘little Pete’ (now 27) for being the grandson she had wanted since her first vision of him. Peter told her he had always suspected that Pete was watching over him, especially when he was in the Desert Storm conflict.

The experience was vivid and real and gave me hope that when we die, we really live on and can see all our own departed relatives. I know that If everyone could see the “Big Picture,” there would never be another war! Love and peace to all who read this.

Virginie R’s NDE in 1989---from France. Original in French

I attempted suicide, swallowing 120 pills with some alcohol---because my life was miserable. I left my body when my heart stopped beating and I flatlined.

I was rising up to the level of the ceiling, and I saw my body in the intensive care room. I went into a tunnel. On each side of the tunnel, I saw deceased members of my family and my little brother’s dog. I heard very soft sounds that resembled classical music, and I saw brilliant but not dazzling, radiant colors. I felt immense joy and an enormous love and peace.

I was advancing towards a very bright, white light at the end of the tunnel. It was soft and warm. My little brother Philippe, who died 12 years before, took me by the hand and was smiling at me while taking me in front of the light. Time seemed to stand still. I could clearly see everything around me. My past flashed in front of me. I saw my complete childhood and adolescence scrolling before me. I saw the day when I got my driver’s license and my first job. I was not judged for my deeds, and I felt only compassion. I was very alert and felt that I knew everything!

Then, a strong, kind voice, asked me why I wanted to die. I answered that the absence of my little brother was too hard for me, and that my mother felt resentful towards me because of Philippe's death. Phillip died of leukemia at the age of 7, and I was not compatible as a marrow donor.

I said that I took all the medications that I could find in the medicine chest, and that my mother didn't do anything to stop me. I know that it was God talking to me, as he said that I had to go back to my family, that I would give birth to six children, and that I still had a mission to accomplish. I wanted so much to stay there, because I was surrounded by love. I saw my lifeless body below me, as well as the doctors doing everything to reanimate me. Suddenly, and very unpleasantly, I came back into my body through the top of my head, and I opened the eyes. I was crying a lot, as I didn't want to come back. I told my doctors what had happened to me, and they said that it was my brain inventing my whole experience.

As I was told by God, I now have six children. I had a job in tourism. I got breast cancer. Now, after being healed, I'm a volunteer in an association visiting sick people in hospitals. I am very patient toward others, and I rarely get angry. In my mind, I can see this experience again, as if it happened yesterday. It was definitely real. I know this because it completely changed my life.

Since my experience, religion, which beforehand had meant nothing to me, became more important. I pray now every evening. I know that God exists and that he loves all of us. I no longer fear death. The purpose of life is for us to learn to love and to grow spiritually.

Marlin C’s NDE in 2000

It started out like indigestion, so I took some Rolaids and it went away. I thought that was it. About 15 minutes later it came back, so I took some more. The same thing, it went away. Then it came back, and I took more Rolaids, but this time it didn't go away.

The pain came up into the center of my chest and it felt like my chest was going to explode. I started to panic a little because I had never experienced anything like it before. I called 911 and the ambulance came.

They were taking a long time to get me ready to transport. They had a beginner on, and he was trying put an IV in my arm and was having no success. On the way to hospital, they were taking their sweet time about it. They were driving normal speed and had the flashing lights on until the attendant called the hospital on the radio and told them my symptoms.

The person on the other end said, my God, he's having a massive heart attack - get him here quick! Then they turned on the siren and sped up.

When we got to the hospital, I was in the emergency room, and the doctor asked me if I had been smoking crack cocaine, I told him no. I had two more trainees trying to put IVs in my arms. As they were working, the doctor asked me again about the coke. Again, I said no. He told me the reason was asking was that he was going to give me a new type of blood thinner and, if I had smoked crack, I would bleed out and die. Just as they started to put the medicine in, my heart stopped, and I was dead.

The instant I died, I was standing in pitch blackness; and then, in front of me, appeared the brightest light I have ever seen. I'm blind in my right eye. I have been since I was three years old, and after entering the light, it seems I could see with both eyes.

A voice came into my head, telling me to step into the light, so I thought to myself, 'I don't know about that, I've never experienced anything like this before.' It was like everything just went into your head without hearing. Then the voice said it again, so I stepped into the light.

It's hard to explain the feeling I had when I first stepped in it. It was like every cell in my body came alive with the most exhilarating feeling of love. I had never felt anything like it in my life! After this overpowering feeling of love, then came peace, and then came contentment. Then I started looking around, and I saw flowers and trees. Everything around me felt like it was emanating love towards me.

Suddenly, I was looking into the doctor's face. I was so mad that he had brought me back that that I grabbed his shirt collar and asked him why he did that. He pointed to my wife and mother and said, 'They told me to!' I've been wanting to go back ever since!!!

Since my experience, I am no longer afraid of death. I also feel that a lot of the stuff the bible talks about is not quite right. My experience was definitely real. I don't care that others say it was caused by the drugs I had been given. It was very real.

Marta Y’s NDE in 1985---From Mexico. Original in Spanish

March 13, 1985, I was admitted to Ayala Hospital of the IMSS (Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social -- publicly-funded) in Guadalajara, following an accident in a taxi causing me much pain in the neck and back. I was alone, my family unaware of what was happening, as I had no time to tell them. I could hardly speak and could not hold my head upright.   I was put in a waiting room, where I stayed more than two hours while nobody paid any attention to me, until a lady who was there, a total stranger, made sure I was quickly attended to when she saw that I was almost fainting from the pain. The doctors and nurses had put attending to patients on hold because they were celebrating the birthday of one of them.

When they finally got around to me, a doctor, without checking me properly, ordered a drip put in place with various analgesics. I was taken to a small room since there were no available beds, and a nurse proceeded to put the drip in me.   As soon as she was gone, I started feeling that the drip was provoking a tachycardia, and I realized something was wrong. I wanted to pull it out, but my muscles no longer obeyed me. When the nurse returned and saw me, she called out for help. A stretcher-bearer and doctor came and between the two of them, they lifted me up. With my last remaining strength, I said to the doctor, 'Thank you, God bless you.' I've no idea why I said this to him, but immediately afterwards everything went black and I don't remember what happened. [Later, I was told that I suffered from “anaphylactic shock,” causing my heart to stop beating for fifteen minutes! With no vital signs, the doctors at first pronounced me dead!]

Very soon, I felt myself floating in the air and looked towards the gurney, where I was surprised to see my body, a moment of indescribable emotion.   I marveled at what the physical body is and how small, compared with the dimensions of the spirit.   I understood that reincarnation exists.   Then I realized that I could see through the walls, and I saw a man also leaving his body.

In another room, I saw a friend of mine from childhood whom I had not seen since. He was working as a radiologist, taking x-ray images of a lady. I said, 'There's Juan,' and straight off I was there in front of him and said to him, 'How lovely to see you,' but he showed not a trace of having heard me, which made me understand that he could not hear or see me, and that I must be dead. I came straight back to the room where my body was, and I saw the doctors striking my chest repeatedly; it bothered me that they were mistreating it. I wanted to try to stop them, but it was hopeless; I shouted but they didn't hear me. I became desperate and anxious.

Suddenly I felt a force sucking me away upwards. I passed through a tunnel, and felt strange presences; but a light, which could be seen at the end of the tunnel, got bigger and bigger as I went towards it. The light was intense, like a lighthouse in the midst of complete darkness, and I felt myself drawn along by a smooth suction, which kept accelerating me, and which for me became an exquisite journey. The light was intoxicatingly beautiful, making me feel warm and safe, filled with love, peace and happiness. I went quickly towards it, as blessedness and joy invaded me; it is beyond words. I could have stayed there eternally in front of the beautiful light. Then, I saw in front of me a being, male, aged, with beautiful hands. I did not remember having seen him before, yet I seemed to know him from all my previous lives. I felt it might be my guardian angel, there to guide me. I wanted to embrace him, but something indefinable prevented me from approaching. Although his mouth did not move, he spoke to my mind, telling me many things. The little that at this time I remember having heard included the following: 'Like all other beings, you are living in order to accomplish a mission, and you are not doing this. You must change your way of living; you are supposed to help many other beings, and you are not doing so.

Following this, I saw my entire life in great detail, and I experienced feelings through it of satisfaction, shame, and repentance, following on each other without leaving me much time to think. I saw my life in rapid images, from the moment of my birth. I, who thought that my mother had never loved me, saw clearly and felt her love when she saw me for the first time. I saw how she kissed me and enfolded me in her arms. I felt different feelings with every image that I saw. And just as I could feel deeply happy at an image of something good I had done for someone, so also this feeling would change immediately and I would feel myself deeply ashamed of something bad that I had done. I realized that no one was judging me other than myself, with a conscience full of wisdom and divine justice, which made me pass judgment on myself. I realized that I had done more bad than good, and I was hugely regretful of my actions. From the depths of my soul, I asked to be given the chance to mend the damage I had done to the people who loved me. I learned that we reincarnate to learn different things, which would be impossible in a single lifetime. I learned that my earthly eyes are those through which God can recognize Himself, and be conscious of Himself. And I learned that what we think, feel, and do remains imprinted in the universe and that we come to this life to improve ourselves, to learn in humility about all that surrounds us, and to teach what we have learned to others. I especially learned that life is all about Love.

After this I saw myself again floating in the void, and little by little, tiny spheres of many colors became manifest, approaching me and incorporating themselves within my essence. I asked what this was, and a voice said, 'This is knowledge you have accumulated in previous lives. It was kept from you, but now it will be of use to you.' Then, I was again face to face with the ancient being who told me many things. And so I was there, who knows how long, as if under a torrent of information which seemed important to me, although for the moment I did not understand it and now do not remember it.

Then suddenly, I heard the voice of a child behind me. The voice did not sound in any way like that of my two-year-old son, the only child I had at that time. After some moments I felt that it was a child of mine, too, and when I turned to look at him, I felt an immense joy on seeing his face, and heard him say to me, 'Mommy, mommy, I'm Hermes,' and I realized there was something special about him. He vanished into a white mist, and I went immediately to look for him, without much caring that the ancient being was still passing on information to me.

Then I heard a voice say, 'Marta, Marta!' I opened my eyes and saw everything around me from inside my physical body again. One of the doctors was calling me by name, and straight away, I sat up. I noticed that nothing was hurting, and I could move my muscles with perfect ease. But they laid me down again and asked me to give them the name and telephone number of a relative, to advise them of my situation. I could only remember my friend Juan, so they went to look for him, and he gave the news to my family. Later, when I discussed my “experience” with the doctor, he told me that it was caused by the painkillers, which distort the mental processes. But my husband, who also is a doctor, did believe me, and later on I kept slowly and gently deciphering all the messages. Three-and-a-half years later, my second child was born, and we called him Hermes.

Mary’s NDE after an attempted abortion---from London, England

When I was a young, single woman living in my hometown of London, England, I was admitted to Memorial Hospital with severe complications following a failed, attempted self-abortion which I had done in my apartment bathroom. Being raised Catholic, I sought to handle the unwanted pregnancy secretly and alone. After losing a great deal of blood and feeling very cold, I called for an ambulance to take me to the hospital.

As soon as I was rushed into the emergency room, I recalled all the staff running into my room bringing carts with equipment, bottles, pumps, needles, bandages, tubes, etc. From the navel down I was drenched with blood and very weak. I was in a life threatening, very critical condition. As the blood drained from my body so did my will to live.

Then I heard a "pop" sound and suddenly the pain stopped. I was up above my body! I felt calm for the first time in 3 months since learning of my pregnancy by a man who had lied to me, telling me he loved me and wanted to marry me---but who had a wife and 5 children in another city!

Now I had a very clear view of my body as they ferociously worked on me, hooking up a transfusion and other tubes. I recalled thinking that I just wished they would stop. I looked horrible and my color was very bad. I was embarrassed to be the cause of all this panic. I had sinned and didn’t deserve to live. The fact that I was having these thoughts from within inches of the ceiling didn’t bother me or confuse me as much as sensing the stress I was causing among those below me. I also know I was totally conscious, even though I had heard a nurse, the only one in a blue smock, tell the doctors I had lost consciousness soon after entering the emergency room. I was very aware of every detail of the events and the room. For example, I had noticed a red label on the side of a blade of a ceiling fan facing the top of the ceiling.

I was aware of a tunnel that appeared suddenly, and I was being pulled into it. I was happy to be away from that tense scene below. I floated toward the tunnel and passed right through a ceiling fan and then the ceiling. The blackness of the tunnel was churning and I began to gather speed. I was curious about my present body or form and looked at my arms and hands. They seemed to be expanding and emitting a slight glow. I felt a rush of air and a low droning noise like a vibration as I gained speed, heading for a bright light far in the distance. As I proceeded at a faster rate, I felt there was a presence with me that kept me calm and emitted both love and wisdom. I didn’t see anyone, but I felt the essence of my grandpa who had died when I was 13. I was aware of his comforting presence but saw or heard nothing.

I finally came to the end and floated into a place that was overwhelmed by a radiant white light that seemed to embody all the concepts of love. A love that was unconditional and like a mother has for a child. It was definitely a warm, joyful presence, the same one that drew me into the tunnel in the first place. It seemed like a giant force field or energy that radiated all the good and noble emotions known to man.

I had given up the ways of the Catholic Church as soon as I left parochial school at 17, feeling that I had been released from an unyielding prison and was far from religious, but I knew in my heart that this Light was God. Words can’t describe my awe in this presence. It seemed like I became part of The Light and then the Light became part of me. We were one. I suddenly understood, without question, how interconnected we all are with each other, God and all life forms in the Universe.

At that time, I recall wondering if I would be punished for murdering my child and in doing so, kill myself as well. I could tell He knew my every thought and feeling. The next thing I knew, I was seeing a sleeping baby I knew to be me. I watched with fascination as I saw the highlights of each stage of my life. It was like seeing a circular movie screen and many different scenes flashing by at tremendous speeds.

Somehow, I was able to see and grasp not only what was happening, but the feelings I was experiencing at the time, as well as the emotions I caused in others. I watched and felt my mother’s shame as she bore me out of wedlock, right up to my recent elation of love and the crushing pain of rejection and betrayal by the man who had deceived me. I understood the fear and insecurities of the man that caused my pain and his own guilt upon breaking up with me upon learning of my pregnancy. I felt every good or bad deed I had ever done and its consequences upon others. It was a difficult time for me, but I was supported by unconditional love and weathered the painful parts.

I was asked telepathically about whether I wanted to stay or return to my former life in the "Earth School". I fell to my knees in order to show my desire to stay with Him.

He showed me a beautiful shiny bubble which floated next to me. In it I saw a tiny baby nursing at a breast. The baby became a toddler and began walking toward me still inside the bubble. Then the image of a young boy turned into a teenager and he continued to age until he was a full grown man. Who is that? I asked. Your son, Michael, was the reply.

I recall feeling very relieved that I hadn’t destroyed his chance at life. A flood of fearful thoughts crowded into my mind. I wasn’t even married and could barely support myself, how could I raise a son? Could he ever forget or forgive me for trying to abort him at four months into life? How could I ever do this alone without help? I saw a flash of myself with a man I knew to be my future husband and he was holding the 2-year-old boy I saw in the picture. For the first time, I allowed myself to feel love for the baby I was carrying.

Suddenly, I was popped back into my body and searing pain tore through my lower body. The same nurse in the blue smock was giving me a shot and telling me to relax, that the pain medication would soon begin to take effect. It seemed as if I had not been unconscious for more than a few minutes, yet my visit to the "Other Side" seemed to last hours.

When I was taken to the recovery room, I was told that my baby was saved. I said, " yes, I know". I asked if someone would please listen to my incredible experience and was told that they had no time. My doctors said it was a miracle that he was able to save the baby along with me. He said he thought he’d lost us on two occasions. I tried to tell him about my experience but he was called away. His parting smile, left no doubt that he felt he was wasting his time listening to the drug induced ramblings of a crazy woman.

My mother arrived later, with "religious" reinforcements trying to get a confession of sins. I was mildly amused when a Nun appeared and began to pray for me, asking God to forgive me. I knew I was already forgiven. My punishment came from my own emotions of guilt and shame that I had experienced so painfully during the bubble movie review of my former life.

Only one nurse in the hospital listened to me. She did so after I told her a few details of what she had said to the doctors and nurses while I was unconscious. She told me of hearing of others who had been brought back from the brink of death, with similar tales. I finally convinced her to get a tall ladder and see for herself the red sticker whose appearance I described in great detail on the hidden side of the emergency room ceiling fan. The nurse and an orderly saw the sticker, confirming all the details of its appearance I described. I knew what I knew, but I felt better that at least two people believed me. I never mentioned this experience again until writing this.

I went ahead with my life optimistically, with a whole new attitude and delivered a healthy baby boy 5 months later, and I named him Michael. The damages I had done to myself prevented further pregnancies, but the love bond I experienced with Michael is truly a cherished "gift" from Beyond.

The experience remains as real and vivid now as it did 34 years ago and changed my life in many spiritually uplifting ways.

NOTE THAT, ALTHOUGH MANY NDErs EXPERIENCE A PERIOD OF DARKNESS, MOST ARE NOT FRIGHTENED BY IT AND DO NOT IMAGINE THEY SEE THREATENING FIGURES IN THE DARK LIKE THIS MAN DOES. HOWEVER, JUST AS FOR ALL THE OTHERS, THE DARKNESS DEPARTS.

Matt H’s NDE in 2001---died from severe cuts and blood loss

This is about how I cut both hands deeply on some sharp fencing, bled for 1 1/2 hours until I passed out. Shortly after that I just became a floating entity and witnessed my friends trying to help my lifeless body.

My best friend and I were at a family reunion on a ranch a hundred and fifty miles from Sacramento, California. I was twenty-five years old. It was hot -- over a hundred degrees, the skies were blue, and it was noon. The cowboys there were joking about our being ballplayers, and they challenged us to hit the ball over the fence of the property. So, my friend and I hit a bunch of balls over the fence a few hundred feet away. (We both play pro baseball.) I climbed the tall chain link fence to retrieve the balls. I placed the palms of my hands on the top of the fence posts and put all my weight on them. Then I jumped from the top of the fence to the ground. The tops of the poles must have been super sharp, because they cut my hands down to the bones. Chunky, hot blood started pouring out fast, from both hands. I knew I was in trouble. I could not return over the fence because my palms couldn't withstand any pressure.

The people at the party weren't paying any attention to me, as I was far away from them and out of hearing range. I had to walk the perimeter of the fence line, and it took me twenty-five minutes to get back to the party. I hosed off my hands to see the damage, and the cuts were deep and they kept on bleeding. I grabbed some cloths, duct-taped my hands together and sat on my truck tailgate. I was just hoping the bleeding would stop in a minute, and I would heal in a few weeks. I really wasn't concerned too much, since I have a very high pain tolerance and have broken 10+ bones in my life.

Within ten minutes, everyone at the party noticed my hands duct-taped together, and they saw the blood dripping out, as well. I told them, 'Don't worry, the bleeding will stop in a few minutes and I'll be fine; I'm tough.' After the cloth became completely soaked through with blood, we removed it in order to clean and treat the wound. It kept bleeding. We cleaned it, got a new cloth and wrapped my hands separately in better bandages. Then, everyone went back to talking, and I just sat there regretting that I had jumped the fence. I knew I needed stitches, but we were three hours from the hospital! I was just going have to wait until after the reunion ended and we had returned home. I kept bleeding through the bandages.

The pain was increasing. The swelling was increasing and the bleeding continued. I still wasn't worried. I was convinced the bleeding would stop soon and I'd heal in four to six weeks. I checked my watch and saw that over an hour had passed since I had cut my hands.

All of a sudden, the most amazing feeling in the world hit me, starting in my feet! It rose up through my legs, and was quickly taking over my body. I jumped off the tailgate and I said to my best friend, Jason, 'Jason, something weird is happening, but whatever happens don't worry, I'll be alright.' Then it filled my whole body, like I was drowning from the inside out.

Then I was immediately sucked right out of my physical body, and from above, I watched my body fall to the ground. I watched everyone panic and run over to my body lying in the dirt, and nobody knew what to do. I was quickly aware that they were worried about me, so I started yelling at them, 'Hey, I'm right here. (Above them, about seven feet in the air.) I'm right here, I'm fine. Hey, hey, Jason. Hey!' Then I realized I had no arms, no legs, no body and I was floating above them. I was so frustrated, trying to communicate with them, while they were all very concerned with my lifeless body. I even tried to grab my friend by his shoulders and shake him, but it didn't work.

I got scared because I knew what was happening. I was very aware. I was desperate to communicate. Then I slowly started floating away from the scene. I couldn't believe what was happening, yet I felt extremely well. I had to accept my death.

I floated into the blue skies, then into darkness (which I thought might be HELL and where I thought I saw bad spirits circling. I prayed that I would continue floating away from them, and not stop where they were.) Lucky me, I continued floating upwards, and white light began to take over everything. I floated towards the center of the light until it completely surrounded me and there I stopped. Then the voice came. It was a man's voice. It was very matter-of-fact. It said, 'You have had an accident. It is not your time to be with me. I am sending you back.' I attempted to utter a response but was immediately sent back into my body on Earth.

I was aware I was in my body again, and I stood up, much to the surprise of everyone who had been looking down at me on the ground. I stood there, covered in dirt and blood, and I was happy. I immediately started saying, ' You guys wouldn't believe where I just went!' They said, 'Sit down and calm down, you passed out and you need to go to the hospital.' I continued to try to tell them about the exciting adventure that I had just had, out of my body; and they just ignored me. They were all arguing over who was going to drive me the hundred and fifty miles to the hospital. Nobody was paying attention to me, and I got frustrated. I tried to walk around, and they kept putting their hands on me and telling me to sit down. I became frustrated that they weren't listening to me, and I wished I hadn't returned to Earth. I wished I had stayed up there with God. All of a sudden, I passed out again!

This time, I was sucked right out of my body again and floated away much faster than the first time. I quickly was in the White Light again and the voice returned. He said, 'This is not to be toyed with. This is not drugs, sex, food or anything to be played with. You have had an accident. You must return to Earth and help people. I am sending you back.'

Immediately, I was back in my body again and I stood back up and smiled at everybody and told them, 'Get off me, I'm fine. I just floated outside my body, and you guys didn't even realize that, you didn't see anything.' They looked at me like I was crazy and they told Jason to take me to the hospital right now.

As we drove towards the hospital, for the three hours it took to get there, I told him all about what had happened to me. At the hospital, the doctor stitched me up. He also told me that I had passed out because I saw my own blood. I disagreed and told him about my out-of-body experience. He laughed and left the room.

My Reflections:

Time was different during this experience. It seemed like I had floated for thirty minutes. Back on Earth, they told me I had passed out for two minutes!
I am one hundred percent convinced that what happened to me was real.

During my NDE I still felt like myself (Matt H.). I still had a sense of humor, I still felt athletic, even though I had no body parts! I felt like a bird, really, but I was aware that I was a spirit. It was fun, like a good ride at Disneyland. I knew I was going to GOD. I felt safe and even playful. This experience was definitely real. It was totally real. As an athlete, I am completely in tune with my awareness. I was very aware of what was happening to me. It was hundred percent real. If all people could go through a similar experience, everyone would know that it is real and that we are all spiritual beings. I'm actually less 'religious' now. I mean, now I'm more 'spiritual.' I just don't need to go to church to find proof. I am the proof.

Michael G’s NDE in 1994---homosexual with appendicitis

In 1994 at a hospital in Texas, I had a heart attack on the operating table during surgery to remove my appendix. I found out years later why I had a heart attack. I was diagnosed as having Marfans Syndrome and I am Diabetic.

In late 1994, my friend and lifemate Roger succumbed to complications from AIDS in West Virginia. I had prayed to God that God would not let Roger suffer. I just wanted to crawl into the grave and die with my mate. I prayed that God would grant me Death. I walked around like a zombie and every so often felt flu coming on, where I just would cry myself to sleep to feel physically better.

But that didn't help on December 1994. I awoke doubled over, went into the kitchen to fix myself a cup of tea. I thought that I had an intestinal flu. The tea didn’t work. I was in trouble and called for my mom. I asked her to please go next door to Aunt Floria and call 911. I managed to follow my mother next door because I didn’t want to be alone.

The police came with the ambulance. The Paramedic thought I had acute appendicitis. They rushed me into the ambulance, where I started to go into shock. They stabilized me and got me to the hospital. My white blood cell count was normal. On the x-ray, my appendicitis had wrapped around my colon. Because of the tea, they had to wait on the surgery to make sure peritonitis didn't set in. When I signed the operating papers, I felt a peace that I was going somewhere and I would know the answers to all my questions. At 5:45 pm I was wheeled into surgery and they put a yellow oxygen mask over my face and told me to breathe deeply as they gave me anesthesia.

The next thing I knew is that I see the operating room light and I’m floating. I looked down, saw the doctor and nurse working on my lower right abdomen. From out of the corner of my left eye, I saw a spark of white light come from behind me. I turned around in that direction and saw a portal of sparking white light leading into a tunnel and had a feeling of unconditional Love coming from the portal. I flew through that tunnel so fast, as if my britches were on fire. I was Home in the unconditional loving White Light. That renewed my spirit. There was an arch of white clouds drifting above me against a sky of blue. The sound of wind through pine needles let me know that I was in the middle of it all.

Then, I had a life review. It was like watching a movie on a VCR that you pushed the rewind button and saw the movie in reverse. I saw how my life had been. To me this was judgment day!

I saw my Grandmother who died in Florida in January 1972. My Grandmother’s beauty is as I remembered. She held me in her arms and I held my Grandmother in my arms. She talked to me without moving her lips. She asked me to give a message to my two brothers, my sister, and my mom. The message was that saying you're sorry is easy, but if you ask for forgiveness, you learn a lesson, because you have to also forgive yourself for hurting someone else.

The next person I saw was Big Joe who died of asphyxiation in Florida 1981. Big Joe told me to give Kathleen, his wife, a message. The message was, “Don't let bitterness destroy the rose that you are, Kathleen, I will be waiting for you.” Big Joe didn't move his lips either.

The next person I saw was my lifemate, Roger. We floated into each other's arms and our souls became one again, as they had been once before during lovemaking on earth. Roger drew back. He said, without moving his lips, that I had to go back and that he would be waiting for me. I felt disorientated. Roger was gone. But, then, a red drape came down signaling that it was the end. I was peaceful.

Then I heard the voices from the surgical staff shouting my name and saw my body at the other end of the tunnel. The next thing I remember, a doctor was lifting each eyelid and shining a light into my eyes. He was saying, “He's back!”

Michele’s NDE in 2000---died from ruptured appendix, septic shock, and medication error

At 34 weeks pregnant with my third child, my appendix ruptured, and septic shock set in. No one knew why I was so sick. They thought perhaps blood cancer. Then, I was given terbutaline to stop what they thought was early labor. I reacted in congestive heart failure. The baby went into distress, and they induced the birth. Miraculously, my baby was safely delivered, although I suffered some seizures.

During this time of tribulation, I had an NDE. My first understanding was that I was dead and my body was not with me. Although it would have been a natural reaction for me to be afraid, I was not afraid in any way. I knew I was in heaven. I was in a forest location on the side of a river. I welcomed what seemed like an ideal temperature, although I realized only my body would recognize thst! Then I understood I was feeling complete peace in its purest form. There are no words to describe this heavenly peace. I was free!

As I looked to my right, in a higher plane, I saw a city with cathedrals. It was not in the clouds, but higher. The cathedrals were in Middle Eastern fashion with light blue domes, and gold circling the tops. They were numerous. Then I was aware of the presence of my grandmother, grandfather, and best friend. They were joyful, and unlimited in their understanding of my presence. They were happy to see me, acknowledging me from a distance in the city of domes. I wanted to see their bodies, as I knew them. For a time I saw them as physical humans, but this soon dissolved and went away. However, I knew their souls and recognized their light.

There were objects of light passing quickly in between. There was music, but not in the way I know music. The way I describe it was the beat vibration of a muted hum that resonated. I came to know that there are many different vibrations of afterlife. All are 'good', just different, perhaps depending on how you lived your earth life? At this time, I was being filled with information and intuition that I still uncover every day.

Suddenly a Light appeared. Beautiful, mesmerizing light that drew me to it, into it, with it. I realized I was of it. The light was honey virgin white. I hungered for its presence to be connected to mine. I crossed the river, as I understood I should from this Light. (I stood on one side and looked across, then willed myself there to the other side and I was relocated!) The light was waiting for me. There were no voices, just understanding. Although I knew this was Jesus, not God, I didn't understand why Jesus stood out specifically at this time. (Of course, I grew up in a Conservative/fundamentalist faith.)

Information was still pouring into my mind. There was no sense of time or anything concrete, just exclusivity with the light.   I knew he had this with 'everyone', and I wondered how. I was told that we are extensions of His light, each of us connected through goodness. Only the goodness we show in our lives matters -- not what religion we choose.   God is one in all.   I understood that we take our soul, our personality, when we pass. Our light reflects in heaven to the degree we loved on earth. The way we love passes with us to the afterlife.

I asked the Light to please let me stay -- with all of my soul I wanted to stay.   It relayed this question, 'What about your children?' I replied, ' They will be fine.' I could not believe my thought. Nothing could ever part me from my children. I would reject any idea that I was not with them every day. And yet, there was no hesitation in my response or thought. In that moment, I was slipping into heaviness, and became aware that I was not staying, but on my way back to my body. I felt heavy, not only in thought, but also in weight as I entered my body. It hurt, actually.

To this day, I am filled with guilt at my immediate desire to stay there.   I awoke somewhere in the hospital with ports and tubes surrounding my body. Time is very slow here, I realized. Things I see are in slow motion after this experience.

I am positive this experience was real. I had no question about that then or now. The detail I remember has never diminished or quieted. God is perfect to each believer and in every religious belief, each a spark of light, one of each other. What matters is how our hearts meet and love one another.

Charles H’s NDE in 1987

It was my first day on the job. The 5 ton truck we were driving stalled out. My fellow worker tried to start the truck while i was lying behind the front tire. The truck jumped backwards and stopped on the top my stomach. Then I started bleeding from all parts of my body - eyes, nose, mouth, ears, etc. The result was that I lost my left kidney, my left lung collapsed, lines from my intestines severed, and my stomach lining was torn.

MY WONDERFUL NDE: I left my body shortly after the truck crushed me. I hung above my body for a brief while, watching them work on me, not feeling any fear or sadness, just watching.

Then I could see a beautiful light; in the light I felt incredible joy and peace. I traveled towards a figure in the light. I never got a clear look at the figure, but I heard a voice say, 'Are you ready? If you come forward, you can't go back.'

Although it happened so fast, I know I was in no rush to answer. I looked back and could still see myself lying there. The voice said, 'If you go back, you won't like what is going to happen, but I need you there. What I have planned for you has not begun yet.'

As if it read my mind, boom, I was back in my body, in pain, gasping for air, with paramedics all around me, working to stabilize my body. Then a life-flight took me to Pittsburgh’s Allegheny General Hospital. I remember going into surgery. I awoke eight days later, came home two more days later, and then my life started changing.

So weird from this point, please understand, I was so different from who I was before this. I got a very large settlement from the accident. I helped people in every way I could: my family, friends, strangers, you name it, lace up for kids, and I just never stopped giving.

Then my family fell apart. This is where I figured the, 'You won't like what happens,' started. First, I caught my wife having an affair; okay, marriage over, divorce. I'm okay with that. Then, all hell breaks loose. My luck has never been this bad in my life. But here's the kicker: I'm so happy, if I meet someone and they're going to kill themselves; with so little effort from me, they're no longer feeling that way. If they're going to lose their car, I seem to have the answer to fix it. I can't explain this. I only know I feel that I now am serving my purpose.

I have had women in my life and, man, they were eaten up with problems. Then when it's over between us, I look back, and all the problems they had, I fixed---and then was gone. It's like I meet these people or am sent to them in some way, to fix what I can, then it's time for me to move on to where I am needed next. Here's a kicker also: sometimes I know months in advance where I will be in a month or two; not who I will be with, but the town or the looks of the person I will be with. Weird, huh? My experience was definitely real. All of it was real, and it is my life now.

David R’s NDE in 2019

I had been suffering from depression for several years because a dear friend of mine had committed suicide in 2004. My family was very worried about me. My brother and sister-in-law decided to bring me on a vacation with them to Croatia. They thought it might help me to find new inspirations for enjoying my life.

That day in August was just like the others, but then something happened which I try to live again and remember every day. I felt tired and achy, so I decided to have a walk on the beach. When I got to the beach, the sky looked very strange. After a little while, I started to feel odd and my heart started to beat very fast. Suddenly, I experienced a very hard pain in my chest and in my arm. I was scared. All at once, I started to get up, but the pain got even worse. There was nobody around. I tried to call for help, but it was night time and the camping site where we stayed was a few kilometers away from there. I started to walk quickly to find someone could help me. I managed to walk through a lawn and then I climbed a low little wall. I felt faint and fell down.

I closed my eyes and said to myself, 'It’s my time, I’m dying.' I wasn’t scared anymore. I was tired of being always sad. I let myself go. I felt the grass on the ground; then I couldn’t feel anything anymore. I just heard a voice in my head saying, 'You are dying, but don’t be scared.' I started to see a very beautiful white light, and I was drawn to this light because it emanated joy. Then I saw some flashes from my life. I clearly saw images of nice memories and also some bad memories. I wasn’t just seeing images or remembering memories, I was actually living the events as if those moments were really happening again. The voice from the light explained to me about the bad or negative moments and I understood. I remember I felt very relieved by that voice's words; the voice said, 'You’ve done this. But I understand you, so don’t feel guilty.' Then I experienced infinite well-being. I experienced love as I have never experienced before. I remember I didn’t care about my body at all. I didn’t want to have it any longer. I was very happy to be there, even though I couldn’t understand where I was.

Then I was in a very beautiful lawn with amazing colors and an absolute peace surrounding me. I felt as if I were part of that ground and then part of those leaves or part of that wind. Then I missed my mother. I said to myself, 'Before I leave, I want to greet her.' But the voice said to me, 'Your mother is going to suffer a lot because of this.' I could see her crying. At that time, my mother wasn’t with us because she was on vacation in Tuscany with my father. I didn’t really talk with that voice, but it answered me. I didn’t feel any need to talk. I knew that voice understood me. It said, 'It isn’t your time. You need to go. You need to learn from this experience.' Then I was in the light and then it suddenly went dark. I felt like I was inside in my body again.

I opened my eyes and got the feeling that I was not alone. But at the same time, I was sad. I wanted to be back with the light. I got up and knew what to do. I had to go back to the caravan in the camping site. I walked back. The day after, I woke up strangely calm. I hugged my nieces and played with them all day long.

David’s NDE in 2011

When it happened, I was watching television. As simple as that. At the time, I had no religious background that meant anything to me. My parents were Protestant Christians, but I thought it was crap. I was a physical and forensic anthropology student. A devout atheist. Angry for how my life had been. Surely, no God would have let me suffer as I had. Surely, no God would have allowed me to be born into a family with such strong issues---or be born a homosexual if that was against his will. Why would he let me grow up to be so hard and mean? I thought for sure he couldn't be real and if he was, he must be a moron.

But I was wrong. And I learned that many of us are wrong. I was eighteen years old in 2011. When I was very young, I had been diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat which I had had my whole life. Then one day when I was watching TV, I felt an immense pain in my chest. I felt my heart stop beating and then I experienced blackness.

The next thing I knew, I was looking at someone's body. Then I realized it was me, but had no real feeling of ‘Oh! That's me!’ I didn't care. It was an empty vessel. Big whoop. But I noticed I didn't need my glasses and that I no longer seemed to have Tourette's Syndrome! I felt a warm light behind me and when I turned around, I was in this beautiful, warm, sunny garden. Everything was alive. And then I heard his voice.

I saw Stephen. He had died when we were fifteen in the tenth grade just before Christmas. I had missed him so much. We had been great friends. He looked so real and so healthy now, not at all like the boy with the hollow chest that I had cried over in his casket. He had so much to show me. He was able to telepathically show me his death as he had experienced it through his eyes.

First, he allowed me to see him getting out of bed and walking toward the washroom, and then falling and hitting his head on the toilet. Then I was shown how his soul had seen his head hit the toilet causing an aneurysm to burst. Then he showed me a man in white calling him towards a tunnel. This was his spirit guide. He told me that death is a lie men tell themselves. We never truly die. You leave this earth once you've learned all you can, and then you return to the spirit world. He showed me that they could see us whenever they desire. He also emphasized that we here in the physical world have complete free will.

I spotted an area in this beautiful world where I very much wanted to go. But he said, no, that if I went there, I wouldn't be able to come back. Suddenly, a beautiful light shone towards us. It was a light I felt was Jesus. He told Stephen that I had to go back now. And I said, ‘No! I wanna stay!’ Jesus replied with, ‘You promised you would do this. And you have much left to do.’ With that, I was slammed back into my body and I awoke, gasping for breath.

Diana R’s NDE

I've suffered from Chronic Kidney Failure since I was 5 years old. I'm now 53, and I’m 3 years post-transplant after 6 years on dialysis.

With no cure or treatment available, such as dialysis, until I was left with merely 10% kidney function (the guideline at the time--it's now 16%), I was a really sick lady having lots of problems due to end stage renal disease. At 10% function, a renal patient is really knocking on death's door without dialysis.

My event surrounds my problem with uremia and sleep apnea episodes at this point of my illness. During most of my sleep apnea episodes, I would just stop breathing while asleep and my heart would kick start back up immediately, and then I'd immediately wake up from the jolt of the heart starting back up again. It became almost routine, and I didn't worry about it too much.

But then I had the bad one. I stopped breathing and my heart stopped, but instead of waking up immediately, I found myself in front of a being of light in a heavenly place of light. We spoke and I was shown a life review. The review was very fast but I seemed to comprehend everything easily despite the speed. After the review was over, I had lots of questions esp. the meaning of life, lots of scientific questions and the meaning of the universe, etc. type of questions. I was given all the answers and remember that it was all so easy and so clear and why didn't I understand that before!

I was told why I was born and my mission or reason for being and then told that my work wasn't done yet and that I had to go back. I was really hurt that I couldn't stay because there wasn't anything that I wanted more than to stay. Pure love is the best way to describe the being and place that I would be leaving. Under protest, I was sent back. Next thing I recall is being plunged back into my body. I actually entered it with a thud.

I immediately woke up and felt like I was being strangled. I gasped for my breath and couldn't stop coughing. It felt like somebody had run over my chest with a truck, and I had severe pressure and pain.

After calming down from the attack, I remembered the entire experience but not all the important details. I felt strongly that I had an actual NDE but couldn't be sure since I didn’t die---and I've always been a bit of a skeptic (my scientific background). That morning I went straight to Kaiser Permanente, my medical doctors. They did several tests, EKG, etc. and I can remember the doctors talking amongst each other running from room to room and the concern on their faces, but I was told that everything was ok and they adjusted my medications and added some new ones.

A few years later while being examined for transplant by the Transplant Team at Hartford Hospital, I was asked if I had any of my old records from Kaiser. I did, since it was a habit of mine to get copies of all my tests. When the Transplant team reviewed my EKG from my NDE event, the same scenario occurred where the doctors and nurses ran from room to room all talking with each other in conference in the hall.

Three of them came into my room and asked me if I had ever been told that I had a heart attack in the past. I told them no. They showed me and my husband the EKG and told me that on that night, I had had a heart attack. It was nice to have the validation that my experience was an actual NDE. Before that, I knew in my heart of hearts that I had had an NDE, but this was proof.

Before that validation, I never felt I could talk about my experience with any confidence. But now I can. I've always felt that if I could be put under hypnosis, I might remember many more of the fine details. There's nothing that I'd like more, but living in poverty due to the expense of so many years of illness, I have never been able to afford it. I'd really like to know why I was sent back, since I'm more often ill than not. I wonder what work here it is that I need to finish before I'm able to return to the Other Side.

DUAL-CONSCIOUSNESS IN A WOMAN’S OUT-OF-BODY EXPERIENCE

Since the day was just about perfect, I decided to run some errands around town on my mountain bike. I thought that since it was more stable and had wider tires, the mountain bike would perform better if I ran into any sand or dirt on the road. The other reason I chose my mountain bike was that this was my first ride in over a month and I wanted its stability and more upright posture in case I had lost some of my cycling mojo. And since I was a little out of shape from the previous month off, I planned a slower, shorter outing than usual. The slower ride would also allow me to bask longer in the warm, winter sunlight.

At just shy of a mile from my starting point, I cautiously rode into the new roundabout that had recently replaced a three-way intersection. No one in town that I’d spoken with liked the roundabout – the lanes were very narrow, the turns were very tight, and the concrete dividers made navigation difficult. It was difficult enough to drive through it in a car, so I used extra caution as I rode into it on my bike.

A small car followed me into the circle but stayed a couple of car lengths behind me. I kept my eyes on some vehicles approaching on the road to the right, but I didn’t worry too much since they appeared to be slowing down to yield to traffic already in the circle. As I began to cross in front of the incoming traffic, it appeared that the driver of the lead vehicle, a very large SUV, saw me and was stopping. A split second later, though, I realized she was driving straight into the circle without even slowing down. Panic gripped me and knotted in my gut. I knew without a doubt I was going to be hit and thought I would likely die. The odds of a cyclist coming out alive in a confrontation with an SUV were pretty low.

Thoughts of my daughter, sisters, and niece flashed through my mind. In a split second I realized how devastated they would be when they found out I had died.

I tried to steer my bike to avoid a crash, but I couldn’t get out of the SUV’s way fast enough. The SUV continued into the circle as if the driver didn’t see me. The worst thing I could imagine, happened. The SUV hit me broadside, from the right, impacting my right leg and ribcage. As it did, I tried to push off it with my right hand hoping to propel myself out of the way of its tires. It didn’t work. I felt my bike slipping away from under me and knew I was going down.

Somehow I ended up on the SUV’s hood. I remember looking through the windshield to the driver and passengers before slipping further down the hood. It appeared that the driver was holding a cell phone in front of her on her steering wheel, but I couldn’t be sure with the brief glance I had of her. Up on the hood, I couldn’t find anything to grab, so I began to slip down the front of the SUV. Without understanding how I got there, I soon found myself clinging to the front grille of the SUV, hoping against hope that I wouldn’t get pulled under the vehicle.

After what seemed like forever but was probably only a few more seconds, I lost my grip on the SUV’s grille.

In another second I was under the SUV, my helmeted head and left shoulder hitting the pavement with a pair of loud cracks. Oddly enough, though, I don’t remember feeling any pain through this. I felt no pain at the initial impact with the SUV and still felt no pain as I struck the pavement.

The terror that I would be run over almost paralyzed me. By a stroke of luck I somehow retained consciousness.

As the SUV pulled me under, my sternum caught on its transfer case at the same time that I reached up and grabbed the axle with my right arm. Again, I was doing anything possible to hang on.

The SUV still moved and dragged me with it, my body pinned between the transfer case and the asphalt. My backpack, hips, legs, and shoes made direct contact with the road’s surface for approximately 50 feet. My pack and shoes even left a long skid mark that police would later use to determine the speed of the SUV and the duration of the accident.

In those moments under the SUV, I whimpered like a hurt animal with only thoughts of survival in my mind, and the need to stay away from the deadly rear tires. Then I noticed something very odd. At that moment I realized my consciousness was in two places at once.

I didn’t think much about it at the time except “Wow, that’s weird.” But later, even today, I still find it difficult to wrap my brain and emotions around that experience of dual-consciousness. My training as a scientist couldn’t provide an explanation for this, but the experience stuck in my memory.

It seemed like the animal or survival-focused part of my consciousness stayed under the SUV in my body, hanging on to the axle, whimpering, and trying not to get run over. That part was all about fear, raw emotion, and survival. But another part of my consciousness watched the whole accident unfold from out in front and to the side of the SUV! How could this be?

The displaced and “observer-me” was oddly dispassionate about what unfolded. While it was definitely me, this part of my consciousness did not feel any panic or fear. She maintained an oddly calm state of being, thoughtful yet loving. She felt she was witnessing something sad but also something that was supposed to happen just the way it was unfolding. I distinctly remember that this observer-me felt everything would be OK, so why be frightened?

My observer consciousness saw the front of the SUV, read the license plate, saw the driver inside, the people from other vehicles stopping to help and intervene, and eventually it saw the SUV stop.

I had this dual sense of consciousness for what seemed like hours but in reality was only a few minutes. Being in two places was an odd state of being and one I had no experience with.

When I began my struggle to move, searing pain ripped through my pelvis and lumbar spine. In that moment I didn’t fear death as much as I did the thought of never being able to walk again.

I glanced over to my left and saw a man with a cell phone. He seemed to be on the phone, even as I whimpered something about calling for an ambulance. Unknown to me at the time, my first lumbar vertebrae (L1) in my lower back had shattered. Any attempt to stand and that damaged vertebrae would have collapsed around my spinal cord, severing it and leaving me paralyzed.

In a rush, firemen, police, and paramedics converged on the scene. Several first responders' then pushed the vehicle away, so the paramedics could stabilize me for the trip to the nearest trauma center.

Once the SUV was moved, the paramedics surrounded me. It was then that both parts of my consciousness finally came back together. I can’t explain how it happened. One moment my mind was in two separate places, and in the next, both parts were back together in my broken body. I didn’t feel or experience anything different or unusual. I simply noticed that “I” was back to being in one place again.

Firefighters with a Group NDE

A fire-fighter named Jake had a most unusual near-death experience while working with other firefighters to fight a wildfire in a forest. What makes his NDE unique is that it happened at the same time as several other co-workers were also having a near-death experience. During their near-death experiences, they actually met each other and saw each other above their own lifeless bodies. All survived, and they compared their experiences afterward, verifying to their satisfaction that their common experience actually happened. What follows is an excerpt of Jake's near-death experience.

Jake was a member of an elite firefighting group called "Hotshot;" a crew whose job it was to be dropped into particularly troublesome forest fires and to bring them under control. During a wilderness fire in 1989, a helicopter dropped Jake, as crew boss, and two 20 person Hotshot crews onto a fire at the top of a steep mountain. The fire was burning below the crews in thick Ponderosa Pine and Oak brush.

The slope of the hill the men and women were working on was about 40 degrees. They worked their way down the steep slope, when, part way down, to their horror, the wind changed to an upward direction. The trees in front of the men and women traveling down the hill erupted into flames with explosive force. Jake explained how fire-fighters have a fire-resistant pack that is carried on their web gear. The pack includes an aluminum foil-type material which they can throw over themselves as they crouch to the ground in an emergency. These foils are only effective if the people can deploy the shelters after properly preparing the ground by reaching mineral soil with no residual flammable organic materials. The problem in this case was that the enormous winds caused by the inferno erupted all around them and the immediacy of the crisis made the shelters useless.

The panic-stricken crews started to try and go back up the trench rail they had built. Trees exploded and fire engulfed the immediate area, as oxygen feeding the conflagration was sucked from near the ground where the people struggled to breathe. One by one the men and women fell to the earth, suffocating from lack of oxygen. They were reduced to crawling on their hands and knees while they attempted to get back up the hill to a safer area.

Suddenly Jake thought “This is it. I am going to die.” And with that thought in mind he found himself looking down on his body which was lying in a trench. The noise, heat and confusion from the inferno surrounding them was gone, and Jake felt completely at peace. As he looked around, Jake saw other firefighters standing above their bodies in the air. One of Jake's crew members had a defective foot which he had been born with. As he came out of his body, Jake looked at him and said "Look, Jose, your foot is straight."

A bright light then appeared. Jake described the bright light in this manner: "The light - the fantastic light. It was brighter than the sun shining on a field of snow. Yet I could look at it and it didn't hurt my eyes."

Also standing in the light was Jake's deceased great-grandfather. His great-grandfather acted as Jake's guide throughout his NDE. Jake met with others of his ancestors and had an extensive experience. Only the portions pertinent to this discussion are repeated here.

His great-grandfather ultimately communicated by mind thought to Jake that it was Jake's choice whether or not he should return to earth. Not wanting to come back from the beautiful and peaceful place that he was in, Jake argued with his great-grandfather. Explaining that it would be devastating to return to a horribly burned body, Jake pleaded to remain with his great-grandfather. Jake said that all of this communication was by questions he would think of and have instantly answered in his mind.

Jake was informed that neither he, nor any of his crew who chose to return, would suffer ill effects from the fire. This would be done so that "God's power over the elements would be made manifest."

Returning to his body was one of the more painful events of his life. When I asked Jake why it was painful he said: "When I was there, everything was so perfect, and my spirit body, it ... it was so free. It felt like everything was limitless. When I came back, well you know, there's always something plaguing you, like arthritis, or sore muscles, ... but not there. Getting back into my physical body felt cramped and miserable. After coming back into my physical body, I hurt and felt constrained, and it was hard to get used to for some time."

Finding himself again in his body, Jake looked around and noticed that some of the metal tools they had used to fight the fire had melted. Despite this intense heat, and the fire still raging around him, he was able to walk up the hill in some sort of protected bubble. He did not hear nor feel the turbulence around him. Upon reaching the relative safety of the hilltop the noise of the fire was again evident, and he saw other members of the crew also gathered there.

The entire happening was so profound that upon escaping from what they had supposed would be sure death, the group of saved people knelt in prayer to thank the Lord for their deliverance. All of the crew escaped and the only visual evidence on them of what they had been through was a few singed hairs.

Jake said that in comparing accounts of their different episodes the men and women were astonished that they had each undergone some type of near-death experience. Throughout the summer as the crew worked together, they continued to discuss the miraculous adventure which they had lived through. Others of the crew confirmed, for example, that they also felt the ill effects of returning to their physical bodies. They, too, had met with other members of their deceased families and were given the choice of remaining where they were or of returning to earth.

Francisco R’S NDE IN 1988---from Columbia. Original in Spanish

In those years we lived in a house with an outdoor patio. It was separated from the street by a two-meter high wall. The day before my experience, some clothes and other items had been stolen from the patio. This was of concern to me because I slept in a bedroom where access was through that patio. So the first thing I did was install a rudimentary electric fence using one of my dad's transformers which raised the normal voltage from 110 to 150v (a very dangerous thing to do and not to be copied). This was to keep anyone from entering the patio by jumping over the wall. Every night when it got dark, I intended to connect the electrical device and electrify the fence. I figured that it would be even safer if padlocks were installed on all doors with access to the patio. I went off to the ironmonger's to buy some padlocks. In the meantime, my mum was tidying things up on the patio that the thieves had knocked over. When she re-installed the galvanized metal clothesline that the thieves had knocked over, she inadvertently connected my electric fence to the metallic tube that provided water to the patio's washing area. This tube was the only metal part of the mainly PVC washing installation. The PVC would not conduct electricity, which meant that the electric fence was no longer grounded.

Feeling tired and stressed from the work of installing the fence and the robbery, I decided to have some beers on my way home (in those days it was normal in Colombia for teens as young as thirteen to drink beer!). When I arrived home, I started the task of installing padlocks to the doors and connecting my electric fence; but the beers had made me so tired that I lay down and fell asleep.

Around 2 hours later I woke up and because of all that beer, I wanted to go to the toilet. That is when the problems started. In order to go to the toilet, I would have to unlock 3 padlocks so instead; I decided to pee on the plants on the patio. Not bothering with anything off I went, barefoot to pee on the patio plants (who uses shoes when you are 15 years old and needing the toilet?). It was pouring down rain and everything was soaking wet, including the stone patio floor. Everything was going okay so far, but I was also very thirsty so decided to drink some water from the washing place. So standing there in the rain, half-dressed and barefoot, I put my hand on the tap and BAM! I felt this electric shock surge through me! Immediately I was completely paralyzed! I was fully conscious of everything, in particular the fact I had been a fool trying to be an electrician and that I had made a potentially fatal mistake. I fought with all my might to open my hand but it was glued to the tap, as if they had been cast together in the same mold. I could not speak nor move my legs, nothing. I fought and fought but could not even move my lips to cry for help, let alone move my hands. This fight must have lasted at least 2 minutes and then resignation took over. There was no strength left in me to struggle any more. I gave in, I gave up my life and let myself die, still feeling the harsh vibration from the electric current. But I did not care anymore. I had been defeated.

In that precise moment, I started to see myself from above. There was no pain any more, no cold, no hunger only tranquility and an immense peace. I saw my body being hurt by the electric current, but I did not care at all. The feelings of incredible joy and peace were so overwhelming that I did not need anything from this world. I realized that I was dead and that my body was just another nail that had fallen. I understood I had neither body nor eyes but my consciousness was intact, and I felt I could perceive the world with something close to omniscience; it was as if I knew everything! My past flashed before me. Then I started to leave. I could see the universe very far away at the end of a tunnel.

[“ Estaba claramente en otro lugar que no pertenece a esta dimension” = “It was clearly somewhere else that does not belong to this dimension.”]

Then I had this feeling “Wait a minute, I am dying and I have had no sons nor have I had a girlfriend, and I wanted to have all that!” I did not want to die without having had a full life! In that precise moment, I was back inside my body, feeling the electric current going through me and the cold rain falling on my face. I was not afraid and then realized I could move my right foot! I started to lift it further and further up until I could rest it on the sink. With my foot pushing on the sink, I leaned backwards with all the force I could muster and found I was able to let go of the tap. The moment my hand let go, I let loose the loudest scream I had ever screamed in my whole life and fell backwards onto the floor.

The rain was falling on my face as I lay there, and I watched as my whole family rushed to me on the patio to see what was going on. The only thing I could say was ‘Do not touch anything! There is electric current!’ I was able to get to my feet and went to disconnect the current. It was then I felt the pain in my hands and feet and saw that they were bleeding. With the help of my brothers, I went to the bathroom to clean my wounds. To my astonishment, I saw that under the blood there were no wounds at all. It was then I remembered that I had been on the “Other side.”

I told my family what had happened to me on the Other Side the very same day. I have never had any problem sharing it with friends or family, as I feel honored at having had this wonderful, definitely real experience.

Gary J’s NDE in 1991

I was taken into surgery for spinal reconstruction after a severe injury. I was prepped, made small talk with anesthesiologist, nurses and surgeon. I was given an IV, and then gas. I counted backward to ten and then was sedated. At some point, while still unconscious, I heard the surgeon telling the staff, ‘What happened? Why does he not have a pulse? Is he getting oxygen? Where is his pulse? Get him going again.’

Then, I got up off the operating table and stepped around my surgeon to his left, looking over his shoulder, at my draped body and the opening in the surgical drape surrounding my incision, running down my lower back to my coccyx. A nurse was handing the anesthesiologist a syringe with what I heard was adrenaline. He injected it into the IV over my left arm. I saw the monitor and it was flat-lined. Then things got busy.

I clearly knew what was going on in the operating room, particularly at the table where I lay. I also was able to see everything. What gave me wonderment, though, was that ‘the body’ was on its side, yet I could see behind it! I was fully aware I had left ‘the body’. I lost all interest in ‘the dead body’ almost immediately. It was insignificant. “I” was alert, I was awake, and I was in no pain. I was as alive as I had ever been. I noticed I didn't need my glasses. I could see. I could sense the feelings of those around me. I became empathic. I could feel their emotions: but only for a few seconds. Then they too became unimportant. They were, after all, only working on ‘the meat’.

At that moment, all of the drama and apparent life-saving activity became unimportant. I moved toward the Operating Room Door and stopped. I looked back and saw the staff preparing more aggressive instrumentation to get ‘the body’ to respond, and I was not interested in their activity. I knew the staff were stressed that I was not responding. I simply didn't care. ‘The body’ was no longer important. I felt sorry they had to go through the stress.

I, almost simultaneously, had an overwhelming peace, a feeling of warmth and love, a presence of kindness and acceptance. Really, it felt like a natural, seemingly familiar, returning to familiarity. It’s really hard to describe this part, sorry.
It was very, very, very, good. Better than the morphine I had been given shortly after my injury, much better, if that helps. Still at the door, with the subsiding noise of the medical staff efforts receding in my ears, I was given a choice. I could stay, or I could step through the door. It was my choice. Where I happened to be at that moment was really, really, nice.

But I knew I had more to do by staying. I knew I still had to raise my children, to educate them, and there was something more. I couldn't quite understand what this ‘thing’ was that I was supposed to do, but I was given complete freedom to make the choice to stay or not. Whatever I decided, it was okay. I had a presence, or a feeling, that by going through the door, this ‘other thing’ would not be fulfilled. I can't say ‘get done’, that's not the feeling I had. It would not be, somehow, complete. My staying was at the same time crucial to this matter and at the same time important, but not to me. That I would in no way benefit from this undone thing and that its level of importance was not of my concern. Just that it would not happen without me. There was no pressure to stay.

I did sense, however, I had an obligation to a person who was going to be affected by this undone matter, and that this obligatory feeling was entirely self-imposed and not influenced by any outside source. But it was the purest form of ‘choice’ I have ever had or felt. Almost like a diamond in its essence: Clarity. Pure. Clean. Beautiful. Mine. I knew I had to stay.

I did not want to stay. I badly wanted to move through the door into a new adventure. I felt good. I felt at peace. I felt loved. I felt consumed by the awareness around me. I felt completely accepted and not judged. I felt complete. I did not want to stay. But I knew I had to stay. I knew whatever this ‘thing’ was that needed me to be here to happen, was as important to another, as was this desire on my part to leave.

I felt obligated to ‘do the right thing’. I know that sounds trite, but that's how it felt. So, against my greatest desire, I walked back to the table, and I lay back down into the ‘thing’, the body, the meat that was not really me, knowing that my choice to do so was freely made, with no reservations. I also knew it was not going to be pleasant. I knew that over time, some not-so-nice life experiences were in store for me. I knew staying was going to be hard, really hard sometimes. I also knew I would physically and emotionally suffer.

Now, I sometimes wonder if I did the right thing; the difference is this: I know. I know this is not reality. Because I know, I am different now. I lost all fear of pain and death. I now have a strong desire to learn and to live this life. I want to know everything about everything. It drove me to do things I would NEVER, EVER, have done.

I have created new academic degree programs in Universities. I made films. I wrote books. I created new practical experiences for others. My wife could not understand why I don't get upset anymore. I quit fighting with her. I quit being confrontational. I seem to read what others really want to say. Sometimes they cry in front of me and hug me. I don't understand it very well. Everything even tastes great! My experience was definitely real. There was never a doubt in my mind that it happened.

Julia M’s NDE in 1965—Original in Spanish

I remember that day I reached the Light as if it were today. It is so clear in my memory as if it happened this very morning. It all started when I was given a Penicillin shot. They did not know I was allergic; I went into a coma.

[Original Spanish: “pusieron antibioticos sin saber que era alérgica y entré en coma”; translation in English: “they put antibiotics without knowing I was allergic and I went into a coma.”]

I recollect hearing my mother and my aunt crying, and Pepe, the training doctor, saying that there was nothing else they could do. And suddenly, I saw the ceiling of the room falling on top of me and I remember putting my hands in front of me in order to avoid impact, but I suddenly realized that it was not falling on me, but that I was leaving my body and moving upward! I saw my body lying on the bed, with my eyes closed and my mother and my aunt crying, saying that I could not be dead. Pepe said that he was sorry, but that there was nothing else he could do for me and I remember I was saying: 'Mother, do not cry, I am well, can't you see it? I am well, please look at me, I am here, I am fine, don't cry, don't cry; don't you hear me?'

Realizing that none of them had heard me, I saw a beautiful white Light (God) similar to beautiful sunshine, except that it did not glare. On the contrary, I perceived a peace I cannot express with words. I will not be able to define the sensation in feeling like this. I felt no cold, no heat, no weight, no pain, no sadness. It cannot be explained, and this is something you have to live to know how it feels. I felt so good that I decided to try to find someone to tell my mother and my aunt to stop suffering -- that I was very well, that they were not to cry for me, as it hurt me to see them cry. I wanted them to see that I was very well.

When getting to the Light, I saw a man who radiated peace and tranquility; but when I was next to him, he stopped me and said, 'No, you cannot come in. Your time is not yet. Go back; you still have to fulfill your mission on earth.'

I was in the hospital for some time; I do not remember how long I was there since I do not remember anything about hospital. I know what I was told, but I had no idea that I was there; and my mother, seeing no improvement, and believing that I was to die, decided to take me home. She said that she did not want me to die in a hospital, since they will perform an autopsy and that she would not be able to accept that. I was taken home under her responsibility.

This is what I have been told; in the coma I was not aware of anything. I was taken home to die in my house with my family. However, I did not die and finally woke up. And I confirmed what I had seen when I was out of my body.

I don't know how, but I went back. I remember I woke up in bed and Pepe said it was a miracle, since it was more than an hour since the cardiac arrest. I don't know how I came back but I won't forget the sensation. Even if I live to a hundred, I will never forget it. I was conscious all the time. It was not a dream.

[Original Spanish: “No creo en el Dios que hablan las religiones, creo en Dios a mi modo de ver.” English translation: “I don't believe in the God of which religions speak; I believe in the God I saw.]

Hailey M’s NDE in 2007

I was going into surgery, for the third summer in a row, to try and correct a failed spinal fusion. This attempt was with larger screws and BMP (bone morphogenetic protein) instead of stem cells that didn't work in the previous surgery. The last thing I remember is being in the operating room, joking with the surgeon as the medication began to take effect.

The next thing I remember vividly is looking around at what appeared to be the recovery room, but hearing the doctors and nurses saying, 'She's not breathing!' and, 'We're losing her!' I could see the nurse patting my hand and repeatedly insisting, 'You've got to breathe for me, honey.' I remember at that point thinking quite clearly, 'I'm either having a really messed up dream or I'm dead right now.' Before this incident I was a very questioning person; I wanted to believe, but I felt I needed proof. As soon as I had it, it changed everything! I felt connected to everything in the universe and beyond, in a realm of being that I couldn’t begin to comprehend. That we are all a part of each other and everything from plants to planets.

After that epiphany, I felt the greatest sense of joy, calm, peace, and love (greater than I ever thought possible) wash over me and then it felt as if I were everywhere at once, seeing multiple things happening at the same instant. I could see the different technicians and nurses around me, each of them seeing to a task, checking vitals, brain function, the various noises of the machines: the sound of the flat-line, the pressurizing and depressurization of the breathing mask, use of various medical terminology, and pleas of, 'You've got to breathe now, honey.' At the same time I could see and hear the conversation my surgeon was having with my parents, 'The procedure was successful, though it took longer than expected'----but then getting a call and running back to where I was flat-lining. As he ran away, he told them, 'If I'm not back in five minutes, it's a good thing.'

Then it was like being sucked back into my body and waking from a dream. I was in the recovery room and everything, though hazy, felt sound. I didn't talk about it at first, sort of writing it off as a strange dream. It wasn't until two weeks later, as I was recovering at home in a hospital bed, when I heard my mother, on the phone with my grandma, telling her that I had stopped breathing when the doctor was telling them about what he had done and found. I immediately realized it wasn't a dream and told my mother all about it.

Before my experience, I was an agnostic. Now I am certain of a greater Presence or “God’. It's not the God as classically defined in religious texts; it's more of a supreme energy that set everything in motion with no judgements cast, a force of pure love and acceptance. After death, life continues, just in a different realm of consciousness. My feeling that I had been to this other realm of existence before was incredibly strong, like the feeling of returning home, and that I had done this before.

My experience has made large changes in my life. I have come to understand compassion, how to put myself in another's position, not be quick to judge, understand that there are grey areas between right and wrong, as well as learning to listen and be empathic. As well as always looking at the bigger picture, not seeing ‘us versus them’, but that we, as humans, are all connected and should work towards coming together as a species or risk destroying our species out of fear.

Holly G’s NDE in 1995---planning our own lives

My NDE experience occurred in 1995 during emergency surgery. I was 27 years old and almost 5 months pregnant. I had been having an easy pregnancy up to that point. I was young and healthy and was even exercising and riding horses throughout my pregnancy. All of a sudden, I began to have extreme pain in my lower abdomen that turned into unrelenting, stabbing pain, and after a few hours, my fiancé rushed me to the hospital.

I was taken into emergency surgery a couple of days later after they exhausted all efforts to pinpoint the cause of my pain and discomfort with no luck. The surgeon suspected that, given the fact I had a huge abdominal scar from an accidental shooting a few years prior, that there were scar adhesions from the scar tissue possibly wrapped around my intestines and causing an intestinal blockage. They couldn't accurately diagnose the root cause of whatever was causing me to decline rapidly (i.e. high blood pressure, alarming blood work etc.), mainly because I was pregnant, and they were reluctant to give me much for pain, or perform many tests on me for fear of damaging my unborn child.

I also wasn't able to move my bowels at that point, so they suspected an intestinal blockage as the main cause, which was becoming more life threatening by the moment.   At the point they decided to operate, my body was deteriorating quickly. The plan was to open me up, remove the baby (my gynecologist was present in the operating room), check my abdomen for a possible blockage, repair whatever they found, return the baby to my abdomen, and sew me back up.

I was wheeled into the operating room and I remember thinking all I wanted was for them to put me to sleep so I could have some rest and relief from the pain.   The next thing I recall was being enveloped in such a feeling of complete love, like it was washing all over me, comforting me and reassuring me that I was ok and not to worry.   I felt as if I had moved away a short distance from my physical body. There was a sense of darkness around me, but there was a distant, warm, glowing light that seemed to silhouette the presence of human-like forms around me and off in the distance. While I didn't immediately recognize any of the shadow figures, I had the sense that they all knew me and were there to comfort me and calm my fears. I felt like I was in some sort of holding area (for lack of better words), like I was just in the train station waiting for my train to arrive (the surgeons to finish working on me), and I would resume my travels as soon as the train arrived (go back to my physical body).

I was free from pain, fear, and every distressing emotion I had been experiencing the past few days. Then I felt the presence of my Nanny. She was my father's mother, who had passed away a few years prior and who I was always very close to, and I missed her terribly. I remember feeling comfort and warmth, and I wanted to stay there forever. I always felt comforted by her whenever life got stressful, or as stressful as life can be for a pre-teenage kid.

It wasn't that I was told anything directly, but I "understood" what was going on, without needing to be explicitly told about the experience. I just knew. I understood with immediate clarity that it was my Nanny who was "speaking" to me, or rather was directly connecting her thoughts and love to me with an all-consuming, non-judgmental love and comfort. I feel it in my heart as I type this and relive my experience. My heart is swelling with love, and I'm experiencing a deep-seated longing to experience that complete and totally encompassing love again; however it is tempered with the understanding that i am where I'm supposed to be at this time in my life. I also remember that I wanted to stay with my Nanny; however, she told me I couldn't stay there. It wasn't my time. It was like a brief flash of understanding that I had to go back to my physical body, my life and family and friends, and also that I needed to prepare myself for the fact that my child would not survive after delivery. That was in the forefront of my mind as soon as I regained consciousness.

I ended up recovering from surgery quickly, going back to the somewhat normal routine of pregnancy; however, I began to go into premature labor and was placed on bedrest prior to finally delivering my son, at about 32 weeks. He was born so prematurely, at only one pound; he also suffered from such extensive brain damage and underdeveloped lungs that he could barely be kept alive by artificial means. After a lot of discussions with my family and the doctors, we opted, as a family, to turn off life support and let his soul return to God.

After many visits to specialists and geneticists, they determined that the trauma to the fetus occurred during surgery. My blood pressure bottomed out and I coded during surgery, resulting in oxygen being cut off to the baby for long enough that it caused severe brain damage to my unborn child. I was overcome by grief and inconsolable for a while at losing my son; but, because I had been told on the Other Side that this would happen, I wasn't shocked.   I sort of knew things would turn out this way. I hadn't allowed anyone to throw me a baby shower and I did not begin readying the baby's room. I already knew that it wasn't necessary, and that I would be giving my son back to God shortly after his birth.

I had a strange calmness inside. I also had no fear of death any longer, knowing that when we die on this earthly plane that our souls carry on indefinitely. I also knew that the loss of my child was directly related to the plan that I had set out for my life. I knew that I was given this information by my Nanny during my experience. I understood that everything to do with our lives was by our own plan, and choosing, even before we were born.

Diane G’s NDE in 1971

That summer in 1971, I was with my husband and children in the mountains of northern Georgia while he was working with the camera crew of the movie "Deliverance." On weekends, some of the cast and crew and their families would take the rafts out on the river for a little R&R. They filmed on the same part of the Chattahoochee River we rafted on and, of the eight of us on this particular Sunday afternoon, four of us, including myself, had rafted down this stretch before.

But the river was different this time. Low, from several days of no rain, it was moving faster, with more rocks exposed. Different paths had to be taken through the many rapids. On the last set of rapids, we made an almost fatal mistake. The raft I was in got turned around, went over a four foot drop backwards, and became stuck there by the churning action of the water.

The raft was trapped in a hydraulic, a white-water phenomenon, which held the raft against the rocks. I was thrown out and got caught between the raft and the rocks, with the force of the river pouring down on my head and the suction of the hydraulic motion pulling me under. A man inside the raft held my arm and tried to pull me back into the raft, but the most he could do was enable me to catch an occasional quick breath before the water sucked me back down. I was literally stuck between a rock and a hard place!

Very consciously and calmly, no panic at all, I knew I was going to die; it was just a matter of how. Being smashed into the rocks was painful, so I decided drowning was the better choice. The next time my head popped out of the water, with my last breath, I told the man to let go and he did. I felt the water pull me under and I relaxed into it. I knew there was no point in struggling as I breathed in the water, and everything went black…..for a moment.

The next thing I knew, I was a hundred feet above the river, looking down at the raft stuck against the rocks below. I saw the two men in the raft looking for me to come out from underneath. I saw the other woman, who had been in our raft, downstream, clinging to a rock. I watched my husband and my teenage sister, who had rafted, without incident, down the rapids ahead of us, come running back up the hill to find out why all our belongings were floating down the river. We had taken everything out of their raft and put it into ours in case they flipped over, but they didn’t and we did!

From above, I watched my husband climb onto a rock in the river. He couldn't hear what the two men still in the raft were shouting to him over the roar of the water. He had no idea where I was or what had happened, but he knew I was missing. He looked as if he wanted to jump in to try to find me, and I suddenly found myself at his side, trying to stop him because he wasn't much of a swimmer, and I knew there was no point. When I reached out to stop him, my hand went right through him! I looked at my hand and thought... oh, my god, I'm dead!

In that instant, a total knowledge of reality appeared to me, and I saw the multi-dimensionality of the universe. My consciousness expanded so far beyond our physical world that I was no longer aware of it, nor of myself. I was so much a part of it all; there was no distinction. There was a brilliant flash of light, and I was allowed to see into it for a brief moment and experience a feeling of love so profound, powerful and overwhelming that I can only describe it as pure Bliss (even though that doesn't begin to describe it)!

Suddenly, I (not my body) was whisked away and found myself traveling rapidly through a vortex toward a beautiful white light in the far, far distance. I continued to experience an overwhelming feeling of love within me and around me. There was no fear, no anxiety, and no worry. I even felt as if I'd done this before and was remembering that I was going home. I was filled with joy. I had no sense of a body, no feeling of limitations or boundaries. Yet, I was still me and aware that I was having this experience.

Before long, I realized I wasn't alone. There was someone, whom I can only describe as a Loving Being of Light, traveling beside me... at the speed of light! We communicated mentally. This was someone I have always known, and I realized that as soon as I sensed the presence of this being. Yet I cannot now tell you who it was. I didn't have the sense that it was any familiar religious figure or deceased relative, but rather a special friend who is always with me wherever I am; perhaps, my guardian angel. This Being told me telepathically that I had a choice about going back. I thought, no, no, no, I want this to go on forever!

Suddenly, we burst into the Light and a whole new reality was revealed to me, similar to the physical world, but, in this world, more colorful, more beautiful, more amazing. I saw plants, trees, mountains, lakes, animals, and shimmering crystal-like buildings, some very large and ornate. I saw beings moving about, light beings, going about their daily lives. They didn't have physical bodies, but seem to be distinct fields of energy. They don't walk, they float. They have lives much like ours, but without the struggles and sorrows. They are artists, musicians, dancers, singers, inventors, builders, healers, creators of magical things... things they may manifest in their next lifetimes in the physical universe.

Again, the Being of Light told me it was my choice to stay or go, but that there was more for me to do in my earth-life, and it wasn't quite time for me to leave. While still hesitating, I was told that if I chose to go back, I would be given certain knowledge to take back with me to share with others. After much discussion, I agreed to go back and suddenly found myself in front of a tall cone-shaped building; so tall, it seemed to go on forever. I was told this was the Hall of Knowledge. I entered the building and flew, spiraling upwards, through what appeared to be a library. When I reached the top, I burst through it into a kaleidoscope of colors and, at the same time, my head popped out of the water. I was down river about ten yards from the raft.

I immediately became aware of where I was and grabbed for the nearest rock. I was able to pull myself up and I coughed up a lot of water. I was in a state of shock, but needed no medical attention. I don't know how long I was under the raft; no one was looking at their watch at the time. It could have been three or four minutes; it could have been ten. There was no way of knowing. There was no time where I had been.

I can't say that I was clinically dead, but I have no memory of struggling under the water or trying to hold my breath till I reached the surface. [I've been a swimmer, water skier, scuba diver, and surfer, so I've had plenty of close calls under water before, when I thought I might die, but nothing like this. These other times I remember perfectly well struggling to reach the surface, my lungs about to burst.] What I do remember during the time my body was in the water under the raft is what I have told you.

Greg R’s NDE in 2003--from the United Kingdom

I'm a media studies student at a London University. This happened when I was shooting a short film for my coursework.

We were using a disused church as a location for filming, and we were quite excited, as it had taken ten weeks to get permission. The church was in the middle of being refurbished, and there was nothing in it that made it look like a church. Although hazard tape covered the door leading to the steps, we decided to walk upstairs to use the balcony, which ran the whole length of the church on both sides

Once we started to film, we had to stop several times because the balcony was creaking; then Shane, Charlie, and I leaned against the balcony wall, which gave way and we fell maybe 20 feet to the hard floor below!

I looked up, thinking 'Wow, that was a long way to fall, and I didn't even hurt myself.' I could see everything. A large part of the balcony was now on the ground level. I didn't give much thought about Charlie and Shane, as I thought they hadn't fell. I felt something trickling down my sides which made me look down. Sticking through my chest was a metal spike -- one of the ones that go through concrete. I didn't panic; I just lay there, not moving, feeling blood run down my sides, saturating my tee-shirt as it went.

I caught some movement out of the corner of my eyes. I could see Shane get up, his back was deeply lacerated, and he was limping as he staggered over to the wall. I then realized that I could hear screaming, but it was muffled as though someone was screaming into a pillow, I looked up in the direction of the scream and saw Jo on the top of the balcony looking down, her face screwed up in a mixture of screams and tears. This made me smile, though I didn't know why I was smiling. I wanted for her to stop, but I couldn't speak; I didn't even try.

I looked again at the spike in my chest, and it occurred to me for the first time that I was going to die, but I couldn't understand why. I wasn't sure that I wanted to die yet, not that I had a choice. It didn't frighten me, the prospect of dying; it never has, and I always thought that when the time eventually came, I'd be scared; but I wasn't. Again, there was movement in the corner of my eye. Shane was kneeling down on the rubble and was crying furiously. He kept shouting at something or someone, 'Charlie! Wake up,' he repeated over and over again.

Then I suddenly realized, I should be feeling pain, but I wasn't. I hadn't even moved, not that I had attempted to. I suddenly felt warm all over, warm, and for the first time, I felt pain in the form of a thousand fists punching me all over my body, but I didn't care. I was focusing on the warm sensation now creeping from my body down through my legs and arms, and up to my neck, like sun on skin, but it radiated from the inside. A dark, black circle was now slowly restricting my sight. It was getting wider and wider, working its way into the middle of my view. 'Wake up!' shouted Shane again. Losing hope, he looked over at me, and I realized my situation. I gave a weak smile, again, I didn't know why. He looked up towards Jo, and shouted some instructions, but I didn't hear; I couldn't. He then started to limp his way over to me, still crying furiously, mouthing, 'Greg!' as he went, but before I could do anything, the circle of darkness in my eyes closed completely.

It was as if I blinked. My eyes were suddenly open again, but my position had changed; I was now up high, up at height of the balcony. I was just crouching there on the edge, looking down at myself, watching Shane remove the spike from my chest. He was shouting, but it was silent, no noise whatsoever. I looked right and saw Jo; she too was crying hard. She was reloading a battery into her mobile phone, but she was too shaky to slide it in correctly.

I was wearing the exact same clothes as before; even the blood stains were still there. My sight was not -- human. It was not with my eyes, although I could see perfectly, if not better; it was not the sight I'd had previously, and everything glowed in a silvery way. It was seeing with my mind!

I looked down at my body again. I had an amazing feeling while I was looking at myself from the balcony. Shane was trying in vain to revive me, but it didn't seem to be working. Although I was clear of the spike, my lung was obviously punctured, and Shane wasn't giving up. Jo had now successfully inserted the battery into the mobile phone, tapped in a number and raised it to her ear. I remember looking at her lips. They were trembling as she spoke, and I couldn't make out what she was saying. Then something caught my eye. Something or someone was coming along the balcony just behind Jo. It was Charlie.

I quickly looked down at Charlie’s body on the floor below. He was clearly dead. His head was precariously twisted away from his shoulders. I looked back up at Charlie. He was looking blank, but he had tears in his eyes. He sat down and dangled his legs over the broken ledge of the balcony next to me. He looked down at himself. 'Charlie?' I asked, not knowing if he would hear me. He looked up sharply. His face crumpled. 'I'm scared, Greg.' I looked at him, and then again, at his lifeless body. There was nothing anyone could do to help him now. He was dead -- full stop. He too was looking at himself. 'I know,' I said, as I felt a tear roll down my face.

The doors flung open. And a team of three paramedics shot through the door - two men and a woman. We watched the woman check Charlie as the others ran over to me. As one undid his case, he looked back at the woman checking Charlie. All eyes were on her now, even Jo’s were. She shook her head gently.

Charlie was dead. He looked again at me. If Charlie was dead, why was I staring into his eyes now? 'You have to go Greg,' he said. It dawned on me that I had to try to get back into my body. 'What about you?' I asked. 'Greg, I'm dead. You saw the woman; there is nothing I can do.' 'Yes you can,' I pleaded, 'You have to try Charlie.' He gave a gentle smile and nodded. He stood up, as did I, and we walked to each other. I looked into his eyes for a moment - they were full of fear and there was nothing I could do about it. He gave me a hug (Charlie never gave men hugs). He held me really tight, and then he broke off, still crying, yet harder. 'Goodbye Greg,' he said. 'Bye Charlie,' I said. I looked back at myself on the floor, and jumped …..into my body!

I awoke... Alive.
I have shared this experience with just Jo and Shane. They were both stunned---and at first did not believe me.

USUALLY, I DO NOT SHARE BRIEF NDEs SHOWING JUST OUT-OF-BODY EXPERIENCES (OBEs), EVEN THOUGH THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF THESE AVAILABLE. NEVERTHELESS, I FIND SUCH ACCOUNTS OF OBEs EXTRAORDINARY! THEY PROVIDE EVIDENCE THAT WE ARE NOT OUR BODIES AND THAT OUR CONSCIOUSNESS IS NOT CONFINED TO OUR BRAINS! HERE ARE THREE EXAMPLES:

Robin G's NDE

When I was 19 years old I gave birth to my daughter Khrysta after 7 hours of excruciating labor. The doctor kept telling me not to push but I could not help it as the urge to push was too intense. After I pushed her out, I heard the nurse tell the doctor that "she is bottoming out". I didn't know then but I now know that my blood pressure was dropping quickly. I then heard the Doc say "she tore her cervix and she is hemorrhaging". Then I heard the nurse say "she is going into shock and she is unconscious".

This is where it gets weird. I felt a complete calm come over me and I felt no pain whatsoever. I never felt myself leave my body, I was just standing at the head of my bed looking at myself and the nurse and Doc. I heard them talking about stopping the bleeding by stitching up my cervix. I felt no discomfort from being out of my body. It was very peaceful. I heard the Doc tell the nurse "try to wake her up".

I then watched her walk over and pick up a little packet off of a standing silver tray. I tried to say "I am awake, I am awake". But my lips weren't moving. So the nurse walked up and tore the packet open and put this horrible smelling stuff under my nose. All of a sudden I was back in my body slapping her hand away and telling her 'I am awake; I've been awake the whole time, leave me alone."

After they stitched me up and the hemorrhaging had stopped, I was stable. It wasn't until the next day when the doc came into my room to see me on his rounds did I have the chance to tell him what had happened. All he said was "Sometimes that happens" ‘Not to me it doesn't’, I thought. This was a remarkable thing and it has never happened to me since. I wish it would because then I would know that I am not Crazy!!!!

-------------------------

Don S's NDE

It was roughly 12 hours since I was admitted to the hospital for injuries resulting from an auto accident. I was battered and bruised and had several deep lacerations that had been repaired.

I was able to get out of bed, with the use of crutches, for a bathroom visit. My pelvis was cracked in several places so the crutches were needed to compensate. The crutches were too long and rather than adjusting them, I simply stretched my arms up to reach them. Within roughly 2 hours after returning to bed, I woke up sweating profusely.

I paged the nurse, it was about 2 am. She checked my blood pressure several times and ran from the room. I later found out my BP was roughly 40/ 5 and falling and the nurse (only nurse on duty at this small hospital) went to call for help. Sometime shortly after this event, I passed out.

I have no chronology of events at this point in time, but I slowly began to very clearly see my hospital room from above. It's like I was high enough in the air to see all four corners of this small room clearly, along with its contents, of course. This picture didn't just pop into view, it slowly became bright and clear, much like a movie will sometime do, very slowly fade from black to a bright and clear picture. Along with all contents of the room I also saw myself lying in bed. I had no concept of time, it just wasn't a factor.

I watched myself a while, then took note of how funny the nurse looked from above. She was wearing one of those little hats nurses seem to all wear in the 1970' s. She was again taking my blood pressure and seemed to be very concerned since she was doing it over and over. This nurse happened to be the mother of one of my uncles and had lost a nephew only a week before in a motorcycle accident.

After a while I saw a male burst into my room. He slammed the door back; he appeared to be running. I recognized his face as a local doctor and friend of mine, although not my personal doctor. My personal doctor was a few paces behind him. I saw my friend the doctor pull the sheets from me exposing my bare feet.

About this time I saw a nurse run in with a bag of some kind of liquid. I later found out it was a bag of whole blood. I had never seen a bag of blood before, only the glass containers of that era. My friend the doctor wiped one of my ankles with a liquid and made a cut with a scalpel. He inserted what I thought was a small tube, several inches in length. As he fumbled with the bag of blood, my doctor put a couple of stitches in the cut my friend just made. Shortly, my doctor attached the bag to a tube that extended down to my ankle. I could clearly see this. I could almost read the time on the doctor’s watch, but not quite.

My friend the doctor then picked up the bag and squeezed it between his hands, forcing the contents into my ankle rapidly. It was at that moment, my clear view of the event began to sparkle. The sparkling became more intense and finally the entire picture was blank white. A few seconds later, the white began to darken and I was looking up at the ceiling and light fixture in my room from my bed. I could see both doctors standing at the foot of my bed still working with that bag.

Within moments, they began wheeling me down the hall in my bed, a nurse was shaving my chest on the fly. I was on a operating table within a few minutes, the gas passer put the mask on my face and I was out.

Later I found out that I had hit the steering wheel with my chest. My ribs had been torn loose from the sternum in the process. The ends of the ribs had hit together beneath my sternum when they broke loose and the ends of several were splintered, leaving sharp jagged pieces sticking out. It was one of these jagged edges that put an inch long gash in my aorta and ripped one lung. I had basically pumped myself dry and filled the chest cavity with blood. It took about 10 pints to replace all lost. This damage simply didn't show up in the x-rays taken. The ribs had jumped back into their normal position and the lung damage was at a weird angle and didn't show up either.

---------------------------------

Grace C's NDE

I had been rushed to the hospital early one morning hemorrhaging very badly. My mom did not know what to do to stop it, so she phoned an ambulance to take me to the hospital. When I arrived there, I was taken in almost immediately and some doctors worked on me to get the bleeding to stop.

At some point I was floating out of my body because I could see both my parents in a waiting room, and my mom was crying. The next thing that I saw was a tunnel with a bright light which I was being pulled into. I was not afraid because it was all so very peaceful. After a while I was stopped by one of my grandmothers who had passed on just before I had this experience. She was a grandmother that I did not like, as she was always very mean to me. She was waiting for me and said that I must go back, as I still had a lot of things to do in my life.

The next thing I remember was seeing the doctors still working on me and then I was back into my body. One of the doctors some time later asked me if I had seen anything unusual, and when I said that I had, he came back to my bed later and asked me a lot of questions.

Duane’s NDE in 1990---drowning

It was a bright, beautiful, Monday morning in early July 1990. Finally, ‘another day off’ if you want to call it that. I had worked the previous afternoon and all night, so it was way past bedtime. Still it was time for my once a week all day adventure with my daughters and other single parent kids in the neighborhood, a pretty regular routine the past few months. There would be no biking; shooting or hiking this day. It was going to be hot today and the vote for rafting had no opposition.

As I started to call out the supplies to be gathered up for the trip, I remembered that my neighbor had recently purchased a new life vest and offered to lend it to me anytime; so life jackets were added to the list. I quickly dismissed the thought of taking the neighbor up on his generous offer though, and fought it off repeatedly, thinking to myself that his vest might be scratched or soiled.

Three hours, six kids, and two rafts later, we were unloading my mom’s van on the boat ramp at the river. The four preteen girls, two of them my daughters, went with me in the eight-person raft, leaving the two-person for our seventeen-year-old neighbor and his younger brother.

Down the ramp and into the river, we went finally starting our adventure. The pleasantly cool morning had given way to a scorching afternoon, and the cool water was a welcome refuge. As there were only four oars and five of us in the large raft, I quickly took the point sitting on the very front of the raft with my legs hanging over, while each of the girls straddled the side, oars in hand and we were off. The girls quickly had us out into the main current. I stretched out my legs to get my feet in the water, thinking to myself “this is the life.” The girls did very well at getting us through the first couple of hours on the river, so I continued to ride on the front of the raft with them in control.

Then, the raft hit a rock just under the surface, tossing me off the raft and leaving me to fend for myself in the worst part of the river yet. So, thinking how not to be injured by the stones sliding so swiftly beneath, I laid on my back, pointing my feet downstream, trying to float as high in the water as possible. Then, an undertow pulled me under, giving me just enough time to suck in part of a breath of air before the river swallowed me up. The surface was so near, but I could not get there, nor could I reach the bottom or a large car-sized boulder near me. It was about this time that an understanding of how serious things were hit me full force. I was going to drown and could do nothing about it.

Panic hit, and with all of the strength my fatigued body had left, I fought to get to the surface to fill my lungs with even a single breath of air. But, reality quickly set in, and the breath I had fought so hard to keep burst out, leaving me alone in the dark with but a single thought. I can do this (drown). It was peaceful; now no more swirling water, no more panic or fear or senses of any kind, just the thought that it was ok to let go of life. After all, working three jobs, sleeping four to five hours a night, five days a week, and not at all the other two was not much of a life anyway, I thought.

Then, as if I were a toddler and my father had grabbed me by my OshKosh overalls and lifted me over his head, I was several feet above the water! I could feel the sun shining down, warming my face, but no longer was it too bright to look at. The gentle breeze was comforting; my thoughts turned to the sound it made, rustling through the vibrant green leaves of a large tree to my left. My focus on the tree left me actually feeling the breeze blowing through the leaves as if the leaves were my fingers and the tree was a part of me.

All of my senses were heightened, colors brighter, sight clearer and better defined. The smells and slight mist of water on my skin were wonderful. A bird began to sing behind me, and as the melody gained my attention, it was as if the trees and brush hiding it parted, so I had full view of this tiny creature. Not only could it be seen and heard, but also I could feel that the bird was happy, even joyous, just to exist; and this feeling became a part of me. Although much of what was going on around me was to my left, right or behind me, I did not have to turn to witness it! I could see a full three-hundred and sixty degrees around me, comprehending many things going on in the immediate vicinity at once.

As I stood in awe at what was going on, a clear voice came, asking me “what do you want to do?” Turning my attention to the sight before me, I began to take a survey, as it were, checking to see what could be done. My youngest daughter was just climbing out of the water some seventy-five yards downstream near the raft. The oldest had already walked some thirty or forty yards along the rocky bank upstream of the raft. I, on the other hand, was here above the river and my lifeless body there in the water, which was no problem for me, as my old life was as much of a dream to me now as the afterlife is to most of you! No feelings of pain or sorrow, only such peace and love as I have ever known. After gathering this information, as I looked at my eldest daughter, whom I found out later was trying to guide the older boys to what then was my lifeless body, it was as if someone took me and threw me inside of her!

I saw from her eyes, heard with her ears, and understood all that she knew and felt at that moment! This twelve-year-old faced with this terrible situation was about as calm and logical as anyone could possibly be. She was thinking, “My sister is ok now (she had also fallen from the raft and been caught in the same undertow, but had a life jacket on, so was safe), the other girls are ok too. Now I have to save my dad.” These were her immediate thoughts. Then as fast as I had been introduced into my daughter’s world, I was returned to my own and floated above the water in the same spot as before. The voice came again, “What do you want to do”?

Finally, I understood I needed to choose between life and death. I could enter a new existence with my heavenly father, could feel his love emanating toward me, a love that reminded me of the peace and contentment one feels as a small child being rocked gently in the arms of their mother after a perfect day. So strong was this feeling of love, peace and wellbeing, that I was torn as to what should be done. There was no coercion for me to choose this or that, nor was I led to believe that one choice would be better than the other. The matter was entirely up to me. Knowing that my daughters really did need me, and how much I truly loved them, I reluctantly made the choice to return and do all in my power to raise them the best I could. Then I was told “you have to give all you've got”.

Then I was given information, a bunch of it, but not in word; it was communicated to me that I must choose to be in my body because no one was going to put me there. This information was stamped with the urgency a father might have for a child in immediate danger. Upon making a conscience choice to be in my body again, the water once again raged about me, grabbing and pulling me down, but to no avail, as now I had the strength of a locomotive! Nothing could hold me back from reaching the surface. Upon reaching there, I exhaled all the crud in my lungs and traded for a deep breath of life.

My lungs hurt so badly that the thought occurred that I would rather just drown. I fought off the almost overwhelming desire to just give up and yelled for help, as the young men in the small raft were just a few feet away. With a couple strokes of the oars they were next to me. Grabbing the rope on the side of the raft, I found that there was plenty of energy left in me, and I swam beside the raft, helping to get it through the rapids to the bank.

Explaining what had just transpired with me took some doing and left doubters among the group. That is, until they were each told what they were doing, and in some cases thinking, while I was under the water. Doubts were quickly erased. The rest of our trip was extremely peaceful and fulfilling; seeing deer and other wildlife along the bank only a few feet away added to this. We were very late getting to our destination and calling for a ride home. My mother was very worried about us. Over the next few days, the pain slowly faded, leaving me with a sure knowledge of many things I had not even imagined---and a chance to watch my daughters grow.

I testify to the truth of this experience, as do those who were on the river with me. They know that this happened. I also testify that God is, loves us, and is aware and mindful of even the smallest things in our lives and on this earth. The gift of the ability to act according to our own desires and associate one with another in this sphere of his creations is awesome. I pray that we might thank God for our very existence here and treat one another and his creations with the respect and kindness due them.

Jerry B’s NDE in 1991

I really don’t know where to start, but I feel that GOD wants me share it.

Every time I have tried to write it, I start to cry because it is as fresh in my mind today as if it were yesterday.

It is the most emotional thing that has ever happened to me in my whole life.

First let me tell you a little about who I am. I am a white male, 57 years of age; I live in Georgia in the USA. I am married; my wife’s name is Ann. We have five children, ten grandchildren, one on the way, two great-grandchildren, and one on the way. I am retired medical, but don’t like retirement.

Leading up to 1991 I had not been feeling very well, real tired, couldn’t sleep, and my arm would hurt and get numb, and would get really short of breath. I thought it was because I smoked and was getting older. My wife has been driving a school bus for 28 years; she was on her bus route at the time. I was at home in the back yard; we had an old truck to pull our camper to our lot at a lake in Alabama. The paint was faded, so a friend of ours had painted it inside and out.

I was in the yard when I started to feel sick at my stomach. I started to sweat and had bad cramping in my chest and down my arm. Like most people who smoke, I thought if I sat down and smoked, it would go away.

Boy was I wrong.

About that time my wife drove up in her bus, she parked and walked over to where I was sitting. The first thing she said, “what is wrong? You are as pale as cotton.” Not wanting to worry her, I said I would be ok in a little while. She asked again “Do you want me to call 911, or for me to carry you to the hospital?” She opened the back door and started in the house. I got up and started to follow her in. I got just inside the door when it seemed like someone cut off all my air. I went to my knees and fell over on my back. It felt like six elephants sat on the middle of my chest. That’s when I knew I was in bad trouble.

Ann turned and called 911. She told them to hurry. I then asked her to call my friend Grady. He is the one who painted my truck. I knew he had some nitroglycerin tablets for his heart. He was there before the EMTs with the tablets. I put two under my tongue but didn’t get any relief. About that time the EMTs arrived. I told them I couldn’t breathe, and was hurting real bad in my chest. They cut my shirt off, hooked me to a monitor, then said I was having a massive heart attack, and was throwing blood clots. About that time, I saw my wife had completely lost it.

I started to get a funny feeling that I had never felt before. I looked up at my friend Grady and the EMT and said I am going to die. I told Grady to tell the children to look after Ann, and tell them I loved them all. Then my body started to feel like when your foot has gone to sleep. Everything started to turn gray colored, and I had the most peaceful feeling I have ever had in my life. Everything went black.

The next thing I knew, I was floating above the EMTs, watching them work on me. They gave me shots in the arm, in the heart, and then started to shock my heart with the paddles. I live in a two-story house. All of a sudden, I started to float up higher. I could see everybody that was in the house and outside. When my friend Grady saw I had died, he ran outside and was holding on to my truck throwing up. I could see him as plain as day. My wife Ann had to be held by friends who had run over.

The EMTs were still working on me; they had a call in for a back–up crew because of my full arrest. The second crew ran in with a new set of paddles, which were charged and ready. I never had any fear of dying through all of this.

All of a sudden, I started moving into a tunnel. It was very narrow, and at the other end was the most beautiful light I had ever seen. It seemed like I was going a hundred miles an hour headfirst. The light was getting closer all the time. It was so bright, but it didn’t hurt my eyes. Then I went into the light, just as if you would jump into a swimming pool. I was completely covered by the light. Out of the middle for the light came a voice; it said everything would be all right. I have never felt such peace, there was no pain, and the love I felt there was so great there are not enough words in the world to tell you how great it was!!!

I somehow knew it was GOD. HE said you must go back; your wife is not handling it very well. HE said look down below and you can see her. I looked down below and I could see everything that was happening in our house. Ann was a total wreck. As much as I love her, I still turned to GOD and said, “I don’t want to go back. GOD, I have never felt so much love and peace on earth as I feel here.” HE said come on in and I will show you HEAVEN, but then you will have to go back. I have work I need you to do on earth.

What GOD showed me that day, there are not enough words on earth to describe, but I will do my best with what words I have. There was the most beautiful gate, where I saw my parents and grandparent who had died a long time ago. They all said they are fine and would wait for me to come back. We went on in. It seemed like everything was in a room, but you could see forever. You would be in one place, then in a second you were somewhere else. There was so much to see, the clearest rivers and streams. The water was crystal clear. The sky was so blue, the grass so green; when you walked in the grass you didn’t leave footprints! The most beautiful music you have ever heard. The flowers were the most beautiful I had ever seen. I didn’t see any person who was sick, or cripple, or looked unhappy.

Later, they told me I was dead for 3 to 4 minutes, but in HEAVEN time seemed to stand still. It seemed like I had been there for three or four months. Then GOD said “you must go back for a while; after your work is done, you can come back.” About that time, I was going back through the same tunnel just as fast as before.

The next thing I knew, I was looking the EMT in the face and saw my grandson who lives next door. He was about 4 years old at the time. He had wandered into the room during the excitement. I looked at them and said “I left you for a while, didn’t I?” He said “fight with us, not against us; we are trying to keep you here.” I still had no fear of death. After 23 shots, and being shocked 3 times, I was on my way to the hospital. One of the EMTs told my brother-in-law not to get in a hurry coming to the hospital; I wouldn’t make to the hospital alive.

They didn’t even stop at the little hospital in our town, but carried me to a trauma center in Georgia. I was barely alive when we arrived. A great doctor was on call that day, but the first person I saw was an old friend who was a nurse there at the time. She said I couldn’t imagine it was you when they called in. She said when they gave your name and address, I knew it was you. They told me not to talk, but I told them to tell me like it really was. I might have something I want tell my wife and children before I go. The doctor told me it didn’t look good at all, but he would do everything he could.

My wife later told me the doctor told her the only chance I had was a shot with a clot busting drug. The shot cost $3,900 nine years ago. She told them not to tell me what it cost; that I was so tight with money I would have another heart attack! The family still kids me about it to this day. They gave me the shot, and then put me in the CCU unit. They let my wife and children come and go any time they wanted to, because they didn’t think I would make it. On about the seventh day, the doctor told me they needed to do a heart catheterization in order to see how much damage was done and to see if there was anything further they could do to help me. I was blocked 95% in the main artery that feeds the left side of the heart, and had several blockages that were not quite as bad.

The next day they did what they called a roto-rooter to remove the blockages as best as they could. They told my wife and me afterward that I had lost function in about 30% of the lower left side of my heart.

After I had the roto-rooter done, I was placed back in CCU. I had the sweetest nurse, but she seemed so sad and had tears in her eyes when she was around me. The next day she said an E.M.T who worked on you said you could tell me what I need to know more than anything in this world. I ask her what it was. She said I know you don’t need to be talking, so just listen to what I have to say before you answer.

She told me her 8-year-old son had died 3 months before with brain cancer, and she wanted to know what it is like to die. I just lay there not knowing what to say. If I told her, people would think I was crazy or had brain damage. She began to cry which broke my heart; then I began to cry too. All of a sudden, I started to tell the whole story; we both cried the whole time. Then she said, “Now I can live with it, knowing how it is in HEAVEN.” She hugged me and said “I will never forget you; thanks so much.”

I came home a little later in the week. It was a slow road to recovery.

I told very few people about my experience in the last nine years, fearing they would think I was crazy. I was also very confused trying to figure out what GOD want me to do for him. In the last nine years, I shared this with people the doctor told me were going to die soon. I also have shared it with my only sister Emily before she died with cancer.

This has completely changed my outlook on life. I take life one day at a time and live it as if it is my last day. It has softened my heart, and I try to help others instead of thinking about myself. I have just finished teaching 33 young people in vacation bible school, and I sing in the church choir.

I try to live my life every day in a way I think will please GOD. I hope by sharing this it will help somebody have an easy crossing to the other side when our time comes to die. I would like to thank GOD for the extra days and years he has given me. I would like to thank all of the EMTs, doctors, and nurses who helped me. MY GOD BLESS YOU ALL.

This is a true story written by Jerry B.

Larry L’s NDE in 1985

I received a phone call at work from one of my employees, asking when I would be home. The person said he was inside my home, and I told him I would be there in about thirty minutes. The person said, ‘Don't be wearing your glasses when you get here’. From that statement, I knew what to expect when I got home. I am five feet six inches tall and weigh one hundred and forty pounds. The person who was at my house was six feet one inch tall and weighed one hundred and ninety pounds. The person was very drunk and angry that he had not received a promotion from me. He had decided to quit his job and beat me up at the same time.

I was yanked from my pick-up truck. He reached across the toolboxes and choked me behind the cab. I managed to pry his hands from my neck and shove him away, and he ran towards me, striking me in the face. I grabbed him around the torso, pinning his arms to his sides, and had thoughts of taking him to the ground. I could not get leverage to throw him down, so I got a lower grasp on him around the legs and buttocks. When I picked him up, I started stumbling backwards and caught the heel of my boot on the edge of the sidewalk. I fell over backwards, landing on the back of my head, and he landed on top of me. I felt a terrible crunch in my neck and lost consciousness.

My death experience started here. I felt I was alone in darkness, and very conscious of myself in this darkness. I saw a 'dot' of light, no bigger than a match-head. The dot of light began to grow slowly, and when it reached about the size of a baseball, I started realizing that the light was not really getting bigger, I was actually moving towards it. The closer I got to it, the faster I seemed to be traveling. It was very much like riding a small vehicle, similar to a roller coaster car, open all around, no top, short sides, etc. I must say I was frightened about what was taking place, and at the time did not relate it to dying and going to Heaven.

When I got to the light, it was like all of a sudden, there was nothing but the most intense bright white all around me. I instantly realized the most peaceful, pain free, contented, euphoric state I have ever experience, by far. I never felt so good and at home in all my life experiences on Earth. I could sense there were three or four others in the light, but could not see them plainly, due to the intensity of the light that surrounded them and was all around me. I did have the impression that they were standing on a wide set of steps going up. I felt that there was also someone of more importance a little higher up those steps whom I could not see at all, and surely that was the source of the light.

After I was there for about a minute, just standing there thinking about how incredibly good I felt, a voice that seemed to be all around me asked, ‘Do you want to stay or do you want to go back?’ I don't remember if these were the exact words, but that was the meaning implied. I don't really know for sure if those words were spoken aloud or if they just filled my head so much that they seemed to be spoken. I knew I had to make a decision, and it was not easy to decide. I had two daughters who were eight and twelve years old at the time, and even though I wanted to stay, I answered either to myself or aloud that I needed to go back for them. In an instant I was traveling through darkness, just the reverse of the way I had come. There was a small light that got bigger as I got closer to it. When I arrived, there I was, lying on my back in the backyard, looking at the blue sky.

I felt great and didn't think of anything except where I had just come from. After a minute or so, I decided to get up. I felt like I was moving my arms to roll over, but nothing moved. I soon realized that I could not wiggle my fingers, although they were being told to move. I lay in my yard for about fifteen minutes before I could finally roll over and get up. The ability to move was slowly coming back to me, but I experienced no pain. I went into my house, started recalling being attacked, and decided to see if I was going to have a black eye from being slugged.

As I washed my face off in the sink, I saw stars when I stood back up straight. I also noticed that my shirt was ripped about half way off and I had some very distinct imprints of the attacker's tennis shoe in my forehead and face. He had also pounded on my stomach and chest and left them red and scraped. After a few minutes, a car pulled into my driveway rather hurriedly. The attacker's brother-in-law, also regarded as a good friend of mine, came running towards my house. I let him in and he looked me over and said, ‘We are going to the hospital’.

On the way to the hospital, my friend said his drunken brother-in-law had come to his house and confessed to killing me. At the hospital, I walked into the emergency room and asked if I could get my back checked out. I told them I fell off a ladder. They x-rayed my spine and discovered the second vertebra (T2) in my neck was broken into three pieces. It still did not hurt as I lay there on the x-ray table, waiting for a special collar to be brought over. Four days later, I had T2 and T3 fused together, using a section of rib bone from my back. I convalesced over the next six months in a SOMI (A cervical collar or neck brace is a medical device used to support a person's head, e.g. Sterno-Occipital Mandibular Immobilization Device), and everything worked out well. I had bruised my spinal cord causing the temporary paralysis, and I am a very lucky individual to be walking.

I have not forgotten what the 'experience' was like after nearly sixteen years. It has brought me a lot of comfort about dying and what waits for us after death. I have shared this with many family members and friends and have been fortunate to be with some loved ones when they passed. I encouraged them all to look for that light and don't be afraid to go to it. I am comforted knowing that I will join them someday. I have COPD and am on oxygen therapy 24/7, but I am not in the least bit afraid of dying.

Michelle M’s NDE in 1991

I saw the car coming, put my hand out, and screamed “NO!”   Then, there was nothing. Nothing --- a void, nothing.   Then...

There was light, and a white light being that said, 'You were in an accident.' The being was kind and loving. I felt no fear, but I understood that my life was over. At first, I felt overwhelming sadness.   But then, there was such love and understanding, my life being over was okay, and I felt detached from life.

Then, there were others there, although I didn't recognize them at first, people I'd known in some previous life, they were like family who were waiting for me.   I knew who they were and there was such joy, happiness, and compassion.   The most profound and lasting --- constant emotion was Love --- flowing from me and to me.

There was such beauty there, beautiful beyond expression. It was as if I could see everywhere! There was a bright city or something like a city in the distance. The colors and structures of everything were beautiful --- awesome. [While there, I was also aware of some things going on elsewhere, on earth. Later on, I would verify what I saw.]

I asked questions about life, and there were answers --- but there wasn't really any speaking; it was more of an understanding between us, an understanding of life, God, all that is. I remember it was as if I were being re-introduced --- or re-awakened after a hard sleep. I thought of questions---and the understandings would come.

This is hard to explain, I guess the best way to express it is to make an analogy.   It's like when you travel, and you are staying in a motel, a strange bed, strange room, and then you wake up in the middle of the night but don't know where you are.   It takes you a few minutes to realize and remember where you are.   That is the feeling I felt on the other side.   I was remembering, and it felt so good to be there and to understand, to know --- It was home, where I really lived.

And then, I saw/felt my whole life.   And I felt at peace, and good about my life. I felt compassion, love, and understanding, for myself and for all the people and things in my life experience --- I saw all of it and felt all of the emotions of everything and everyone around me in my life. I felt an understanding about life, what it was, and is.   As if it were a dream in itself.   I understood that whatever happened in life, I was okay, and so were the others here.   I remember understanding the others here, as if the others here were a part of me too.   As if all of it was just a vast expression of me.   But it wasn't just me, it was --- gosh, this is so hard to explain --- it was as if we were all the same.   As if consciousness were like a huge being.   The easiest way to explain it would be as if all things are all different parts of the same body, so to speak.

There was profound love---profound, overwhelming love and compassion.   Then I remembered my children.   It is as if I turned one last time to look at my life.   I thought of my three children.   I have twin sons, and I saw their life, saw their future. I felt all was good; they were going to enjoy their lives. They were going to have a good life. I felt such love and compassion. I have a daughter and I saw her life. I saw that she would need someone in her life. Awful things were going to happen to her. And I felt fear for her and guilt for not being there for her.   She would need me. (This was my decision.)

I understood, knew, that regardless what happened in our life experience, we were all okay --- it was all temporary.   I also understood that I was still attached to my life experience. With this attachment to my life experience, I understood I was not finished with my life.

Then there were two beautiful men, and we were traveling. I saw the beauty of the Earth, stunning beauty, saw the universe --- the universe infinite --- I felt at total peace.

Then I remember feeling horrible pain and everything was thick, thick --- I don't know how to explain this --- except I was back in this life, in the emergency room. At first I couldn't remember my name, didn't know where I was. But I was back.

My experience was definitely real. I was very aware of diving back into the 'thick pea-soup' of life, and felt it was important that I stay involved with the drama of life around me.

I am so thankful for this experience. I learned that I was a beautiful spirit/being. I learned that we are all connected; all things are connected. I've learned to love and appreciate, to be compassionate. I have relaxed about life, since this experience. I am not afraid of death, and I'm happier than I've ever been before. It changed my life to a deeper appreciation and enjoyment, and to a focus on love --- giving it and accepting it gently.

Rena P’s NDE in 1975

In spring 1975, I was attending my junior high-school year in Greece at a public school. At that time High-School education was not co-ed in my country, so this was a high-school for females only. That sunny day my class was taken for a walk to the parks surrounding the sea promenade of our city. Thessaloniki is built around the horseshoe of Thermaikos Gulf, which is a great place to spend time on a sunny day.

My best friend and school mate had got secretly married that summer (she'd be expelled if teachers were to find out) so we considered ourselves a couple of 'sophisticated' teenagers; too sophisticated to spend time in the park by the sea. She called her young husband to pick us up with his car and drive us to a cafeteria until the end of the school excursion, but things didn't work out that well for both of us!

Five minutes after he picked us up, less than a mile down the Bay Boulevard, we were caught in a severe accident. A taxi coming out one of the side exits lost control and hit us with high speed right in the middle of our car side. I was sitting at the back, right behind the driver. Last thing I recall was shouting out 'Watch Out!' while the taxi was coming right on us and then...

I found myself speeding fast up in the air inside a tunnel, light as a feather! A tunnel full of holes all around that bright light beams were coming through. I could hear the sweet sound of hundreds of chimes in the wind and I've never felt happier or more ecstatic in my whole life while swirling around and around. I was listening to the chimes and enjoying the gorgeous feeling, not being able to get enough of it. This place was so gorgeous I just had to see it all! I looked up and saw the end of the tunnel far away. A very bright, beautiful light was at the end. A destination I felt eager to reach. All the while I felt incredible happiness, ecstasy, peace, and a unique feeling that can't be described with words.

Yet something inside me forced me to look downwards. I'm not certain if it was a voice or curiosity - yet I knew that I had to return.   I realized that I was hundreds of meters above the ground in the air. What caught my eye was the roof (which I had never seen and was not visible from street level) of the highest and most expensive hotel in that area, built by the sea.   I recall watching the summer bar stationed up there and the tables with yellow-white striped sun umbrellas all around. That hotel was near where we had gotten into the car.   Immediately, I came to the realization that I had no body but only vision. The tunnel disappeared, the swirling stopped and now I was floating in slow motion.   Losing height slowly but steadily, I drifted down the Boulevard area by the wind, closing more and more upon the accident point.

The incredible happiness feeling was fading out; now I was just a curious and cool observer of what I was seeing in this unexpected trip in the air. Reaching the accident, I was only a couple of meters above ground.   I saw our car twisted around an electricity pole at the side of the street. A white Mercedes was parked next to it and my best friend, safe and sound outside the car --- yet in panic --- was asking the men who came out of it to help her get the rest of us out. The driver's seat wouldn't open, yet she knew her husband was alive as he was moaning with pain. His ribs were broken.

One of them was tall with a white shirt, while the other was stockier with a green sweatshirt and a small bald spot at the back of his head.   I could see this, as my view of them was straight from above, but I couldn't see their faces. They debated over the fact that he'd be safer with the ambulance that was on its way, so they opened the back door to help the other passenger. There was my body, lying on the back seat unconscious. I was completely aware of that body belonging to me; yet, I had no feelings, no emotion, no compassion at all, and was just a cool spectator hovering at the time at one meter above the scene.

The men grabbed my body by one foot each and slowly pulled me out of the back seat. I heard my best friend asking if I was alive. I had a deep cut on my throat caused by shattered glass, but the man in the white shirt reassured her I was still breathing and that they would take me to the closest hospital. She helped them to put me in the back seat of the Mercedes, and all that time I was getting lower and lower, until I passed through the roof of the car into my body! (Passing through the roof felt like Jell-O rather than metal.)

The next thing I recall is waking up in a wheelchair with a nurse by my side, pushing me down a hospital corridor towards the emergency room.

My experience showed me that we have a soul that's capable of existing outside our body in a world much better than our own. This realization has marked my life ever since. I'm not afraid to die, but most important --- my entire attitude and behavior towards life and other human beings has changed for the better.

I told my father about my experience the very next day in the hospital. We were very close and I knew he was always a man of open mind. He heard me skeptically, but I could sense he believed me. He took me to the hotel roof a month later and verified that what I had seen was real!

I had never heard of NDEs, but with the help of my father, I managed to locate articles and books on the subject and realized that I was not the only one -- it made me feel a lot better, despite the fact I had no doubts myself that my experience was real!

My father and I talked about it lots of times in the years after, last time a few months before he passed away - seven years ago. He was eager to visit that unlimited happiness I had described and get free of his illness. My experience had comforted his own departure and helped me to accept his loss with calmness, although we were always very close. I consider it the most important event of my entire life.

Sameer’s NDE in 1979---From a Palestinian man in Jerusalem, Israel. Original in Arabic.

Following the accident, I was carried to the hospital. I had a surgery operation. I stayed in the hospital for one month. I was in full coma, but sometimes I awoke. The problem was that the doctor didn't clean the injury well. Gangrene spread all over my body and reached my diaphragm. I lost consciousness, so my brother quickly took me to another hospital. There were now many specialists looking after me. They operated on me the same night. It took almost ten hours.

During the surgery, my heart stopped. I left my body! I was floating up near the ceiling in the room, when I saw the doctors put electric shocks on my chest. I saw a doctor who was my brother's friend, crying and hugging my brother outside the operating room. My brother didn't cry--and told his friend that 'my brother will not die.' He began to pray.

During my “out-of-body experience”, I also saw all my past life, since my breast feeding till now. Before my experience, I was a Christian; now I am Liberal. I have become carefree; I live a free life.

Then I saw all the officials at the local council come to the hospital to console my brother. I saw the father of the doctor bring a picture of Alkhidir**--- peace be upon him. He brought it from the Bethlehem church. As the doctors were working on me, I felt myself return to my body; then I felt pain again. My story is still told in the East Jerusalem hospital. As the doctors told me, it was one of the strangest things they have seen in their lives.

** In ancient Islamic legend, there exists the wonderful, contrary figure of Al-Khiḍr, an immortal prophet described as God’s special servant, a protector, trickster, saint, and mystic, who has been identified with various ancient deities. The roots of Khadir go back to the earliest Muslim text, the Quran, in which he accompanies Moses as a servant of God. But because he is immortal, Khiḍr is said to have appeared to other Muslims through the centuries. Some scholars maintain that the character of Khiḍr is much older than Islam itself and that his roots lie in ancient Mesopotamia or in ancient Palestine.

Barbara S’s NDE in 1962

It was a beautiful sunny summer day when I was at our family's wood cabin in northern Michigan. We went there every summer and spent a week. In front of the cabin was a river. The water was perfectly clear. I could not swim at the time. I was wading out in the water and the water was at chest height. I was looking at the sky and listening to nature and I took another step out and found there was no bottom and I went under the water and the river started to move me to the right.

The last thing I remember thinking and seeing in my body, was that I could see so far under water and that the water was so clear. The next thing I remember was when I came into this clear white light. As soon as I came into this light, all my fear of drowning was gone and I felt this light envelop me. This clear white light was all around me that I could see. I didn't look behind me, but I know what was behind me too. I felt I knew this light intimately. This wasn't our first meeting. I felt this total love and acceptance of me by the light. I knew I was part of this light; I belonged to this light. I was home in this light. I then realized there was a presence in this light.

We were the same but with different personalities. I couldn't see a body for myself or a body in the light. The light then told me ‘you are here to learn how to love and to gain knowledge’. When I was told this, all the implications of the words love and knowledge were also imparted to me. With the word 'love', it wasn't just about physical love, but also the love of nature, the acceptance of all people as the same, and everything that pertained to love. It was the same with knowledge. It wasn't just about book knowledge, but about learning about different cultures, histories of the world. I felt when I was told this that it wasn't just my reason for being on earth but the reason for all of us being here: for all mankind.

I don't remember leaving the light. I don't remember getting back into my body. That has all been blocked. Since I am here, all I can guess is that I came to a shallow place and was able to get my feet under me and stand up and get out of the river. I had a hell of a time learning how to swim the next year in school. I was quite fearful. It took me quite some time to float on my stomach with my face in the water.

During my time in the light, I felt great joy, love and belonging. I felt I was home, where I belong. There is nothing to compare it to on earth. I never felt that it was my time to stay. It was like I was given a big hug and sent back to work.

During my 20's and 30's, I studied many religions, I guess now I believe in reincarnation or the continuation of the development of the soul through different lives. That is the only thing that makes sense to me, because after going to other side, I knew I had been there before, and since I am living now, it only makes sense that I have done this more than once. How else are you going to continue learning if you only have a few measly years in one life?

Being raised Catholic, I was told about hell, heaven, purgatory, and different types of sins etc. and that we would be judged after we die. I felt none of that was true on the other side. When I was in the light, all I felt was love, belonging, and acceptance. There was no judgment of me in any way. I felt religion was man-made to control society. I believe now that religion is a big part of our problem here on earth. Most wars are caused by religion. I lost any fear of judgment after death. I believe that my life on earth is for learning and growing as a soul. I don't believe in hell anymore. I believe that is man-made. I believe that I am loved by the creator, with all my faults and goodness.

I was later shocked to find that my brother and sisters are so prejudiced about other races and cultures and have no interest in knowing any other race. I ran an international business for 25 years helping foreign students.

At the time of my drowning, I had never heard of near-death experiences. Not until Moody's ‘Life after Life’ book. I didn't know that was what I had back in the early 60's. I was attracted to the book as soon as I saw it, and when I read it, I thought ‘so that is what happened to me’. I have told a few people who are close to me about my NDE. It is not something to tell everyone because they will think you are nuts. However, this experience is the most important in my life, by far.

Brian T’s NDE in 1978

One summer when the temperature was soaring above 105 degrees, my brother begged and persuaded my mother and my two sisters to go to the Comal River to escape the summer heat. My mother was a little uncomfortable about going, but she understood about the need to escape Texas' unbearable heat.

We went to the Comal River nearby New Braunfels, Texas.   Hundreds or probably thousands of Texas teens swarmed over the fence and ignored the warning sign of dangers there. Some teens jumped off the bridge into the river, about twenty feet or more. The heat was really unbearable during that time. Imagine people walking with bare feet on hot rocks or a hot sidewalk; they were hopping to avoid the feeling of burning bare feet.

Friends or family members could get separated easily by the water's currents and get lost somewhere in the river. I was pulled downriver to one side and then grabbed the sidewalk so I could reach a ladder to get out. I began to search for my brother or sisters with no luck. I walked to a farther, small dam, looking less dangerous than the first one. I decided to walk over the small dam, which had a lot of water falling over it. The water falling down was about four to six feet, I believe. I walked and slipped down because the algae was so slippery. I was rather an excellent swimmer. I did not panic but was very aware of the water's strong current.

Below the water fall, I tried to fight the current and get my body away. I got caught by an undertow current and I tried to swim out. The direction out was lost on me. I could not figure which direction was up, down, right, or left. I panicked and was very scared.   I screamed in the water for help. Several tube riders passed by but did not see me. No lifeguards were present.   My thoughts were on my mother and family. Water got into my mouth, and my breathing ceased to none. My body felt so cold and my brain closed down on me. Blackness covered everything around me. I realized that the Door of Life was closing. My body said, 'Is that the death experience? Is that it?' Soon, I blacked out.

Then, I saw my life shown in flashing increments of a 'movie,' rolling year by year, individual by individual. My first favorite increment was when I was born and my mother's beautiful face was shown for the first time in my life! I did not realize how much love my mother had for me. My second favorite was -- I was playing with my brother and sisters, and realized the closeness I felt being with them. Third was my father throwing my body up in the air, a lot of laughter, and some puzzled feelings. Then the ‘movie’ went faster and faster, and I felt many stars bursting all over my head or body.   It was so unreal.

My spirit or soul moved into a light tunnel. I flew through the tunnel. Then I saw a light at the end of the tunnel, bursting toward me. I can still remember the feeling, even today! The only description I could give you is that the feeling must have been like in Carl Sagan’s movie, 'Contact': The newly-built ball spacecraft falling down through the Giant Gyro-Space machine!   Jody Foster went through the tunnel right away and she could see space outside her 'ball space shuttle.' That's what I saw when I was zooming through the tunnel. I could see the universe outside, because of the tunnel's transparency.   Such an awesome feeling, flying through the tunnel at light speed.

I arrived at a boundary while floating near it. I was shocked how much load I felt was lifted off my shoulders, such as many ridiculous rules or laws being imposed on us people. For the first time I realized how much bondage we had from the government and the churches. It was lifted off my shoulders.   I cannot find the right words to describe the experience. It's much like a hurricane, drawing all energy toward the eye of the storm. It's almost the same feeling, drawing all knowledge and awareness of reality into my body and mind!

One example: when I approached the boundary. No explanation was necessary for me to understand that once I crossed the boundary, I could never come back - period.   I was more than thrilled to cross.   I intended to cross, but my ancestors on the other side caught my attention. They were talking in telepathy.   I was born profoundly DEAF, and I had all hearing family members, but here I could communicate with about twenty ancestors of mine mind to mind. It overwhelmed me. I could not believe how many people I could understand simultaneously!

I saw their buildings, not built by them, but obviously by some kind of Supernatural builder. This Mega-city was perfect. It is even more beautiful than the scenes in the "Sound of Music." I even saw animals and farms in a different kind of community not seen on earth. One of my grandmothers or great-grandmothers or even great-great grandmothers was surprised and puzzled that I had arrived at the boundary.   All of them showed shocked surprise that I had arrived. They were not expecting me at all. But they opened their arms, welcoming me to come over. One of my ancestors ‘said,’ 'Why is he here? Is he supposed to be here now?' Another was full of radiant love and joy to see my presence and opened my eyes to our new future.   I could not even describe in words what I saw.

Quickly, a Being approached me and asked, 'What are you doing here?'   I was shocked at his question. It was my Guardian Angel, there when my mother gave birth to me.   I felt so close to him, but he pushed me a step away. He asked me telepathically, 'What happened to bring you here?'   I did not care what happened; I was filled and bursting with joy and love. I wanted to go over the boundary right away. My angel saw somehow that I had drowned! Then he said 'Your time is not up now. You have some unfinished business to do. Go Back.' At first, I shrugged and tried to sneak by him. He moved like lightning and put his hand toward me. I felt my body being pulled at incredible speed backward, the light of the tunnel zoomed by my eyes, and I was pushed back into my body with force.

I felt my body once again as I woke up and realized that I was still in the water.   I felt that I actually had breathed in the water. I heard a voice speaking, 'Stand straight, firmly.'   Without any question, I stood straight, and I felt, like a ‘big hand’ wrapping around my body and taking my body out of the strong current. I climbed onto shore, and water poured out of my mouth. I could not believe how much water came out!   My life and perspective changed after that!   I knew from that moment, I would not be the same person!   For the first time, I saw my life filled with hope and love and felt all of nature and humanity around me.

I did not tell my mother, brother, and sisters what I had experienced! Something deep inside me told me to keep silent about the situation. No words could possibly explain my experience in an Earthly sense. I felt like I was standing right by the ‘Twilight Zone’ door with six Dimensions of the future unfolding in front of me!   By the way, my parents, brother and sisters found out about my experience when I was about thirty-one years old. I just felt that the timing was right to break my news. My mother was so shocked, and it hit her hard!   My sisters looked at me in surprise and then ran to hug me. They could not imagine life without me. I just smiled.

WHAT A MARVELOUS NDE!! COULD IT ALL BE TRUE?

Patsy D’s NDE in 1965

I want to tell you a little about my background and then tell you about my near-death experience. I was born in Kansas in the heart of the Bible belt. I was raised a devout Christian. I had been baptized by the age of twelve, and taught the words of God; all the concepts of heaven and hell, as taught in the Bible, all of which I accepted and certainly believed; to me it was the gospel truth. I was very religious. I make a point of this because I did not have the NDE you might expect of someone with my background.

By 1965, I was the mother of four children and the wife of a lineman for the power company, and, to make ends meet, I was working in a drive-in restaurant. I was a deaconess and a Sunday school teacher in my church.   My life revolved around my family, my church and my home. In my spare time, I bowled twice a week in a bowling league. I began to have trouble with my left leg, it would give out and I could not stand on it. I went to my doctor and he recommended having the veins stripped in my left leg. He assured me it was elective surgery, and that I would be in the hospital only three days.

The following week the operation went as planned, with no complications. The next day I got up and walked around. The only thing I remember that was unusual was that twice I found myself on the floor with no memory of how I got there. On the third day, I went home, feeling fine. The following day I went over to my neighbor, Pearl, for a cup of tea. We were sitting there and suddenly I begin feel strange, I told Pearl that I would go home and lie down for a while. She said she would walk with me. I told her no, that I was all right and that I would see her later.

It was about 2:30 pm when I walked across the street and up a short embankment, into the middle of our carport. Suddenly I was floating above my body, which was lying in the carport!   I had no sense of movement and I was not afraid. I was fully conscious. I looked down and wondered why my body was lying on the ground and I was in the air. I thought it was interesting how my body looked.   I had never seen my body from this view before.

Shirley, the neighbor across the street, saw me fall and she came running over, calling to Pearl. She and Pearl picked up my body, carried it into the house, and put it down on the bed, where, still floating, “I” perched on the headboard, looking at my four children, who stood at the foot of the bed, watching the unsuccessful attempts being made to resuscitate my body.

Pearl told my daughter to call for an ambulance. She went into the living room and called them. My body voided all wastes, and they were trying to clean it up. They removed all the clothing except for a tee-shirt. The ambulance came and two attendants came in, put my body on a stretcher, and carried it out to the ambulance. They told Pearl to get in. She told them that I had just come home from the hospital the day before. Shirley, said she would tell Bill, my husband to meet us at the hospital.

As they placed my body in the ambulance, I floated along with it. I was not attached to it in any way that I could determine. I just thought everything was so interesting. The driver turned on the siren as we started for the hospital. The attendant began trying to revive my body. Pearl was telling him what had happened as he was trying to find a pulse. He put an oxygen mask over my body's mouth and applied electric shocks to the chest three times, each time taking a pulse. Halfway to the hospital, he stopped and told the driver to turn off the siren. I was dead. Pearl started crying.

I turned around and was immersed in light. I was surrounded by unconditional love, and total acceptance. I knew I was complete at last. Never had I felt such safety and serenity before. Suddenly, I had all knowledge. All that I had ever heard or known was swept away. I knew that Christ had not died on the cross and that there is no sin or evil. I knew that I had existed since the moment of creation, that I shall always exist, and that all consciousness is in the act of becoming. I knew that I had lived many times in physical reality, and I watched those other lives, observing each of them. I experienced what we mean when we say that we have free will, and I realized that we choose everything!   There are no absolutes.   I watched every thought and action that I had ever chosen right to its natural end, and I saw each person it had touched.   I knew then that I must return because my role was not finished yet.   Also, I saw my own death in 2010 [when Patsy would be about 75]. I gained the knowledge that all people choose their own time and create the method of their demise.

I opened my eyes, and I was in the hospital emergency room. Bill, Pearl, the ambulance attendants, two policemen, and a nurse standing were there.   My body was lying on a table, covered with a sheet. The doctor was in a rage, telling my husband Bill that I had died from extreme malnutrition, often brought about by women dieting in order to make themselves thin. He insinuated that my husband was to blame.   Bill was trying to explain to him that he had just taken me home from that very hospital only the day before and it was impossible for me to have died under those circumstances!

I floated over to my body and sank down into it. I want to tell you what it felt like when I entered my body. I have never felt such joy!   I was enthralled with this wondrous body!   As long as I wear this body, I will never forget what I had experienced in that moment.

My body began to shake and the sheet over me fell to the floor. The nurse screamed. The doctor ran to the table. I sat up, trying to get off the table. I wanted to dance and sing for the sheer joy of being alive. He pushed me down on the table and told the nurse to get a sedative. I struggled to get up; I told the doctor that I was all right and didn't need a sedative. Suddenly I realized that everybody thought I was dead, and they were all terrified. I calmed down and laid still. The doctor was terrified to even touch me. The nurse did not want to approach the table again.

Everyone in the room was frozen in place! As if their brains could not process what their eyes were seeing. I became aware that I was ravenous. I told the doctor that I needed food. He sent for an orderly to take me up to a room. Then he went over to the desk and began to fill out papers. I could see that he could not think about what had just happened. He was afraid of me.

The orderly came and wheeled my gurney into the elevator.   As I was chattering away with the orderly, I noticed that my husband Bill was staying as far away from me as possible. I knew in some way I had to help him, because he had to go home and tell our children what had happened. I told Bill that I was all right and that I wanted him to go home and just tell the children that I would be home tomorrow. He never said a word. He just leaned over, kissed me, and took the elevator back down.

The orderly told the floor nurse that all of them in the emergency room acted as if they had just seen a ghost. She laughed, asking me if I too had seen *the ghost*, I answered “no” and asked for something to eat and drink. She glanced at the clock behind the nurse's station, which showed 10:04 pm. She told me that the kitchen was closed for the night, but she would see what she could find for me. I was then put in a ward with two other women. She left the room. I immediately woke my roommates up. I was so happy to be with people who would (or perhaps could) react to me in a normal fashion that I started singing, dancing around the room, telling jokes. The nurse returned with the promised food and told me to get into bed and be quiet or she would have to strap me down. So I did.

The women went back to sleep and I lay awake all night. That afternoon my surgeon came in and sat down and asked me what had happened. I knew that he knew I had died.   I told him he would not believe me. He said, “Yes, I would, I have to go before a board of my peers and tell them what happened, and why I released you to go home. I have had five hundred patients experience death and live to tell about it, and I'm not moving until you tell me what happened.” So I told him.

He told me that my file would be placed with the other 500 and destroyed upon his death. I asked him what I should do, and he said, “I don't know. Your life will completely change and I don't know how to tell you to live it.” Where are the others who experienced this? He told me he could not tell me. He told me not to tell anyone what had happened or they would put me away. He told me that I had been officially dead for one hour and he said he thought it was several hours! I went home that day. I never saw him again.

He was right. My world had turned upside down. I went to church the next Sunday and couldn't even sit through the service. I wanted to stand up and tell everyone that this was all wrong and how wonderful they were! In the years since, I have lived the principles I learned in the light. I only sleep four hours a day now, which is the usual for me. I have no fear of death. I live in the moment. I am in excellent health and create what I want. My life has been a grand adventure. I stand between two worlds.

Viva T’s NDE in 1979--- by a nurse with a PhD

Dr. Viva T. suffered for over a year with an undiagnosed Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (related to her use of the Dalkon Shield, an intrauterine contraceptive device). Then she required a surgical intervention following three weeks of hospitalization to 'stabilize.'

Dr. Viva’s NDE: “Intense pain, loud noise, I swiftly left my body through the top of my head, moving to the ceiling of the surgical suite. I was aware of myself looking down on the medical staff, which had suddenly gone into resuscitation mode. I realized that I still existed and was not afraid (contrary to my previous earthly experience of being a fearful, young, single mom, raising a three year old and questioning the meaning of existence). I thought, 'This must be who I really am' when I found myself in that state and found that 'I' was a being without a body (since I had left my body behind on the table). I thought, 'They think I'm gone, but I'm really up here.' I was exhilarated, curious, and wanted to 'see where this would go'.

Next, I was moving through the dark void of space at an unbelievably swift speed, and found that I could control speed and direction with my awareness. I then noticed there were objects (like stars?) in that dark space that were bright, and I was attracted to them. I had the sense of avoiding some and 'steering' toward others.

Then I saw One star of incredible dimension, brightness, beauty, and majesty. As I was drawn toward it, I could see complex shapes and colors. I could see where the colors and shapes were overlaid on one another, like translucent, immense precious stones fitted together to form the complex multidimensional impression of a Most Loving Being which drew me, invited me in, and pointed the Way to the Light. That Light was a yet far distant point that I immediately was drawn toward with the goal of uniting with the Light. As I approached, the Light grew larger, brighter, and more compelling, until I suddenly merged with it (beyond a sense of boundary) with indescribable speed.

Now, in the Light, for what seemed like eternity, I experienced a sense of being 'held,' immersed, fully bathed, buoyant; I was ONE WITH THE LIGHT! The Light was golden, warm, and embracing. A state of LOVE, peace, unity, Wisdom from God, at the center, and innumerable unseen others poured into me to teach and explain to me the immense divinity of God’s overall plan. I was grateful for the experience of knowing the immensity of this glorious plan. I felt chosen and privileged to be present here. I understood, in that experience, why and how God had been present and ever will be. I understood that our experience on Earth is like a stage for all divine beings to observe, cajole, and minister to other individuals on Earth, as they make their choices and direct themselves toward or away from God.

At the same time, I could perceive from their perspective the literal view of Earth, and I even moved around the planet from many perspectives while continuing to receive transmissions. Seemed like an eternity that I wanted to remain, but eventually, there was a sense of a need to return and participate in transmitting and sharing this experience.

Now I was standing in front of the most beautiful, exquisite representation of the English cottage I had always conceived in my mind since my earliest memory in childhood of the perfect home. I was outside the gate (and a picket fence with curved arbor covered with climbing roses). The golden light was streaming from the windows in the late dusk. I knew God was in the house. I wanted to go in also. As I put my hand on the handle to go in, I was told 'If you go in, you cannot come out.

‘You have a little son (then four years old) who needs you. The people on earth need to know all that you have witnessed and experienced. To know that their earth experience is not the totality of existence, although it is a crucial part of the overall plan.' I could 'see' that fear is an obstacle in coming to know God, not only for me, but for all. Then, I experienced the reverse of my initial experience. I was moving from that wondrous state back to my body and in through the top of my head. I was back in my body!

I became aware that I had a sheet over my whole body, that I was no longer in the surgical suite, and I knew that they thought I was dead. I knew that I had to move, with all effort; when I finally did, I saw the surprise on the anesthesiologist's face. Later, when I was roused by the surgeon, he dramatically questioned me, 'Where did you go? I thought I had lost you.' The rest is history. I recovered, chose not to return to work, focused on my son, and behaved in ways incongruent with my previous experiences. My NDE had changed me.

UNLIKE MOST EXPERIENCERS, CHRISTIAN’S NDE LEFT HIM MISSING THE OTHER SIDE SO MUCH THAT HE FEELS HIS “LIFE HERE IS NOTHING BUT PAIN, SADNESS, AND EMPTINESS”.

Christian D’s NDE in 2004---from New Zealand

I cut my face off on a deer fence and was bleeding to death. Guess I passed out.

I woke up in some scrub, hearing friends' voices looking for me. I called to them and told them I was bleeding to death and, because of the distance from a hospital, told them to call the rescue helicopter, which they did. An ambulance arrived, and I was loaded into it so they could take me to where the chopper could land. At this point, I felt it was time to slip into a state of meditation and self-check what other damage my body may have. I add here that I have sustained many serious accidents and have been thought to have been dead by rescuers before, so am quite calm at such times.

As I drifted off, I could hear a friend who was in the ambulance with me start panicking to the ambulance driver that he better get in here, as I was dying and unresponsive. My friend's partner had to drive the ambulance to the chopper landing area while the medics attended to me. I only remember hearing my friend and the medic's voices briefly.

Then, I will try to explain my experience as best I can. I was surrounded by love, warmth, light, and felt happier than I ever have before or since. Everything and all that is good was in this light. Words cannot express the happiness, love, and belonging I felt.

In the light was a seemingly uncountable crowd of people who are my ancestors and relatives that have left here over the ages and are now there.   I recognized the ones who have been here in my lifetime---and at the front were also my dogs from throughout my time here!   I felt absolutely that they were family that I had known forever and were there to bring me Home. Everything about the Other Side was right and made perfect sense to me while I was there.

I don't remember speaking but instead all questions were answered before they were asked!   Sounds seemed to be in my head, but not really heard through my ears.   There was discussion by some there that it wasn't my time yet, as there was still something I had left to do on earth before I could come Home.   Wish I knew what it is, because now I feel lost and don't want to be here.   What is called 'life' here is nothing but pain, sadness, and emptiness for me; yet I know I have to wait to go and must not end this existence at my own hand (bummer).

There are other things that were told to me that I will never tell, but the next thing I knew, I was in the rescue chopper heading to hospital. On arrival, the trauma team asked if they could take photos for teaching, as it was the best facial lacerations on a living person they had seen.   My skull was visible where my nose and face had been, and they said I had to come to grips with the loss of vision in my left eye.

I have since restored that eye’s vision to better than 20/20 now, but I am still trying to heal my hips and back that I smashed and which ache terribly twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. In previous accidents I have been told I would lose my legs but have healed them also to nearly a hundred percent; so maybe I am here to learn about how painful this place is and how much it takes before you just give up.

My experience was definitely real. After waking from surgery, I felt angry at having to come back and could not see why I had to be here. The knowledge I gained---that one day I will leave this place and go home---is the only comfort I have here.

Julia M’s NDE in 2000---from France. Original in French

Following a kidney surgery, after a drop in my blood pressure that I saw going down, I rang for the nurse. I saw them arrive running, then they got my bed to take me to ICU, then I felt I was losing consciousness, then blackness.   The last moment of consciousness before my out-of-body experience, I was seeing the medical staff rolling my bed very fast through the corridors to bring me to the intensive care unit in the basement. As of that moment, I have no more notion of time or place.

When my consciousness reappears, I am in a large diameter tunnel that narrows in the distance.   The walls of the tunnel are dark, padded, and glossy. I feel very good, weightless, as if a power was softly pushing me at an incredible speed, so fast that I quickly arrive at the end of the tunnel, where a very white light is appearing and where I want to go.

I know that in this light will be happiness, love, and a complete well-being. The light grows in size very fast, and hop; here I am sitting at the edge of the tunnel. My legs are dangling; I lean against the black tunnel and in front of me is the soft white light encompassing me, warm, peaceful, not dazzling me. The light is giving me a complete well-being, which is the definition of universal love, the happiness for which I was searching my whole life. I am amazed!

I contemplate the softness of this light and hear a wonderful music that makes me perfectly happy, a kind of music that is so beautiful that it cannot exist on earth. Then at my left side, coming out from the core of the light, I first see human forms approaching slowly: men, women, children, young and old. They look at me with great kindness, as if they had a lot of love for me. They come to welcome me sympathetically so that I should join their group. They are smiling, calm, all wearing white. I look at them, to see if I know them.

In fact, I am secretly looking for my deceased father, my sister, and my grand-mother. I don't see them, but the group passes me slowly, and I am a bit disappointed for not seeing my relatives. But I tell myself that they will for sure be arriving, while the people continue to pass by, smiling at me, so I feel at peace.

Suddenly I see some movement in the light. I look, and slowly coming out of the light is a being clad in light. He is tall, serene, and a man of light, raising no fear in me. As for me, he conveys the fatherly safety that my father gave me. He speaks to me with a deep, but at the same time gentle voice, ‘It‘s not yet your moment, you still have a lot of things to do on earth!’. It's not a command, rather a statement. I look at him; he is gentle like a father protecting me. I am disappointed to hear this, as I feel like going into the light. I am still sitting at the edge of my tunnel.

I had been waiting for my family to pass by, so I could stay there with them in this wonderful place, where everything is only love and softness. Then I turn towards the tunnel and hop. Immediately, I was in a bed in the intensive care unit and my throat was hurting. I think to myself, 'I was intubated.'

ADDED COMMENTS:

“I was raised simultaneously in the Catholic and Protestant religion; at age 15 I chose the Protestant religion; then I did not practice, but learned about all religions and made my own way of thinking that I adapted to my daily life. Reading Buddhist works, I realized that I had invented my own Buddhist religion and that I practiced it in my daily life" because that corresponded to what I wanted to be and what I really was.

“My experience took place 13 years ago; I remember it as if it had happened a few days ago while other events of the time are classified in my past. When I talk about my experience, I am always moved; I sometimes have tears in my eyes and chills, and I would like to be able to benefit this moment "magic" to people I love to bring them the happiness that I had at this moment.”

Because of my medical studies, and my readings, I was rather stunned, having experienced this. I am quite frank and honest towards myself. I thought, at the time, that if I were hallucinating, with time I would forget things.

This experience was very beautiful; it brought me an immeasurable happiness that I always keep inside me. When I have “downs” as everybody has, I think about it and find new energy. I live every day in the present, simply profiting from earthly life, as I “came back, because I still have many things to do,” so I do them!

Robyn O’s NDE in 1985---from New Zealand

I was a passenger in a car traveling along a very twisty mountain road with a beautiful fjord on the right. Our car tire blew and we careened across the road and went off a 30-foot cliff. I remember hitting my head three times as the car tumbled over and over. Then I was floating and all was still and calm. There was no fear, and I was floating in a black, enormous place. I felt embraced, cradled, but free and open. This huge space filled me with comfort and belonging. I felt alive and joyful. I have heard that others describe this as “feeling loved” and while it seems more than that, I don't know another word to describe it, except maybe with “God.”

I started flying through a tunnel. I traveled at great speed and at the same time very, very slowly.   I was more aware than I had ever been in my life.   I was totally me and totally all that was.   The tunnel was the most amazing thing I have ever experienced in my life with lights of every color surrounding me, comforting me, delighting me, somehow infusing me.   I could feel the vibration of the colors and hear the music of each color and the colors were spinning all around me.   It seemed like a very long, blissful, and peaceful time, and it was so much more.

It was fascination, excitement, laughing, loving, funny, thoughtful, empathetic, and sad in a very sweet way, all at the same time.   In a way like any wonderful emotion I had ever experienced, but this time enjoyed to its fullest potential.   I was not seeing from my eyes but from my entire body, which was as big as the horizon, which was endless.

I heard the driver calling my name as my experience began, but I must have been gone only seconds, because as I woke, it seemed as if the driver was just completing her sentence.   I was upside down with my forehead in a glacial stream.   My body was racked with pain, but I felt like the luckiest person in the world! And 27 years later, I still do!   I cannot fear death, for myself or for anyone. I know that I will always be okay no matter what happens to my physical body.   Before, I was a nonpracticing Catholic, but now I don't feel that God has any expectations of me; God just accepts me and supports me the way I am!

Mohammad Z’S NDE IN 1977---Although from Iran, this NDE is like all other NDEs.

I am 65 years old, and this happened to me in 1977, when I was 26. I am originally from the city of Isfahan, which is in central Iran, about 300 miles south of the capital Tehran. I had followed a friend’s suggestion and had taken a job in the city of Mashad, which is in North West Iran, about 800 miles away from Isfahan.

That day I was driving back from Mashad to Isfahan for a few days of vacation and visiting my family. I left very early in the morning, around 2 am. Back in those days, the road was not that good and was not a highway, just a two-way road. At some point along the way when I was close to the city of Ghoochan, I noticed a car from the other lane was in my lane and the headlights were beaming right towards me. I tried to steer to the right to avoid a collision but the road shoulders were too narrow. I collided head-on with that car. My car spun a few times and fell off the road, which was several feet lower than the road itself. I was critically injured, but luckily a few minutes later, a passenger bus was passing by and saw the accident scene and stopped. They took me to a small hospital in the nearby city of Ghoochan.

In the hospital, the doctors and nurses started working on me right away. I had many injuries and felt severe pain all over my body. Nevertheless, when I was on the operating room bed, various thoughts were rushing through my head. For example, I was worried that if I don’t report back to my work on time in a few days that they might give my job away to someone else. At the same time, I was very angry at my friend who had encouraged me to take this job in a city far from my family. I blamed him for my living away from my family, causing my accident and misery. I was frustrated at everything and everyone. I felt that this world and my life were a total mess, and nothing was in its right place. My mind was full of complaints and anger.

I remember a young woman around 22 years old entered the room. She seemed to be inexperienced and rather new to the hospital. She seemed beautiful, and I wished I was not in this mess, so I could talk to her and befriend her. But once again, I was distracted by unbearable pain and all the angry thoughts that were playing in my head. My attention was constantly shifting from my pain, to my angry thoughts, to this young lady; back and forth, and round and round.

Suddenly, I felt that everything shifted. I felt a deep calm and peace engulfing me. This feeling was totally opposite to what I was feeling a few minutes ago. I was not angry anymore, and I was seeing perfection in everything in the world around me. Now I was feeling that everything is exactly the way it should be. Whenever I focused my attention to any object or subject, I could get deep and complete insights into that matter. I could even understand the chemical compositions of objects I looked at and all its physical and mathematical properties. I shifted my attention to that young woman again. I noticed that I was seeing like 360 degrees around her, like my vision had totally engulfed her.   I could see her thoughts and feelings as well. I could see that she had a lot of sadness and worry about what she was seeing. She was thinking that it was so sad that this young man (me) is dying like this. I tried to soothe her and tell her that I am alright and that nothing is wrong with me. In fact, I’ve never felt so good in my life!   But she kept ignoring me, like she did not see or hear me.

Now I looked at myself and saw that I had a transparent and glowing body. I was so confused and bewildered. I started to think to myself, “Am I dead? Is this my body on the bed? My God, my mom would be so devastated. She is expecting me back home tomorrow.”

As soon as I thought about my mom, I immediately found myself in front of her in our house in Isfahan. It is hard to explain, but strangely I was still in the hospital too.   It was like I had split into two pieces with equal awareness. My mom was sitting on the patio and preparing some vegetables for the dinner. I went behind her to hug her from behind, in order to surprise her. Again to my surprise, my hands went right through her body. I tried to talk to her but she paid no attention to me.

During this period, as I thought about various friends and relatives, I instantly went to where they were. I realized that there is no use trying to communicate with people. Nobody could hear or see me.

Meanwhile I was seeing everything in the hospital. Over there, the doctors pronounced me dead and wrote some notes on my chart: “Resuscitation unsuccessful, the patient is pronounced dead at ….” They threw a sheet on my face and put me on another bed with wheels. Then they transferred me to a room where they temporarily kept the dead before sending them to the hospital morgue.

Then, I passed very fast through a tunnel and moved towards a bright light at the end of it.    I went to a very pleasant place that was made from light. I felt that this is my true home, and I belonged there. Everything seemed to be in absolute perfection.

When I had earlier visited my mom, I had a vague feeling that there was a presence that was following me all the time, like a shadow. But now I noticed him. He was an amazing, divine human-like figure who radiated love and light. Instantly, I fell in love with this holy and immensely beautiful presence. I noticed that he loved me deeply and unconditionally.   First I thought he must be a prophet or religious figure, but then I thought that he is even above all that. I realized that he has always been with me throughout my life, always. He was my guide.
My guide showed me scenes that formed in front of my eyes like a movie. These were scenes from my own life. The scenes were in chronological order from the very beginning of my life on the Earth. I saw a young woman who was pregnant. She was my mother and was pregnant with me.   Before entering her body, I was feeling that I am present in the entire universe, but somehow part of me focused away from this entirety and totality to move into the physical world and my mother’s body.   My feeling was a feeling of connection. I felt that everything is connected to everything and there is no beginning or end.

One example from my life review was when I was a little kid. We were traveling by car and stopped somewhere along the way. There was a river not far from the road and I was asked to go and bring some water in a bucket from that river. I went to fill up the bucket but on my way back, I felt that the bucket was way too heavy for me. I decided to empty some of the water to make the bucket lighter. Instead of emptying the water right there, I noticed a tree that was alone by itself in a dry patch of land. I took the effort to go out of my way to that tree and emptied some of the water at the tree base. I even waited there a few seconds to make sure the water soaked in the soil and was absorbed. In my life review, I received such an applause and joy for this simple act that it is unbelievable. It was like all the spirits in the Universe were filled with joy from this simple act and were telling me ‘we are proud of you’. That simple act seemed to be one of the best things I had ever done in my life! This was strange to me, because I didn’t think this little act was a big deal and thought I had done much more important things. However, it was shown to me that what I had done was extremely valuable because I had done it purely from the heart, with absolutely no expectation for my own gain.

Another example from my life review was when I was a 10 year-old boy. I had bullied and mercilessly beaten another boy who was also around my age. He felt tortured and deeply hurt. In my life review, I saw that scene again. The boy was crying in physical and deep emotional pain. As he was walking in the street crying and going back home, he radiated negative energy which affected everything around him and on the path. People and even birds, trees, and flies received this negative energy from him, which kept propagating throughout the Universe. Even rocks on the side of the street were affected by his pain. I saw that everything is alive and our way of grouping things in categories of 'alive' and 'not alive' is only from our limited physical point of view. In reality everything is alive. I felt all of the pain and hurt that I had inflicted upon him inside of myself. When this boy went home to his parents, I saw the impact that seeing him in that state had on his parents. I felt the feeling and pain it created in them and how it affected their behavior from that point forward. I saw that as a result of this action, his parents would be always more worried when their son was out of home or if he was a few minutes late.   I saw that whenever I had done something good or hurtful to anyone or anything, that I had done it to myself.

I wanted to stay in this world of love, peace, and light, but they reminded me of my responsibilities back on the earth. I argued and refused to return. They told me that if I don’t return, I won’t be able to achieve certain spiritual capabilities which I would have received had I gone back to earth. I still didn’t want to return and said I would rather stay there. Finally they showed me parts of my future and how, if I returned, it would affect many other people and help them to see the Light. When I realized how much my return to earth would help others, I could not wait to get back to earth. However, these scenes from my future were erased from my memory upon return to the Earth.

According to my medical documents, I came back to life 32 minutes after I was pronounced dead. But during this 32 minutes I saw so many things. It was like several months to me, if not several years. One of the staff in the hospital who was passing by the room my body was placed in, heard a little noise coming from inside the room. She rushed into the room and found that I was actually breathing again.

For years I hid my experience from people because, whenever I talked about it, I faced their ridicule, negative judgment, or accusation of hallucination and making up stories. After several years, I saw a book about NDEs and noticed there are other people who have had similar experiences like me. Although the details of their experiences might be different or they might express their experience in a different way, we still had similar experiences. After seeing this book, I was very anxious to find others who had had an NDE and to meet them face to face. I even changed my job and started working in the medical services section of a hospital, hoping to meet other NDErs.   Gradually NDE phenomena became more known and accepted in the society. People became more open to hearing my story. Nowadays, on average I tell my story once or twice a month to various gatherings of friends or people who are interested. Unlike the past, now people and especially young ones show a lot more interest in hearing about my experience and it seems it affects them in a good way.

Jeff H’s NDE in 1978

I had a bad asthma attack which landed me in the hospital. They gave me something which seemed a lot like the general anesthesia I was given for two surgeries later in life. It helped me to breathe at first, but I was tired, slipped away to sleep, and then stopped breathing. I felt the sensation of time passing. I also felt as though I was dreaming of seeing someone in a bed who was surrounded by doctors.

I was floating above a person and didn't make the cognitive connection at first that this was my body! I could see my mother in the corner of the room and became worried for her. It was about this time, when I realized this was not a dream, that I just wanted to go home. The next thing I knew, it was nighttime. I was outside my house and looking in the kitchen window. There was a light, kind of dim and from a distance. The light got closer and more intense. I felt a Love that brings tears to me as I write this. As wonderful and amazing as this place felt, I was pretty much along for the ride. I don't know how much of this I can put into words that accurately describe. The light was love and understanding. It was outside of me, through me, and in me. It was home. I've never felt a love like this since, though there have been very brief moments of kindness and acceptance that I just live for. It's hard to see the computer screen for the tears in my eyes.

It's hard for me to describe what happened next. There was a life review, where it was like re-living certain moments in my life up to this point. I felt with complete clarity how I felt at these moments and how the other person felt through my actions, my words, and my thoughts. These were times when I probably should have acted differently, used better judgement, not gotten caught up in emotion. This was a very humbling experience. It concerns me what my next life will be like, because although I'm now more aware of how I affect those around me; I still get emotional, I still screw up, and I'm well aware that this experience has not made me perfect...it has not prevented me from being stupid, insensitive, egotistical, and uncaring. If anything, it has driven home the point of trying to be more mindful, and it's something that requires constant effort and attention.

At a certain point I met someone who seemed to be there to assist me in deciding whether I should come back into this life or start all over again in another life. I would call this person my guide. I wanted to know more about them. But, it was clear that this experience was not about them. It was more like going to a guidance counselor. I was emotionally invested in the people of this life. Starting over and not really knowing what that would be like was hard for me to accept. I was shown parts of my future in this life if I chose to go on. You would think I could predict the future with what I was shown, yet it could be due to the fact that I don't deal with detailed information really well. But there was a clarity there in that place, which doesn't exist for me here. It was simple to understand so much more than I can here.

The things I was shown have been more like choices that were made when the options were fairly limited. The feeling at the time of the choice was simply 'This feels right. This feels like the right thing to do.' With that feeling is a sense of peace, and calm. I was told that if I were to continue in this life, that it would be unlikely that I would reach my potential. However, it seemed clear that starting over was a wild card, and I was not shown anything about that. I was shown details of my future that I don't feel really comfortable divulging here. Some things were embarrassing. But everything had to do with what I came into this life to do, to learn, and to experience and grow.

When I returned to my body, I really missed that place, and I still think about it today. We are here to grow as spiritual beings and to experience certain things. I remember choosing my parents for this life because of their personality and kindness. On a certain level I'm pretty sure I chose to have asthma to keep me from making the mistakes I had made in another life. I may have even chosen my NDE to keep me aware of why I'm here!

AN INTENSE NDE---with Life Review from moment of birth to hitting a windshield

February 2007

My NDE was the most important event of my life and can be described as INTENSE. One day after my 20th birthday, I was hit head-on by a car while I was riding a bicycle without a helmet.

I was in design school in Savannah, Georgia paying my way through school with a competitive swimming scholarship. Swimming was my life, or so I thought.

On Feb 26th of 2007, I was riding my bicycle (helmetless) from one class to another. I turned across traffic to go left, but a black SUV was speeding at me from the opposite direction VERY fast (60mph). I tried to turn back into my lane but the SUV came way too fast. I smashed into the grill of the SUV straight on the driver's side. When my hands first hit, time slowed down. I saw the bicycle wheel exploding in the air. I saw my hands shatter and dislocate. I felt my knees hit as my body went over the hood, knee breaking, bicycle shattering. As I flew towards the windshield, I could see the reflections of the trees and the sun in the glass. I could see the face of the woman driving the car and her tense push against the steering wheel as she was hitting the brakes.

Octave by octave, I was registering time slowing down. My head was aiming straight at the windshield in line with the driver's face. At the exact moment my head began to touch the windshield, I was launched straight out of my body, time unravelling. The first thing I saw was my body with surround, out-of-body vision, seeing from all sides and angles, in and out of my body all at once, and I saw my body pinned against that SUV windshield.

Then I was sucked out of that moment into a warm void. Suddenly, a HUGE wave of information flooded into my consciousness. This wave of information was by far the fastest and most intense thing I perceived during the entire NDE experience. I was immediately launched back through all of my life's memories, like being blasted through a tube or wormhole. The first memory I came into was being pulled out of my mother's womb in a hospital! I relived, meditated upon, and then moved on from every experience I had ever perceived. From breast feeding, to playing at school, to kittens, to imagination, to puberty, to learning about science, being part of a family... loving another for the first time.... Every perception I'd ever had, including accomplishments, ambitions, feelings, and subconscious perceptions all came into this new meditative space.

As I came all the way up to the present moment and saw myself hitting the windshield in the NOW, the experience became more profound. I somehow perceived myself being zipped through the universe into a black “void". "I" was something existing in timeless space. I had no human senses, no language-based thoughts, no perception of anything, other than that "I" existed.

I knew that I had come back to Earth to affirm my decision to live. In that instant, I simply determined to remain stiff and strong in my head, neck, and brain so as to break the windshield with my impulse, instead of having the windshield break me. The SUV was braking, and I was flying through the air, screaming inside, maybe outside too. I'm not sure. But I was conscious! I remember landing on top of the driver's side rear corner of the SUV as it finally came to a stop, and I was flung off onto the pavement on my back. Then, finally, time resumed normal speed and I started screaming!

My head was filled with glass. There was blood everywhere. I couldn't see. I had shooting pains down my spine. My hands were mangled. I was screaming for some minutes before paramedics came. I remember I was bleeding so much from my head I couldn't see out of my eyes. In the ambulance, as my eyes were cleared of blood, I gazed into a young African American paramedic's eyes; he looked right at me and said "you are a miracle", then he injected me with morphine and I went away to a hospital.

I was not very spiritual before my NDE. I was fairly reserved, introverted, and creative. I am so eternally grateful for this experience, and I am an incredibly different person now: extroverted, fiery, intense in almost all ways, and very spiritual. I am thrilled to be alive, reveling in the passion and challenge of it all. I am grateful to the point of JOY!

Laetitia V’s NDE in 2003---from France in French

In March 2003, I remember my son was 4 months old at the time. I had been sick during my whole pregnancy because of my gall bladder. At the time of the pregnancy, I constantly had feelings of faintness. The doctors thought that it was some kind of disease connected with the pregnancy. After giving birth, the faintness with loss of consciousness continued. During a test the cause of my fainting was discovered. I had emergency surgery because gallstones were blocking the common bile duct.

The surgery lasted 13 hours! I came back to a room with a gastric suction tube through my nose. I remember that I couldn't breathe, and that I couldn't move, and I felt that my strength was leaving me. I was thinking that I was dying and thought about my son. The next I know, I went outside of my body. Then I was in a dark tunnel with other people present. At the end of the tunnel was a very beautiful and luminous light.

The closer I got to this light, the more relief I felt. I felt a sensation of being loved, which I missed so much at the time. I felt very satisfied and finally happy, which was something new for me. I had positive feelings that were so intense that words don't exist to explain it.

I entered the light without any fear. While I continued my way into this light, a silhouette came from above and blocked the way to the light by coming in front of me. I was surprised to see my whole, difficult life scrolling before me and I said, 'I don't want to relive this, life is too hard." And I started crying. The silhouette told me 'It's only up to you to change things, you can help many people as your soul is pure. You are needed on earth.' When he told me that I was needed on earth, I immediately was thinking about my son. Then I found myself moving backwards, but in a vortex. It was a little bit like what you can see in science fiction movies.

Then I found myself in a room. I'm looking around and seeing my body on what looks more like a room for defibrillation than a surgery room. As I'm watching the situation, I see a nurse and a doctor. I hear a lot of people talking in a very noisy room next door. I feel the panic in this adjacent room from the screams and crying. I'm coming back to the room where my physical body is, and I see the doctor saying, 'It's done. We lost her.' He looks at his watch and the clock on the wall in order to pronounce the time of death. At that moment the nurse asks the doctor, 'Please doctor, try once more to shock her. She's only 21 years old; she's too young to die.' The doctor looks at her and says, 'Unfortunately, I cannot resuscitate dead people. But okay as you insist. We will try a last time.' I see him going towards a big machine. Then I come back into my body. As from this moment, I don't remember anything more.

While later being transported to my room, my roommate said to me, 'What happened to you?' I understand that something strange happened, as the nursing staff was talking about me. They were saying, 'She's coming back from afar, the young woman.' When I tried to ask questions of the medical staff, I got evasive answers. I began to realize that they sounded false and illogical.

ADDED COMMENTS:

During my experience, I saw things at the same time I thought about them. I had to think about my body to really see it.
I heard everything, even what happened behind doors or walls, even in the adjacent room.
I now believe in the universal laws of life and no more in human religions, although I now believe that God definitely exists. I also understood that you choose your incarnation, and that, whatever happens, you always have a choice.
At the time of my NDE, I was in a difficult situation, and wanted to die to stop my suffering. I succeeded in changing everything in my life, thanks to the near-death experience.
It took me 12 years to first talk about my NDE. During my nursing studies, a professor told us about NDEs and I talked to him after the course. Since that time, I have the need to share this experience, since I know that science and medicine might someday explain it.
My experience was definitely real, especially due to the experience of seeing my life scrolling before me, which was a very strong experience for me.

Laura L’s NDE in 1996---no blood transfusions

After delivering twins prematurely, I had “retained placenta” and was losing too much blood. However, I was afraid of blood transfusions and wouldn't give consent. I continued to bleed for three days. On the third day of losing blood, I felt detached from my loved ones. I was afraid. Then, all feelings went away.

The next thing I remember, I was on the ceiling of the hospital room, looking at my body and the doctors and nurses! But, I wasn't afraid or aware that that was my body lying there! I wondered why everyone was so concerned over “that person” lying in the bed.

A second later, I was in this wonderful light! It was all around me and felt tremendous! Overwhelming! It felt so good that I have no words to describe its wonderfulness!! It was the most wonderful experience I have ever had! If you rolled every great and happy moment in my lifetime all in one, it couldn't even come close to describing the great feeling of being there!

Then, in another second, I was standing beside a river made of “liquid light!” There was grass and a landscape, but it was all made of this light or had the light in it! It is hard to describe. It was absolutely stunning! It was just AWESOME!

I couldn't believe how wonderful this river was. Then I turned to look upstream, but I didn't get to see it, because I was suddenly back in my body in the hospital bed receiving blood! I was SO angry! I would rather have stayed in the place made of light! This experience was definitely real, and I know it was real because I was there!

After I came back, I soon forgot a lot of things I used to know while I was on the Other Side. I learned many things there about my life, but I have never recovered some of those memories. It took a few years to get over the anger of being brought back, but I no longer fear death at all! I used to be afraid of death. I came back a different person. It changed me in many ways.

Now I have more feelings of sympathy and empathy. I give more, feel more, don't take things for granted, and love people as much as I can, while I can. I have become a firm believer in God. I seem to have more emotions than before. I am A LOT different. I am less violent. I used to drink a lot of alcohol, and now I don't drink at all. I am teaching my children there is a God and an afterlife. If not for this experience, my children would have no religious beliefs.

Before, I had thought that when we died, we cease to exist any longer. Now I know we do continue to exist, and we are still us, even after we aren’t on this earth or in our current bodies. I know for a fact that we go elsewhere after our earthly bodies are no longer useful to us. And, I believe our difficulties, challenges, and hardships cease to exist there.

Laura M’s NDE in 1979

In July 1979, ten days after delivering my fourth son, I began hemorrhaging. My husband rushed me to the hospital where I received several blood transfusions and surgery (D&C), to stop the bleeding. I woke up in the recovery room feeling fine. With encouragement, my husband went back to work with a promise that he would return in a few hours and take me home. I dozed off only to wake up as my father entered the room. He lived 90 miles away and his visit was a happy surprise. He bent over to kiss me and I felt a shudder run through my body; just nerves I thought.

But then my teeth started to chatter and I began to have uncontrolled spasms. I was burning up! My father went running from the room to get help. Medical personnel came running into the room. A plastic sheet was thrown over my body and then someone started dumping buckets of ice on me. I felt every piece of ice as if it were a knife piercing my burning flesh. I was in great pain! Then my doctor appeared. I heard the nurse say I can't get a pulse, her temperature is over 106, and her organs are shutting down. Suddenly I could feel it, the hemorrhage again. I looked up at my doctor and said, ‘I'm bleeding again'. ‘No’, he said, 'you are having an allergic reaction to the blood transfusions you received.’ 'No,' I thought, 'He doesn't know. I am hemorrhaging! I am dying and my spirit is flowing out!'

I was then suddenly, overwhelmingly sad. I was sad to be dying without saying, 'Goodbye. I love you' to my husband and children or my father standing right outside the door. Then I died! The first awareness I had was the absence of pain; what a relief!   Then I became aware of the blackness. It was as if I were in a place of tremendous energy; a great black void, but I was not fearful. The void held me in calm and peace. I knew I had died to the world but I had not lost consciousness for even a second. I was still me and still alive.

Then I was with God and enveloped in such a great light and love it defies description. There I rested in joy, bliss and grace. I was melted into an embrace of such pure love and welcoming joy and peace there are no words to describe it.   God spoke to me, telling me that it was not my time and that I needed to return to my body, to complete my life's mission. I did not respond to His remark, but instead asked Him how he had done that? He spoke to me without words, without a voice, and yet I had clearly heard and understood every unspoken word!   He said to me that I was in a different ‘place’, one in which communication was purely exchanged through the language of love. Here everyone spoke heart to heart and soul to soul so that there could never be a misunderstanding. When I had been on Earth and used the spoken word, there had often been great confusion as to what I thought I had said and what had been heard by my listener; they were often very different.

He then reminded me again that it was not my time and that I needed to return to my body and resume my earth life. Then I reminded Him that He had promised me free agency, and I was choosing to exercise that agency to stay with Him. He laughed with great joy and mirth at my stubbornness, saying, ‘Yes, Laura, I would expect you to argue for your own case. The decision will of course be yours! But first let me show you some things.’ I was suddenly struck with wonderment and awe. He knew me. Everything about me was already known. I was part of his creation and in me was the spark of God; it could not be otherwise. He was all knowing, he was all love, and I was a part of it all.

Before me, there suddenly appeared a pristine, beautiful, white, glistening beach. I saw my three oldest sons sitting together on that beach. Individually, I saw many parts of their future lives. I saw their struggles and their hardships. I saw how my death would add to their hardships; sadness, loneliness, and anger seemed often to surround them. Then I saw the contrast I, as a Mother, would be in their lives. Their paths were lightened because of my love for them.

But still I could not imagine leaving God; being apart from His love. Suddenly, it dawned on me that I had only witnessed the lives of three of my sons. 'Where is my baby,' I asked?   Why is he separated from his brothers? 'He is younger; he will be raised differently.' was the reply. At this point, I witnessed a future event in the life of my husband, an accident in which he would lose his life. I did not bring this memory back with me, but somewhere in the corner of my mind, it remained. I would remember it vividly four years later as my husband lay dying.

And there was still more for me to understand. The focus again fell on my infant son and hundreds if not thousands of my ancestors. I was aware of light surrounding many of them. They stood out. I felt tremendous love from them. 'Notice,' He said, 'your ancestors, all these beings, came together in your behalf, to make you uniquely you.   I realized in Earth words He was referring to my DNA. 'You wanted to go to Earth to learn, to progress, and to contribute to creation. All these spirits came together to help you do that.' The focus then was back to my baby. 'In all of creation,' he said, 'your infant son chose you to be his mother, none other. Together,' he said, 'you made a covenant to fill these roles in each other's Earth life. This covenant is and was a very sacred covenant not to be taken lightly.' Suddenly I could not wait to return to earth, to my sons, all 4 of them, to my family, to life on Earth.

Now my life flashed before me, a life review. When it was over, my head was hung in shame, for He had seen it too. I was not happy about many of my actions. Then, in awe, I turned to him asking, ‘how can you still love me so completely after witnessing my many sins?'   'You are a child of God', He said, 'and God Is Love. I see you purely as Love.' There was no judgment, only love coming from Him.   In order for me to understand this, however, I needed to forgive myself and realize that I was a part of divine love.   It's very difficult to explain. I only know I now remember nothing that I saw in my life review; only the memory of having had one remains, and also of the love of all creation for me!

Now it really was time to return but first I had one more question: 'Why me,' I asked, 'what made me so special that I was allowed to have this happen to me?’   'Nothing,' He said, 'love falls on everyone equally; everyone is special. This was just something you needed to accomplish your chosen life mission.'

I was almost ready to return, but first I needed to secure a promise that I could soon return to Him. Again, I felt his great mirth, his tremendous love for me, and his complete knowing of me, because there really is no other option!   We all return. He did then remind me that the only thing I would get to bring back with me was love; the love I gave away.'   By the way, although I used to be Mormon, I do not adhere to any specific organized religion now. I am me, whatever that is. I am spiritual and I feel deeply connected. I should mention that afterward, I tried to tell my doctor what had happened to me, but he didn't want to hear it. Later on, when I saw the movie 'Contact' with Jodie Foster, chills began to run down my spine when she was drifting in space and the colors of the sky and the expansiveness of the universe appeared--- I could not stop the tears from flowing. It brought back my NDE, which was very real to me.

NDE in 1973 from Madras, India---Don’t take life so seriously!

My NDE occurred in 1973 during childbirth while I was living in Madras, India. After the experience, I wrote down everything I could remember, but it was years before I shared the account with anyone, and then it was only with a few family members. For many months preceding the birth, I had had a prolonged illness that was eventually diagnosed as a rare tropical parasite. I had dwindled to some 90 pounds and was quite weak when I went into labor. After many hours in labor, fatigue had begun to set in.

When the time came to deliver, the doctor told me to push, and I began the process with each contraction. This went on for a long time. I finally fell back in exhaustion. The doctor instructed me to keep going but my body, in its weakened state, refused to cooperate, and I began to feel panicky. I felt my entire body tremble violently. I was overcome with fear and felt as if the last drop of blood had seeped out of me. Seeing that I had no strength left, the nurse turned to the doctor and said: “She cannot push anymore.” At that point, there was a sudden change in the room. The previous sense of alarm seemed to turn to crisis. My last hold on myself started to go, and I could hear urgency in the doctor’s voice. This was followed by an acute wrenching sensation, as the light went out and I slipped away.

There was a moment of darkness. Then part of me rose and floated up to the corner of the room. I hovered there briefly, observing the scene below. I saw my body lying on the delivery table, surrounded by people in white coats who seemed to be in great commotion. Slowly I floated upward, out of the room and building, above the trees, and up into a black, star-filled sky. Eventually I came to rest in a dense, velvet-black space that enveloped me in tranquility, and I had no fear. I became aware that there was no time. There was no yesterday or tomorrow. There was no pain. While I floated in the darkness, the Earth appeared far below me and gradually came into my vision. Suddenly I knew without a shadow of doubt that I had entered another existence that was neither a dream nor a hallucination. I knew it was as real as had been my life on Earth.

I then became aware that although I had left my body behind, “I” was still alive and remained unchanged. I was suddenly struck by the realization that I had been here before my life on Earth. I was remembering something I had forgotten; something that had apparently been erased from memory when I was born. This was where I had originally come from. I had come home. Some invisible, silent source of infinite knowledge seemed to surround me, with answers to all my questions. Looking down, the Earth came clearly into my vision as if I had telescopic sight. I saw a dark vision of suffering and entrapment that was like a distillation of the human condition over millennia. It seemed this condition led history to repeat itself in an endless cycle of war, bloodshed, torture, deprivation, insanity, illness, and alienation. I felt like I was looking directly into peoples’ souls to the raw fear beneath their protective shells. I felt great compassion for all those in pain. I wanted some miracle to release them all from their misery.

Slowly the voices faded, the faces receded, and again there was only soothing darkness. Then I felt myself carried further out into the universe very rapidly. Then I came again to a resting place. I became aware of a compassionate presence that held me as I saw my life of 27 years on Earth unfold. I had lived and traveled extensively in India amid conditions of poverty, disease, destitution and death that were all-pervasive and inescapable. As a result of my exposure to these conditions, I had become seriously ill. I had also struggled with my own personal demons from a troubled childhood. As negative thoughts and emotions arose, they were simply acknowledged and held by the presence, without judgment, with complete forgiveness.

Then I heard a voice. It was so gentle and tender, so full of love and compassion. I felt surrounded with total acceptance and loving-kindness. The next thing I experienced was being drawn into the Light itself. The intensity of this light and my direct experience of it transcends expression in words. It was a brilliant, white gold transparency, radiating warm and pure luminescence. Cradled in this Light, I was suffused with a sense of joy, calm, peace, and beauty that were, until then, unknown to me.

Inside this presence, I felt an indescribable sense of freedom, a release from all the burdens associated with human life. On Earth, I had feared death. Now I saw that death was not an end but a beginning. It was a return to the home from which I had come. Then the light communicated again. Thoughts were transmitted without words, silently and directly. I had been conditioned by the concept of “original sin” to expect recrimination, judgment, and punishment for my sins; therefore, I had anticipated the same response from this spirit of Light. But there was no judgment. There was only unqualified acceptance and forgiveness. This came as a shock to me. Released from the burden of self-punishment, embraced in the wholeness of this forgiving presence, I was enveloped in joy. Then I heard the sound of soft, benevolent laughter; again I was surprised and perplexed; I had not expected to hear laughter from the divine. It said: “My child, you mustn’t take things so seriously. You are just part of an evolutionary chain, in which all life evolves at different stages of development. You are only human. You need not judge yourself so harshly. Be gentle with yourself.” I wanted to stay forever in the presence of Light.

The Light knew my thoughts and said simply, “You must return.” Upon being told I must return, I feared being sent back to the same world I had observed from afar, steeped in its suffering, sent back to my human form, where once again I would be bound by the same conditions and limitations I had left behind. “Please,” I begged. “Please let me stay. Don’t send me back.” A hand appeared in the Light, with beautiful, slender white fingers. “My child,” I heard it say, with a tenderness that would haunt me forever, “I have given you the gift of love. Your life is not completed.”

The next thing I knew, I was back in my body. Unlike my long journey into reaches beyond, my return to earth was abrupt, like the shock of birth. My soul was not prepared to return to the limited confines of my body. It felt like a prisoner returned to a cell. I found myself lying on something hard. Someone came to lift me and prop something soft beneath my back. Suddenly a woman appeared with a bundle, which she put in my arms, saying: “You have a son.” I had barely had a chance to hold him before the nurse returned to whisk him away. While holding him, I had seen that his head looked mangled, swollen and bruised, with two red gashes that were like craters on each side of his crown. Shortly after, I was told that his badly injured head needed immediate surgery.

During my stay at the hospital, I learned what had taken place during my son’s birth. The American doctor from the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi had flown down to investigate the case. He informed us that the doctor who had performed the delivery was unable to deal properly with the complications. The delivery had left two cavernous depressions on each side of my son’s crown, which had put pressure on the brain and had to be elevated to eliminate the possibility of brain damage. The doctor said it would be a year before we would know if the post-natal surgery had reversed the trauma and prevented serious repercussions. A year later, when we returned to the United States to have my son examined for possible brain damage, we learned to our immense relief that the surgery had yielded perfect results. No damage had been done. We both wondered what might have happened if the neurologist, who was normally away on an international lecture circuit, had not been in Madras on that fateful day to perform the surgery. I give thanks daily for the miracle of that positive outcome and the blessing of my son’s life.
During my NDE, I learned greater acceptance and compassion for myself and others. I also learned that life does not cease to exist when the body dies. While I still fear the process of dying and the loss of loved ones, I find peace in the belief that our souls live on and are embraced in unconditional love.

Mary C’s NDE in 1969---from Canada

I was 10 years old and it was mid-winter in Northern Ontario, Canada.   My mom had sent me to the store.   I went to cross the road and fell through the ice that covered a ditch. I slid through the snow-covered hole in the ice and ended up on my back in the water under the thick ice. I flailed and tried to find the hole I'd just fallen through but was unable to do so. I had a panic when I first breathed in water and then a total and complete calm. The moment the panic stopped, I felt extremely aware of everything.

I went from being frozen, quivering, silently screaming, to feeling incredible warmth and happiness. I was bathed in light and no longer felt wet, weighed down by ice, water, clothes or worries. I was perfectly warm, joyous, loved and peaceful. Love was the overwhelming feeling that surrounded me. A light surrounded me but also seemed to direct me forward. I felt the same kind of perfect and overwhelming love I felt later on in my life when I first held each of my sons.

Suddenly, I was feeling someone pulling me that I fought to resist. My next memory is of throwing up as a stranger held me. I was freezing and so sad. She wrapped me in a stinky and hairy dog blanket and put me in her car. After a few minutes, I was able to point out my house. While my mom rushed me into a hot bath, the woman told my dad what had happened. She was driving and, out of the corner of her eye, saw me go down. The woman thought I had just fallen and continued to drive, but she had a bad feeling and after a minute, she turned her car. She found the spot where I went down and saw the hole in the ice, but she couldn't get me back up out of the hole, as I was on my back and the hole was quite small. She ran to the car for her ice scraper and used it to open the hole.   She estimated I was in the water 5 minutes. She had to give me mouth to mouth to get me breathing again.

I told my dad what had happened when I was under the ice, and he told me the Light would still be there for me when I was an old lady, but that now I had a lot to do with my life and it wasn't my time. I tried to tell my mom about it but I remember being frustrated because she kept trying to ascribe Catholicism to the experience and she was frustrated that I suddenly didn't want to go to church when she thought I should be more religious.

Now I'm spiritual but unaffiliated and unaligned with any faith or spiritual discipline. I believe in leading a good and charitable life. I believe that regardless of religion, all good people will have an afterlife full of love and light. I've never had any fear of dying since that day and I feel like this life is but a visit in my journey.

When my dad died, we were blessed that he had a wonderful doctor. She prescribed morphine in high doses when he decided he was ready to go. She said it would take about 8 hours at the highest dose, and my sisters and I administered it. Dad went into Cheyne-Stokes breathing** for about 6 hours. Then, at a time when he should have been deep in a morphine fog, he sat up, looked beyond us and looked so joyous as he said, “haw Minnie, haw John.” His mom's name was Minnie, and he always called her that instead of mom. John was his brother and both had passed. Then he appeared to listen for a minute before lying back with a smile. His labored breathing stopped, and he slipped away about an hour later. The joy and love I saw in his face was so similar to what I had felt while under the ice. When he died, I thought I'd be inconsolable, but amazingly, my sisters and I hugged, and all four of us laughed with joy. We all could feel the peace and love. None of us saw or felt my gran or uncle in the room, just the peace, joy and love on dad's face, and we all heard him greet them.

** Cheyne-Stokes is a pattern of breathing often present in dying. The person takes several breaths followed by a pause in breathing of several seconds.

Mayumi T’s NDE in 1993---from Japan

I was with a girlfriend in a taxi cab. I had a heart attack. I was given CPR, but I became unconscious and died (“cessation of breathing, heart function, and brain function”).

I saw a light that looked like a moon, and it was shining down on me. My body started floating through a tunnel, slowly toward the light, high in the air. After I entered the light, I was greeted by a huge garden full of yellow flowers – and the sky was colored pink like a sunset. Everything was just so warm and fragrant, I felt very safe. But not only safe – I was very deeply moved by the loveliness of the flower garden – so beautiful! I felt a lot of love and forgiveness and happiness. I'm a hearing impaired person, but in the other world experience, I was not deaf at all. I heard beautiful classic music.

I felt a gentle wind, and also I felt my feet walking along the stony streets, touching many flowers as I passed. I came to a little country house (Japanese style). I had to go over to it and see what was inside! My two uncles were there, and they welcomed me. They introduced themselves to me, and told me that they were my uncles who had passed away during the Second World War. They were both pilots in kamikaze planes. One crashed and the other one was blown up. But they said that they forgave America and that they are happy here. Then we had some beer together, all laughing with each other. My uncles talked without moving their mouths. They were smiling, and I heard them talking to me in my head. I talked to them about my dad because they asked me about him. I lost awareness of my body. One of them said to me, 'You have to go back where you belong. Your dad is waiting for you there.'

Then I felt like someone was pulling me back by my shoulders. In that same second, I found myself back in the hospital, watching myself lying in bed. I saw a nurse and a doctor standing next to my body. They were pumping my chest with an electronic shocker. Then I woke up in the hospital bed.

Only my dad believed me after I came back from being dead. I explained to him what my uncles looked like, how they laughed. I told him that I didn't have a body, but I did feel myself touching the flowers and walking on the rocky streets.

Mike M’s NDE in 1982

I liked running at the YMCA in downtown and did so every chance I could. It was a Saturday morning and I had been running for about 15 minutes. Suddenly, I was aware that I was standing over a man who was lying on the ground. Attendants began working on him performing CPR and trying to get him to respond. As I stood there for a moment or two, I became aware of an old friend who was standing next to me. This person was someone I had known for what seemed like a very long time---as in lives before this one! Nonetheless, it was at this moment that I realized that it was my body on which they were working.

Suddenly, the light got very bright. It was not uncomfortable but the light bathed everything with such intensity that it shown through me. Within a moment, I was in another place with my old friend and he was showing me my life as I had lived it. The review was not unpleasant but during the review I could see how my decisions impacted others. I could gauge and feel the impact of my decisions, and how these actions affected other's lives. There were no feelings of guilt or remorse, only the knowledge that I could have done things differently in some of the situations. There was no blame, no remorse, and no feelings of guilt. The ‘life review’ covered my entire earthly life in no more than a few minutes. Then, I could see people, whom I recognized as relatives, on the other side of a river of light. I could feel their love, an intense Love.

I knew that there was no way that I could fail as long as I could remember this intense feeling of love. My guide and I discussed my staying here or returning to earth. I had a 2 year old son and a wife who needed me. The idea of my son growing up without a father bothered me, so that I felt the 'pull' to return to my body, although I really wanted to stay. I had a choice. I knew that things would turn out O.K. either way, but I decided to return to my body. By this time I was aware of the body being in an ambulance and I was above the vehicle; yet I could see inside the ambulance, and I could hear the thoughts and voices of the emergency personnel. I no longer recognized the body as being me. Yet, at the same time, I knew that it was my body, and I didn't like the idea of getting back into it.

In the emergency room I was watching the emergency room personnel working on me. I was up in a corner of the room and could hear everything that they were saying and thinking. I was aware that my wife was on her way to the hospital. I was suddenly pulled back into the body. Animation of the heavy, heavy body was very difficult and was the equivalent of wearing six, wet overcoats. It was very had to move and there was much pain in my chest because of the CPR and defibrillation. The skin on my chest had literally been cooked by the device.

After I physically recovered from the heart problem, I had much difficulty accepting this reality. Once I knew that this earthly construct is only an illusion, it took me a good while to accept it again. The human form is not reality, yet it’s an incredible vehicle that allows us to learn and participate. Buying into people's earthly drama was difficult and, at times, hard for me to be present. My life drastically changed after the event and I found myself wanting to devote as much time to helping others as was possible. I found myself attending church two or three days a week, and I worked at being the best father and husband I could be. Mind you, I still have many shortcomings and have problems with my ego, yet I know that this isn't all there is.

ADDED COMMENTS:

I clearly left my body and existed outside it. The facts have been checked. My passing from the physical to the Other Side was easier than walking through a door. There I experienced joy in the purest and most intense form. Now I devote as much time as I can to facilitate underprivileged children in their efforts to get an education. The children that I work with are like my own children. I realize that religions are vehicles where men do their best to describe that which cannot be described by man. There is no one, true, belief system. It's all valid, but there's so much more than what can fit into the small box one might describe as a belief system.

I don't place a huge value on material things. Ownership is a necessity, but I have responsibilities to others. My NDE was real. There's just way too much detail for it to have been conjured up. In fact, I had a hard time buying back into this reality. I have learned to keep my experience to myself, because most people have difficulty accepting it.
What I learned from my “life review” is that you can't blow life, no matter what you do! It is what it is, an experience that is a gift unique to each and every one of us. My advice is to go forth and engage this earthly plane. It is the most incredible teaching tool ever devised. So enjoy it.

Nancy H’s NDE in 1980

I was at the dentist having a root canal done. Unfortunately, the dentist had a cocaine problem (I knew him socially) and was apparently high while working on me. He cranked the nitrous oxide up really high and was cutting off my air supply with the mask. I am very drug sensitive and felt myself going right out of my body. I struggled back, took off the mask and told him what was going on and he said that I just needed to 'relax and go with it'. So I did.

I went out of my body and was floating up over us. I had an urge to pass right through the second story wall to the outside and did. I hovered over the Pacific Coast Highway and watched cars passing by below. I felt extremely peaceful. After a little while I had a pleasurable urge to just shoot through space and sort of streamlined my form (although I never looked at my spirit body) and rocketed out into cool, dark space. Yes, I could feel that it was cool out there and the darkness was calm and peaceful.

I started noticing little points of light whizzing past me (or I past them). I don't know what they were, but they looked like stars in the night sky. It seemed that I was traveling at the speed of light, although I can't say what I base that on. Very suddenly, I stopped traveling. I had been looking downward the whole time; so I can't say if I was traveling toward a light or not, but when I looked up, I was on the beginning fringes of the most beautiful GOLDEN LIGHT. The light had little sparkles in it, like glitter, and when the light passed through me, it had intelligence and emotion. It filled me with unconditional pure, pure love and intense peacefulness.

I looked ahead and saw Scott Jones, an old friend of mine who had committed suicide sometime before. We communicated with a sort of telepathy, in that we talked by exchanging thoughts. I 'said' 'Scott!! Are you alright??' and he said 'I'm SO alright! Just look at where I am!' We hugged, and I could feel his body. To this day, I can feel the place on my arm where his arm wrapped around mine! Many people say that if you kill yourself, you go to hell or whatever. Scott was in this beautiful place, exactly as he deserved to be. He was a very kind and loving, sensitive person who suffered too much in his life. I think that God dearly loves us and understands.

At about this point I realized that if I was where Scott was, I must also be dead! I started to feel a panic about whether or not I would go to hell for having had an abortion. The light communicated to me that I was completely loved and that the difficulty of the human condition was totally understood. I was told 'EVERYTHING IS COMPLETELY ALRIGHT.' I can't communicate the intense and all-encompassing nature of that statement, but it completely washed away every single fear I ever had.

Scott told me at that time that I had gone too far and that I had to turn around and go back right away. As I turned around to face back toward the direction of earth, I was told that there was a lot more that I had to do before I was going to come back. This was told to me with sort of a fatherly chuckle, as if I had been like a rambunctious kid in going there so soon and had a long and interesting life ahead to take care of before returning. I have a strong feeling that there are things I am supposed to do but I can't bring them up to a conscious level. I do feel that I need to share my experience and to stress that the love of God is for everyone. It isn't exclusive to one particular religion, race, or sexual orientation.

I could hear the dentist saying, 'Come back, please come back!' I also heard him hit my body as if to attempt to bring me around. I felt sorry for the dentist who sounded like he was freaking out and I immediately shot back into my body.

The moment that I gasped my first breath, my spirit suddenly filled out my whole body from top to bottom. I lay there with my eyes closed, trying to think of what to say to the dentist, because this had been the most holy experience of my life, and I was listening to the dentist talk to the nurses, completely frantic, and I knew he was afraid of being sued.

I felt that if I were to tell him what happened, he might say it was all a dream or something, so I decided to protect the experience. I just opened my eyes and said, 'That was weird!' You could have heard a pin drop in there. They were all terrified looking and never said a word to me about what had happened at all. I had listened to them talk before they thought I was awake and knew what had happened, but I felt nothing but grateful for the experience; so I decided to just leave it alone.

What I experienced during the NDE was more real than the rest of my life is----and if this unconditional love and peace was there for me, it is there for everyone. I am very much turned off by the exclusionary aspects of fundamentalist Christian faith because it seems to teach an intolerance that is quite the opposite from the love of the light of God.

I know that God is more real, and an afterlife is more real than anything that happens here. I know that we should try to relieve the suffering of all beings. I know that kindness and a non-judgmental nature are important. I know that dying is the most beautiful thing you could ever imagine, and I so wish I could help reassure all who are afraid of death.

IN THIS NDE, WE AGAIN SEE HOW ELEMENTS OF AN NDEr’s PARTICULAR RELIGIOUS BELIEFS [HERE CATHOLIC] OFTEN BECOME A PART OF THE NDEr’s EXPERIENCE. BUT, ASIDE FROM THESE DIFFERENT RELIGIOUS ELEMENTS, MOST NDEs CONTAIN SIMILAR ELEMENTS. SOME NDErs ARE EVEN TOLD THAT THEIR PARTICULAR NDEs ARE DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR THEM. ALSO, PEOPLE WHO HAVE NEVER EVEN HEARD OF NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES HAVE THEM.

Patrick H’S NDE IN 1983--From Luxembourg. Original in French

I was assaulted by my biological father, causing serious injuries, including a collapsed lung, which resulted in heart failure. During the whole experience which follows, I was completely conscious and more alert than normal. Being blind, I can't really speak of sight, but of perception through intuition and touch.

The hospital staff had finished stitching my wounds when I heard my name being called, and they noticed that I was no longer responding. I could feel a heaviness in my chest; I thought at first that it was the sutures.

Later, when I heard the word 'resuscitation' I understood right away that the situation was much more serious. It was at that moment, when I was being laid out on the stretcher, that I had the impression of leaving my body. Everything started spinning around me and I thought I was going crazy. At times, I was downstairs in the hospital cafeteria where my mother was waiting for me, at other times I was in the resuscitation room, and still other times I was up against the walls, etc. [Note that many blind people who have NDEs are able to see during the NDE; for example, see TWO NDEs REPORTED BY PEOPLE BLIND FROM BIRTH.]

Then I noticed that I finally had control over where I was going. All of a sudden, I found myself at Lourdes, outside the sanctuary where I had gone the previous August, then I was with people that I had met there, and then I was in Paris looking for their daughter [who was supposed to be there at this time.] Then, back in the operating room, I thought 'If only she knew...'

It was like in a movie, the 'beep, beep, beep' and everyone was panicking around me. Then one of the nurses was told to quickly go get a solution that was in a room some distance away, and I was there instantly. Then a few moments later, I heard the nurse rushing in to grab a vial that she had to open to prepare an injection, but she dropped it (a tinkle of shattering glass) and I realized it was 'all over.' [Two days later I told the nurse about what happened while I was out of my body and she verified my account of events.]

In the operating room, my heart failure was announced, and they were now trying to defibrillate me. At that time I was an observer of my own life, I felt myself floating somewhere around the ceiling, all the while hearing in the background, the song by Corine Hermès which had won the Eurovision competition for Luxemburg that year. 'When life is a gift, gift given, gift taken back, gift stolen...'

Then, I was carried through a very long tunnel, shooting up like an arrow at an unbelievable rate of speed, and I arrived in a very bright place and a woman with a very soft voice said, 'It's Bernadette Soubirou' [Saint Bernadette of Lourdes who claimed to have seen apparitions of the Virgin Mary.] She told me I soon would be meeting Saint Peter, which happened after a few minutes. The environment was the gentlest and happiest I could ever imagine. [So, I had a feeling of disarray and of fear during the first (earthly) phase of my experience, but a feeling of love, of gentleness and happiness during the last (heavenly) phase.]

When I told Saint Peter that my parents had mistreated and neglected me---I still don't know how I came up with such precise words---he said he understood why I felt like staying with him, but he told me I had to go back to protect my big brother and a little sister yet to be born. Then he bade me farewell and I went down again at an incredible speed for about a minute. Then I woke up a little later, back in my body.

My experience was definitely real. The extremely rapid sequence of events was so extraordinary for me that I never doubted the reality of the experience.

Philip’s NDE in 1995---prisoner

September 24, 1995, at approximately 1:30 am, I was shot during a failed robbery by a county sheriff. The bullet shattered my knee and severed the artery in my lower leg. I was told that I "bled out" during surgery.

There were two distinct incidents that I recall. Both different. The first time, I found myself floating above an operating table. At the time I was very interested in what was going on and concerned at the commotion. A surgical light was in the way, so I "moved" down to peer over the back of a female doctor. I remember laughing; she was so short and was standing on something to reach over the table. I also saw a man leaning against a wall in surgical gear whom I recognized as an officer who had accompanied me in the ambulance and with whom I had developed a friendly rapport. (These observations were confirmed after my recovery).

Then the "bubble popped" (that’s not accurate, but it’s the best description) and all was black. Suddenly, I was standing barefoot in a beautiful mountain meadow, as a four-year-old. Holding my chubby little hand was the most beautiful man I had ever seen. A Greek God times a hundred! He had a glow that radiated love like the sun does light, and I knew I was safe with him. It was the most peaceful loving feeling I have ever known. We started walking along a path through the meadow, hand in hand. I knew that he was taking me somewhere specific, but that the walk was important, too. I was seeing such amazing things. Colors, shapes, smells, everything was so sharp and beautiful. It was like seeing for the first time. My guide enjoyed this walk as much as I did, pointing to new things and laughing at my enjoyment. The only sound he made was laughter, and it was as wonderful as everything else was. It was the rush of a mountain stream, a baby’s first cry, chimes, and thunder. I will never be able to describe the sound.

At the end of the path we came to a point overlooking a valley. The valley was covered by clouds so that you not only could not see into it, but could not get an accurate feeling for the size of the valley. Out of the valley came these feelings that were so sad, I started to cry. The feelings were sorrow filled with longing. Much like wishing something hadn’t happened the way it did, knowing it was too late to change it, but wishing anyway. My guide was crying, too. The wasted life of a prisoner is too sad for words.

The glow around my guide faded as a brighter, bigger glow surrounded us, and I heard a voice inside my head. The voice said, "Philip, this is the end of the path that you now walk. Remember that I will always love you." The glow faded, my guide smiled and wiped my eyes, and the bubble "popped" again.

I woke up in the recovery room crying like a baby. A nurse was standing over me trying to calm me and telling me it was over, and I was going to be fine, and asking why was I crying. I told her I had a dream, a sad one. She laughed and told me that the anesthetics administered during surgery block the brain's ability to dream. Then she asked me what my dream was. I couldn’t tell her the whole story (I was fighting sleep), but enough got across. She told me that the doctors had "trouble" with me twice (I was under the knife for over six hours) and that I had "bled out." Then she told me she didn’t think it was a dream, and told me to go to sleep. I dreamed of a better life and future for myself and knew it was possible.

I’ve asked other doctors since if it’s possible to dream while under anesthetics. All said no. Personally, I believe that I met my Guardian Angel, held his hand, and heard the Voice of God!

NDE in 2017---“Your heart stopped for a minute there, but we got you back!”

On February 8, 2017 I was admitted to a hospital in Detroit for a subchorionic hematoma (SCH), which is a blood clot attached to the placenta.

I was 24 weeks pregnant, during my fourth pregnancy, and was in pre-term labor due to the SCH. It can be life threatening for both mother and baby if they don't catch the bleeding and stop it during birth. I was in the labor and delivery/ maternity floor for almost a month to be monitored and on complete bed rest until the baby arrived. I was in full labor every day until my delivery on March 7th (via emergency C Section). My SCH burst and I was losing amnionic fluid so my daughter would have to be born early, 29 weeks along. I was taken to the operating room and given a spinal, then they started to deliver my daughter. She arrived with a big cry and was whisked away quickly to the NICU (she survived and is doing well).

And this is where it goes bad. I had massive bleeding and the placenta shredded and tore my uterine wall. I remember two nurses counting sponges and repeating the number back and forth. I remember another nurse telling me to breathe and asking if I was okay. I remember looking over at my husband and thinking this is taking forever. Why is this taking so long? At this point I lost track of the sponge count after being over 50. I heard the nurse tell my husband that he should come wait in the waiting room and head up to see our daughter since it would be a while. He resisted a bit but held my hand and we both said I love you and as he walked out the door, I thought to myself why does this feel like the last time I will ever say those words to him?

As the door shut and he walked out, I began to feel my breathing slow down. I told myself to keep breathing. Concentrate on the nurse's voice. I began to feel like I was fading away. I could hear my heart in my ears. I started to feel light headed but still conscious of everything around me. And then, silence. No heartbeat, just a loud buzz like the heart monitor sounds when it goes flat.

I looked all around and saw below that it was my body on the table. I saw them doing what the doctor called a whipple stitch and she was moving quickly as nurses were shoving more sponges at the doctor connected to long metal instruments. I remember feeling pulled away but hearing the nurse say “stay with me hon, you're okay hon. Are you okay?”

And then white light hit me hard on my face. A warmth I have never felt before, like a big fuzzy blanket of heat. I remember feeling immense love all around me. Pure love. I can't even describe this light and love. I basked in this warmth and love for what seemed like forever. I couldn't get enough of it.

Then a single butterfly flew into the light. Just one. Then a voice from the warm light said I know it is beautiful here, but you can't stay. I know you want to, but you can't. [I recognized the voice as my best friend's mom who had passed away in October 2015. I was there by her side when she passed and asked her to put in a good word for us to have a daughter (we did).] She was talking to me and the words were just coming from this big ball of light; no face, just her voice was familiar to me.

She continued by saying, “please go back, your boys need you, your husband needs you, and that beautiful baby girl needs her momma. Say hi to my girls, give them a hug and kiss from me. Tell them I miss them so much but I am okay and they will be too.”

I remember thinking but this is so beautiful---the light, the warmth, the beauty within the light and love was more than earth could ever be. I didn't want to go back but, as I was thinking this, I felt like I was being sucked back into the darkness. Like a backwards motion of being sucked back into my body.

I woke up with this calm feeling that I was going to live and get through this. I remember feeling pain again when I was awake after my experience. I had never felt so much pain in my life. It was excruciating. It was the anesthesia wearing off and they were still working on me. I asked the nurse if she had put me under and I was coming out of the anesthesia and she said, “no, hon, you just have the spinal, we can't put you under right now, we need you aware and awake. We almost lost you. Then I told her I felt like I was going to pass out from the pain.

I woke up in recovery surrounded by my family and thought I had died again, but I was just extremely exhausted from everything and the pain. The nurse said several times that I was (pinching her thumb and pointer finger as close together as possible without touching) this close to having a hysterectomy because they could not manage to get all of the bleeding under control. She said I was one of the very lucky ones to make it out of that type of major bleed without dying, but it was close. I asked her how close and she replied “If I were you I would get my medical records because your heart stopped for a minute there, but we got you back.”

This is the first time I have ever written my story.

Alan P’s NDE in 1971---suffocated by sand

When I was 11 years old, in the early summer of 1971, I and three other children were playing on a large pile of sand that was to be used in pouring a cement pad at our house. We decided to burrow a tunnel into the pile, which was probably about 5 feet high and about 10 feet in diameter at the base.

After we dug the tunnel, I was the first to crawl through it. I had not crawled very far when the pile collapsed upon me. The weight forced the air out of my lungs and I could not take a breath. This was the scariest and most painful thing that I have ever experienced in my life.

I could feel my legs flailing around outside of the sand, but I was unable to move the rest of my body. As unconsciousness came upon me, I became aware of a loud buzzing and loud sounds around me. Then I remember seeing a light. Suddenly, I became aware of my whole life. I have tried to describe this event to others over the years, and the best way I have found is that I had a review of my life that was like standing in front of a large picture and being able to see the picture as a whole, and being able to move in to study details of the picture. The difference being, that I had a complete understanding and recall of the whole picture, which was my life. I think because of this event, I retain memories of events and feelings that occurred prior to my being able to talk!

After the review of my life, which I believe took only seconds, I was immediately outside of my body. If my body were lying on a line with my feet pointing at six on a clock, I was now standing at four, a few feet away and a few feet above. I could see my feet thrashing. I was still aware that my body was in pain, but I no longer felt pain and I no longer felt the stress and agony of suffocating.   As I came out of my body and as I stood there, it was a great relief. I felt like I had just taken off a tight rubber glove from my hand. As I stood there, there was someone behind me.   I never saw the person, I do not know who it was, I believe it was a male and he was someone I knew, or who knew me.   I felt safe and was not distressed.

My sister ran into our house to get my mother, who was taking laundry out of the dryer and folding it. I could not so much see her, but I had a consciousness of her. To this day I can describe what she was wearing and doing when my sister arrived and got her help.   As my sister ran for help, my brothers were trying to dig me out. One brother had dug a hole that was over my right arm. By the time my mother got there, the hole was large enough that they were pulling on my arm. Enough sand had been dislodged from on top of me that when they pulled on my arm, I was able to take a breath.

As soon as I took a breath, I was inside of my body again. Being inside my body felt like a great tightness was now compressing my soul. I was now aware of my body and my pain. I remember gulping air and how sweet it was and how wonderful the air felt going into my lungs. My head was pounding and I had a headache for several days after this. I lay on the ground gasping and breathing for what to me seemed a very long time. I was just breathing and trying to recover. My body ached and my lungs still burned. I was unable to stand up without help. I felt like I could not get enough air. I believe I was hyperventilating as I continued to feel like I was just on the verge of passing out.

At the time of this event, I told my parents about what I had experienced. It was difficult to describe, because so much of it seems to have happened at the same time, and in retelling it, there is an expectation of linear progression in the tale. I remember very clearly my father, who was a doctor, telling me it was just the absence of oxygen and nothing more.   I believed it was more than that, but no one would believe me. It was definitely real. I had no doubt it was real. When I told others, I immediately realized that they thought I was crazy. A few years later, Readers Digest published a story “Life after Life” (condensed from Raymond Moody’s book of the same title). This was the first time I had ever heard of someone else having a near-death experience. After my father had read the story, we talked about my earlier experience.

Anabela Maria C NDE in 1989---from Portugal. Original in Portuguese

My father was cutting an olive tree with a chain saw. When I saw the tree falling towards me, I could not escape. I only had time to turn away and crouch down. One of the tree branches hit me in the back. I felt it had crushed my back and I felt a lot of pain. I got up and started walking towards home that was about 100 meters away. I could hardly see or hear. When I arrived at the house, the door was closed. I told my parents, who were with me, that I was thirsty.

Then everything went dark. I started to slide at high speed through a tunnel. It had dark parts and other parts that were colored. Then I was instantaneously sitting on top of a hill of very perfect and clean grass. I was wearing a white robe that covered my knees and I was barefoot. Six meters away, I saw two or three trees that were not very large. Above me was a deep blue and cloudless sky. I felt a huge well-being. Neither the sun burned me, nor did I feel cold at all. I felt as if I were at home and that I had been away too long. I did not know where or why I felt this way. I was back home and felt a joy that I can’t describe in words!

I did not remember having lived on earth. I only remembered that a tree had fallen on top of me and having a lot of pain. But I thought it had been a nightmare, because in that place it was something that could never happen and again I was sure that in that place I was safe and happy forever. I felt completely free to do whatever I wanted because in that place nothing was forbidden. No evil existed, not even in my thoughts. I felt that life was something very, very precious, and I felt it would be like that for all eternity.

In that moment, I looked up at the blue sky and saw something like a lightning bolt; or rather a white light beam coming from the sky. It looked like it entered through my head, and then I felt literally that I was being filled with the love of God, being healed, being fulfilled with peace, happiness, joy, and life. I felt so loved by God and that was so wonderful that I have no words to describe the happiness I felt. I felt more alive and happier than I had ever felt before.

Then I started to hear screams and I knew that was my mother’s voice who was calling me. At first, I thought she was also coming to that wonderful place and I was waiting for her to show up. I was thinking that if I had someone with whom to share my new happiness, it would be better, but she did not show up. Rather, she continued to yell and then I started to get anxious. It started to get dark and I suddenly came flying through a lot of fog.
Then I opened my eyes and was lying on the porch floor of my house with my parents by my side. When I saw that I was again on earth, I was very sad to be back. But at the same time I was happy because I knew I had been in heaven.

ADDED COMMENTS:

I felt I was more alive there in heaven than here on earth. I felt that everything there was real, everything was good and for all eternity, something that we do not feel in this world. My senses were more vivid there: My vision during the experience was much better than I had in my everyday life. My hearing during the experience was made by thought communication.

The ground was covered with very green and thick, perfect grass, without dry or broken ends. I did not see the sun, but it was like a sunny day without clouds; it was like a landscape of the earth, only much cleaner, beautiful and cozy. I felt incredible happiness, joy, and peace. I felt infinitely loved by God.

While in heaven, I seemed to understand everything. I told the doctor who saw me in the hospital about my experience; he was flabbergasted but said nothing. My experience was definitely real, and I believe that it was the best thing that has ever happened to me. I now know that death only exists for the physical body we have in this world.

Angela S’s NDE

I woke up in the early morning, unable to breathe unless I sat up.

My husband took me to the hospital after a quick trip to our family physician. I was put through a battery of X-Rays and blood tests, etc. Then I was wheeled into a room, an oxygen mask was put on my face, and I was left there to wait until all the tests came back. As I lay there, my husband sat at the foot of my bed. Every time I lay down, it was harder to breathe, but I was so weak, all I could do was hope they figured out what was wrong with me, so I prayed silently to myself. I was inwardly afraid of what would happen to me. At the time this occurred, I had been given absolutely NO medication - only the oxygen had been administered.

I recall trying to draw a breath and it seemed like the hardest thing to do, like a weight was on my chest. I closed my eyes and then I felt 'free' suddenly. Not just free, but weightless and 'assured'. I wasn't afraid anymore. I was without a single care. I was like a child again and I marveled at the complete lack of burden.

Then, I felt two hands on both shoulders touch me. Even though I didn't look behind me, I seemed to know these two people standing behind me were my friends. I didn't have to look. It was like I was not allowed to look, but it didn't matter, since I 'sensed' they were good and safe. I asked them if I was dead and it was time to go. They said no. They told me I was to go with them. They wanted to show me something. They did not ask me for my answer (which would have been 'yes')

Then, they pulled me out of my body by the shoulders and took me up through the ceiling, and through all the floors, and out of the building and into the 'sky'. I was flying and it felt exhilarating. But when we got high enough, things went black and there was this nothing place. Everything was quiet and there was no temperature sensation -- just deep nothing and silence. I asked where I was and they positioned me with a touch of their hands (which is hard to relate again because there was nothing relative to 'position' me, but I knew they were facing me because of their touch). They said to watch, so I did.

In the vast distance, I saw something begin to grow. I am not sure if I got closer, or if it was getting bigger. There was nothing else around to compare it to. When 'it' got close enough I could start to see beings wrapping ribbons of light around a central 'thing'. As the thing got closer, I could see all kinds of things that are part of creation. I saw cats, mountains, trees, rivers, people, stars... there were so many things just 'bubbling' up and together. Like a soup of everything, but each thing thought out clearly in their bubbles only to 'pop' and join everything else. I cannot begin to tell you the joy - jubilation - that I felt watching this happen. It was the most happiness I had ever felt in my life.

They asked me "What do you see?" I said...( as if I had no doubt at all)..." Creation." Then they asked me, "What have you learned?"... and I said (as if I always knew even though I'd never considered this philosophy)..." Everything IS everything else." Then they asked again with a simple, "... AND?" (I was full of knowledge I had never known!) I answered, "What anyone does, matters to everything." It was interesting hearing answers come from my lips (?) that I didn't know I knew. They said, "Good."

The next thing I know they were pulling me away from the 'joy' and taking me someplace else. In an instant, we were standing in an all-white place. They were still behind me (I knew) but again, I had no need or desire to look back at them. No walls, no floor, no ceiling -- this place was just all white. The only thing that stood out was a door. It was a plain red door, like a stage door... but nothing held it up. It just stood there, the only color in the place. I presumed it was death's door and asked them again if I was going to die now. I did not ask in fear, just child-like curiosity. They told me no.

They said I had one more thing to learn before I returned. They said to walk through the door. I politely countered (knowing it was death's door) that they had just said I wasn't going to die just yet. With a gentle shove, I went to the door, trusting in them totally, just slightly confused but content. I walked through it -- and felt absolutely nothing different. I told them nothing happened. They said do it again, only this time with shoes. I looked down for the first time and saw that I had legs and feet and was wearing bright red sneakers.

Strangely, I had never considered my 'body' till that moment except in the context of what I was seeing outside of it. The second time I walked through the door, I again felt nothing and told them so. They said to look at my feet, so I did. The shoes were still on the other side of the threshold! The shoes had never entered with me. Then they asked me again what I had learned. I answered swiftly that we could not take material things with us when we die. I was pleased with my answer, though I felt there was more because what I said seemed so obvious.

They persisted again with the same secondary question, "... AND?" Then, the words rolled from my lips like it had always been there just out of my knowing and instantly recalled. I had felt nothing different when I walked through the door because I DIDN'T change. My LOCATION did. My sneakers were never a part of me. I said, "We do not change when we die. We are like butterflies. We simply move to a different sky." If I had tears, I could not feel them, and yet what I had just said reverberated into my heart and soul and very being. I knew I had 'learned'.

They said it was time to go back. I succumbed willingly to their navigation through and out of the 'wherever' place we were. We fell out of the blackness again, through the roof, ceilings and floor till I was in my room again. I lowered horizontally as if I was going to settle into my body, but I hovered a few feet above. I felt their hands leave my shoulders and I didn't want them to go. I told them I was not in my body yet. They said I had the power to do that and I didn't need them. They did not say good-bye. They simply left.

I could see my husband still at the foot of my bed. He had fallen asleep sitting in the chair. I sort of 'relaxed' my way down and it worked! I got a few inches from being all the way in... and like a child with a new toy, I went up again just to see if I could do it -- and I did! I was about to try again, but I saw him stirring and my heart suddenly worried he would be afraid. I didn't want to scare him, so I went the whole way down. When I went back into my body, it all came back... the heaviness, the pain in my chest, the struggle to breathe. The one thing that was different was my attitude.

I was SO unafraid... I was SO ASSURED. For the first time in my life, death was nothing to fear ever again. I had new answers and a new outlook and philosophy. What I did here mattered, and where I was headed was a good place. My husband reached out to touch my hand. His face was full of concern. I told him not to worry... that I wasn't going to die yet. Not from this anyway. Ever since then, I have told only certain people. I try not to tell anyone unless I feel they need to know it and won't think I'm making it up. The only reason I am telling you is because my daughter showed me this site and I was inspired to share it with others who ARE looking for assurance of life after death.

Anna A’s Fascinating NDE in 2003---from GREECE

Sometime after the delivery of my son, a gush of blood that all of a sudden turned into an endless river, soon turned into a sudden process of my feeling very, very cold. I felt I was freezing, as if life itself was leaving me. I was shivering uncontrollably on a surgical bed and the very dedicated doctors and nurses were trying their best to cover me with blankets, and to keep talking to me. My doctor had left after a long-lasting, difficult labor. She'd seen my son born. She'd seen me smile and feed him. She'd left the staff with instructions to check and see whether I'd be okay, considering there was no usual bleeding during the labor, just the placenta and the baby.

I heard them calling her and asking her to return. I had squeezed my eyes to the point of utter pain from the ‘freezing’ that had overtaken every single limb, which I was sensing in such detail during those minutes. All of a sudden, I could only think of God and felt an urge to go, to let go. Then slightly opening my eyes, the last thing I whispered to the nurse, while grabbing the cross hanging from her neck, which was lying on my chest, ‘Do you believe in God?’ She was engaged in saving me, but at that second, she turned to me, removed the necklace and placed it inside my hand.

That's when I started floating.   I barely glanced at the crowded surgery room; emergency bells were ringing for my doctor.   I saw her looking at my body and talking to “it”, as “I” was hovering above, happy, healthy, excited.   I had been sucked from my body as if by a vacuum cleaner, into this wonderful pool of light.   Even today, that pool is the most beautiful, most perfect thing I've ever experienced.   The one word I'd call the entire experience would be “REALITY”.   THAT pool, THAT place, THAT event was the most REAL thing that's ever happened to me.

On that background, the life I'd been living on planet Earth was an insignificant second of an experiment, which I'd volunteered for. I wasn't Anna, the lady who'd just given birth; rather, I was a being made of “LIGHT”.   I was made of the same light, as the one with which the pool was filled. I sensed everything, felt everything as beautiful as can ever be. I thought and understood everything and was floating around inside the pool happily, “FINALLY back HOME!!”   I was s-o-o-o happy that I wouldn't have to sleep, or eat anymore, no tiredness, no negativity, no anxieties whatsoever, and you float and float lightly, dancing and singing with no audiovisuals, you're just BEING, that's what you're for:   TO BE!

I did have a memory of my husband and children, of our house and friends and relatives. I absolutely KNEW (don't know how, but I sensed that I simply KNEW) that they'll be perfectly well, whether I'm with them or not. Next, I was supported by light pool waves that felt so gentle and caressing, like a mother's touch and a mother's love.

I floated onward into a space that was endless and was neither too bright, nor too dark. It was a place, though, without limits. Then I saw seven or more light beings moving towards me. We didn't have speech. We conversed, yet not a single vocal word was uttered. The very central being was my deceased mother-in-law who told me they'd be keeping me company, for I was to return in a while.

Her thought came into my being, and I could feel and see things through her mind and sense exactly how she meant it.   I told her, “I would so love for you to be with us on earth and play with your grandchildren”.

My aunt, father-in-law, and grandmothers were all there. Yet, the remaining ones weren't relatives I'd known from earth. They were light beings I've known before being born on Earth. They guided me to a “library.” I place this word inside quotation marks because it was a multidimensional composition; I cannot even call it a structure. Apparently, I had a ‘job’ there and had left it ‘briefly’ when coming to Earth because I'd needed to experience certain things and learn certain things in order to be able to continue my work. There were stair-like features, which we could move by the will of our minds.

By the way, everything I'd learned: languages, subjects, nature observations, while being on Earth, were absolutely useful up there.

I had then floated onto my unfinished manuscript that looked like some form of tablet, except it would only appear by my mind's command. It had data from way before, but since I already knew it, I didn't even look back. I simply stared at it. Out of where my forehead is placed now that I'm human again, appeared these strange characters, round and perfect, a language I'd known seemingly eternally. By sheer thinking of these thoughts, these characters stamped themselves onto the manuscript. I cannot call these characters ‘language’ as we know it. One doesn't need to speak it or write it. It's simply a thought process. However, these thoughts I'd inserted into the manuscript had served a great purpose, which as a Light Being I knew.
However, back in my human body, I don't have a clue, as if there was a veil administered upon my return.

There were many other light beings conducting similar work, and yet I knew that not every soul or light being is given such a task. Ours was a team destined to do this. Others were destined for other ‘work’. Time and space had no physicality, no validity. I'd call the whole thing as FREEDOM, the PERFECT FREEDOM, which every person, I know, aspires to, fights for, and dreams. The one thing I understood was that Aramaic and Armenian heritages hadn't happened to me just this one Earth lifetime, but several other times as well. It was as if I was in charge of moving this lineage of light beings. However, no notions of nationality, or races or gender, or political choices, or kings, or cultures were relevant there.

Everything was filled with love and knowledge. Then, someone gently called my name; someone said ‘Anna, I need for you to go back’. That moment I felt a piercing, earth-like sadness. I found myself far from the pool and the library, but looking at the Planet earth from the cosmos. A light being had risen next to me pointing at the Planet and a voice asking me ‘Look there (the planet)! What do you see?’ I said, ‘I see our planet, and there are no borders dividing countries. The borders are gone!!’ He said, ‘This is why you're going back. You have a mission.’ That's how I came back.

I had a very difficult time afterwards, trying to adjust. I was an avid reader before, but became even hungrier for knowledge, absorbing lots of information the entire time. I became more conscious of the environment, of clean air, clean water, world hunger, wars and poverty. I grew such levels of empathy that at times it's hard not to feel the pain of another human being. I kept talking to representatives of various religions and they hadn't much to say. Religious institutions have no role. No form of control has any role. What we seek is within us. Overall, this temporary visit back “home” (NDE) was the best thing I've ever experienced in my life here on earth.

Anne S’s NDE in 1980---From the United Kingdom

I went into anaphylactic shock at my doctor's surgery, following an injection. I felt discomfort in my head, a sense of general malfunction, and breakdown in my body due to my allergic reaction to this injection.

Then my “inner body” separated from my “outer body”. I floated to the corner of the ceiling, passed through the roof, and saw layers in the roof. I drifted upwards into the night sky, saw rooftops, houses, streets, gardens, and parked cars from above, I saw stars in the night sky, then entered a yellow light tunnel. The tunnel had a ring structure; my hand would not pass through its wall. I traveled down the center of the tunnel until I touched the wall at high speed, which made me crash into the walls for a while, before I regained my equilibrium. I heard a voice saying I mustn't worry, 'Dying is easy, you're nearly there’. The tunnel opened out like the end of a trumpet into a space that had rainbow colors and a sky.

I was drawn to the left and went along a path of reddish golden soil, but I was gliding without using my legs. I saw plants, bushes, and a golden sunlight type of light. I approached a group of non-material people, clothed in long cotton type clothes tied at the waist. I thought I saw my mother and father in the group of about ten people. The leader at the front made me understand that the space between us was a boundary, and if I crossed over it, I couldn't come back to Earth as I was before.

I was “absorbed into his eyes” and he showed me his world, flying over hills, waterfalls, and scenery in golden light. He said that if I wanted to go with him, all I had to do was to touch his hand. I said I wasn't ready yet and begged to return for the doctor's sake and for my two year old son. He raised his hand and immediately propelled me backwards down the light tunnel, back through the ceiling of the doctor's surgery. I hovered horizontally and then was lowered nearer to my body. There was some adjustment of limbs to align the two bodies, and then I dropped back in on the doctor's couch. The doctor came in and injected the back of my hand (vein) with what I think was adrenaline, but I'm not sure what it was.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: My inner body which separated (there was a physical sensation to this separation) included my full personality and consciousness -- a complete unit just like me, but in a light-body. My consciousness had no appearance and was just the same as my normal state of invisible thought. My light-body was lightly clothed, and I had my mind intact as now. I felt fully conscious and alert at all times. I was very observant and inquisitive, e.g. testing if my hand would pass through the light tunnel wall and learning everything I could from the experience and my observations. I felt a buzzing vibration when I passed through the ceiling. I spoke with the leader of the group by telepathy. People in the group seemed to be standing in a small enclosure behind a picket fence about eighteen inches high. About a meter of space separated me from their leader - - if I had crossed that space I could not have come back to Earth in the same human form. While there, I felt that I knew everything about the universe. It was clear that a second life was being offered to me; I felt it would be revealed if I chose to go with them. After my experience, I felt a closeness to God and a love for God. Now I work in the public sector, on councils and in the health service, rather than in profit-making organizations. I have only discussed my experience with a select few who are open-minded and capable of understanding.

NDEs ARE EXPERIENCED BY PEOPLE ALL OVER THE WORLD. THE DIFFERENCES IN THEIR CULTURES AND RELIGIONS ARE REFLECTED IN THEIR NDEs. THE FOLLOWING NDE COMES FROM INDIA AND ILLUSTRATES WHAT I MEAN.

Arvind B’s NDE in 2012---from India

I had heart trouble on Feb. 29, 2012. I went to my general practitioner feeling it could be one of those 'gas' issues. The ECG suggested that I should be hospitalized immediately. I had already started experiencing terrible pain in my left hand. I reached the hospital and was immediately admitted for heart surgery. I had a successful angioplasty with one stent inserted. I came out on a stretcher with my thumbs up to all those relatives and friends who had reached hospital by then. I blabbered to them that I'd be back home in two days and that nobody should really be bothered. The trouble seemed to be over. Then I blinked at my wonderful, lovely wife and kind of reassured her with my eyes. Most of them left the hospital and went to the tea canteen downstairs to have that Indian quintessential cup of tea!

The trouble started soon after.   I blacked out and started vomiting blood.   I needed a total of 11 bottles of blood in the next 24 hours. I came to know later that I was in Cardio Respiratory Arrest (no heartbeat, no breathing) for about 2 minutes.   The last thing I remember is someone sitting astride my chest and thumping it heavily to restart my heart, and that I was being taken away somewhere on a stretcher.

The next thing I remember is being on something like a bench in the operating room and I was given electric shocks. I started drifting upward. From a height, I could see my own body with many doctors and medical personnel working on my body. I could see the heart monitor tracing flat. My heart had stopped beating!   I floated to the top of a large room and kind of stuck to a corner of that hall. I was happy.   Yes, that is true. I remember myself smiling all the time. First, I saw four children in my path, all of them wearing happy faces.   I could see only the faces and not their bodies. At some distance, I could see 8 to 10 people standing in a circle; this time I could see all of them. I should note that as a Hindu Brahmin, we are taught that Heaven and Hell both exist.   What I saw in the hall, on the other hand, was happy faces only.

Then I saw a huge light in the center of the hall and I started drifting towards it. There was a huge light coming in from a huge hole.      I am a fervent Hindu with blind faith in the Super Power. To be more specific, I firmly believe in our Goddess, Mother Kaalika. I could feel that she was there on the other side of that beam of bright light coming from outside the hall. I was happy to know that she was there. I bowed and tried to see her. That was the last thing I remember from this out-of-world experience. The next thing I remember is my doctor asking me how I was feeling.

Later I came to know that I was on a ventilator for 5 days, and that news of 'my death' had already spread among many of my relatives and friends. This happened at the Hospital in Indore, India.

Above all, it was my wife's unwavering faith that nothing would happen to me that brought me back to life. There were people who had started weeping; but Rinku, my wife, did not.   She started praying to our Goddess and requesting her to meet me. I met her indeed. And then, I was back.

Brian J’s NDE---“every word of this story is true”

Hello, my name is Brian J, and every word of this story is true. I am from Minnesota, and this my near death experience.

It all started when I was having dinner at home where I live by myself with my 2 cats. One evening I was sitting at my kitchen table having dinner alone, when suddenly I started to feel very light headed, dizzy and short of breath. I decided to try to make it to my bedroom so I could lie down and hope it would subside.

My bedroom was at the end of my hall, so I decided to take a short cut through one of my spare bedrooms; but I never made it. I passed out on the way; I had an unknown heart problem. Suddenly, I was looking at my body from way up in the corner of my spare bedroom, maybe 50 feet up in the air; but the ceilings in my house are only 8 or 10 feet high, so I was obviously above the house!

I saw myself all curled up in a ball (fetal position). Then, i could see one of my cats lying down next to me. Suddenly, I could see this kind of tunnel-like thing with sides of bluish/white pulsating light; the light was similar to a strobe light on high power, except this was about 100 times brighter and pulsating 100 times faster than any strobe light. It was pulsating so fast that it was almost a steady light.

Next, I could hear/see what sounded like a bunch of people talking, except they were all talking at once, but no words were actually spoken; it was all done through the mind or through my thoughts...I don't know; i can't explain it….Well anyhow, i found myself standing on what I can only describe as an endless (end-to-end) concert stage and looking out into a crowd. Although I could not understand exactly what they were saying, and even though their faces were blocked out by some kind of very bright shine or glare, I knew that they were all calling my name and were all there just for me....It was very confusing.

At this time, I found myself traveling to a place that was way-way-way beyond my comprehension; and, also, I was no longer feeling the pain or dizziness that I was feeling before this whole wonderful experience had started. At this place, there was a very strange and powerful feeling of love towards me and it was unlike any feelings of love that I have ever felt before, and I knew that somebody or something was helping me and guiding me through this very strange but very loving journey.

Then there was a feeling that came over me that I knew this person, thing, or whatever it was that had loved me so much, and it felt like this energy was hugging me very tight, even though I could not see a face or tell who or what this was. Then ‘BANG’, in a split second, there were hundreds, maybe thousands of people surrounding me, and I knew that they were people who I had never seen before, but for some reason I knew that these people were long time passed away family members whom I had never known, never met, and never seen before in my life; and I also knew that they had all died long before I was even born, and I knew that all of these people were there just for me, because I could feel all this love from these people like no other love that I had ever felt before.…I did not want to leave this place.

Some of the voices were telling me to stay because they had been waiting for me to arrive, even though Time did not seem to exist there. Meanwhile, others were telling me that i could not stay and that i must go back. I really wanted to stay in this place, but they would not let me, as they said that I still had important things in my life to do....So i agreed to go back. While I was in this place, I was totally pain free and felt surrounded by a multitude who loved me so very, very much.

Then, i could hear this lady's voice who kept saying, "Brian Get Up, You Have To Get Up Brian, Brian Get Up", and as she was saying this to me her voice got louder and louder every time she said it. Suddenly, I woke up gasping for air on the floor. I was lying in a pool of sweat and blood, the blood coming from scrapes in my back.

When I awoke, there was no lady there. I was alone. I hope I do not offend anyone when i tell you that, all I know is my experience, and the place where I had just been, totally contradicts what the Bible, the Church, and Christianity tell people to believe. Well anyways, about two days later i went to see my doctor, who ran some tests and confirmed my heart problem.

So, there it is, my very real ‘NDE’ story. All i know is that i am not scared or afraid of death, and that I cannot wait to go back to that wonderful & loving place. And someday many years from now… "I Will....We All Will."

AN NDE WRITTEN WITH SUCH A PLAYFUL, LIGHT TOUCH THAT IT COULD EASILY BE MISTAKEN FOR AN IMAGINATIVE LITERARY CREATION. OR, IT COULD BE HER ACTUAL EXPERIENCE OF AN ACCIDENT SHE SURVIVED SOME YEARS AGO!

Bridget F’s NDE in 1995---rollover accident, you are forgiven for being human

I was driving and lost control of the car. It rolled several times down a sloped embankment. I felt as if my dead father was there holding my head as I was like a quarter in a box being shaken.

The next thing I knew, I was in a flying dream. I was flying so great! I have had flying dreams all my life, but this was different because I could still fly even when I thought about flying!    I did not descend or land when I analyzed the flight, I just continued to fly. When I tried to fly higher, I went higher; and when I tried to go down I couldn't; so when I tried to stop and couldn’t, I realized that I was being gently pulled upward.

That is when it occurred to me that something was going on, I was not dreaming. I looked around me at the tops of the fir trees, around at the space between me and the grass and the road. I looked up at the sky ahead of me and realized that everything was in sharp focus.   I could see better than with my glasses! Then I felt the cold April air on me, the warmth of the morning sun, and how it was warming the cool morning air. That is when I looked down. I saw my car upside down and slanted on top of me with my head sticking out of the broken driver's side window.   I thought if that's down there then what's up there?

I looked up and saw what could be described as a vortex. There was a hole in the sky surrounded by clouds and lightning-like plasma. Within the hole were stars like a galaxy swirling around the most brilliant light one could imagine. It was what I perceive to be the Source, and I thought “Oh my G-d, you ARE!”   I bowed within myself.

Some background:

I was gifted in mathematics as a child and had high comprehension levels. I did long division by age six. When I was eight, I dreamed my family's death. I dreamed they would die in an accident while traveling to Nevada and I told them and they did not listen. All the adults in my life told me it was just a dream and I wanted to believe them because I did not want my parents to die. When their plane crashed, I was devastated. I thought G-d to be cruel to give me such dreams but for me to have no control over the outcome.

Back to my experience:
While bowing, I was shown my life in review from G-d's perspective, the truth. I was shown every time I had been selfish, choosing for my own interests. I was shown every time I had been divisive or manipulative for selfish gains. I then felt that pain several times over. At this point, a being made of light came to my side. This was a being so pure, so benevolent, and so non-judgmental, I could barely comprehend the level of compassion this being possessed in the small yet brilliant light that it was.

The light being said “You are forgiven. You were flesh, and with flesh is biology and psychology and instinct and desire and mechanism and ego and the serving thereof. To be flesh is to sin and that is the nature of being. There is no fault in being human.”   This made me relax like I have yet to feel since.

That is when I recognized that “he” was a part of the greater light and in a way a custodian of our planet, kind of like he was assigned to it, like it was his to rule and watch over, to guide and protect and to love and nurture.   Yet, this being was more than he appeared to be to me in that moment; this was just what I could comprehend at this time. I recognized this. I got really excited and started asking questions like a small child.

What about aliens? And parallel universes and life on other planets and UFOs, and, and, and...

That's when I perceived a great yet quiet chuckle of amusement and, like a pat on the head, I was given the Source into the top of my head.   It was like a giant stream of understanding and I could see from the beginning of the beginning of the beginning of everything and nothing.   I saw the entirety of the universe from its big bang to big stop to big bang and to big stop; I had the memory of the universe. I understood cosmology, biology, spiritualism, consciousness, being, non-being, physics, mathematics.   I knew everything there is to know.

G-d is everything that can ever be, and I am human so I can only understand it in human terms. Even the best of humanity is still human and everything will be anthropomorphic.   After this great revealing, I realized that I was out of place and that I had a body and it occurred that if I did not return to my body, it would cease to function since I was the thing that pushed it forward in time and space.

At this point, I said thanks and sorry for interrupting the great story and that I'm eternally grateful and all but I gotta go back. Something told me that I had to take full responsibility for what I had done. I quickly assembled myself the best I could and whooshed back to beside the light being and then 'jumped' like a salmon going upstream back to my body. When I got back in, I entered through the top of my head and like an airtight vessel closing, it went WHOOOMP with a great force. It was like trying to fit a super computer inside of a Commodore Amiga computer! It just wouldn't fit. I had a moment of departure and let go of some of my understanding so I could quickly get back into my vessel. I knew that I would be able to rejoin later and that it would be waiting for me whenever I went back but, for now, I had a job to do!   So I climbed back in.

It was cold, quiet, there was no electricity or plumbing, and it seemed to be like a great big empty house that had been left, it seemed echo-y and dark. I almost panicked but determination kicked in.

I traveled through my spinal cord to my extremities. I went down my right leg no problem. I tried to go down my left leg but there was no connection to my leg. I came up through my viscera and into my heart, circled my ribcage, down my arms and back into my brain. I said o.k. brain, let's get this body going. I told my heart to pump and my blood to flow but to clot at my hip. I then tried to breathe. A great whistling came from my breath. When I tried to open my eyes, all I saw was blood, a sheet of sticky red paste was covering my eyes. I blinked and cleared it away. I then tried to move, and a sound like a bag of stones rattled up my spine into my head and my brain, and I stopped moving.

I could hear the buzzing of the door being open with the keys still in the ignition and the static of the radio still playing. It was eerie. I looked around and saw a trooper near me. I looked at him and he was crying. He said “I thought you were dead.” I said “Don't worry, I just talked to G-d, everything is going to be alright”. He held my hand, and I looked at his hat, you know the one that looks kind of like a cowboy hat? I said to him, “You're my hero,” and he said I was his.

I told him that I was tired, and he said “NO! Talk to me, you have to stay awake. Tell me what G-d said.”
I told him that the accident was all my fault and I asked about my friends. He said they were going to be ok. Then he told me what happened.

The sound of the buzzing and the radio and the sky all made me dizzy and I almost fainted.   I heard the ambulance arriving. They were preparing to use the Jaws of Life, but I protested.   I had a bad feeling about that thing, like it would kill me. I climbed out myself. My left leg ground and twisted in tow of my body. They got me into the back of the rig and an IV and oxygen and the trooper was by my side. He held my hand and told me I could sleep now.

X-rays, heart monitors, lights, needles, masks, noises, blood, beeping, talking, Dizziness. Pain.

I was in intensive care unit for thirty-six hours in and out of consciousness. I had an epidural of morphine The priest gave me last rites at least three times while they waited for my mom to arrive. I hovered above my head most of the time watching all of it like a circus. Every time they would start with the last rites I would get back in my body and say, 'Stop that, I'm not dead yet.' My spirit knew everything was ok but my body thought differently. I know that my body thought it would die several times, but my spirit refused to believe any of that nonsense and just kept post.

I spent five weeks in hospital and was released to a nursing home to recover for six months. I used to write in my journal, 'To stand will be to hold my heart; to walk will be to move my spirit and to dance will be to claim my soul.'   I stood six months later, I walked at nine months and I dance today without pain.
G-d is.

IN THE NDE BELOW BRUCE HAD A CONSERVATIVE, FUNDAMENTALIST BACKGROUND. THIS IS ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF HOW NDES OFTEN CONTAIN RELIGIOUS IMAGERY FAMILIAR TO THE NDEr---e.g. CATHOLICS OFTEN “SEE” THE VIRGIN MARY; BRUCE “KNOWS” THAT HIS GUIDE IS CHRIST JESUS. HOWEVER, MOST NDES DO NOT CONTAIN ANY RELIGIOUS REFERENCES, BUT STILL REPORT BEING ACCEPTED WITH "UNCONDITIONAL LOVE."

Bruce’s NDE in 1978---conservative fundamentalist background

I had been invited to a party and arrived with another friend some time prior to 11:00 pm. It was at a different friend's home. He had neglected to pay his water bill, so his water service had been turned off. I remember the water service because of my intense thirst.
The beer, pot, and alcohol were flowing freely until around 2:00 am. I drank five to six bottles of beer along with two or three shots of whiskey. I let the friend I had arrived with know that I was ready to head home, anytime. I took a seat.

Within five minutes, I began to experience an unusual thirst. I got up from my seat to search for any kind of liquid. I remember standing in the kitchen, once again asking to go home. All of a sudden, I experienced an intense pain across my chest. The last thing I remember before I left my body was falling backwards onto the floor.

I don't know how I knew, but I understood I'd had a heart attack, died, and left my body behind. All of a sudden, I was traveling through a tunnel at extreme speed - so fast that I had a sickening feeling. Before I could adjust, I found myself in a very ornate light-filled room with a throne that was very high up.

Once again, I had a sickening feeling, but one of a different kind. I wanted desperately to hide from the presence of God, but there was no place to go to get away from his presence. I was shown a review of my entire life, with joys, difficulties, sorrows, and everything in between. I saw myself being very kind to several people. I also heard unkind words I had spoken to others. I witnessed being ignored, and ignoring others. I was shown a love that had not worked out. I reviewed how others had abused me, which I didn't want to 'see.'

I really wasn't hearing words, but there was no mistaking what was being communicated. I had no problem with understanding. God was not pleased by my life of alcohol and drugs. I was shown a place of intense horror. I was not seeing with my eyes, but in some other way. Just before being consumed, I was guided away by a kindly person I knew to be Christ Jesus.

I was comforted and shown information that would be wiped from my mind until a future time. I found myself in the presence of many people that I 'knew'. I was surrounded by unconditional love, and, for lack of a better word, I was 'home'. Then I was told to return to my life and assured that everything would work out. I resisted leaving by using my thoughts. At first, those around me gently tried to urge me to return. I communicated that I needed to stay. Then these people I knew and loved, pleaded with me to return, and they were urgent. One by one, they approached me in a final attempt. I could see that I was causing them discomfort of some kind - unknown, but understood, by me. I could not harm these people. It seemed they had come to see me, but I could not go back with them at this time. I couldn't go beyond a certain point. I understood that I would see and be with all my 'relatives' and 'friends' at a future time. I must return and complete work that would change others.

Just before entering the tunnel again, it dawned on me that everyone I had just been with had previously passed away. I was rather shocked by this realization. Back through the tunnel, I again traveled at a very great speed. My first physical sensation was of myself taking the deepest breath I had ever taken, before or since. My chest expanded to its limit, and someone was about to pound with both fists on my chest. Everyone was talking at once, telling me they were just about to call an ambulance. I heard, 'We thought you had a heart attack.' I barely had the strength to talk. I asked for a towel because I was sweating profusely. I couldn't move on my own, so they moved me to a sofa.

My friends thought I had had a heart attack. I had no pulse for two minutes. My own father had passed from life with a massive heart attack at a young age. Several in attendance were aware of my family history. My life didn't change overnight, but over time, my life did start to take shape. However, it took me 14 years before I rejoined my Church.

Carl Jung’s NDE in 1944

Carl Gustav Jung was a famous Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. Jung's work was influential in the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, archaeology, literature, philosophy, and religious studies.

After suffering a major heart attack in Switzerland in 1944, Carl Jung-–who wrote so much about death-–had a near-death experience himself. Here’s an excerpt about his experience from Jung’s autobiography, Memories, Dreams, Reflections:

At the beginning of 1944 I broke my foot, and this misadventure was followed by a heart attack. In a state of unconsciousness, I experienced deliriums and visions which must have begun when I hung on the edge of death and was being given oxygen and camphor injections. The images were so tremendous that I myself concluded that I was close to death. My nurse afterward told me: “It was as if you were surrounded by a bright glow.” That was a phenomenon she had sometimes observed in the dying, she added.

At any rate, extremely strange things began to happen to me. It seemed to me that I was high up in space. Far below I saw the globe of the Earth, bathed in a gloriously blue light. I saw the deep blue sea and the continents. Far below my feet lay Ceylon, and in the distance ahead of me the subcontinent of India. My field of vision did not include the whole Earth, but its global shape was plainly distinguishable and its outlines shone with a silvery gleam through that wonderful blue light. In many places the globe seemed colored, or spotted dark green like oxidized silver. Far away to the left lay a broad expanse – the reddish-yellow desert of Arabia; it was as though the silver of the Earth had there assumed a reddish-gold hue. Then came the Red Sea, and far, far back – as if in the upper left of a map – I could just make out a bit of the Mediterranean. My gaze was directed chiefly toward that. I could also see the snow-covered Himalayas, but in that direction it was foggy or cloudy. I did not look to the right at all. I knew that I was on the point of departing from the Earth.

Later I discovered how high in space one would have to be to have so extensive a view – approximately a thousand miles! The sight of the Earth from this height was the most glorious thing I had ever seen… This experience gave me a feeling of great fullness. There was no longer anything I wanted or desired. I existed in an objective form; I was what I had been and lived. We shy away from the word “eternal,” but I can describe my experience only as a state outside of time in which present, past, and future are one. Jung admits that we cannot completely understand death, the greatest human mystery.

In his final interview with BBC News in 1959, the reporter asked Dr. Jung if he believed that life went on after the death of the body. “I don’t believe,” Jung said emphatically, remembering own near-death experience. “I know!”

Carol’s NDE in 1980

I had been diagnosed with aplastic anemia and was in a hospital in Tacoma, Washington, awaiting transport to Seattle for a bone-marrow transplant.

My mother, brother, and I were staying in a guest house next to the hospital where they were treating me, and every day I'd go over there and would have my blood taken and my condition monitored. This particular day was my brother's 15th birthday, and I was lying in a hospital bed waiting for my results to come back so I could get out of there and hang out with my family.

After a time, I noticed, almost idly, that there were long stretches between breaths and I had to remind myself to take one. I could feel myself fading and I knew, without question, that I was about to die. I had a strong sense that this was both okay and necessary. I understood that death was not an enemy, that my death was one of many requirements to move the human spirit forward. I was glad it was me this time and not someone else. This pretty much answered the question I had been asking since I came down with aplastic anemia, which was 'Why me?'

My mother was by my bedside while I talked about giving away my pitifully few possessions, such as my stereo and my books. I asked her to please tell my older brother that I didn't mind. And, with that, I surrendered. I simply let go of life. (Below, we see the reason she died.)

I immediately found myself wrapped in a velvety blackness, which held a feeling of being somewhere else. There was no pain, no fear; I was still aware of what was happening, but for the moment, nothing was happening.

Then, in the next moment, I found myself reliving my life. I mean my WHOLE life, every bit of it, and it took no time at all. When I saw the film 'American Beauty', I thought that the person who wrote that final speech about when your life passes before your eyes must have had a near-death experience. It's exactly like that. It takes just a moment, but it stretches on forever, with some parts standing out more than others.

You could call it a 'life review' but it was more in-depth than that. It was multi-faceted. First, I experienced incidents from my life from my own point of view, second, from the point of view of whoever was with me, and third, from the point of view of a witness, a watcher of sorts, all simultaneously.

One occasion I relived, affected me deeply. I was in the eighth grade and was with my friends at school, leading them on in verbally abusing another one of our friends. It was cruel behavior and I was drenched in it. In that reliving, I got to be me and experience that secret little thrill you get when you are cleverly mean to someone. I also got to experience the admiration, tinged with fear, of the girls who were going along with me, and lastly, I also experienced the humiliation and pain of the one we were tormenting. I got to not just see her, but to BE her, including her being huddled next to the lockers, alone and crying, after the rest of us had left. I found myself full of remorse, first, over what I had done, and then over the fact that I was dead and couldn't make up for it.

My mind and my heart were crying out, 'I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!', when I heard a chuckle and felt a presence with me in the blackness. The presence expressed amusement over my despair and answered, with heart and mind, something to the effect of, 'You were just a kid, how bad could you have been?' Along with this communication, I was embraced by love, a love that had layer upon layer of compassion. It felt like home, like coming inside from the snow to a warm fire, the smell of good things cooking and the laughter of family. And it was euphoric beyond anything I'd felt before or anything I've felt since.

Then I remember waking up. The nurse told me I had given them quite a scare, that when they tested my blood, the counts were too low to sustain life. They had been worried they wouldn't be able to give me a blood transfusion in time to keep me from slipping away. I, on the other hand, was disappointed I was still alive.

I can describe some of what happened, but not the whole of the experience. It has a fullness of meaning that we fumble for on this plane of existence. It's like trying to describe color to someone who has always been blind. You have to have gone through something like that yourself to understand it.

I shared it immediately with my family and with others who've expressed interest over the years. Their reactions depend on what they already believe. I immediately knew that the experience was definitely real. I've never questioned the reality of the experience.

Chen C’s NDE---From China; Translated from Chinese

I was in a car wreck several years ago that resulted in a leg fracture and a head injury. I was transported to a hospital emergency room. I was in the ICU less than an hour when I went into cardiac arrest. Supposedly, I was unconscious on the emergency room bed, yet, I distinctly heard a high pitch sound, and then there was a very bright beam of light coming down from above. I felt myself floating upward; meanwhile, I saw my lifeless body below me. I flew upward very fast.

I was accompanied by a light while flying though the universe. We entered outer space while moving at the speed of the light. Then we went through a bright, glaring tunnel that was so brilliant; I am still impressed by its brilliance even today. The tunnel was made of multi-colors and was spiral. I felt that time ceased when I went through the tunnel. Abruptly, I noticed a light at the end of the tunnel. When I reached the light, I saw a beautiful meadow with many exotic plants and animals.

Then I saw a 3-D movie projecting something. It was a review of my life, showing important events such as going to school and getting married. Now I saw people whom I did not recognize, and they told me it wasn’t my time yet, so I needed to go back. Next, a light appeared and instantly, I was back in the hospital.

Later on, the doctor told me that my heart had stopped, and I was revived after they performed about 15 minutes of CPR resuscitation.

I did some research after my experience of being dead. I discovered that I had experienced an NDE, where my soul had left my body. Now I believe that human beings have souls; although it cannot be detected by any scientific instrument.

As for describing the feeling of this experience, I am speechless. It is similar to dreams but not likely to be a dream. My mind was in a vivid state when my heart had stopped; it was dark but I was still be able to see everything. Initially, I felt a floating sensation, and while I was flying in the air, my vision was 360- degree so that I could see everything around me. It is difficult to express the perceptions when I saw my left-behind body as my soul floated up into the air. According to Buddhism, the kindhearted will enter into a blissful, prosperous wonderland eternally after death. I am no longer afraid of death, because I have touched the brink of the other side.

Cynthia Y’s NDE in 2007---stopped breathing

I have asthma (and damaged lungs, with lots of scar tissue, due to too much jet exhaust while I was working on aircraft fuel tanks) and a bout of pneumonia at least once a year that requires hospitalization. I also have an overactive immune system.

On the day of my death experience, I had been having difficulty breathing, as usual, with chest tightening and less volume per breath. (I call 911 frequently and have to be given shots of steroids at the hospital).

So, all of a sudden I can't breathe, like I really can't breathe, my lungs stopped working.   I was thinking I can't speak and it's only a matter of time before I pass out.   Thankfully, my kid is used to the drill. I made a hand gesture like a phone to the ear and my kid called 911.   As she was on the phone, I passed out. I was okay with dying and felt very peaceful, no fear.   I felt relief, pure love and contentment. I did not realize that I had already left my body. My adventure was about to begin.

I was enveloped in darkness, like cave dark, but I was still “me” in a dark empty space. Then, I started to fall through a bazillion million miles of dark toward this light that was a just a spark, the amount of energy it takes to create a thought. From the Creator’s thought, the universe was created right in front of my eyes. I saw everything that has ever happened since the beginning of the Big Bang.   Like on the Discovery channel. I saw everything, the whole universe from the beginning of time, and I had superman vision.    Beyond the universe, looking at it with superman vision, I could see earth and my house and inside it and all from a bazillion, gazillion, light years past the edge of the universe. It was really amazing.

Then, out in the distance of the blackness to my right, I see someone move quickly, right up to my face. It was the most beautiful being I have ever seen.   I was enveloped in pure love, a feeling that I cannot describe, pure love and peace and wellbeing.   A glowing love like no other.   I can't describe how wonderful it was.   It was GOD.   So, there is a GOD!   With eyes a color not of this earth. When I looked into God’s eyes, all the secrets of the universe were revealed to me.   All knowledge of everything.   Too much information to write down. I'd be here the rest of my life!

God said to me, 'Do you know who I am?' I said 'yes'; I felt so ashamed and unworthy, and I also felt loved like no other. I was so happy to be there. God said 'You have three missions, then you can die.' (I was never told what my missions were!)
Then, out of nowhere, two other beautiful beings appeared in front of me. They grabbed me from either side of my body, like in a hug, and said 'Don't worry we'll be with you.' They flew me backwards through the universe at inconceivable speed to the earth, and now I’m on the planet going down highway 18 in the air above the ambulance!

Then I am on the ceiling inside the ambulance, and they dropped me back into my body! Like someone dropping you on your back from about three feet off the ground. I open my eyes. I have a tube up my nose and down into my chest and a rubber bag in my face, with a guy squeezing the bag, breathing for me. I grabbed his hand and his eyes got really big. I puked all over the paramedic on the other side of the gurney, because the guy squeezing the bag turned my head as I started to puke. I felt perfectly fine, except for my lungs, which were still not working. This man had my life in his hands, literally. When we got to the hospital, they gave me a shot, but people continued taking turns squeezing the bag coming out of my nose. Then by body started to breathe on its own, and they took the tube out. Then I puked again and again.

Later on, I was told that I did not breathe for about fifteen minutes after I first collapsed! A neighbor with a scanner came over when she heard it and freaked out, crying and screaming. The sheriff got to my house, and saw that I was purple with black lips and a grey body and cold flesh. He thought I was dead and told my neighbor and my kid to go outside. The Fire Department called my parents and told them I was more than likely dead, and they should get to the hospital.

Later, when I got out of the hospital and saw the Fire Department guys in the market (I live in a small town), they were in disbelief that I could even walk. They call me their “miracle baby,” as I should be dead.

Dying is the best thing that could ever happen to a person. You become perfect and all-knowing and go to a way better place. I used to fear death, and now I can't wait to go back. I envy old people who are ready to die. If they knew how it was, they would forego all medical procedures and check out. Dying is not really dying; you become a being of light and are born into another, better plane of existence, a place of carefree, pure love, where you can make your own reality, and there is no such thing as time. Where you are immortal and live forever---who cares what time it is? You have forever to do it!

Dan BC’s NDE in 1992---plane crash, shared NDE

I was in a plane crash. The plane was carrying skydivers. 16 out of 22 people on board were killed at the crash. I have no memory of it and was in a coma for over a month. When I woke from the coma, I had no idea where I was or what had happened. But there was one crystal clear memory in my head. It wasn't a dream. It was as real as any real-world experience I had ever had. I could remember the entire thing, every action, every word, and every thought.

It went like this: I was in free fall. Almost as if I had just appeared there. I love free fall, and finding myself there at that moment seemed natural. I was at home, at peace, part of the infinite sky. But after a few seconds I noticed that this wasn't normal free fall. It was quieter. The wind wasn't blowing. I wasn't descending.

I assumed a gentle breeze was suspending me. It was okay; it was fine.   I was floating, flying, but it wasn't right. What was I doing there? I wasn't afraid. I felt safe, but confused. I looked up and saw James flying down to me just as if we were on a skydive together and he was 'swooping' me.   His expression was that silly, playful smile he so often had in free fall.   He obviously was not confused at all.   He knew exactly where he was and what he was doing there.

He flew down and stopped in front of me.   Still with a smile on his face, he asked, 'Danny, what are you doing here?' I answered, 'I don't know.' James said, 'You're not supposed to be here, you have to go back down there now.' I began to get a grasp of the situation. I asked him, 'Are you coming with me?' His expression changed to one with a hint of sadness. He said, 'No, I can't.' I tried to persuade him to change his mind; 'C'mon, James, we were just getting started. You gotta come with me.'

James raised his voice, interrupting me. 'I can't!' It was obvious that the decision was final. It seemed as if it wasn't his decision. He continued with a gentle smile. 'I can't, but it's okay. There are more places to go, more things to do, more fun to have. Tell my mom it's okay. Tell her I'm okay.'

For a few seconds we just looked at each other as I accepted this for the reality it was.   He changed his tone and spoke with some authority as he gave me an order. 'Now,' he said, 'you need to get back down there. You need to go get control of the situation.' I unquestioningly accepted this as well, still not knowing what the situation was that he was referring to. We looked each other in the eyes. Both of us with gentle smiles of love and confidence and sadness.   James had one more thing to say, and he said it with absolute certainty: “I’ll see you later.” It was clearly not a “goodbye.” I had no doubt that we would see each other again. Before I had even thought about my reply, the words “I know” came out of my mouth. Slowly I started to descend. As I did, James started to pull away from my grip.

When I finally woke up from a coma 6 weeks later, a month after the crash had happened, I asked my girlfriend Kristi “what happened?” She said, “It’s bad, Dan, it’s so bad.” I said, “I know James is gone, but how are the rest of my team?” She froze in disbelief. She looked at me, staring deeply into my eyes, and asked, “How do you know that?” I answered directly, “He told me.” She continued to stare at me, wondering how that was possible.

NOTE: This is a rare “shared NDE” where he encountered his friend James, who died in the crash during their shared NDE! James stayed on the Other Side, while Dan came back.

Jaime G”S NDE IN 2001

I was feeling ill. I could not even swallow. A typical tonsillitis infection. I had a fever of 100+ I have always been plagued with tonsil problems. Anyway, I thought I would just get some penicillin or a shot and be sent my way; but after the blood tests, the doctor on duty said that she would rather have me stay over for observation. I was in pain all night. So the next day after being on Rocephin, an antibiotic, and it was not clearing the swelling, she decided that I needed to have a tracheotomy and that I would have to have surgery. I was worried -- I had a funny feeling that I was going to die. I was nervous. They told me everything would be fine. All I remember was being anesthetized. While the operating staff was trying to put in a tracheotomy tube, the tube became clogged and it caused me to code. According to them, my heart stopped for about five minutes, until they used the paddles to bring me back.

The next thing I know, I am on my back afloat, and it was pitch dark. A very scary darkness. I remember I kept putting my hands in front of my face. I could not see them or my body but I knew that they were there. Then I started hearing this low hum, and it was like being underwater, like you can hear noise and it’s muffled. That kind of thing. I was wondering why it was so dark. Nothing else mattered. At this point I could not remember anything. Not the surgery, not anything. It was as if this was the only thing I could think of.

I then noticed that while it was pitch dark, it felt as if I was in a tunnel. So then, I am feeling a little more afraid, like what’s going on here? Then I could see a pin point of white light in front of me in the distance, about a football field length away. Then, I sensed that I started moving in that direction; but it felt like something was pulling me there. At this point, I was floating to an upright position. Going slowly towards that pinpoint of light. Then I knew that there were little doorways all along this tunnel, and I felt that I could, if I wanted to, go into any of those doorways. I felt at the time that if I did, I would not come back, but my attention was on the light.

In an instant, I thought “grandma”. And I was instantly in the light. I kept saying. “You”re not dead! I am not dead! You’re not dead!” She said, “No I am not and you are not either.” My grandmother had died three years prior, but at that moment I could not remember that, just that she was not dead, and that she was so alive and well. (She had died of dementia complications). She invited me to sit and have coffee like we used to all the time at her house. Her table was there, the chairs, she looked like she did when she was in her thirties. She had on a purple dress, like a nice one she had with flowers on it. Except that, the flowers seemed to glow a florescent yellow. Then I noticed that there was a florescent light that emanated from the top of the room. I started feeling so good, I can’t describe it! Love---or like the first time you kiss. Electricity. Butterflies in your stomach, like the best drug. I don’t know how to describe it; it felt so good. I then got a little panicky, because I noticed that there was no light source; it was just there. That’s when she touched my hand, and I noticed that I looked down and could see my hand. It was there, but it looked white---almost florescent, and she told me that it was all right. (All this conversation was in Spanish by the way) and said, “Let’s drink the coffee.”

I did. But I noticed that it was not hot, and it had no taste. It was lukewarm; yet there was steam coming from it like it was hot, but it was not. It’s like when you are sick, and you can’t taste anything. We talked but I did not see her lips move, although she was smiling. Anyway, I told her that we (family) think of her every day. She stated that she knew. She knew that we loved her very much, and she loved us.

Then I noticed that the room had a dome. In the left side of that domed room, I saw my grandfather on my mom’s side peek through a curtain. And I saw another lady. She was heavy-set, short with a long black ponytail. I wanted to say something, but that is when my grandmother told me, “You have to go. You can’t stay here. It’s not your time.” I then felt terrible and started to cry. I told her, “But grandma, I want to stay here.” It felt so wonderful; I did not want to leave. I remember begging in Spanish, “Please I want to stay with you; I never want to leave here.” She said, “You will be back here when it’s your time. Don’t worry.” Then she said, “Tell everyone I love them and think of them all the time.” At this point I was still saying “But, but I wanna stay.”

Then I heard this loud “pop”. It felt like I was hit in the chest with a sledge hammer made of fire. I remember coming to and gagging. I had been shocked with electricity to bring me back. While I had coded, Time seemed to be definitely turned off! It felt as if I was there for eight hours, but I was actually out for only five minutes.

I was on life support; all the tubes, etc. I felt terrible. I noticed my dad was there and the rest of the family. I don’t remember what happened next, but I do remember telling them that I needed a paper. I had to write something. “I saw grandma.” I passed out again, but later wrote in Spanish this account that I just wrote about here. My dad has the note somewhere. I was getting worse. They had to life-flight me to Modesto, CA. I was in the intensive care unit for two weeks. It was all a blur for me. When I became conscious again, I shared my experience right away. My family accepted it, especially because of that letter I wrote when I was in the recovery intensive care unit. I don’t remember writing it, and especially not in Spanish. I generally don’t write in Spanish, and my dad said that it was exactly like my grandmother would have written!

Overall, I was lucky to be alive, let alone functioning. They said that I might not ever speak again or have brain damage because I was out for almost five minutes while they struggled to bring me back on the table. That’s the gist of my story, and I have paperwork medical records to prove it. I believe it was real. Usually when people have surgery, they just wake up in the recovery room, and they don’t see dead relatives!

People ask me if my beliefs have changed. I tell them I don’t hold onto the western belief system anymore, although I respect others who do. I just don’t see it as heaven and hell with a devil and a god. But more like energy forces. Now I don’t believe that Moses and the saints are waiting for you. I’m a nicer person now. Before, I was not so nice. I hated life to an extent. Now I’m so happy to be alive and am happy to know that we don’t really die. I am definitely more loving, and I love life now more than ever.

James’ Grandfather’s NDE in 1985

I want to share my grandfather's near-death experience, who died in 1985.

He was 70 years old when he had a heart attack in 1980, and his heart stopped for a full minute on the operating table. He wasn't a religious person, but his NDE affected him very deeply.

When he woke up in the intensive care unit (ICU), he grabbed my mother's hand and intently poured out his story. He said that while his heart was stopped, he was floating above his body and felt very peaceful. He saw his two daughters (my mother and her sister) and his wife (my grandmother) below him, 'huddled together.' He told my mom with much emotion, that he didn't die because, 'You wouldn't let me go.' He also said he'd never be afraid of death as a result of his experience.

What I find unique about my grandfather's NDE is the fact that he couldn't have known and nobody told him, that my mother, her sister and my grandmother actually huddled together on the floor below him, praying for him to live at the very moment he was on the operating table when his heart stopped. I think the fact my grandfather said he could actually see his family 'huddled together' while they actually were together praying for him to live is pretty convincing evidence that he temporarily left his body when his heart stopped.

My mother also told me that she was the one praying aloud, while holding my aunt and grandmother's hands during the time my grandfather's heart stopped for a minute. My grandfather didn't even tell his own wife about his NDE first. Instead, he told my mother first. He was specifically saying 'You,' referring to my mother, 'wouldn't let me go.' I think because she was the one leading the prayer.

In pictures of my grandfather following his NDE, he appears to be a truly happy person and at peace. I could see it in the way he smiled and his eyes seemed to truly sparkle. I think the experience had a great impact on him.

On the day my grandfather died permanently of a heart attack, 5 years after his NDE, he first woke up in bed that morning and hugged my grandmother. He said to her with as much emotion as when he told my mother of his NDE, "You'll never know how much I love you. You'll just never know how much I love you," as if he knew on some level it would be his last day on earth.

John B’s NDE in 1978

My experience starts with returning from camping and breaking up with a girlfriend. I stopped at a friend's house on the way back and she was there making the situation uncomfortable for me, so I told my buddy that was riding with me all weekend to stay here; I was going to the store to get a pack of cigs. He was insisting on going with me. But after much convincing, he stayed.

On my way back, I was stopped at a 'T' intersection waiting to make a left turn on to San Miguel Canyon road from Hall Road.   When it was clear to go, I started to proceed through the turn when a car that was speeding eighty-plus miles per hour hit me broadside.   My head struck the metal steering wheel and collapsed it at the top of the column. I couldn't steer very well and the car kept going down into this field. Now I could see smoke and flames in my rearview mirror and I knew I had to get out.   So, with little strength left in my body, I managed to open my door and let myself fall out. I lay in the field and watched my car continue and stop in a circle; it was burning from the trunk. Two minor explosions happened and then a huge one that shot flames over my head, then the car continued to burn. I got up out of the field and walked back up to the road.

The owner of the other car was standing there with his lady friend and yelling at me with not a scratch on him. At this point, I collapsed.   A nurse going on duty at the hospital saw me fall and got me an ambulance.   I do remember getting loaded into the ambulance, but nothing else until we arrived at the hospital.   I remember the lights zooming over my head as they rushed me in and as soon as they stopped in a room.

Then I said, 'Watch out! Here I go!' and I started out of my body!   I just rose up with my back to the ceiling and the doctors saying we lost him.   I could see them scrambling around me. Then I went even higher up and could see my dad sitting in the hallway outside the room. (Evidently, they had called him and said I wasn't going to make it.) As he was sitting there, he was trying to light his pipe in the hospital. A nurse came over and was shaking her finger for him to put it out. He stuck his finger in the pipe and put it in his pocket. I thought, 'Now dad, you can't light a pipe in a hospital. You know better than that.' I was going to tell him so when I got back.   Then I felt a force pulling at me, and I started to accelerate smoothly but very rapidly into the darkness. Then I was moving at what seemed like light speed and flashes of light were moving past me in brilliant colors It was like a kaleidoscope around me.

Then I saw a small dot of light getting closer and closer, until the dot expanded into a room. There were no walls, but there was activity going on behind some glowing human figures that were hooded.   I couldn't make out facial features, but I saw them in silhouette. There was unusual light everywhere that seemed to come from no direct source.   We (me and the five of them) started to communicate without verbal speech.   I felt as though I was plugged into everything and could see and hear through my consciousness! Then they asked me if I wanted to stay or return. I immediately said I want to go back---that I would do whatever they wanted me to do, just so I could return. I wasn't fearful at all; in fact I never felt so wonderful before, but I just thought I should go back and do work for these guys!

At this point, I was seemingly downloaded with all this awareness and knowledge.   I felt so aware of every aspect of life and death, or, as I call it, the dimensional move.   All this time I'm not aware of time, as though it didn't matter, but it felt like a very long time. Then I was sent back and started to move back through the tunnel. Then time seemed to take effect again. I was accelerating again, and the trip wasn't as long. Then I saw the doctors over me, and they were shaking their heads and looking down.   My dad just over the wall had his head in his hands. Then I thought, 'Hey guys I'm back,' and I slowly lowered myself back into my body, as if I were laying back down into it.

Next thing I heard was, 'We have a pulse. We have a pulse.'   Now I could see the lights and then the doctors. They asked me if I could hear them and I said yes.   My dad came rushing in and hugged me. I said, 'Dad, I died! ' The doctor asked, 'How could you know that?'   I said, 'I also saw you dad, trying to light your pipe.'   He turned a funny color and said, 'That's amazing.'

John R’s NDE in 1972---asthmatic death

I woke at about 7 am on a weekday with difficulties breathing. As usual, I was under constant threat of asthma attacks. I woke my mother and told her, and she gave me some breath spray and some other medicine. These failed to work, so I was in for another trip to the doctor; I often ended up at the doctor's office and very rarely went as far as the hospital.

I got into the doctor's office about 8:30 am and was made to wait until 10:30 am, when a doctor finally noticed I was in trouble and turning blue. I was rushed into the surgery and given some needles; I don't know what they were, but they didn't work, and I slowly worsened.

At about 11:30 am my mother couldn't wait for the ambulance to take me to hospital and raced me there in her own car. While running into reception, we were told to go straight up in the elevator. As we entered the elevator, my mother told me it was ok now and everything was going to be ok. But I could tell she wasn't sure; she was trying to calm me down. I gave up and relaxed and whispered, "Thank you mummy" before I collapsed. It was then that I left my body and headed down a tunnel at an amazing speed (it appeared like everything else was moving, not me).

I arrived, after what seemed like five minutes, at a place where I felt an overwhelming joy and love come over me, like a stream going through my body. I was then welcomed by a lady in white. It wasn't a verbal communication. It was more like I could feel what she wanted. I seemed to know the answers to my questions before I finished thinking about them, as if I always knew them. I was asked whether I liked it there and did I want to stay? Of course, I wanted to stay, and I seemed to be given the knowledge that if I went back I wouldn't be able to take back the knowledge I had received. I remember knowing the reasons for living, as well as knowing what I would have to do if I went back -- but it was mainly hypothetical because I wasn't really wanting to come back.

I believe I was there a very long time, maybe two hours, but in this world it was approximately fifteen minutes. These beings, were not of flesh and didn't seem restricted to physical limitations like we have. While I was there, I was indeed like them---but most of my memories of the other side were left there.

Anyway, it was time for me to answer them on what I wanted to do, to stay or go back. It was then that I heard my mother (back in the hospital) get the news from the doctor on the top floor of the hospital that I had “gone.” He said he was sorry. After I heard my mother's desperate cries, I became undecided about staying there; the entities smiled and seemed to understand. Then I was on the way back down the tunnel (this time it was much faster and seemed to take only thirty seconds). As I arrived, I took a deep breath, looked up at my mother and then passed out. [Later I asked my mother “did I die?”-- because I had heard the doctor say so. She was shocked that I knew what the doctor told her! -- though not as shocked as when I got back!] I was asleep for two days and woke as though nothing had happened. My asthma has never been life threatening since.

Something I would like to add was that, while I was there, I knew I really existed. For example, when I got back, I was in pain in my whole body, not from my struggling to breathe, but from being confined to my body and affected by gravity, and it felt like I was in a dream world. Ever since then, I have seen this world as being not quite how things really are. This place is the dream, compared to the clarity of thought and reality of the Other Side. I thought I was alone with this experience, until I saw TV a show called "That's Incredible" and realized that some people in America were talking about the same experience that I had.

Johnathon’s NDE---U.K. soldier in Land Rover rollover

I was a serving soldier in the 3rd Battalion of the parachute regiment. My regiment was on military exercises for 2 weeks in an area known as Salisbury plain. My job was to drive a Landrover.

I have an exact recollection of events that I experienced; but only my very close friends know about this. At 2:30 am I was driving from Warminster with my Landrover full of rations, spare wheels, etc. I was very tired after only a couple of hours sleep, when I remember the steering wheel beginning to vibrate. Due to exhaustion and needing my bed, I guessed I had about an hour to get to my destination, so I continued driving.

A few moments later, the Landrover took a sharp left turn, throwing me to the right, where my head hit the door, my hands came off the steering wheel, and the vehicle rolled over. During the roll I was gripped by total fear, screaming for my “mum” I remember being thrown about the driver’s compartment, grass coming through the window, darkness, pain all over my chest and the shear hell of what I experienced before blacking out.

When I awoke, I felt the wind in my face, which was nice. Once I began to focus, I saw bright lights, heard people shouting, and realized that the wind on my face was coming off the rotors of a rescue helicopter. The top of the Landrover was gone, cut away by firemen, and the lights were torches (flashlights). I remember a woman speaking to me, holding my left hand, and saying “We will get you out”. I recall crying but felt no pain. Then I felt myself began to drift, which I thought was off to sleep.

Instead, I was slipping out of my body, floating to the right, where I stopped. I was about 20 feet away, watching everything happen in front of me. I felt no pain but was totally confused. Then sheer terror came over me as I knew that I had died. I didn't want to die; I was still too young. Then I felt a warmth come over me, kind of like hot air all over my body. I felt myself begin to fade away, a bit like mist or steam from a kettle.

Then I awoke in the same place where the accident had happened, but now this place was totally peaceful; everything was clearer, brighter and I felt at total peace within myself. I knew I was in the same place but not, if you know what I mean. I then began to walk about; there were no buildings, nothing relating to any sort of civilization was evident. I sat down trying to gather my thoughts when I saw my dog Bruce walking over to me. Yes, my old dog who died when I was young. Don't know how I knew it was him but I just felt in my heart that it was him, the way he used to look.

He came over to me and we cuddled for about a minute, when a figure, who I didn’t recognize, appeared a few feet in front of me. The figure sat down next to me, petting Bruce. He was wearing a suit, but from maybe the early 1900' s era, about 40 yrs old in appearance, black hair, but I never felt any fear or suspicion toward him; however my intuition said he is related to me in some form. His voice was so soothing, he said to me, "John, are you happy?" "Yes", I replied. Then he got up and went for a walk; I don't know why. I felt like I needed to follow him. I could feel the grass, smell the air, and feel the cool wind again my face. Birds sang, the sun was as bright as any a day I could recall, the grass was far greener, just everything was more visible and everything felt alive, like I could feel everything's energy pulsating against my own which felt totally wonderful.

I remember walking with him, stroking Bruce as we strolled about. He said he was taking me to a special place where someone was waiting for me. He spoke at length about life, stressing the importance of goodwill to all creatures. He also explained that there is more life in the universe than one can hope to understand and that we were going to a meeting place. After a few moments I could see other people walking about, some were kissing, cuddling, people were laughing, being happy, and I could actually feel their happiness inside me. It felt so right, so strong, and I knew everyone could feel my love, sort of like everybody sharing their experiences with everyone around. We stopped beside a large oak tree.

Under the oak tree, there was this woman sitting down, looking at me. She was dressed like the days of the Roman Empire, long flowing white robe, a woman of sheer beauty, long red curly hair down to her knees. Bruce ran over to her and I followed. There were no introductions, but I felt like I knew her already. She informed me that I needed to go back as my time is not up. I remember sighing and looking at the ground in sadness. Then I remember her waving at me, and I also recall myself screaming for Bruce to come with me. I remember crying that I wanted to stay. Suddenly, like a dream, I woke up inside a helicopter with this huge needle in my chest.

I know that this might all sound unbelievable, but it is exactly what I experienced. I know now in my heart and soul that there is life after death and I believe everyone probably experiences this differently from everyone else. I did recover from my injuries and later on was informed by the doctors that I was clinically dead for over a minute. I now look at life from a different view than what I used to. Life is so precious; so try to be the best you can ever be. I saw no angels, harps, or cities in the skies, but something even bigger, better awaiting us, and I know that my experiences only scratched the surface of what happens to all of when we die.

Joschua B’s NDE in 1995

When I was younger, my parents were both working full-time jobs. My father was stationed at Fort Bliss and my mother worked in various defense or education-related jobs. Thus, I was placed into a summer youth program. One summer day, they took us to a public pool. Most of the kids, being more experienced with swimming, were at the deeper end of the pool leaving me alone. I remember wanting to join them and went under the floating barrier to try to swim towards them. Then I remember not being able to feel the bottom of the pool with my feet and slipping under the water.

Then, I was suddenly above the water. I could see myself under the water and I remember feeling no attachment to my body. I floated higher and higher above the scene and could see a great part of the city below me. I still had a human form while floating up; it was like a 'ghost body'. I remember looking up into the sky and then being somewhere else, like being in space except with no stars. Though in darkness, I knew I could see in all directions at once. Around me appeared other people who had passed away. We all glowed with different shades of light. I remember that all of our thoughts flowed into and out of each other simultaneously. Despite this, I could still process my own thoughts. I knew that the lady near me was in her 30s, that she had died in a car accident leaving behind children but she was at peace with the fact that her husband would care for them.

I remember a great light appearing before us, like the sun, but smoother and cleaner in its light. It did not hurt to look at and, regardless, we did not have physical eyes. There was the greatest feeling emanating from it. It was the greatest form of love I have ever felt. I remember being drawn towards it, moving faster and faster. I remembering feeling at home, like I had returned and I was happy. There was a sound like music, but not music like what we have here on Earth.

Some force moved through my soul and stopped me from proceeding forward. There were no words, but a kind of “knowing” came into me. It said I needed to turn around. I remember saying that I did not want to turn around, and that I was tired of having to go back so many times, and I was ready to stay here. It said that I had not accomplished what I needed to do. Before I knew it, I was tumbling through darkness and was suddenly back over the city and drifting back towards my body. My body was now out of the water. I remember several of the other kids out of the water; some crying and the female lifeguard was working on getting me back. I remember the feeling of hands pushing me on my back, back down into my body. The re-connection was painful. I remembering feeling confined in my body.

For years after this I was depressed and wanted to go back to that place. My childhood was not the smoothest as far as my family life was concerned, and I knew if I took my own life I could go back there, but it would be wrong.

I believe that 'God' experiences itself through its creation. That is, we are all expressions of 'God' simultaneously. I have felt in life a deep and instant connection with certain people, especially one of my friends, who I also love deeply and who is currently missing. We both have talked about perhaps having met in a past life and joked about how we would meet in future lives. Though I hope my friend is found, I am confident that either way, our paths will cross again.

ALL NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCERS SHARE SOMETHING OFTEN UNNOTICED: AWARENESS AFTER DEATH! MILLIONS OF HUMANS HAVE DIED (TEMPORARILY) AND, WHILE APPARENTLY UNCONSCIOUS, HAVE BEEN AWARE. NOTE THAT WHEN HEARTS STOP, NO BLOOD FLOWS, AND, AS A RESULT, BRAINS STOP FUNCTIONING. HOW CAN WE EXPLAIN THIS “AWARENESS”, IF DEATH IS THE END OF CONSCIOUSNESS? HERE IS A SHORT EXAMPLE:

Joseph G’s NDE in 1957---policeman dies after injection

At the time of the experience, I was a police officer in Florida. I went to the emergency room of the hospital because of a bad reaction to a tetanus shot.

While in the emergency room, I was given two shots of penicillin. After the second shot, I fell to the floor.

All of a sudden, I found myself floating near the ceiling, watching the turmoil going on in the room. The room was full of people working on me; pounding on me. My body was on the gurney, jumping and shaking. The nurse who gave me the shots was sitting on the floor in the corner, hysterical.

I saw them use the electric paddles, trying to start my heart, with no luck. I heard someone say that I was dead. Suddenly, this doctor rushed into the room, shoving everyone out of the way. He was carrying this syringe with a long needle and plunged it into my chest. That was the last thing I remember.

A week or so later I suddenly woke up. I was in a hospital room. As I woke up, a doctor entered the room. I recognized him as the one with the needle. The first words I said to him were, ‘I guess it's a good thing you came when you did.’ He was totally shocked! He asked the nurse whom I had talked to? She told him, ‘No one, he just woke up from his coma.’

The doctor then told the nurse that no one was to speak to me, including her, until he came back. When he returned, he had a large group of doctors with him. He asked me to repeat what I said. I did. He said there was no way that I saw him, that I was dead by then. He asked me to tell him what else I remembered. I told them all what I remembered as it happened and described all I saw. They were all shocked because I was dead during the whole thing. I remember that later he told me that before my episode, he was an atheist. But not now!
It was a story in the Miami Herald for quite a long time.

Josh W’s NDE in 2000---death by snowboarding

I have been snowboarding since I was 12 and have always enjoyed the extreme jumps on the mountains.

In January, 2000, while completing a landing, I had too much speed and missed the transition to absorb my momentum. I landed on the flat of the run. The energy of my speed sent a whiplash effect up through my legs to my neck. This severe whiplash caused the frontal region of my brain to swell.

Upon landing, my goggles and beanie bounced off. I stopped and hopped up to grab my beanie and goggles, then I noticed my nose was gushing out blood. My best friend came over the jump and asked me what had happened--as I held my beanie to my nose--and if I was ok? I remember telling him “I don't know” and that I needed to go to the ski lodge for the ski patrol. The funny thing is that I worked during this time as a firefighter emergency medical technician and my first instinct was first aid.

My friend said I seemed coherent and said he would be back while I stopped the bleeding. He said I then went down the hill and jumped off two more little jumps and slid a rail. By the time I got to the ski patrol lodge, I was repetitively questioned and didn't know who I was! I had to look in my wallet to figure out who and where I was. After about five minutes, I blacked out and collapsed in the lodge. After fifteen to twenty minutes they were loading me into an ambulance. This is where my out of body experience occurred.

I recall, in some of the most vivid detail, that I was floating above the main ski lodge. It was like being in a helicopter about fifty to seventy feet above the ground. I was just hovering. There was total silence. I remember I could feel the warmth of the sun, but it was much brighter than the sun. The warmth that it emitted had a 'right' feeling. The feeling I had was that everything was calm, relaxed, and perfect. I could look and move around the ski resort freely, and it felt like I could float anywhere I wished. I recall going to the top of the mountain and watching different people on the mountain for a few minutes. Then I decided to float back down to the lodge to look around. As I was looking at people around the lunch area, I could feel myself being lifted higher and higher up.

At this time, I was probably about two hundred yards up in the air, and I remember the light was emitting thick, warm rays around me. Everything felt right and calm. But then, I could hear my best friend Sky and my girlfriend Jessica calling my name. It seemed like it was in stereo but muffled, and their voices were all that I could hear. Once I was associating their voices with who they were, it seemed like a force pulled me back down. As I could see down on the ambulance, I turned myself around to rise back up, but I just couldn't. I kept moving faster and faster down towards the ambulance. Once I was about two stories above the ambulance, things around me blurred. I remember being sucked backwards into my body on top of the gurney inside the ambulance. Once I was back in my body, I felt a rush of energy and clarity and looked around. I knew, but didn't know, Sky and Jessica.

Talking to them later, they said that I had been unconscious but responsive to a sternum rub. Earlier, they had watched the emergency medical technician and paramedic load me into the ambulance and then stop to rub my chest, checking me out like something was wrong. That's when Jessica and Sky were saying my name Josh. Within a minute or so is when I popped my head up looked around with wide-open eyes at them. At that point, they said they would follow behind me to the hospital.

Then I blacked out and was unconscious for about another two hours. Waking up in and out of consciousness for the next few days, I had amnesia. It was like someone put my mind on rewind to two years prior. I didn't recall much that had happened for two years, and, as the swelling in my brain went down, my memory slowly came back. Eventually, most of my memory came back.

Prior to my skiing accident, I was always pretty intense and extreme into sports and being very competitive. After the accident, I became more calm and relaxed. It was almost like a switch had modulated my thought process. Prior to that, I had always been positive, but now everything that I do is based off positive mental reinforcement, leaving me calm, relaxed, and reserved.

Growing up a Christian, I have always followed the morals of our non-denominational church. After the incident, I grew more interested in finding out “why”? Why, for everything! It was more or less a hunger to learn about any religions that I could and any ancient history. Before, I just had a focus on my future goals, competing in the Olympics and pursuing a military career. But, afterwards, my goals and outlook changed.

After completing a Humanities degree, I found myself with a broadened view of finding the commonality of many backgrounds. I understand and accept evolution and the fossil record, but I still believe in a higher power (God) as its origin. My out-of-body experience made me feel that everything, no matter what, is 'ok' and will not be bad.

Joshua C’s NDE in 1980---a sailor with a veridical OBE (“out of body experience”)

I was standing in military formation at parade rest for a chain of command of ships; this means one ship was taking command of the area from the other ship. While standing at parade rest, I all of a sudden felt extreme heat at the bottom of my feet gradually increasing upward along my legs. Somehow, I knew that I was going to pass out and tried to summon the person next to me by touching him with my elbow but I fainted before I could. Some say that I fell straight down and bounced on the canvas of the gym where the ceremony was held.

I did not feel the impact. I all of a sudden was looking down at what at first appeared to be dots on the ground below me, but eventually came into focus as people looking down on the floor at someone; I immediately realized that the body on the floor was me! I then looked to my left and saw, as though looking out of a window, the medical crew aboard ship, which was two hundred yards away, scrambling to get a stretcher off the 'bulkhead' (wall) in response to the call.

Just as I saw the corpsmen running down the ship brow, suddenly I saw an extremely bright light flowing over my right shoulder and obstructing my view of everything within my sight. Turning toward this light to investigate its origin, I suddenly saw three figures slowly approaching me. The figures began to come clearer and I then recognized them to be my deceased uncle (my mother's sister's husband, 'Uncle Buddy'), my deceased aunt (my mother's baby sister); and another uncle that was still alive (my Uncle Dee Dee, my father's brother)!---who I often visited during a great portion of my training after 'Boot Camp' in Orlando, Florida.

Uncle Dee Dee seemed to have stepped forward and approached me as though to shake my hand. While I gestured to shake his hand, I heard his voice say words to the effect of, 'Well done.' As I reached to grab his hand and to say, 'Thank you,' I was awakened by smelling salt from a corpsman's hand and found myself on the floor looking at all those around me.

I was taken aboard ship and given medical attention with bed rest for three days. When I phoned my parents the next day to convey my experience, my mother informed me that my Uncle Dee Dee had passed the same day as my experience! And from that movement on, my life has not been the same!

Through that experience there is not a doubt in my mind that physical existence is only temporary. There is more to tell, but not now. Thanks for allowing me to share.

Karen M’s NDE---death from a ruptured appendix

My appendix ruptured. For some reason the doctors were unable to diagnose what was wrong with me, despite being seen by several doctors. When my mother realized I was dying, she took me, yet again, to the emergency room and demanded they figure out what was wrong with me. We were fortunate that the doctor on duty that night was a doctor from India who asked ME to tell him what is wrong. I told him that it was my appendix. I had told every other doctor that had examined me, but he was the first to listen to me and believe me. They had been set to do an exploratory surgery on me. But after the doctor had talked to me, he decided to do an appendectomy instead. This surgery was done well after my appendix had burst. Gangrene had set in by this time, and my body was a mess. During surgery, I bled out and died. My heart stopped while on the operating table.

The last thing I remember before going under general anesthesia is the anesthesiologist asking me to count backwards from 10. I told her how beautiful she looked and then said to myself (I thought), 'If only she gave up the blue eye shadow. It doesn't do a thing for her complexion.' I heard her and everyone chuckling at that last bit as I went under. I remember feeling somewhat mortified that I had said that aloud.

The next thing I remember is coming out of my body. I was floating up towards the ceiling of the operating room. I looked down and saw my body with many people around it. I did not feel any attachment to my body or regret at leaving it. I felt mildly curious as to what they were all doing. I decided it was really none of my concern. I felt so light and free: free of the pain of the past several weeks and free of the pain of my life up to that point. I felt like I had nothing too important to keep me from leaving, especially since my body had been nothing but a source of pain. I felt more than ready to go.

I continued floating up and out of the hospital. I saw the city and all the people going about their business. As I floated higher, the people and places were growing smaller and smaller, until I could see the earth itself growing smaller and smaller. I began to feel and see a complete connection to everyone, every creature, every plant, every rock -- everything. I could see how we are all connected, part of each other, and part of God. I felt so much love. I felt a joy that is indescribable. I really don't have the words to describe how completely joyful, perfect, whole, and part of everything I felt and knew. Before I died, I questioned everything. Here, I knew everything, and there were no more questions.

At one point, I floated into a cloud and decided to stop there for a bit. I have no idea why I did that, and it doesn't really matter, I suppose. I stopped just for pure joy. I remember becoming smaller and smaller until I became part of the cloud. I became a water particle, and then smaller than that. I kept shrinking until I was just like an atom, perhaps. I could see each particle of the cloud and what we looked like, down to our tiniest level. It was beautiful; we were beautiful. I had shed the sense of my body very quickly. I was simply nothing and everything all at once. I eventually left the cloud, still with no sense of a 'body.' I was pure energy, purely beautiful and whole. I was pure love and yet still 'me.'

I left the earth and traveled toward a light in the distance. As I approached, I became part of this magnificent Light. I could have stayed there forever and maybe I did, because time no longer existed.

I then became aware of three 'Beings.' They were golden light and beautiful. We were one, yet separate somehow. They sometimes had a form and sometimes were only an amazing golden light. I knew them somehow, but not from the life I had just left. They called me their beloved daughter, and said that I had a choice to make. I could come with them and dwell in the light forever. Or, I could go back to being the daughter Margaret. I couldn't understand why they thought I would want to go back. Being there with them was so beautiful. They told me my lessons were not complete and I still had much to learn and much to teach others. They told me that I was needed. They told me that they are always with me and that I must remember that I am not alone. None of us are ever alone, no matter how much we may feel so from time to time. Life is beautiful, even when we know nothing but pain.

My choice all came down to love and responsibility to one another. So I chose, very reluctantly, to come back.

Going back into my body was not as easy as leaving it. I woke up vomiting in the recovery room and felt incredible pain, both physically and emotionally. (I feel somewhat sick to my stomach just thinking about it now.) From time to time, I wonder if I made the right choice, and if in any way I have managed to learn or teach anything at all about love.

Karen’s NDE in 2010

I don't remember the day I was hospitalized, but in the days before, I knew I was really sick. I was later diagnosed with respiratory failure, major organ failure, and systemic blood infection. At some point in my misery, my heart stopped. Then, suddenly I was in a place that was good. I can't really describe in words how wonderful I felt. I felt like I was no longer in my body, but was still myself. It was very beautiful. I was standing on a path. I first looked to my right and saw mountains in the distance and a beautiful field of flowers. To my left was a body of water with trees, and there were many birds. Everything seemed very clear. I felt an attachment to all of it, like a “oneness” with my surroundings. There was a gate at the end of the path. I was looking at the gate and thinking how wonderful I felt and how relieved I was to be there. It felt like I was somewhere I knew, and it was where I belonged. I was VERY HAPPY.

I then saw someone walking toward me from the left. I recognized (but cannot identify) a male figure, and we both laughed when we first looked at each other! I later thought it might have been Jesus, perhaps taking the form of my Great Grandfather. (I have a Christian background, although now I don't believe in any specific religion.) I had the sensation that he was as happy to see me, as I was to see him. We talked, and from what I can remember, discussed that this was where I was from---and that I was home!

I cannot describe my feelings of Joy, elation, and happiness -- no words that I know can really describe it. I felt that now everything made perfect sense! We started walking to the gate and were talking the whole time. I cannot remember the conversation, but I know we talked a lot. After some amount of time (I have no idea how long) we stopped and he said 'Look at the gate and tell me what you see'. I looked and was no closer, but knew I had been walking towards the gate for a while! He then smiled and asked “You know what that means?” With this, he smiled and seemed happy. I said “Yes, I am not finished.” We were both still happy.

The next thing I remember is waking up in the hospital. I was very confused for several days (I think), but remembered the experience soon after I became conscious. My recovery period took months. The experience helped me get through it. It was the most significant thing that has ever happened to me. I am the same person, but I view life and death differently now.

As a nurse, I was always interested in patients who were in near death situations, and I asked five of them if they had had an NDE. All five that I asked said yes and said it was a positive experience. I never expected I would have one...ever. I was, and still am, amazed that it was so wonderful.

Kathleen D’s NDE

I never had a whole lot of belief in a divine power; it was just too hard to believe. Sunday school was a weekly social event, and I enjoyed the stories the teachers told us every week, but that is just what they were to me–-stories. Following the teachings of the church, I took my communion when I was twelve. Sunday school ended and I started going to the church service and junior high school. Junior high school uncovered the scientist in me, but I still had a strong allegiance to God and prayer. I soon found that I needed to have a cause or reason for everything. Darwin’s theory became more believable than the Bible. It was more logical and made more sense. The more I studied science, the more I moved away from the church.

I stayed on this path until I was nineteen years old and my beliefs were rattled to the core. My mother passed away after having three operations and suffering in severe pain for almost a year. That merciful God that I was taught to believe in had abandoned her. She never once gave up her faith in God. How could this maker of miracles let her suffer so? I prayed for her healing. How could he take her away from me? I wasn’t ready for her to go. How could he let me down? It was then that I gave up what little faith I had left.

My upcoming surgery was no big deal to me. I had an operation when I was about four or five years old and really don’t remember much about it except that I had a sore throat and I had been promised some ice cream. This operation was a little more serious, but routine at this hospital, with little chance of complications. As a matter of fact, Linda, the lady next to me in my semi-private room, was having the same surgery by the same doctor on the same day. Linda was just a little more concerned that I was. I told her not to worry. My Aunt Ruth, who worked in the Emergency Room, said that our doctor, “Doctor T”, was the best in the hospital.

I had no use for the church, God, or prayer anymore and was an unbeliever. My sister-in-law, however, was a strong Catholic and she wasn’t going to give up on me. She would pray for me and my soul every day. She even had her priest visit me in the hospital. Father Tim put his hands together and said, “Your sister-in-law asked me to come and see you.” He took a deep breath and asked, “May I pray for you?” “OK,” I said, “Knock your socks off, I guess a few prayers won’t hurt.” In his prayer, Father Tim asked God to heal my soul as well as my body. I didn’t think much of it then, but I have been thinking about it ever since.

As soon as he finished, an orderly stuck me with a needle and rolled me down to the operating room. When I next opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was my roommate. Linda was so happy to see my eyes open that she rang her buzzer for the nurse. The nurse came in and checked on me and then I dropped back off. It was like I was in and out of a deep sleep. The next morning I awoke to find myself connected to tubes and bags. That is when Linda told me that I had been out of it for three days. A severe infection had set in and, although I didn’t know it at that time, I had Lupus and my body was fighting itself. At one time, I had flat lined and then been shocked back. That is why I had all the extra medication, tubes and bags.

After I woke, I blamed the medication and my semiconscious state for all the “weird dreams” that I had at the hospital when I was being resuscitated. The dreams were my little secret. Linda left the hospital five days after her operation, but I had to stay for two weeks. I didn’t see her again until a year later.

A year later, Linda decided to find me and celebrate the anniversary of our operation. We went out to dinner. We had a good time talking and laughing. Then she told me how scared she was when I flat-lined in the hospital. Some of the things she told me were just like in my “dream”.

In the “dream” I felt like I was floating toward a woman. There was something familiar about her. My attention was drawn to the room below me. The curtain was pulled around one bed. The nurses and doctors were trying to revive a body in the bed. I then saw Linda sitting on the edge of her bed. Then the unknown woman and I were gliding down the hall toward the emergency room. Doors were closed, but I could see into rooms. When we arrived at the emergency room, I could see everything that was happening. My Aunt was at the Nurses Desk. A young paramedic was asking for Doctor T. He said, “One of the doc’s three sons was bitten by the doc’s three dogs.”

Before I could think about it, we were back in the semi-private room. The doctors and nurses were still busy working on the woman in the bed. I remember as I looked down at them, I said, “Why don’t they just let her die?” I did not realize, at the time, that the body I was looking at was mine. “She must live,” the woman said in a soft, calming voice. “She has a son to raise.” Then in a commanding voice, she said, “You must go back now.” I turned to look at this woman more carefully. It was my mother! Since her death, I always dreamed of her pale with bed sores and bandages, but this time it was different. It was the first time I had seen her looking so young and healthy. Mother looked like a beautiful twenty-two-year-old woman with a perfect body.

Just then, before I could say a word, I was pulled into the lifeless body below. I felt pain. It was a weird experience. I often think about it and tell people about it when I feel they need to know that their loved one has moved to the next level. And that death is not to be feared; it is just the passage that we must go through to discard our bodies to go to the next level. The next level is where we are met by the spirits of those who have gone before us.

Katie T’s NDE in 1992

In 1992 I had lung surgery. During the surgery, I was anesthetized but never fully seemed to lose consciousness. I remember lying there, watching the monitors as the surgeon began to cut on me. I remember tubes passing through my chest wall and thinking how odd it felt. Then I remember watching the numbers on the blood pressure monitor begin to decrease rapidly as I heard a nurse say, 'My God, we're losing BP.' I thought, 'I'm going to die.'

Oddly, it all seemed very calm and slow motion. I could hear the alarm on the blood pressure monitor and watched as the heart monitor went to a flat-line. I remember one of the nurses saying I was dead and my attempt to tell her I was not. As I attempted to convince them I was not dead, it seemed that I suddenly realized, I was not looking up at them. I was above them, behind their heads, as if I were on the ceiling. I could see everything they were doing and I could see my body lying there.

Then it seemed like I was floating, not walking, but just moving away through a tube or a very narrow passageway. I don't recall moving 'towards' a light, but being IN a light, a very bright, white light that just seemed to get brighter the farther I moved along.

I remembered parts of my life, not like seeing pictures, but living them over again in a very fast, short way. It seemed like I was living the experiences of other people I had known or met in my life. It was as if I knew exactly how they thought and felt at those very moments. It seems as though I just knew all kinds of things and feelings that I had never been taught or experienced in my life. I just KNEW.

It was warm, calm, peaceful, and just felt like happiness. There just are not words to describe it. I wanted to keep floating away as it seemed to feel better the farther I went. Then all of a sudden, it was as if I knew I couldn't stay. I had to go back. I had things to do. I didn't know exactly what they were, but I knew my daughter was waiting for me and I had things I had to do. Then I felt guilty and confused because I wanted to stay in that warm, peaceful place, but I also wanted to go back and finish what I needed to do! I felt pulled back and then all of a sudden, I felt shocked and could see everyone's faces looking down at me and saying my name and I felt angry at them all.

My whole life changed after that day. Sometimes in little, subtle ways, sometimes in big ways, but it definitely has never been the same since. Everything that I think and feel about things, the way I see and hear things has changed in some way or another. At first I felt confused, frustrated, and sometimes afraid. I felt ashamed and embarrassed to tell anyone what had happened in that room. In the first year I told my husband---who ridiculed me--- and a minister in the hopes of resolving my religious guilt feelings. Since then, I’ve told no one, until recently, a good friend who is open minded and non-judgmental and has allowed me the freedom to try to explain it.

I also felt guilty. If I had died, and I was even close to 'God' or 'Heaven', then shouldn’t I have not wanted to come back?   I felt as though I had turned my back on what I was taught was supposed to be 'God' and 'Heaven'. But I saw no 'God,' and I did not 'know' the experience to be 'Heaven'. What I did know was that it was absolute peace, love, harmony, oneness, and calm. But in my experience and in my words, I would not have called it a 'God' or a 'Heaven'. I do know that I was not afraid, I wanted to be there, wanted to stay and I am not afraid of going back. In fact, I look forward to the day that I have fulfilled my purpose, can go back, and keep going on to what is next for me. I now know there is something even better for us after this life is over!

In the years since my experience, I have had a strong desire to LIVE life and have continued to try to pursue that goal. I have learned how to truly love people, so much so that at times it physically hurts. I have always been extremely sensitive to people and their feelings, internally, but even more so now. I love to touch and hug people, but now sometimes touching people is painful, confusing, frustrating, frightening---or it makes me extremely warm and happy!   It seems as if I just 'know' things about people that I touch that can be happy, sad, good, bad, absolutely wonderful and at times absolutely frightening.

I want to tell people what happened to me and how wonderful it was. Sometimes, I just want to tell people what I know, but I can't tell them why or how I just know it.   So, I don't say anything. It is so frustrating not to be able to talk to anyone about these things.   It is so frustrating to not be able to tell people things that I know could help them or make them feel better or reassure them because I couldn't possibly tell them how I know. I wish I could tell people -- it isn't about believing in 'God' or 'Heaven' or 'Buddha' or UFO's.   It's about believing in peace, love, and human compassion.   It is about valuing life and living it, meeting your potential, and following your heart and soul.

Kelly K’s NDE in 1961---death during childbirth

I had complications during childbirth. I believe I was given an overdose of anesthetic, because I could not get my breath.

Suddenly, however, it became easier to breathe. Curiously, I knew everything the doctor was about to do, before he did things. I began to ascend, face first, through a tunnel that was a warm, reddish color, like the color of tomato soup, but soft and similar to clouds. There was an unearthly golden white light at the far end.

I was concerned about my son at home and the son I was having. I knew I was dead, but I wasn't concerned about that so much. Instantly it was made known to me that my boys would be all right. It was very reassuring. The next thing I recall was being shown the universe. I remember thinking, 'So, THAT'S how it is!' I was in awe. It was like a huge net, because everything in the universe is connected. Very colorful and beautiful. It was made known to me how important life is, all forms, and that destruction of life tears a hole in the beautiful composition of the oneness of the universe and everything in it. But I was struck by the simplicity of it all.

Continuing to ascend towards the light, the next thing was the beautiful stringed music. Nothing like it on earth. Also, I was aware of beautiful colors, and that color has sound and coordinates with music. The light became more brilliant surrounding me, and I was soaking it up like osmosis, through every pore in my being. I felt more and more exhilarated, full of energy and brightness. Along with this, I gained a universal knowledge of all things!

Drawing closer to the end of the tunnel, the light became stronger and lovelier, and I could see outlines of people, about four of them, who were telepathically sending me messages of unconditional love, and I remember being able to reciprocate the same to them. I had the sense that I knew one or two of them, but I couldn’t remember who!

As I exited the tunnel, the light was so indescribably ethereal and wonderful I wanted to keep gravitating to it, to its source. But I was held back by the entities very gently and told not to do that. I had the sense that it would be dangerous to go to the very source of the light, yet I was not afraid. I obeyed their caution. At that point, they told me that it wasn't my time yet, and that I had to go back. I didn't want to go back!   I begged to stay but they gently and lovingly refused me.   So, I began to go back down the tunnel in reverse; I was still facing the light and the entities as I descended. On the way, much was being erased from my memory. Not the event itself, but the newfound universal knowledge, the details.

I felt sucked into my body and woke up and the air was heavy, movement more difficult-- even moving an arm, not from any physical inability, but this is the way earth is, very primordial compared to where I just was. I recall asking if I was in heaven. The doctor was frightened, upset, and said they nearly lost me. I still knew some things and when alone with my husband I told him to listen carefully and remember what I was telling him because it was being erased. And as quickly as I was telling him things, it was being erased just as quickly. When I finished, I asked him if he got all I told him. He looked at me strangely.   I asked again. Then he told me that I sounded like I was speaking a foreign language and he could not understand anything I said to him.   He was alarmed.   By then, all of the universal knowledge was gone.   But not the experience.

The strange thing is, that no matter how many years go by, I never forget it.   Even writing this feels like it just happened.   Back then, it upset my husband, so I didn't talk about it anymore. I didn't want people to think I was crazy. I couldn't understand why that happened to me; I had never heard of such a thing.

Man is too hard on himself and others. Most ministers, parsons, and priests are off the mark in their view of God. Man has built up too many wrong assumptions about God and heaven. Peoples’ religions don't matter. We are all loved, just as we are.

My experience was definitely real; It was completely different from my dreams. Sometimes when I dream, I know it is a dream. The NDE is very real, more like you went on an amazing trip. You are more aware of things that happen. it was the most significant experience I ever had in my life. It changed my outlook on life and death significantly.

Lois M’s NDE in 1964---one of several that show the body acting independently of the “soul”

I was on vacation with my mother, father, a friend of mine and her mother in Kentucky. We went to Dewy Dam, which I believe is not far from Van Lear, Kentucky. We rented a small boat, and when we got to a shallow spot at the lake, my dad, my friend and I went swimming. I couldn't swim so my dad went in the water first to make sure it was a shallow spot, so the water wouldn't be above my shoulders.

We were in the water, playing, screwing around and laughing when suddenly I stepped backwards and stepped off a ledge into very deep water. I couldn't swim so I was sinking under the water. My dad and friend thought I was still screwing around and were laughing at me. In the beginning I remember struggling when I breached the top of the water, but after going down a couple of times, I wasn't struggling anymore when I went under. I was at peace and had no fear. Everything became extremely beautiful. The lights and colors in the water were so beautiful that I was captivated and mesmerized by them.

I saw colors that don't exist. The lights were sparkling and bright and yet soft and inviting, they were comforting; it was like I was a part of the lights and colors. The peace was so calming and desirable that I felt a part of something very much larger, like I was one with the universe. During this experience I felt what it feels like for time to not matter. Timelessness. It was an amazing feeling, this freedom of no time and being connected with 'the universe'. I use that word, but I felt connection with more than the universe as we know it.

Then, suddenly, I was floating above the water and looking down and saw my mother and my friend's mother still in the boat. I saw my dad and friend in the water. My mother was scared and yelling at my dad to pull me out of the water. My dad was laughing and said, 'Oh Helen, she's just playing, we're all just fooling around.' And then I saw myself pop up above the water again, and it looked like I was panicked, frightened, and struggling for my life. My mother became desperate and mad at my father, and as I again went underwater, I heard her insist that he drag me out of the water.

But, when I went under again, I was puzzled, I didn't understand why I briefly struggled and panicked when I resurfaced, because in reality, I wanted to go back under because everything was so beautiful and amazing under the water. It was tranquil, and the feeling of oneness and timelessness was what I wanted to go back to. I didn't understand why my body struggled and showed fear because that isn't the way I felt at all. I didn't want to resurface, I wanted to stay below the water, and I was happy there, happier than I can ever remember being before or since the experience.

The next thing that happened is that I felt my dad pull me up from the water and pull me to the boat trying to resuscitate me. I felt very heavy in weight, so heavy that it amazed me that my body could be so heavy. It felt so heavy that it was laborious to adjust to being in my body again. I was coughing and sputtering, water was stinging my eyes, and I felt a panic also return to my body that didn't exist when I was under the water; but, the strange thing was that those signs of panic and fear were only in my body, not my mind. I didn't feel those things in my mind. What I was feeling was disappointment about being taken out of such a beautiful, amazing, wonderful place.

Lori K’s NDE in 2006---truck accident, detailed life review, interprets light as Jesus

After the accident occurred, I was trapped under a Toyota Tundra truck. I had watched my left ankle completely turn around and the bones snap. In my mind, I knew it would have to be amputated. The truck had my right foot pinned and my leg was going to break off, so I asked the people that got out of the truck to please lift the truck off me. I would pull my right foot out to save it. They lifted the truck, I pulled my right foot out, and at the same time, I felt my entire pelvis come apart. I could tell I was bleeding out.

I was wearing a pair of shorts with my cell phone in the pocket. I reached in my pocket and got my phone and then I called my fifteen-year-old daughter Hannah. We were both working and she was two miles away on the same road as I. I told her not to be upset, but she needed to come to my location as quickly as she could. I told her an accident had occurred, and I felt like I might be about to pass out. I wanted her to go with me in the ambulance because we were a hundred miles from home. She did not drive, so she would become stranded. Next, I called my husband and tried to tell him that I thought I was dying and I wanted to say goodbye and to thank him for the last thirty-five years of marriage and that I loved him.

By this time, the police had arrived. I asked them to please take care of my daughter.   I remember telling him that my driver's license was in my purse in my car, which had been hit. He told me that I probably had a broken neck and to lie still.

The paramedics arrived and saw I was wrapped up in barbed wire, which had wrapped around me from the fence nearby. They were trying to figure out how to transport me -- get me untangled and out of there.

I remember seeing my daughter's legs and shoes, running around and around the vehicle. I knew she would be safe. The police would take care of her. I knew then I could just let go. The paramedics had a hard time with the situation. They thought it would be just as fast to take me by ambulance as to air-evacuate me to the hospital. Finally, they got me on a backboard, and, as they were lifting me from the ground, they dropped me. My daughter became so upset; she just lost it. Then they loaded me into the ambulance and transported me to Orlando Regional Medical Center.

I remember the ambulance ride and then suddenly I was out of my body.   I didn't need my body anymore. In fact, it looked sad, like an old purse or an old pair of jeans that was falling apart. I thought, 'How sad! It really did a great job for me!' I felt so sentimental; I hated to discard it, leaving it all torn to pieces like that.

It was all very real, more real than anything had ever been to me before, like I was supposed to be like that. I could see the paramedics, the driver, and my daughter from above them.   I could feel all the emotions happening to my husband and my other children as they tried to gather themselves to get to where we were a hundred miles away. I couldn't see them, but I could feel what they were going through, and I felt bad that I had caused them to be so sad and upset. I was very aware of what was going on down on Earth.

Then I felt like I was flying fast into the light -- it looked like light.   It was pure Love and Warmth which created the Light. It was like stepping outside of your dark house into a beautiful sunlit day. It shone down on me from Jesus. Jesus was creating this Light from his Pure Love. It was awesome, and with it shining on you, YOU became ALL KNOWING. This KNOWING was vast and more than I can ever explain. With it, knowledge still unfolds for me.

No pain, No animosity, just total pure understanding of everything, everyone and every situation that had occurred in my whole life, as my life played out before me. As it did, it seemed to pause at moments in my life that were due to illness and pain. Like when I had rheumatic fever as a child and how I hated the blood draws every day, but became very brave and learned all about blood. I was in labor six times. Then I saw memories of having kidney stones and having my teeth pulled. Then on to my six-year-old son being hit by a car and having two broken legs, and a cranial bleed, and being in a coma. Then when my thirteen-year-old son had a football injury and had to have surgery, with pins sticking out the ends of his toes to keep his bones in place. And when my father-in-law was sick, and we had to have his left leg amputated. Looking back on it now, it was like I was shown all the medical incidents that had happened in my life that I could now draw strength from, and which had prepared me for this very day.

I was in the presence of Jesus. We seemed to be in a wide-open space, like a beautiful field or garden behind Jesus. I could see all my dead relatives there waiting for me like my father-In-law and my Grandpa Antonio and my Aunt Lillian and my Aunt Ruby and my Aunt Frances and my Great Aunt Stannie and my Uncle Bob. I recognized many more; I knew them all by their spirit, not by their bodies. They were all happy to see me and waiting for me until I was done talking to Jesus.   It seemed like they were behind an unseen boundary. In front of me was Jesus and behind him was like a large archway, a gateway, and my dead relatives were there waiting for me. It seemed like I was with Jesus a very long time.

Jesus asked me if I was ready to be there. It felt so awesome to be there, it was so perfect, so home-like, so much where I belonged.   I said, 'I guess I am okay.' It was a beautiful day to die. The Sun was perfect, a nice breeze, not too hot or cold, I had no unfinished business, I was mad at no one and couldn't think of anyone that was mad at me. I remember saying, 'I really have nothing that needs to be said to anyone. They should all know who I am, what I stand for and how I feel for all of them. [Meaning all my family and friends.]'

Then I said, 'I thought I would be older when I would pass over. I seem young at fifty-one.' He asked something about the age of my Grandmother. I hadn't even realized that she died at fifty-one, before I was born. I said, 'I so much hate to leave my fifteen year old daughter Hannah. I love her so very much. I want to see her grow up, get married, and have children. And I love my husband Steve and all my adult children so very much. I want to go back to Earth; I have a Grandson to be born soon, whom I want to meet, and I still have X-Rays to shoot and Puppet Shows to perform, so could I please go back?'

Jesus said I could go back, that I had work now to do. He told me to stay awake, and he would take care and restore everything. My departure seemed fast, like going down one of those grand slides, back into my broken body. As I approached my body, I was totally aware of the Devil and how he was going to fight with me, almost like he was mad, because he knows he doesn't scare me or impress me. I have no fear of Death. Death was easy, fighting to stay alive was hard. I learned to put on my armor of God's Word every morning before I would start the day, so I could continue to defeat the Devil at every turn.

I became so close to Jesus. He took care of everything, even the pain. I was not allowed anything for pain because my potassium levels were critical. The Emergency Room doctors would not let me go to the intensive care unit - they kept me for the night, about seventeen hours, until they could get my potassium levels up enough that I could go to surgery.

This all became very much like a 'Twilight Zone' episode in a Jesus way, if you can imagine. Jesus sent all the people that were sent to lay hands on me. It was awesome. Some of them, I knew their spirits -- like, Jesus had shown them to me while I was at the gates of Heaven. I have so many wonderful stories that are part of this. It just keeps on going and going still. I could write many more pages of all that has happened since.

Maria C’s NDE in 1986---stabbed to death by a paranoid Schizophrenic

While on medical duty in June of 1986, I was stabbed by a paranoid Schizophrenic. I was stabbed in the chest in the first and second intercostal spaces. It is a miracle I survived. I was rushed to the operating room within twenty minutes. On the way, the surgeon was holding pressure on the wound to slow the bleeding. I asked what the chances were of fixing it. He said he would not know until he got in there. I knew most of the operating room staff. They asked what they could do.

I asked for all present to pause and to pray for the doctors and for me. I told them however it turned out, it was ok. I told the Doctor not to ever blame himself if I did not survive. I would be ok. I was not afraid to die.

On the operating table, as my chest filled with blood, I felt my heart shift to the right. I softly said ‘Uh-Ohhh’. I knew it was a mediastinal shift. My anesthesiologist rushed from my feet where he had inserted a medicine, instructing the nurse to tape it down.

He placed one hand on each side of my head and said ‘Maria, why did you say “Oh-Ohhh”? I told him. He verified that my heart was shifted with his stethoscope and immediately put me under so they could get into my chest. When they got in, they removed over three units of blood from my chest cavity. The emergency room floor and the cart were a mess!

Then I was in a room. I saw two doors. The lighting was dim, and there was a male being in a long robe, light in color, with a long white beard. He said ‘you are to wait here until it is over’. He left. I was a bit intimidated, unsure of what to do, but not fearful.

Then I saw a soft golden light coming out of an arch-shaped doorway at the end of the room. The doorway was formed of blocks of stone. Like a castle might have. It was the door to a tunnel.

I walked closer to the door. I felt enveloped by love and nurturing and concern and reassurance; then I realized the golden light was alive. It was swirling and moving. I stepped to the doorway and looked in. There was a long tunnel. It curved gently to the left about one hundred fifty feet down and I could only see to the curve. I could feel the love, caring, concern, and steadfastness of the Light. I knew it was God with me.

I knew that this door led to Heaven, that if I had to go through it, I would be safe and secure, and everything would be fine. There was no worry about others I would leave behind. There was no regret. Just the knowledge that I was in the presence of the purist Love in the universe. I was safe, and I would be cared for. I seemed to know that I could go into the tunnel if I wished, but I did not have to, since I had been asked to wait.

After a time, the being reappeared, and I was shown to another door. I moved through the door and re-entered my body. I was in pain. I felt a horrible pain in my right medial diaphragm. I was in agony.

Later I was told that my first response post-op was to grab that area. Later I was told that the chest tube had migrated to the diaphragm, and that the diaphragm was injured by it. I was quite ill. I was in intensive care, but I knew that everything was going to be fine. And eventually it was.

Michelle P’s NDE in 1984---died by firearm

When I was twenty-eight years old, I was out on a date with a boyfriend that I had broken up with previously. He had been pestering me to go out with him to possibly re-kindle our relationship. We had gone out for dinner at a Chinese restaurant. Afterwards we took a boat ride out into the Boston harbor. The night was filled with stars, and I remember holding tight onto the seat I was sitting in as a cargo rig passed by us within feet, making the boat sway up and down. I was very scared. I told my boyfriend to please get us back to land. Once my feet were on the ground, I felt so much better. We then drove to Revere Beach and had a few drinks in a bar overlooking the ocean. It was very crowded and my boyfriend was ignoring me to talk with his buddies. I was getting angry and told him, 'Let's leave.'

We went back to his parent's house, where he lived in the basement apartment. It was very dark and dingy and smelled of dampness. He turned on a light and asked me if I would like something to drink. At the same time, his brother tapped on the door lightly, said 'hello,' and offered me something to drink. I followed his brother upstairs and had a huge glass of orange juice. It was very refreshing. I went back down the stairs to find my boyfriend. I walked to the rear of the basement, opened his bedroom door. It was dark, so I figured he was elsewhere.

As I turned to exit the room, I heard a loud, echoing blast. I felt a hot, piercing pain enter the back of my neck. I could feel the warm blood pulsating and fell to the floor like a limp ragdoll. The bedroom light flickered on and I saw my boyfriend with a gun in his hand. He grabbed me and said, 'What have I done?' My mouth was filling up with blood, and it was very clear to me what had just happened. It seemed as if time had slowed down, but I had 'plenty of time' to think about things.

I first thought, ‘how is my family going to take the news that I am dead'--- I remember being conscious the whole time --- then I thought about when I was younger, seeing pictures of myself in different settings, and I thought about a recent trip that I had taken to Bermuda. While I was doing all this 'thinking', I could see my body below me --- as if I were perched near the ceiling in the room looking down at myself. I saw all kinds of police and firefighters looking over my body and stepping around me. I saw my boyfriend's brother crying and he threw-up on a police officer. (For some reason, I thought that was pretty funny, and I started to laugh.)

I had no pain. I had no blame towards anyone -- no ill feelings. I felt so blissful and whole, full of the most love I had ever experienced. I thought to myself,' If this is dying, then it's not as bad as everyone thinks it is.' Then I saw a light from 'above' me. It was pulling me away from the room. I figured it was okay to just let this happen, to go with the flow and accept whatever was to be. The light was getting brighter, engulfing my body. Body? I had no body! It stayed back down in that damp room. I realized that I was dead physically, but mentally I was still alive. My soul was now my 'body'.

I looked up into the light. I could see someone beckoning me to come. He was there at the end of this lit tunnel. Then I heard a voice. It was a man's voice. He asked me if I was ready. I felt so good. I felt at ease; I felt no pain; I felt love, acceptance and joy. It is a feeling I have never felt before -- new, fresh and washed of any guilt, hate, fear, abandonment. Only wonderful and fulfilling -- happiness.

But then I thought of my family and how hurt they would be if I were dead. I knew I still had too much more to finish; and that if I died, I couldn't get these 'things' done. I heard my own voice say, 'But I am too young to die now.' I wanted to go to this new place -- I could feel others were there - but I couldn't go now. The light was fading as fast as it grew. I was sliding down the tunnel. Then I was back. I knew that I was back in my body. The light had faded, as if light years away now.

I turned to look and I saw a face of a man. He was telling me that I was okay, and very lucky, the bleeding had stopped. He was leaning over me while I was strapped in a gurney in an ambulance. The only lights I saw then were from the lamps illuminating the Callahan tunnel from under the Boston harbor.

In this experience I came to know that there is somewhere beautiful that we go when our body dies; that we share thoughts as in reading minds; that we do not need to 'talk' when we get there; just thinking gets our words across; and that everyone there has much love to share. I also learned true love. I learned that I am not in fear of death or dying. I learned that I am still here to help others.

My experience was definitely real; it will always be fresh in my mind.

Mike I. Jr.’s NDE in 2005---death by car collision

I was in a nearly head-on (45 degree angle) car collision, each of us traveling about 60 mph. From this collision the car I was in crossed a highway median where another car hit me. A surgeon drove the car that hit me after I went over the median. (In fact, this surgeon was from the same hospital I was eventually taken to!) And, it turns out, that he drove his car into my path intentionally (and sacrificially) because he saw the initial crash and put his car in my path to keep it from going off the road into trees and a ditch.

Then he got out of his car and came over to mine. When he saw my profuse bleeding and mangled leg, he successfully argued and convinced a policeman to allow him to intervene right on the scene. He reached within the wreckage to maneuver my shattered leg to help stop the bleeding. Later we were told his intervention saved my life, because I lost five pints of blood, over half my total, and that I would have unquestionably died at the scene had he not been on the spot to bravely intervene with his medical expertise.

After the accident, I realized I was bleeding to death, that my heart was malfunctioning, and I was becoming very weak. I was trapped for thirty minutes inside the wreck, while the firefighters and others tried to free me with the Jaws of Life. I was in excruciating pain and was frightened beyond anything I had ever known. I feared that I was going to die and pleaded with those trying to help me to 'please get me out of here'.

Just after telling the emergency medical personnel that 'something is wrong with my heart' and several times saying that 'I am so tired', I finally gave in and went to sleep. The first thing I felt was an absence of pain (pain that had been unbelievably intense just seconds before). I felt instant peace and stillness beyond words or anything I have previously known. Immediately upon 'letting go,' I instantly was at the edge of the earth's atmosphere, and was staring into space! I literally saw stars and many beautiful and captivating galactic images. (I have since seen the same or similar things when visiting the website of the Hubble Space telescope.)

I felt calm, assured, complete, and absolutely, serenely wonderful. I felt LOVE...incredible, perfect love, as if everything was just perfect, in order, and so peaceful. I had a knowledge or oneness with everything, it seemed. Everything was connected in a oneness I had never known. Also, colors were brighter, more distinct, vivid, and enriched. Some were colors I've never seen before. While I was 'out there', I heard a fireman yell my name. He yelled 'Hey Michael, don't go to sleep!'

Immediately, I came back to my body in the car and yelped with pain and again held my broken and bleeding leg. Shortly after that time, I again lost my strength and 'let go' of trying to hold on.

Again, I was immediately transported to the edge of earth's atmosphere. I again saw into outer space and saw a black hole or tunnel. I thought to myself 'Hey, is this the tunnel people see when they die'? (I had heard of such things). I looked at the tunnel and thought, 'Shouldn't there be light in the tunnel?' Because I was at an angle, it was not possible to look into the hole or tunnel. I thought that 'If only I was there (eyeing a space not far off the center axis of the hole), then I could see into that hole'. Well, as soon as I said that, I WAS THERE!

Instantly, I understood that in space, I could travel at the ‘speed of thought’. I had never had that idea before. I can travel at the speed of a thought. It was immediate, instant travel. And from this different place in space, I DID see into the tunnel and saw swirling colors of light, kind of turquoise and yellowish and blue types of shade, different from on Earth. I also knew somehow, instinctively, that if I went near the tunnel, I would not come back.
I was intrigued and wanted to go, but also knew for some reason I should not or would not now.

I experienced a connectedness to everything, a dimension like I've not ever known before. I cannot find the words to describe the place, feelings, and characteristics of this experience. The best word would be 'ah'. That sounds strange, but the gasp of 'ah,' and the stillness it represents is close to the best word or short description I could give this.

I experienced so much blood loss that they could not operate on me that night, but had to wait until they could replenish my levels to a safe level. I had surgery the next day. Surgeons reconstructed my leg by inserting a titanium metal rod. After a long time in a wheelchair, I underwent extensive rehabilitation, and I learned to walk again.

One year later I met and hosted a celebration with the EMS employees that were there that night, who helped save my life. I was told by one of the officers that they 'saw me drift and fade'. He frantically worked faster, while everyone thought I would die. They also agreed, I did die or 'fade out' twice while in the wreck.

After this experience, not a day goes by that I don't think of what happened in the fall of 2005. I want to tell the world, to help others, connect with the divine, and see Earth as a mere molecule among our vast universe. I am a changed person from my NDE, as I am more compassionate, confident, calm, caring, spiritual and obsessed with learning more about all reality.

I have been more blessed by my 'tragedy' than anything I ever could imagine. Here is probably the greatest blessing and miracle of it all. While I was still in the hospital a month after the accident, I desperately needed to leave the hospital. I needed to travel to a relative who was in a life-threatening crisis, but I was told I could not go unless accompanied by a doctor or nurse. I prayed to God for a nurse to become available and assist me in my travel. Well guess what? I found one, or should I say God sent me one, and we fell in love instantly, were married a couple years later, and now my nurse Noelle is my wife, and we have a blessed, beautiful little boy named Alexander. I also have new love and care for others that is wonderful. I love life more but have no fear of death.

Mike’s NDE in 2016---cardiac arrest and detailed life review

I had my NDE on March 24th, 2016. Holy Thursday. My older sister by two years was fighting a losing battle with breast cancer and it was very hard to watch it punish my parents. I had developed severe LPR heartburn through stress eating. I was going in for an ENT scope and a colonoscopy. My doctor wanted to check for ulcers and the colonoscopy was just a bonus as I was 46 and had never had one done.

The bowel prep worked too well and I became severely dehydrated. The nurse took her time hooking up the saline drip. Five minutes after she put the IV in, my heart stopped.

My soul immediately left my body and went through the wall to my left. The room was dark and I was in a chair. A being behind me began clicking images from my life through my brain really fast like a slide projector. The slide show stopped at four times in my life where I was being encouraging to people. At each moment I was launched back in time and into the event.

The first event was when I was 25. I was encouraging a new hire who had taken a lesser job under me, but it would give him a lot more room for future growth. He was worried he had made a mistake. I could smell the propane exhaust from his forklift. We were in the Southwest corner of the warehouse that I ran at the time. Bill is still a friend of mine and has had a nice career in sales.

The second one was me and a neighbor kid when I was 9. My neighbor was bummed because his parents worked all the time and didn't have the time to spend with him. It was the summer of ‘78 and it was hot as hell outside. He was wearing his yellow Chevy Luv Truck tank top and I could smell the banana sun tan lotion we had on. The colors of summer were so brilliant.

The third was when I met my best friend. We were 6 and in the first grade. Mark transferred in from another school and well..., it just sucks being the new kid. We all know that. Well, I was nice to him and he became my best man 22 years later. We were in the playground of our old grade school.

The fourth event was me encouraging a freshman at college to stay in school. I was a sophomore. He was socially backwards and struggled with that part of college. He stayed and earned a graduate degree from Cornell years later. We were standing in his dorm room on a Friday and I started to hear the nurse say, "Mike, Mike, Mike."

She was giving me CPR and as I went back through the wall to my right, the Being said, "More of this!"

When I opened my eyes, I felt euphoric. I wanted to jump for joy!

Missy B’s NDE in 1994---death in car accident

In the late summer of 1994 at the age of eighteen, I was involved in a bad car accident which left me with a head injury and some loss of memory. On the top of my head on the left side, there is a 'Y' shape where I had fifty-three stitches. It took me a whole year to finally gain most of my memory back. To be truthfully, there are some things that I still don't remember. I was told that some would come back later in time on its own.

At the time of my accident, I had a near death experience. In my experience I first saw a small, white fluffy spot in the distance, growing bigger and looking like a 'tunnel'. As it moved closer, it became intensely white and bright. My feelings during the near death experience were remarkable and hard to describe. I can try to tell in words, but they cannot convey the true feeling, which was amazing. I felt no pain, anxiety, worry, suffering, or any other negative feelings. It was peaceful, joyful, painless, and better than you could ever imagine --- the best feelings ever!

As the tunnel grew larger and closer, I saw a small child walking toward me. I recognized the child. It was Teena. a sister of mine who had passed away years ago in a fire at our home at the age of five in December, 1977.

It is impossible for me to remember Teena, of course, because I was only a year old when she passed away; but I have often seen pictures of her and would never forget how beautiful she was.

Teena died before I became deaf at the age of eighteen months old due to spinal meningitis.
As Teena was approaching me, she started signing to me in American Sign Language!   I was in awe, because she never knew American Sign Language!   As the conversation went on, she told me it was not my time and that I needed to return to earth to our family.   At first, I wasn't sure why she said it, and I felt that I didn't want to leave her.   She repeatedly said that it was not my time and that I needed to go back.   I asked her why do I need to go back? And why was it that I was now able to see her?

As her face glowed with the most beautiful smile, she told me I was involved in a bad car accident and that I was severely hurt. She pointed down, and I turned my head to look down. I saw my body lying on a bed in the hospital emergency room. It was shocking, seeing my face full of blood as my flesh was struggling to stay alive. I could see several doctors and nurses were working on my body, trying to resuscitate me. I turned my head back toward Teena and told her, 'No, I do not want to go back, I want to go with you.' Teena with her gentle smile said that I will return to her one of these days, but that good things are about to happen to me, and I will have a good life.

Then she told me to tell our parents that she is okay, is happy, and for them to stop blaming themselves for her death. And to tell our mother not to feel bad that she could not keep her promise to Teena. (The promise that our mother made to Teena was that she would not allow anything bad happen to her.)   She told me to tell them that she loves them dearly and not to be sad anymore.   She told me to take care of my parents and that she loves everyone in the family.   We told each other that we loved each other and said bye, as she started walking back to where she first came from, and then it faded away.

Here I come back to where I was lying on the hospital bed.   I woke up screaming in horrible pain and was confused about what had happened.   Then, my fiance was asked to come into the room where I was since the doctors and nurses did not understand what I was saying.   I was asking where was my sister (i.e. Teena), and I wanted to know where she went.   My fiance thought I was asking for my older sister, Tammy, and he said, “she is on her way”.   Then I went to sleep, as I was drugged.

When my sister, Tammy arrived, my fiance woke me up and told me that my sister was here. I reached out for her, then I said, “that is not my little sister”.   Tammy understood what I was saying and burst into tears. Tammy said that everything will be okay and that our dad is on his way.   A few minutes later, our dad arrived, and the first thing I told him was that she is okay, is happy, not to be sad, and that she said it wasn't his fault. Our dad stood there and looked at Tammy.   Tammy had already told him what she had suspected had happened, then our dad burst into tears and cried for a long while.

Monika’s NDE in 1999---from Czech Republic. Original in Czech

I took a dosage of medicine that was supposed to be lethal for a minimum of four adult men. After my suicide attempt, I was found by local firemen, who called an ambulance. Even though I do not remember anything about being found, I am taking this from the telling of people who were present. What was the most significant for me was the fact that during the intervention of the doctors, I was clinically dead twice. The first time for a longer period of time, and the second time only briefly. Afterwards I was in the intensive care unit, I do not know exactly how long, deeply unconscious. The doctors informed my family that my chances of survival were 2%. I would, in any case, have irreversible brain damage and that I would be simply “a drooling vegetable.”

My suicide experience began with a flight toward a light through a dark tunnel.   I came closer to the light, which was intense but did not bother me. The light was full of love, otherwise I am unable to give it a name. I found myself in a fruit orchard with the constantly pleasant light.   I was not afraid. I was received with enormous love and no one in any way judged me. My inner feeling was that I had come home. I did not have a physical body. I was extraordinarily light, and my legs in the grass did not seem to touch a single blade. I was pretty confused by that because, as an atheist, when I confront something scientifically unexplainable, I am reluctant to believe it.

A little ways away from me were three horses who were pasturing.   In life, I had never seen horses like these. About ten years after this experience, I was in Iceland, and I saw something that shocked me, because the Icelandic horses were like the heavenly horses in every detail.

In the distance in front of me, I saw a lake. There were three figures: a woman, a man and a boy about 10 years old. I wanted to speak with them even though they were far away. Suddenly, I was standing next to the boy, who was named Joshua. Simply by thought I was able to move myself there!   We spoke telepathically; neither I nor Joshua used our lips for articulation.   Joshua told me that they died when their yacht sank. They were from the United States. He even told me the name and place, but unfortunately, I did not write it down. After a few weeks, it went out of my memory. Joshua was quite thrilled where he ended up, as opposed to his parents, who were quite confused by how they ended up here.

Then, next to me suddenly appeared a somewhat somber, gray house. I went inside and even though from my earthly life I did not know the house, I saw that once I had lived in it. In the house, a silhouette of a dog who had tragically passed away began to follow me. I felt responsible for this death to some extent. I had let him go from the leash so that he would follow me, but he suddenly ran in the opposite direction and was hit by a car. Even though his eyes were accusing, at the same time I could feel forgiveness from them.

A little ways farther, I saw between open doors. A five year old little girl sat in the corner playing with her doll. I saw right way that this was me at that age, so that I could better understand what would come next. Next was the picture of my not-too-happy childhood.
Suddenly I was again flying with enormous speed back through the tunnel. During this time I comprehended that 'God', as we earthlings call him, is enormously loving and a uniting energy whose essence is in each one of us.

After the second clinical death, it was rather “a fleeting flight through the tunnel.” The light and the other peculiarities, such as the incorporeal body and the telepathic ability, were the same but I ended up in the courtyard of some French castle in the period around the 15th century and waiting for me was a girl. She stood under a window and pointed to a window from which she had jumped because of a unhappy love affair and killed herself. And she added, “Don’t you do it, it is still not your time." And I flew back, once again. I had even spoken with the girl telepathically in a fluent language that I do not understand.

The events after the experience were sad. I terribly wanted to return “home” with the Light again, but it did not happen. Doctors in the intensive care unit were thrilled and happy because they could not comprehend that my brain was not damaged. Afterwards, I headed to the psychiatry department. I was afraid to speak about my experience at all because I did not want to receive some sort of “extra medication.” I first spoke of my experience a few years later with my younger sister, and I tried to find other explanations than that of ending up in heaven. I think that I could have easily ended up in some different space-time continuum. By this I do not want to put down religion; I have studied them in some detail. Quite the contrary, when I strip away the different names for god, the main thing that religion wants to tell us in essence is the same. And it is not strange at all that, in god, a piece of ourselves, we find in a different dimension.

I want to mention that when the doctors were lowering my chances for survival, my Roman Catholic grandmother had a mass said for me. Whether it helped at all, I do not know. I was also taken aback that I did not see my grandfather, a strong and wonderful person, who had died two years before. Later, I came to realize that the people with whom I met were merely in the “waiting room” of the great Light, where the newly dead people and the Icelandic ponies were.

My experience was definitely real. Simply, it was a completely clear reality, just like I am sitting at my desk and entering my NDE into the keyboard right now!

Nancy M’s NDE in 2005

I have Myasthenia Gravis. My medication went down the wrong way; that is, it entered my lungs instead of my stomach. I called 911. In the hospital, I had respiratory arrest.

I was in the emergency room for several hours. About 3:00 am, they finally told me they had a room for me. My last conscious remark was, 'Thank God.' I then was suddenly in space, and I saw a bank of gray clouds about halfway up in my vision. I was not aware of the earth at all. Behind the clouds was this tremendously bright light beaming upward. I said to myself, 'Wow, I am not breathing, and I don't care.' I do not know how I knew I was not breathing; I was not uncomfortable in any way and was not even trying to breathe.

The feeling I had was of complete joy, peace, and love. I knew I was smiling. I started to go toward the bright light, when suddenly, from out of the clouds, up close to the light, I saw a set of beautiful mahogany carved gates. The gates were carved to look like a wide basket weave; only they were solid, not woven. I backed up just a bit. The gates slammed shut. I was still very, very happy and full of the same peace and feeling of genuine love.

Then, I seemed to be sitting on the end of a hospital bed, and a very beautiful angel appeared, standing before me. She had a full head of shining gold hair that seemed to glow like a halo, but it was her hair shining. Her eyes were pale blue, and she was wearing a soft brown gown that crisscrossed in front. The gown was edged in gold, and she had a golden rope tied around her waist. She wrapped her arms tightly around me and looked straight into my eyes. She did not speak verbally, but with her eyes; I knew she said, 'You are not going anywhere, you are staying right here.' Her eyes had this stern demanding look, but they also were filled with love. I could feel myself just smiling back at her.

Then, I heard a voice in my right ear saying, 'She had respiratory arrest.' I opened my eyes and it was my doctor telling my family what had happened. I was on a respirator, so I could not speak, but I immediately indicated that I wanted to write. I wrote on a paper that I had seen the light and an angel. I had a full comprehension of what was going on and was able to answer all the questions the doctor asked me. I guess he was checking me to see if I had any type of brain damage. I would just nod yes or no, and he was very pleased with my responses.

I was in the hospital for about two weeks, and before I left, approximately eight nurses and three doctors that were not my caretakers came into my room, shut the door, and asked me to tell them what I saw. They all seemed to believe me, and a few said it was such a relief to know what may be happening with their dying patients. The story seemed to be a great help to them emotionally.

I have been able to give my testimony to several church groups, and it always seems to help the older people. I love to tell the event and my life has changed so much since. I feel such a love for all people and wish they could have the same peace that I do. I was able to tell my mother my story. She died at the age of ninety-two in June, and I know she died peacefully.

If you have any fear of dying, please cast them aside. The actual death experience may not be pleasant, but the joy of the afterlife is something that you should look forward to with much anticipation.

NDE---When Time Stood Still, May, 1969

"B" Company, 2nd Battalion/47th Infantry (Mechanized.), 9th Infantry Division

It was toward the end of the dry season, and my platoon was pulling out. Our mission was simple: drive down the road, show the flag, and make sure that we still had the right-of-way. The two slowly moving tracks (armored personnel carriers) in front of mine were already kicking up the pulverized dirt road into little clouds of dust. I exchanged my cloth hat for a helmet, put on my wire-rimmed sunglasses, and halfcocked the .50 caliber machine gun as we passed through the base camp gate and picked up speed.

Our four tracks soon achieved a monotonous but comfortable 40 m.p.h., which created a welcome breeze. To either side of the road for mile after mile lay a grid work of rice-paddy dikes dividing the land into tidy rectangles of various sizes. Although the land was flat, the fields did not extend far into the distance, but rather ended abruptly at the ubiquitous wood line.

From no place in the Mekong River Delta could one escape from being completely surrounded by it. Sometimes it might be a couple of miles away, and at others only a few hundred feet. It grew where the delta distributaries were, and they, like a root system, were everywhere, "We" controlled the larger towns and villages, the roads, the skies, the major waterways, and the rice paddies. The wood line belonged to "Charlie."

With diesel engines roaring and trailing a huge, mile-long cloud of dust, the column began to approach one of the spots where the dreaded jungle wall squeezed in on the road from both sides. Instinctively, I began to watch the wood line more closely.

All of a sudden, a very large anti-tank mine was command-detonated eight feet directly under me! I immediately knew what was happening. I was catapulted upwards along with everyone and everything else, including people, dust, weapons, ammunition, helmets, and C-ration boxes.

On the journey upward, time slowed down! The rates of the rotations of all of the objects surrounding me suddenly decreased. I was fascinated by the unnatural ever-slowing gyrations of the bodies of my comrades and wondered, "Is this the end? Are we all dead?" At the apex of my trajectory, time stopped completely and an inexplicable calm descended. The state of consciousness that then prevailed compared to the normal waking state as the normal waking state compares to a dream.

Whatever It was, It was peaceful, omnipresent (temporally and spatially), omniscient, and absorbed everything into an indivisible Whole. The entire universe, past, present, and future, collapsed down to a single Center upon which everything depends for its existence. It was a "Light" of Pure Consciousness which illuminates all things. In short, God Himself took over my reins. There was an overwhelming feeling of bliss, love, and compassion.

Then, the events of my life up to that point were unhurriedly and nonjudgmentally reviewed in great detail---not in chronological order, but somehow all at once---although some events were emphasized more intensely than others. Subsequently, "I" was given the opportunity to be aware of anything that I wanted to be aware of, with the understanding that time was not a factor; indeed, there was "all the time in the world." I proceeded to focus on this or that aspect of my life and concluded that there wasn't too much to be ashamed of!

I could "see" a 360 degree panorama of the road, the wood lines on either side, and the other three tracks of my platoon (two in front and one behind us), The entire episode seemed to be housed in my head, but I was uncertain whether or not my head was still attached to the rest of my body---although, under the circumstances, this point did not seem important one way or the other. In other words, I really didn't care if my life was to be snuffed out or not within the next few seconds. I was then gently (but unequivocally) "informed" that I would survive the explosion without serious injury and even that I would make it out of Vietnam in one piece. Then, time started to rush back in. I could see the ground about 20 feet below me and began to fall towards it.

I was left with an intense feeling of awe and well-being. Ever since, I have been convinced with a conviction that precedes even my conviction that two plus two equals four, that God is, and that God is FOR me. It is no longer a matter of faith or belief, but rather, one of knowing for sure because I have experienced God’s reality. However, it was a pleasant surprise to discover that He is loving, compassionate, and forgiving.

I will always be thankful to God for reaching down and picking me up; in fact, it still brings tears of gratitude to my eyes even as I write this thirty years later. Also, I no longer fear death. I have never experienced anything (before or since) which came anywhere close to being as real and as profound as the state of consciousness which I have feebly attempted to describe. However, my remembrance of it has sufficed to console and comfort me through the vicissitudes of life---especially through the hard times.

Oliver V’s NDE in 1992---from France, Original in French

At 11 years old, I was rushed to the intensive care unit due to a case of septicemia [a dangerous blood infection], which was the result of a bad diagnosis made by a general doctor. This doctor told my parents that I had acute gastroenteritis [inflammation of the stomach membranes and intestines], while what I actually had was a serious case of colonic volvulus [a twisting of the bowel that causes obstruction]. My parents trusted him and so I stayed for about 24 hours without treatment, fainting several times. Finally, my mother insisted I be sent to the hospital.

I have no memory of the trip to the hospital. The only thing I remember is driving there a high speed. The next thing, I can recall is all the surgery instruments aligned on a white sheet and the doctors around me in the intensive care unit. I don't know if I was awake at that point. That's where my memory of what happened at the hospital stops.

Suddenly, I was propelled at a very high speed, along a black tunnel, darker than black itself. This experience is hard to explain, even though my memory of it is as vivid as if I had lived the experience this morning. I did not see any wall to the tunnel, which seems contradictory, but I was aware of being in a spiral-like tunnel. I could see, in the distance, a tiny point of light that grew quickly into a glowing disc, or orb. It was emanating an incredible milky white color, yet was very brilliant at the same time, without hurting the eye. This light was radiating an indescribable, reassuring calm. All my pain was gone and my only desire was to reach the light. When I arrived closer to it, I was again propelled at an incredible speed towards it. Then suddenly, I was completely stopped.

I found myself floating in a place without tangible limits, indescribable, immaculate and saturated with the essence of this absolute light, made of immeasurable Love. It is hard to explain the dimensions of the experience with human words. I was an observer without a physical body, bathed in pure elation in the midst of this Love. Love so deep that all memories faded, in this misty and luminous space without border. I felt completely transcended by this immense Love and thought I would just stay in this unknown but somehow familiar place. It felt even more familiar than my home on earth. I wanted to proceed further but I was not allowed. A voice that seemed like a telepathic conscience coming simultaneously from me and from the Light told me to go back. ‘It is not your time, yet’. I responded ‘I don't want to go back, please let me stay here, I am not hurting here; I feel happy here’. But the instruction was reiterated, a little firmer and was coming from this omnipresent and universal vocal ‘wave’. I was then sucked back into my body.

Going back into my body was extremely painful. I woke up with no notion of whether what had happened to me had lasted an hour or a day. I was covered with tubes and other equipment. I saw my parents behind the window and my mother was crying in my dad's arms. I then felt a tremendous sadness to be in this cold intensive care unit, in the middle of all this medical equipment. Everything seemed so superficial with little meaning, compared to my journey!

Outside, the doctor and anesthetist, covered with blood from head to toe, told my parents that I would not have made it if I had arrived at the hospital just an hour later.

This is my testimony. I told you the whole story without trying to add anything, just the reality of the story the way I experienced it. I was more conscious and alert than normal. I could not possibly now remember a random dream, including every single detail of it, with such a vivid memory as I can remember this experience. It was not a dream.

I would like to highlight that I am usually a very skeptical person, but I have not gone one week without thinking of this experience and questioning myself on its nature. Since my experience, I am in constant quest. I want to know what I experienced and if it was death or a prelude to death. I saw and experienced something that my intellectual mind resists. This experience has completely changed my life.

Pat’s NDE in 1994---death from car accident in northern Spain

It happened one lovely summer night in a small town in northern Spain. I had gone down to a village with some friends near where I spent summers. It was 5:00 am and the dew had left the walkway wet. It's curious, but I still remember that smell of humid earth, a smell that has accompanied me throughout the years.

We all got into the car. I was tired and asked to sit in front since we had a ways to go in the car. I sat in the passenger seat, and I couldn't buckle the seat belt because there wasn't one. I didn't give it any importance, and I went to sleep.

The next thing I remember is that I heard them call me; they yelled my name, and I opened my eyes, but I couldn't see anything. I was wet and a strong smell of humid earth brought me back to consciousness.   I couldn't move. I became frightened, but I didn't lose my composure. I then realized I was in the middle of a river that, fortunately, wasn't very full of water at that time of year. It appeared that the car had gone off the road at a curve and the median barrier came in through the right headlight, cut off my leg, and threw me into the river.

Then my friend, Pablo, found me and took me out in his arms. He put me on the ground, and from that moment on, never left my side. I was conscious at all times. I realized I had broken my left leg and that I had lost my right leg.   I told Pablo to take off his belt and make a tourniquet. That's what he did. Neither one of us lost our composure. As he was making the tourniquet to stop the bleeding, a light suddenly appeared on my left.   It was far away and faint. Meanwhile, Pablo spoke to me to keep me from losing consciousness. But the moment came when I could hear him farther and farther away, and the light became more intense. I stopped hearing him, and the light engulfed me.

I was at the end of a tunnel. I remember it as a train tunnel, where the light of day is dazzling.   I felt so good, better than at any time in my life, relaxed, at peace, very light, with my awareness very calm.   I wanted to go through the tunnel, and when my eyes became accustomed to the intense light, I saw him.   He was at the end of the tunnel, and I only saw him. I didn't hear anything around me, despite there being a lot of people who didn't seem to be aware of what I was seeing and feeling.

As I said before, at the end of the tunnel and the beginning of the light, there appeared a masculine figure, very blond, with long hair, athletic and young, about thirty years of age. He gave me the impression that he had come to greet me. I looked at him. I was calm and wanted to go with him. He comforted me. At first, I thought he was someone who had stopped on the road to help me, but I soon realized that he came from the light.   He smiled at me, turned and was lost in the light.   Even so, I recognized his presence at my side and heard a whisper in my ear saying, 'Not yet.' I continued looking at the light that little by little lost brightness until it disappeared. When I returned through the tunnel to look around me, I was back in my body and the ambulance had arrived. I am unable to calculate how long this experience lasted, but it doesn't matter. The result is that I see and enjoy life in a different way and my priorities have changed.

Thank you, Pablo.

Philip S’s NDE in 1986---death during long-distance bicycle ride

On September 27, 1986 I was participating in my second 150 mile bicycle charity ride sponsored by the hospital for a woman who passed away from kidney failure. This memorial ride was named after her. It was a hot September morning that day with dry weather approaching our area from the north, which would put our ride into a relentless headwind. Everyone would have to struggle to keep up the speed and pace to finish the 150 mile charity ride before the cut-off time of 12 hours.

Unfortunately for me, a perfect storm occurred that briefly ended my life.

When the 300 cyclists left Corpus Christi early in the morning, I immediately sprinted in front of the group and went as fast as I could to get as close to San Antonio before the wind direction changed. Around 45 miles into the ride I suffered a flat tire on my bike and was having trouble changing the tire until a help vehicle came up to assist me. I lost around 25 minutes trying to get the tire changed. The crew inside the vehicle said that I had fallen too far behind and they would have to end my ride unless I really gave my all to catch up to the bicyclists who were about 4 miles ahead of me. So, I rode as hard as I could.

Then the wind shifted. Since I was by myself, I had to take on the full force of the wind without shielding from others. I also had to deal with the temperatures, soaring upwards to around 86 degrees. Despite the extra effort taking a toll on my body, I was determined to catch up to the group.

Twenty miles later, as I was traveling on the Northbound side of the highway, the crew forced me to stop. They were saying that I had made a valiant effort to catch up with the group, but they had to end my ride under the bridge we were approaching. So I got off my bike. I was extremely disappointed because I had been through so much over the past 65 miles. That is when I knew I was in trouble.

As the adrenalin was leaving my system, I noticed that my body was starting to shut down. It felt like my vital organs were crashing and starting to fail. There were three nurses with the crew, and they noticed how rapidly I was deteriorating. They suggested to another cyclist to help me keep moving but it was too late by then. I was getting dizzy and fell to the ground. I remembered looking up at the beautiful blue sky with the patchy cumulus clouds and thinking, 'My life is over Lord; it is in your hands now!'

I was never afraid during the whole ordeal. Actually, I was relieved. I was doing great things for the people around me by getting involved with activities such as bicycle charities. Yet, I secretly felt this was a cruel world, and I was relieved to finally get away from it.

(After the experience, over the years, skeptics tried to annul my story by saying that I probably wanted to live. Ergo, that is why I had the 'hallucination' experience. However, I could confidently counter their assumptions by pointing out that I really didn't want to live anymore and was actually glad to leave the cruel world behind. Thus, my subconscious mind should have allowed me to cease to exist when I died; but, instead, something truly amazing happened that day!)

Although I consider myself to be a 'strange' Christian, I never really understood why I had an atheistic frame of mind during the process of my death. In fact, I fully expected to lose consciousness and cease to exist. However, my consciousness never ceased. It felt like I was obtaining a super consciousness!
For normal people, I would imagine that this type of experience would be terrifying. But, I loved every moment of it. The things happening to me were strange and peculiar, but I was in a world of bliss, seeing all the complexities unfolding around me, wondering what amazing thing would happen next. I was never again in fear that I would blink out of existence; I was too happy to see all the amazing miracles that were happening around me throughout my whole ordeal.

Suddenly, and as fast as I was traveling through the cosmos, I found that I had gently stopped and arrived on a table or a raised floor. I was in a beautiful, abstract room. Although I couldn't see, it felt like a foyer entrance room to an even greater area. Could this area be the entrance to Heaven, I wondered?

I was never able to see, talk, or move in that area, but I was not concerned, because my condition felt like it was going to be temporary. I felt like I needed time to adjust to this beautiful peaceful area. I detected from the visions of my super conscious mind their presence when they came to me. They gently surrounded me with the unbelievable, unconditional pure love and concern they had for me. It was so awe-inspiring, and the feelings of Home, Family, and Love began to resonate from these beings as they surrounded me. I wish everyone could experience such Love in its purest form! I couldn't talk to these gentle, loving entities, but I tried to “think to them” that I was ok and not going to freak out by all the strange and scary experiences that happened to me, because by human standards, I am a very strange and weird person with an open mind; and absolutely nothing frightens me! Then, without warning, these loving creatures suddenly withdrew from me and began to bow down. It caught me off guard, and I had some concern that maybe they were in trouble. But as my mind probed their situation, I noticed that as they were bowing down, with such beautiful smiles of respect and awe, they were watching a Great Royal figure approach them!

This perfect Royal figure came within an inch of my face and smiled at me (with the same concern a parent would have for their child after they been involved in an accident) and said, 'My child, why are you here? It is not your time to be here; I have to send you back!'

This incredible figure sensed my concerns and added, “Don't be afraid when you return back to Earth and make mistakes; just live your life the best way you can and try to show unconditional love for the people you meet, the same way we have shown unconditional love for you! Don't be afraid if people believe in me or not; just have faith that anyone you meet will be touched in some way or another by your love.   Let me handle the difficult job of judging people, if needed.”   I felt this Royal figure gently pick me up and take me back to my body that seemed billions of light years away. The journey was peaceful as we headed back to earth. Then it felt like I had entered the atmosphere, with the cumulus clouds above, and to my body, where my organs began to work again.

The first words I heard were from the three nurses who were frantically working on me to save my life. I distinctly heard the head nurse say, 'I can't get his pulse! He has no pulse! Oh, wait he has a pulse now.' It sounded like she sighed with relief.

In summary, I did travel billions of light years away from my body. I also had overwhelming feelings of unconditional Love, Family, and Home, comforted by extremely loving beings. There was a Royal figure who decided, without my consent, that I could not now stay with them.   But, I wish I could have had the choice to stay there.

The most frustrating part of my experience is that I don’t know the identity of the Royal figure.   Maybe that is where our religious views come into a near-death experience. Or maybe that Royal figure didn't want us to get caught up in religious dogma. This religious figure could have represented Jesus, Mictlantecuhtli, Ereshkigal, Cichol, Yeomra, Anubis, Hecate, Odin, etc. (These are names of ancient Aztec, Mesopotamian, Celtic, Korean, Egyptian, Greek, and Germanic gods).   But, whoever this Royal figure is, it is certainly the link to our Creator, and that is what brings me peace from this whole ordeal.

Randall M’s NDE in 1968---death from a criminal attack

I was the victim of a criminal attack. I had been hit with a blackjack on the right side of the head several times, breaking the orbit of my eye. I was without a heartbeat for over 5 minutes.

After I hit my chin on a marble counter, everything was black, but I could hear every word of the people in the area. I opened my eyes and looked down from the ceiling at a scene of mayhem. Someone was lying on the floor - I couldn't see who -- and three people were on their knees around the person. A nurse ran up with a push cart. Someone was calling out blood pressure numbers; the last set I heard was '35 over 15'. I got bored; it looked like a TV show.

I turned around. That was when I realized I was 'floating', because I wanted to go forward and turn left down a hallway, where they had told me my room was. I tried 'swimming'. That didn't work, but just thinking I wanted to be someplace got me there. Not instantaneously. I just moved through the air without effort.

The hallway was short. Straight ahead was a lead-paned, partial stained-glass window that looked down on a courtyard with a fountain and pond. After looking in my room, I looked out the window onto the fountain and pond in the bright sun light, thinking my daughter would like to sit by it with me and talk; I didn't have a daughter at that time! I had no children. I considered going out the window to the courtyard. Even though we were on the fourth floor, I felt totally safe to do it. I also thought the area should be better taken care of and cleaned up, and that I would donate some money to do that.

That was when it went black again, and I felt like someone was jerking me backward. I got angry. I was very angry when I opened my eyes and discovered I was on the floor. It felt very cold and hard.

The attendant who took me to my room asked me where I had gone. This was out of the blue, because I hadn't said anything to him about going somewhere. I was too angry. I told him, and also told him about the pretty window and courtyard. He said, 'So, you've been in this hospital before?' I said 'No. I haven't been in a hospital since I was born.' Then he shocked me by saying, 'They bricked over that courtyard window in the 1940's, during the war; it let too much light out at night.' I was mystified!

My experience was definitely real. It has never faded or altered in my remembrance. I still remember the peace, joy, sense of anticipation, and love that I felt.

Randi S’s NDE in 1976

I woke up sweating. I knew I heard my mom call me, but I couldn't move. I closed my eyes again hoping that the sleep would go away; I had to get up for school.

I heard my mom call me again, and I opened my eyes. I could see that she had left the light on for me. I wanted to get up and get ready for school, but I couldn't move. I knew that something was very wrong. I wanted to call out for someone to help me move, but my voice wouldn't work either. I thought to myself that I should be afraid, but I also knew that I had to get someone to come to me. I heard a knock on the door and heard my mom let someone in. I wondered if it was someone coming to help me. I closed my eyes again.

When I opened them again, I knew that I had to do something fast, because I kept going back to sleep; I had to get my mom's attention. I could hear her talking with a neighbor; I knew that she couldn't help me from there. I used all my strength and all the concentration that I could to move my arms. They fell across my chest and I could feel my eyes close again.

I could feel myself burning up from the inside. I fell out of bed and rolled a little distance. I closed my eyes again, then opened them and now could muster enough strength to crawl about a foot dragging the rest of my body behind me. I was wondering what I was going to do when, with one last pull of energy that came from nowhere, I hit the wall and yelled one time, 'MOM!' I heard people running through the house and could hear someone; all the people sounded alike now, asking me what was wrong. I closed my eyes.

When I regained consciousness, I was in an ambulance. I remember the loud siren and people in there with me that made me feel a little better. I could feel heat coming off myself as if in a heat wave. I wanted to tell the people that were there that I was in deep pain, but a blissful sleep washed over me.

I couldn't open my eyes, but I was awake again. I was wondering what was wrong with me, and why I was being placed into a fetal position, and then closed my eyes again as a needle went into my spine.

The next time I woke up, I was being put back into an ambulance. I could see the look on my dad's face. He looked like he was in pain. I heard someone tell my dad to follow the ambulance; I hoped that he was all right.

I was being prodded and pushed when I woke up again. I was in another hospital; this time I was in a bed. I saw my mom looking at me. I was able to whisper and I asked her, 'Am I going to die mommy?' She looked at me and said that I would be all right. I remember being put into that fetal position again and could feel the needle going into my spine again; this time there was no pain. I saw the doctor look at the tube of fluid he pulled out of me. It was a brownish color with little specks in it, which turned out to be blood. He said something in a hurry and I passed out again.

I was still unconscious when I was taken to a room with a large bathtub in it and put into the tub, then ice was being put all around me. The ice would just melt into warm water as soon as it touched me. I had a fever of one hundred and fourteen degrees! I don't know how long I was in there; the next thing I remember was the doctor telling my mom and dad that I had to be placed into quarantine.

The next thing I heard was that I was in a coma. I could hear people talking, but couldn't make out too many words; they all seemed as if they were talking in a foreign language to me. I thought that that was weird. I could still hear my mom and dad talking to the doctor sometime later. I had a blood clot, of all things, the size of a baseball forming behind my heart, and it had to be drained or I would die. He told my parents that there was a slim chance that I would or could survive the operation, but that it was the only option available.

They were going to use a tube through my leg and somehow get it to the clot behind my heart. I didn't hear the rest of what he was going to have to do,; I was still in the coma; I could periodically hear what was going on around me; I just couldn't move or say anything. I knew when the operation was happening, and I heard someone yell ”he's flat-lined”, and then I went into darkness.

I wasn't in darkness for too long. I could feel myself moving, but I knew I wasn't on the table any longer. There were thousands of colors in front of me. It looked like I was watching the Aurora Borealis. Then, as if one of the rainbows saw me, it came right up and lifted me! I could feel myself moving along the rainbow as if it was solid, kind of like on an escalator, except I was sitting down. I was watching the colors as I rode along the rainbow, and then, as if it were a wave, one of the colors hit me. I was immediately awash with an emotion; the emotion was the only one that I could feel, and then it was quickly replaced by another emotion as I kept getting hit by the colors of the rainbow! I felt pure, absolute love, jealousy, fear, happiness, and others that I cannot name. I was totally immersed within each emotion until another one ran into and through me. I knew that I was dead, but I didn't know what to do. I stood up and stepped off the rainbow. I was in what looked like a foggy, gray area. It looked almost as if it were a cave. I saw a figure approach me and started to feel better.

The figure was my deceased uncle. I stood before him, and he told me that I was not where I was supposed to be. I looked around and could see a very bright light off in the distance and to my right. He nodded to me and said “yes, that's heaven”. I looked back at him and he held out his massive hand to me. When I took it, I could see things in my mind; my mind was filling up with knowledge. In that split second that he touched my hand, I knew everything there was to know. He looked at me and told me that I had a choice. I could go into the light and into heaven and he told me that he would guide me there, or I could go back, as it wasn't my time.

In an instant, I was throwing the covers off my head. I was back in the hospital, surrounded by other dead people that were waiting to go to the hospital morgue. I opened my eyes and felt fine. I heard a blood-curdling scream and saw a nurse run out of the room. . I could feel all of the knowledge that my uncle gave me slowly disappearing. I knew it would only be a matter of time before all the new knowledge would eventually be gone. Minutes later a group of people came back into the room

I found out later that I had been declared dead and had been in that state for thirty-two minutes. I also found out that there were fourteen of us from my school that had contracted Spinal Meningitis. I was the only one that survived the disease. I was number fourteen. I was tested for the disease, but it was not to be found in my body. I was asked to stay in the hospital for an additional two weeks for tests to find out what had happened and why I was alive.

During the examination, they took vials of blood and X-rays, ran many tests, and asked me many questions. No one asked me about the period when I was dead, and I didn't tell anyone, as they didn't seem interested in anything other than why I was alive. The doctor told me on the day that I was leaving, that I was going to be placed in the annals of medicine. I left, feeling fine.

I have been told over and over again, that I am a miracle and that I must have some purpose or something. I have no doubt that a miracle did occur, but as far as the purpose --- I am still waiting.

Randy K’s NDE in 1974

It was the summer of 1974. I was 8 years old with no cares in the world. I used to hang out with my older brothers, playing all sorts of games. One game we used to play we named 'pass out'. This game was played by one person would inhale and exhale as deep as they could about ten to twelve times and another person would squeeze their chest until they passed out.

To prove I was worthy of being with my older brothers and their friends, I was the guy who would be the one they would squeeze and pass out. I did this about four times before and nothing ever happened to me. I would pass out and never remember a thing. The very last time I did it was a different story.

This time I floated out of my body and was hovering about ten feet above my two brothers and a friend. I remember them giggling and laughing at me, and I remember getting angry that they were laughing at me (at my body). At the time, I didn't even think that what was happening to me was odd or unusual. In fact I had a feeling of 'total love' surrounding me, and I felt so good, like never before.

As I floated there, looking at my brothers, I started to go up higher until I was above the big tree and soon could see the top of our house. I then started to gradually drift across our neighborhood and soon I was high enough to see the entire village like I was flying in an airplane. As I approached the high school, which is the last building at the end of town, I started to shoot straight up into a white light. I was fine up to that point but I started to think to myself that I might never come back and I wanted to go home. As soon as I thought that thought, I heard a voice say, 'You're not ready yet.' Immediately after hearing that voice, I zoomed at what seemed like a thousand miles an hour right back into my body and woke up with a big jolt.

I mentioned what happened to me briefly to my mother, but she just thought I was making up something at the time and my brothers all laughed at me. I never mentioned it again until years later when I saw an episode about NDEs on 'Unsolved Mysteries', and I said, 'That happened to me.' I asked my brother years later about that day, and he said that I wasn't breathing, so they started kicking me to wake me up, and I finally did, obviously. He said for a while there, they really got scared.

Ray K’s NDE in 1966---death from a Judo accident

I went to Catholic School at the time and was horsing around with a friend after school on the playground. He was showing me a new Judo move that he had learned in his martial arts class --- he was going to flip me over his shoulder onto the ground. Something went wrong and I landed directly on my head.

I picked myself up from the ground with the most intense pain in my head and spine that I had ever experienced. I was literally knocked senseless. As I got up, I remember seeing a woman (who was there to pick up her kids) getting out of her car with a horrified look on her face…she had seen the accident. I turned to run into the bathroom - I am still not sure why, but only made it a few feet before I feel flat on my face on the concrete…blacked out completely.

I thought that I had a dream while I was unconscious. What else would a ten year old compare the experience to? I did not realize what had really happened until years later when I started to hear of other NDEs.

It felt as if my body had just come apart and my vision went spiraling out of control. Swirling colors that seemed to disappear to a point somewhere…like a funnel or something. I was really scared, because I felt like I was losing control of everything.

Somehow, I knew that I had to just let go of my fear and roll with the funnel of swirling light. My body was gone…it felt like a blender had just ripped it apart, and I was drawn into the funnel toward the disappearing point. I just let go of everything. As soon as I let go of the fear, the pleasant sensations began.

I still had a 'body' but it was entirely different. I could see in three dimensions as if I had no body at all, but was just a 'floating eyeball' for lack of a better explanation. I could see all directions at once, yet there were no directions or dimensions as we think of them.

I was greeted by a being of Light and Love, but nobody else that I could recognize. It seemed to be just a brilliant glow that seemed to absorb me inside itself. Love is far too weak a word to describe this experience. I became Love - my entire being, every strand of my spirit spreading throughout the Universe had become Love times a million billion.

Now I found myself in front of some giant golden gates of some kind…it reminded me of an altar in the Catholic Church. There was some kind of fog or something that obscured any sense of distance, but my pet dog Skippy was there. Skippy had died some years earlier and was the only 'being' that was dead that I had any real family connection with. I was overwhelmed with Joy and Love and embraced my dog with my spirit. Although I don't remember Skippy saying anything to me, we were so happy to be together again!

At this point, I was told that I must go back…that it was not my time. This is somewhat fuzzy here, but I remember an intense feeling of regret and being filled with a 'No, No, please let me stay' feeling. But wherever the 'voice' was coming from was adamant…it was not my time and I must return. I had no choice in the matter.

If it is possible to describe the 'funnel' experience in reverse, this is what it felt like coming back here. It felt like my spirit was being stuffed into a jar that was far too small and painful to hold it. I was fighting to stay on the Other Side …'No, No, I don't want to go back'. The process would not stop - I was returning.

I heard voices. I opened my eyes briefly and saw a circle of people gathered over and around my body (my face in particular). It was the paramedics from the ambulance and they were rubbing ice all over my face. One of them said 'He opened his eyes' (with great joy on his part). I closed my eyes fiercely and tried to go back, go back, go back - but they kept yelling and telling me to open my eyes while lightly slapping my face. I was in deep physical pain and felt completely exhausted.

Regina’s NDE in 1993

I remember having a tightness in my chest and feeling weak. I went to tell my dad that I wasn't feeling well, but he had already left for work. So I went back to my room thinking, ‘Maybe I'll feel better.’ I remember sitting on my bed and feeling short of breath. I must have passed out because the next thing I knew, I was staring up at the ceiling and floating closer and closer to it. I began to panic, feeling claustrophobic, being so close to the ceiling that I could have touched it. In my panic, I managed to turn over. As I looked down, I saw my body lying on the bed, eyes and mouth wide open. My lips were bluish-purple, and overall I looked pale blue. To the left of me there was a bright, sparkling shaft of light shining down from the ceiling right next to the bedroom door. What was unusual about this light was that it was *not* coming through the window. Scared, I knew I needed help but I couldn't go out the bedroom door, because I didn't dare to go near that strange light.

So I decided to pound on the wall in hopes of getting my brother's attention. When I had gone back to my room a few minutes earlier after trying to find my father, he had been in the living room, right next to my room, watching TV. To my surprise, when I attempted to BANG on the wall, I went THROUGH it and wound up in my closet. Once in the closet, I found some money that I had hidden from my brother. It had gotten lost during a time I had hidden it repeatedly in different places so he wouldn't find it, and I had finally lost track of it.

I then went through the closet wall into the living room where I saw my brother watching MTV and eating a bowl of cereal. A music video by Blind Melon called ‘No Rain’ was playing. I yelled at my brother but he just continued to eat his cereal. Then he did this really gross thing – he blew his nose into his hand (and I'm not going to mention what he did with it after that!) He then went to the kitchen and poured another bowl of cereal, sat down on the couch, and yet again blew his nose in the same way. I realized he couldn't hear or see me. Fear set in, and my thoughts went from, ‘I need help’ to ‘I need to get back to my body.’

I passed through the closet wall again, back through my bedroom wall and to the area of my bed, where I managed to situate myself directly above my body. As I was floating, looking down at myself, I suddenly I felt as though I were being sucked back in. And instantly it felt like someone punched me from the inside. I felt my heart bang against my chest as I gasped very loudly, taking in that first breath. I jumped up, feeling full of energy at first, yet realizing right away that I was very weak and could barely stand.

Confused about what had just happened to me and questioning if it was real, I went to find my brother. He was still in the living room, and he exclaimed, ’You look blue! You look like a ghost!’ I walked across the hall to look at myself in the bathroom mirror. I was shocked to see how I looked – just the way I had seen myself from above – pale blue skin, bluish-purple lips, and you could even see the veins in my face. I went back to my brother and told him what had happened. He was shocked that I was able to tell him everything that I had seen him do and that I could describe the music video he had been watching. I went right to the closet and pulled down the money I had hidden, which of course was right where I had seen it as I had floated by. I didn't tell my dad about any of this. I was afraid that no one would believe me.

Renee G’s NDE in 1979---death by smoke asphyxiation

I was declared dead by smoke inhalation due to a house fire. I was toe-tagged in a body-bag awaiting to be transported to the hospital morgue. I was declared DOA for 29 minutes!

I saw my body lying on a table face down; yet I was viewing it from above, as if I were floating above my body. Then I was taken through the roof and up into a dark space where there were many tiny colored lights, and I was traveling past them.

I had the feeling that these lights were very familiar to me, but there was a single very bright light in the far distance that I was being pulled toward at great speed. I wanted to go toward that very intense light, but then, as if there were a rope tied around my waist, I was reeled backwards again, passing all the same little familiar lights till I found myself in the body-bag, experiencing great pain, stiff from being dead for such a long time.

It was extremely difficult to move any part of my body, as the pain was extreme. I did, however, regain my life and functions and managed to roll myself off the table. When I hit the floor, many came to see what had happened, and then they opened the bag. I was very much alive and well after being there for twenty-nine minutes! My life has not been the same since!

Throughout my experience, I had a high level of consciousness. My senses were incredibly more vivid than usual. I had a great feeling of well-being, love, and peace. Afterward, I went from being a conservative Christian to being a liberal who believes all things are possible. There are no rights or wrongs; things just ARE! The entire experience is still a mystery, but now I have great certainty that there is life after death.

Renee M’s NDE in 2003---death by motorcycle accident

It was a beautiful fall day November 2, 2003. The weekend of the celebration of Halloween. The weather at this time in North America was very unpredictable. This day was a beautiful fall day, warm enough for sightseeing and a nice relaxing motorcycle ride with friends. Little did I know the universe had other plans of how this day would end!

It all happened so fast. I could see myself outside of my body. My soul was above my body, floating around as if I had turned into a magical Firefly. But my body was lying in a ditch in some water. Unconscious. Bleeding from the head with a badly broken jaw. My heart had stopped beating. I could hear everything going on around me. But I was dead. How could this be? I could hear the police and the paramedics talking about needing to resuscitate me, and how much blood I had lost. I had lost over three pints of blood from a head wound, and that is enough to stop the flow of any heart. They had to restart my heart, administer blood, and stick a breathing tube down my throat. I heard the life-flight land and I can still feel the air blowing everything around as if it were happening to me now.

I was watching my life unfold right in front of me like a bad dream, only it did not feel bad at all! I could see my surroundings but did not feel any physical pain or emotional stress. My emotions were heightened and accelerated into pure light energy where there is no space or time. I felt more alive than I have ever felt in my life. There are no words to describe this transformation. It is not humanly conceivable for man to remotely understand.

Okay, I will do my best to explain. Almost instantaneously, after the feeling of floating upward, the beautiful bright light transformed me and sucked me into its magical atmosphere. I merged with God. I instantly became all knowing. I became a part of the creator itself. I had no memory of the feelings of separation from anything. This may be hard for most to understand, but I had been there before! With no fear, I must add. Fear is an illusion. Age is just one more illusion we have created to be a part of life as we know it here on planet Earth.

My spirit guides tell me that I have tapped into the mind of God and this power knows all. It has the knowledge and power to control the material world and beyond. They tell me I must control my feelings and thoughts. I must stay connected always to the universal laws of energy that our creator has uniquely designed for our success and happiness. Do not worry your pretty little head as to the process, for it is in God's Hands. You are not in control now. Just stay close to this plan and your life will blossom like a newly created flower that breathes life as a part of the master plan. 'We are Immortal spiritual beings having a human experience.’

My body’s mouth was wired shut and I could not eat or talk. I was still out of my body. I did not want to go back into it, but some way knew I was going to eventually have too. My Guardian Angel led me back into my body! I may have put up a fight at this time. I remember how uncomfortable I started feeling when trying to reconnect to human form. They had to strap me down in bed. I was trying to scream with a wired shut mouth on the seventh day in ICU. I was in an induced coma for fear of brain swelling. Not sure how long it was induced. With a broken jaw and head trauma I had a lot of healing to do.

It took me about a year or so before I could get a grip on who I was before. I am not the same! I was a born again Christian. This was the religion my parents brought me up in from a babe. Now I do not go to the church but am closer to God and more spiritual than ever.

Rhonda J’s NDE

I awoke around 5am after falling asleep in my lounge chair the night before (which was very unusual). I got up and let my dog out. I became aware that something was very wrong with me, although I was feeling no pain. As I headed for the bathroom, I picked up my phone and carried it with me (something that I never do). Almost immediately after entering the bathroom, I knew that I was going to lose consciousness, and with only great effort was I able to dial 911.

Within 3 minutes a policeman was in the bathroom with me, followed by firemen and paramedics. At that point they started trying to get my vital signs, being unable to obtain either a blood pressure or a heart rate. I was still in my body, drifting in and out of consciousness, and did not consider myself dead. They moved me from my bathroom onto a stretcher and into the ambulance for the 20 minute trip to the hospital. As they loaded me into the ambulance I asked for ice water and was told they had none, so then I asked for water and again they told me that they had none. I told them that if I could not have water I was going to die, and I proceeded to die.

Initially, everything was blackness, and then I re-emerged into an ambulance filled with bright light, light so bright it should have hurt my eyes, but instead, I could see very clearly. The paramedics were working furiously on my body, and one of them was yelling "Randy stay with us, Randy", and I thought it was funny that he thought my name was Randy when my name is Rhonda, but I also thought it was perfectly okay for him to call me anything he wanted.

They were working so hard, yet I was at total peace and without pain, floating, safe, comfortable, joyous. The sensation that I was feeling at that time goes beyond words. Then I became aware of a voice that told me that it was not my time, that I had things to do which were not completed, but that I would have the choice of dying or returning to my life.

At that point it was as if my abilities to experience time were accelerated, and, together with this voice, which I did not recognize, even if it was man, woman, or god, was with me as we reviewed my life. Then together we began to look at the things left undone. I was able to see that others who depended on me would be okay.

In the background I could hear and see the paramedics working on my body. They were working so hard and not getting any results. They were screaming that they could not get a heart rate or a blood pressure and that I had not responded to the medications that they had put into my body. I felt bad that they were so upset, when I was in such a wonderful state of being, which I did not think that I wanted to leave! And then they shocked me with the paddles again, and I moved back into the world of the living with all its pain.

But I wanted so to return to the serenity of the other place... I was moved from the ambulance to the ER and then directly into surgery. I was aware of the conversations going on around me (i.e. the doctor yelling at a technician because my knee was elevated). At some point in the surgery, the doctor told them to administer more morphine, and then I went into a state of unconsciousness.

I awoke in the Coronary Care Unit with my surgeon sitting at my bedside. He said "you don't know me...", and I interrupted him and said "yes, I do" and proceeded to tell him who he was and what had happened. He was obviously stunned that I could tell him about the ER and surgery when he thought it would not be possible.

Richard H’s NDE in 1968---death by unexploded bomb in Viet Nam

It was August 1968 in Viet Nam on the Da Nang River; I was traveling downriver, returning from a mission out in the bush. The amphibious tractor I was riding on hit a large unexploded 500 pound round which was booby trapped by the Viet Cong. I regained consciousness about a week later. The story here is of the week that I was unconscious.

From the time that I was blown up till the time I regained consciousness, the doctors explained to me that on two different occasions that I had clinically died. The first time I died for 21 minutes and the second time for 24 minutes. I had an NDE each of these times I died.

Here is what I remember happening. I was sitting on top of the Am track and the next thing I remember is my soul separating from my body. I heard the doctors pronounce me dead. Then I see my double, a lifeless body, lying below me, surrounded by doctors and nurses trying to revive me. This scene was quite a shock, for the first time I am looking upon myself from outside my body.

It is at this point that I began to realize that all of my abilities, to see, to hear, to think, etc. continue to function, but are now completely independent of my body and flesh. Finding myself floating above the people in the room, I instinctively tried to make them aware of my presence by touching or speaking, no one hears or notices me. At the same time, I am puzzled by feelings of relief, peace and happiness. There is no longer that part of "me," which suffers, which needs and is always complaining about something. Having experienced such ease, my soul did not want to return to my broken and shattered body.

This lasted a short time till I saw a bright light and soon after I was in a place that was extremely bright. I felt that I was joined by those who loved me, and a penetrating voice told me, I needed to change the way I was dealing with my life. The exact words do not come because I don’t remember if language was used. But the feeling of knowledge was generated into my soul. The time of this experience was not of any consequence, because it felt like time no longer existed.

The second NDE trip to the light was more instructive than the first. It had more purpose to it. This trip changed the very core of my being. From a lifestyle hell bent on destruction to being creative, peaceful, and helping those who are unable. During that second NDE I reached the plane that some call The Plane of All Knowing, where you just suddenly know all things and all the puzzles of life unravel themselves and you understand everything and the why of things.

Isabelle M’s NDE in 1993--From France. Translated from French

I was twenty-one and was with my then boyfriend in a hotel in Paris. It was my first love. We had just made love; I went to take a shower and felt a bit tired, but I was okay.

Then, in the shower, I had difficulty breathing, I felt suffocated. I called my boyfriend, who caught me. Apparently, I fainted. The last thing I remember is struggling to breathe.

All of a sudden, I found myself floating in a tunnel, flying at great speed. There was quite a strong buzzing sound. On either side of the tunnel were very bright images. I recognized an image of me as a child. It was like watching a movie. I saw myself playing at the home of some of my parents' friends, wearing a little dress, which I was later able to describe very exactly (color, texture, odor of the garment) to my astonished mother.

I kept going forward through the luminous tunnel, and it was very pleasant. I could see in all directions, a spherical view, 360 degrees vertically as well as horizontally.

The feeling I had was of infinite fulfillment. Then a moment came when I was brought up short by a 'wall' of dense light, which gave off an unbelievable goodness, an indescribable love. I heard a voice filled with tenderness say to me: 'It's not your time, you must go back, it's much too soon.' All this was very surprising to me, since, although I was 'raised in the Catholic religion, I never believed in God' ['élevée dans la religion catholique, je n'ai jamais cru en un Dieu ''].

That is when I felt myself falling like a stone to rejoin my body. The feeling of falling and reentering my body was so painful that I remained uncomfortable for several hours.

But, what an experience! What wonderful feelings! My mission is now to love others unconditionally, and to love myself.

Now 'I am a believer, and I go to church for calm and meditation. I feel good in any place of worship of any faith’ ['Je suis croyante, et je vais à l'église pour le calme et le recueillement. Je me sens bien dans tout autre lieu de culte de n'importe quelle confession'].

Marsha B’s NDE in 1985

I have epilepsy. One day I got weak and fell against my grandfather's dresser. I split my forehead open and had to be rushed to hospital. They finally got my bleeding to stop, but then I started having one seizure after another. They tried using liquid valium and some other drugs directly into my heart. The result was that the combination of drugs stopped my heart and my lungs! It was almost eight minutes before they finally brought me back to life. First, they said, ‘she is dead, let her go.’ My old family doctor said, 'No! Let's try again.' So, they did and I finally responded.

During that eight minute time period, I was outside my body, and I saw everything that took place in the intensive care unit room. I tied to tell all the doctors and nurses that I was all right, but no one could hear me.

(Afterward, I told them minute by minute exactly what took place in the room during the eight minutes. My old family doctor said, 'I have had many patients die on me, but never had one come back and tell me what took place while they were clinically dead.')

Then I traveled down a very, very long and very dark tunnel. At the end was bright light that was beautiful. I saw one of my grandfathers when I came to the end of the dark tunnel. No one in our family had ever taken any pictures of him.

(But, when my other grandfather came to hospital to see me, he said, 'Marsha I brought something, but I don't know why. I stopped him and asked, 'Is it a picture of my other grandfather?' He said, 'Yes! How did you know?' The only picture ever taken was at his funeral when I was very young. I told him exactly what he looked like. He said, 'Yes, Marsha that is what he was buried in. How did you know?' After I told him what I saw, he was amazed. I saw other people too, but that is another story.)

I have told many people about my experience. Some people believe and some don't. That is their problem. I know what I experienced was real.

Please believe me when I say that I am a Christian, and after this experience, I am not afraid to die. I now have a husband and three grown sons and six grandsons and they all know the story for it has been told over and over. Praise God!

There is something after we leave this world!

Rick R’s NDE in 1982

I was working for the Georgia Department of Corrections in 1982 as a Correctional Officer. I worked a constant seven day shift rotation and this week was on the 12:00am to 8:00am shift. It was in December on a cold brisk morning that I punched my time card and headed for home. I was looking forward to this morning as I had planned a hunting trip on the ninety-eight acre farm bordering the Chattahoochee River my family and I lived on.

I arrived home and gathered my gear trying to get as early a start as I could. My wife had already left for work as most people do who have normal working hours. I usually called her when I was going hunting, but being in a hurry on this particular morning I didn't. I had about a two mile hike to my tree-stand and arrived there around 10:15am. My stand was about twenty feet high on the front side facing a thick patch of pines. The back side faced the river below and dropped off to huge boulders in the river below. I tied off my rifle to be pulled up after my climb to the top and began my upward ascent. I reached the top and positioned myself to pull my rifle up. Then without warning, I heard a snap! (I would later return to this site many times to reflect on my life. On one visit with a friend, I measured the distance from the top of the stand down to the boulder I landed on. Eighty feet!) As I began my fall to the river below, I could see the river coming up fast. I knew this was the end for me and, though it was just seconds before impact, it was as though I was in slow motion!

So many thoughts raced through my mind. My wife, my daughter, my family, and no one knows where I am! Would I ever be found? Then -- darkness! How long this darkness lasted, I don't know. Then something wonderful happened! I felt myself leaving my body! I was floating a few feet in the air above the river! I looked on my body with mixed feelings. I was bleeding from my mouth, nose, and ears, and saw a trickle of blood underneath me on the boulder.

As I was reflecting on the state of my body, I felt a pulling and began to rise very fast! I was traveling at a high rate of speed upwards through the atmosphere! As I left the atmosphere, I looked back and could see the Earth! Such a beautiful sight! It was so brilliantly lit! As I looked ahead, I could see the planets!   I thought to myself, this couldn't be! Where is Jesus? I was never told anything like this could or would happen when I died! Faster and faster, the speed was increasing! I saw other star systems and galaxies as I raced onward! I entered what seemed to be a hole of some sort! It was long and dark. However, around me I saw streaks of light made up of every color in the spectrum! I saw a faint light growing brighter and brighter in the distance up ahead.

As I entered the light, I felt it all through my being. I was not afraid anymore! Then all of a sudden, I was standing before a massive set of steps! They led up to what seemed to be a bridge or walk of some kind. In the distance, I saw a sight so magnificent and astounding! A city made up of what seemed to be glass or crystal. The lights were of many colors that radiated from it. Never have I ever seen such a sight! I began walking toward the city in a daze of unbelief! So many questions raced through my mind. I had to know where I was. What was happening to me? I reached the front of the city and saw a double door that looked to be about thirty feet or so in height and width! It shined as if it was polished! As I stood there, wondering, the doors began to open. I took a step back and looked inside. I could see what appeared to be people walking about on the inside, much like they do in a mall here on Earth.

These people, though, were dressed very different! For one thing, they all seemed to be dressed in some sort of robes with hoods. I entered through the doors in amazement at what I was seeing. The inside was massive. It seemed to be square in shape with a balcony all around that led down to different levels.   I walked up and looked downward over the balcony. It seemed to go on forever! As I looked up, I saw many passing by me, yet no one seemed to notice me. Then, as one was approaching me, he suddenly stopped. He slowly raised his head, and I could see his face! He appeared to be a human form in every respect but one. His eyes. No pupils!   They seemed to change colors in shades of blue!   His hair was snow white. I wanted to speak, but before I could, he turned and pointed to a long hallway. Though we never spoke, I knew I was to go down this hallway. Then as if nothing had ever happened, he continued. I knew I had to as well. Something was beckoning me forward. I walked a long walk down to the end of this hallway. I did not turn to the right or the left. I knew somehow that my questions were about to be answered!

Again, I saw before me a massive double door. It seemed to be of some type of metal whether gold or not I could not tell. Suddenly the doors opened! I heard a voice, though not as we speak, but from inside of me it seemed, say, 'Enter!' I did as I was told and the doors shut suddenly behind me. I was afraid for the first time! Total darkness! Total silence! Then after a space of time, the length of which I could not determine, a bright light began to glow in the room!   It grew brighter and brighter.   It was somewhat above me and in front of me. I tried to look but was almost blinded by it.   I held my hands up in front of me and could make out the appearance of a figure sitting on some type of seat!

Then without warning, it happened! 'What have you done with your life?' The voice penetrated my very being! I had no answer! Then to my right I saw what seemed to be like a movie; and I was in it! I saw my mother giving me birth, my childhood and friends! I saw everything from my youth up! I saw everything I had ever done before my eyes! As my life played out before my very eyes, I tried to think of good things I had done. I was raised in church and had been very active in church functions, yet as I pondered on this, I saw a man in his car that had run out of gas. I had stopped and given him a lift to a local store about a year ago. I had bought him some gas as he had no money and helped him get on his way!   I thought to myself, why am I seeing this? The voice was loud and clear. You took no thought to help this soul and asked nothing in return! These actions are the essence of good! I saw all the people I had hurt as well and was shown how my actions had set in motion the actions of others. I was stunned. I had never thought of my life having an effect on the actions that friends, family, and others I had met would take! I saw the results of all I had done. I was not pleased at all. I looked on until the events ended. Indeed, I had done so little with my life! I had been selfish and cruel in so many ways. I was truly sorry I had done so little. Then again, loud and clear I heard the voice speak again. 'You must return!' I did not want to return, though. I was content to stay and longed to stay, even after the things I had seen and heard.

'I have so many questions,' I replied, 'things I need to know I don't understand.'

'You must return and help others to change by changing your life! Physicians will want to perform surgery on you. Do not let this happen! If you do, you will never walk again! You will be visited by one who will bring you answers to the questions you have. Later on, when I call, you will come here again!   You will recover from all that has happened if you do these things. Look and see what lies ahead for the Earth’s future!'

I turned and saw the Earth in a turmoil! Wars and death, terrible sights! Cities fell and new ones were built! I saw the United States and a volcano exploding, covering many cities in darkness! I looked on and saw the collapse of our government, as we know it. People killing for food and water, horrible sights! I saw what seemed to be a giant explosion in the Earth's atmosphere, and much land was destroyed! I looked on and saw a new type of people -- younger and of a peaceful nature. The cities were few that were left, but these people seemed to be content. 'It is time for you to go,' I heard again! But I wanted to see more!

Then the doors opened, and I felt myself almost carried down the hallway. I passed through the doors of the city and felt myself shooting through this hole I had come through! Faster I went, unable to stop! I entered the atmosphere of Earth and saw the river below. I saw my body still lying there motionless! Then it was like an electric shock so tremendous I felt my body jump! I opened my eyes and saw the trees above and the skyline. Then, oh God, the pain! I was struggling for every breath -- choking on my own blood!

I managed to roll onto my stomach. The pain was all I could bear! I looked at the sky and saw the sun was lower than I remembered. I looked at my watch. It was 5:30! My only thoughts were about how I could get help. I noticed my rifle was not far from me, still attached to the rope I had tied around my waist. I began pulling it toward me. I managed to grab hold of the barrel and pulled it up to me. I fired a shot about every ten minutes hoping someone would come. It was getting late, and I knew I would not make it much longer, so I began crawling on my stomach, pulling myself with the stock of my rifle. I managed to crawl up a trail that ran down to the river. I crawled and crawled; the pain was so great that I passed out many times. Through thick brush and briar patches, I crawled. I wanted to give up; I was so tired and in so much pain. I knew though I had to make it at least to where I could be found, I hoped! I looked out in front of me and saw the road I lived on through the trees. I could hear sounds in the distance! Yes, thank you, God, I thought to myself! I finally found myself at the road and began a feeble cry for help. I was too exhausted though and just lay there in the road.

My father-in-law was returning from work and found me lying in the road! 'It's alright,' I heard him say; 'Help is on the way.' That was the last I remembered until I saw the lights inside the emergency room. A doctor stood at my feet. 'Can you feel this?' he said. 'Feel what?' I asked. He had been sticking my feet and legs with a pin. I was paralyzed! 'We cannot help you here son,' he said. 'We are sending you by ambulance to a hospital that can handle your injuries.' Whether from the pain or medication, I was out like a light. The next afternoon I awoke to find two doctors standing at the foot of my hospital bed. They introduced themselves as my attending physicians and proceeded to explain to me that I must undergo surgery at once. The bones in my back that were broken were putting pressure on my spinal nerve, causing paralysis.

Then I heard the warning that I had heard before! 'Do not let them perform surgery, or you will never walk again!' I understood completely, but knew they would not. I told them I must see my wife and daughter first! My wife arrived with my daughter shortly after the doctor's visit. I told her what they had said. She advised me I must realize they were doing what was necessary to help me! I did not know how to tell her what I had experienced! I tried to tell her it was my belief that I should not be operated on. Although she disagreed, she honored my wishes. When the doctors returned and I told them of my decision, they were very upset! I listened to lecture after lecture! 'OK,' one of them said, 'if you never want to walk again, that's up to you!' Then they left. That night I lay upon my bed and wept sorely. Was I insane? What was I doing?

A light began to fill my room. 'You will be well,' I heard a voice say. Then it was gone. I composed myself and dozed off to sleep. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months. Then one morning I felt a tingling in my feet! I was overcome with joy! I told the nurse I wanted to get up and walk! She stared at me and said, 'We'll see, we'll see.' I knew I was healed, without a doubt! The nurse put a call into my doctor and the next morning he stopped by. 'So you think you can walk?' he said. 'Yes,' I replied! 'Well we will see.' A few hours later, I was taken down to the Physical Therapy room. They carried me by bed and raised me up to a vertical position. The nurse helped me in front of a set of parallel bars. I gripped the bars and placed my feet firmly on the floor. One step! Two steps! 'My God he's walking,' the nurse said to the nurse who had brought me down! The next few days were hard. I took many trips to Physical Therapy and had numerous x-rays done per my doctor’s orders! My wife and family were all amazed, yet I knew! I had been told! The rest had to be true as well! My doctor was more amazed when he found no bones pressing on my spinal nerve! I use his quote: 'This is not normal! It seems a higher power has done for you what we were going to try to correct with surgery! I have never seen anything like this before!' End quote.

Since that day, my life has changed, and I have been able to help others in ways I never dreamed. I wanted to share this with all, as it is what has led me onward in My Quest for Truth. Peace and Light to all.

Paul B’s NDE in 1963---Results of crash hard to read.

The crash, and how it affected my body: I had been in a severe automobile accident at 7:00 pm on September 17, 1963. The steering wheel had lifted me up from the driver's seat upon impact and smashed my face against the interior roof of the car. I was seventeen years old at the time, and had just been involved in my first car accident. A single car crash with a brick wall. The accident happened in a pounding rain storm, when the brakes went out on me. That resulted in a crash. There was no alcohol or drugs involved. I was coming from work and driving to a co-worker's home.

After the crash, as the car was crashing down to the ground after climbing the wall, I was stunned, felt burning pain throughout my face, and got out of the car and laid down in the wet grass. I remember feeling momentarily soothed by this coolness against the pain that was searing throughout my face.

By 8:00 pm, I had arrived at the hospital, been x-rayed and left in a hallway with alcohol-soaked gauze pads over my eyes to reduce the swelling. My parents, who later told me that I would bolt upright every ten to fifteen minutes and throw up volumes of blood that I had been swallowing, attended me. My injuries consisted of severe facial fractures of both temporo-mandibular joints, the nasal concha, the mastoid, the roof of the mouth (along three axes) and the right orbital floor, which had disintegrated, causing my right eye to drop into the sinus cavity. Seven teeth had been lost from the impact; two had exited through the skin below my lower lip. Such was the extent of my injuries, and, as massive as they were, I had lapsed into a state of unconsciousness, and do not remember feeling pain during this time.

Here is what happened to the “real me” that no one else saw:

After lying unconscious for around two hours, I became suddenly alert in my mind. I was aware that something horrible had happened, though I was unsure of what exactly had occurred. I knew that it was a serious moment, one I could not pull back from, one where no one could intervene for me, or change it; in short, a very bad thing happened, and there was not going to be a 'do-over.' I heard hospital-type sounds, a phone ringing, a doctor being paged, footsteps, hushed activity, etc. I was aware of light streaming in from something that was covering my eyes.

Then, suddenly, I began to feel calm, very calm. I was experiencing a calmness that was unknown to me, yet I was not frightened by the uniqueness of it. Instead, I felt more aware than I had ever felt. I noticed that the light had begun to fade; at first it was even and then faded quickly. I was now encased in a three-dimensional inky black void, and the sounds of the hospital hallway were getting progressively quieter, then they were -- gone! No sound. No light. I felt intense feelings of calmness and tranquility coupled with a non-verbally alert mind. I then felt as if I were moving silently upward, I felt myself float up and out of my body. I lifted up and to the left slightly and at a steady, slow rate of speed. I remember the strangeness of it all. I thought I would return to my body any moment. But I didn't.

I was disconnected from my body, and was beginning an upward journey away from my body. I realized that this is what dying is all about; this is what people did not want to talk about, but which was now happening to me! And, it wasn't so bad. But then, I was stopped in my tracks by an intense feeling of emotional pain. I experienced it as my parents' grief. They were standing next to me, along the right side of my body, and were trying to console each other, because they had been told to prepare themselves for the fact that I would probably not survive the seriousness of my injuries. A Catholic priest had been summoned to administer the Last Rites. What I knew was that I was not in pain, and they were in extreme pain. And it was the first time in my life that I actually experienced the pain of another person, not just 'understood' it, or 'empathized' with them; but truly felt it as a massive shock wave that assaulted my spirit.

I broke the pull that had been lifting me upward, and drifted down towards my mother's right arm, and was immediately surprised that she didn't turn to look at me. She and my father, who was standing on her left side, continued to look at my body that was damaged beyond description. I recall being disinterested in my body lying there, and instead, was intensely focused on the grief of my parents. Suddenly, I realized that they would know in time, that I was not in pain -- that I would be all right, and that they could then begin to release their pain. That realization relaxed me enough to give in again to the pull that was gently tugging at me to resume my 'floating flight path.' This I did, and became aware of a thin bar of light in this inky black void. I knew that going through that light would separate me from my life here, from my family, friends, my neighborhood, and from my life that would have occurred in the future. However, I felt something relax inside of me that indicated permission to go forward toward that light. Then, suddenly, from my extreme left side, a voice which I have never been able to identify except to say it was a male voice, and even though I am using the word, 'voice' it was more like a very strong telepathic communication that shouted, 'NO!... NOT YET!' I was immediately propelled downward with great force and slammed back into my body.

When I recalled the experience about eight or nine days after the accident (I had been in a coma for three days, and in a near-coma for another four), I had no frame of reference for what I had experienced. I remember feeling that I could relate it to my friend, Ed, and looked forward to sharing it with him. I shared it with Ed after I was released from the hospital, twenty-one days after the accident. In the next few years, I shared the experience with three or four of my close friends, with my parents, and my two brothers. By 1971, I had become a Health Educator, and conducted health education classes for high school seniors. As part of the Mental Health unit, we covered a section on Death and Dying, and I shared my experience with them.

I was stunned when some of those seniors who graduated in June, returned to visit on their Thanksgiving break from college, and brought with them a copy of Elizabeth Kubler-Ross' book which had just been printed, and which they had as required reading in their freshman psychology courses. I was astounded! Here were such similar situations to mine, that I was stunned into an awareness that here was a uniquely human experience that only required permission to be shared openly. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross had now provided that permission. Even though I had known my experience was real, I understood that others could be doubtful because I was only one person, who was stating his subjective perspective of a very private experience. But, when I read so many similar experiences from so many different people from so many different places, it became crystal clear that people in that circumstance of near-death are collectively living something which heretofore had not been adequately documented.

Wesley W’s NDE in 1991

I was a truck driver for 'Road Runner Trucking' in 1991, in my third year, and a rookie at flatbed driving. I started my run in Hondo, Mississippi, with a load of aluminum framing going to a small town in Southern Nebraska. It was what they call a shutdown load. Meaning, if you don't get there on time, it will shut down the factory. So I drove non-stop to the destination.

The trip started out strange: I stopped in west Memphis to shower and change. I was fueling up with 150 gallons of diesel in the rain. Two islands away, lightning struck the pump and the transformer, starting a fire and scaring the shit out me. Then when I was in Springfield, Missouri, I fueled up and left five minutes before a tornado hit the truck stop! I kept on running, to Kansas City, Kansas before I stopped for coffee. By this time, I was exhausted, but I kept running. I reached Beloit, Kansas (a bump in the road) at 8:00 am and kept running, even though I was having a hard time keeping awake.

I remember reaching over and turning over a tape of Dwight Yoakam. That's when it happened. I fell asleep with my eyes open. I may have driven five miles like that. I missed the road construction signs and wrecked the truck. I will leave those details out for they are not important here.

The next thing I knew, I was somewhere else, a place outside of our time and reality. Yet I was still in the truck. I felt calm and happy.

I heard someone speak to me. They told me not to be afraid. I was not frightened. I felt whole for the first time that I remember. I was unable to hear anything from the physical world. But the being that was speaking was speaking to my mind directly. They showed me the next crossing, but they said I really should stay 'here' and not to go on any farther.

They asked me if I remembered the strange epileptic-like fevers that I had when I was a child. I did. They showed me that they were there then and when I had the bike wreck when I was only five years old. They showed me again. There they were. They showed me that they were at the birth of my first son. They showed me some other stuff, but I was not allowed to remember. Then they told me that I was not done yet. They brought my attention to the body on the floor of the truck.

I remember asking them “who is that?” All they would say is that I'd better wake him up or he will die in the fire! So, I went to shake his arm to wake him, when I realized that it was me on the floor of the burning truck! They told me that the only way out was through the fire and that it would be okay. Then I was back in my own body coughing and choking on the black smoke. The rest is history. I did receive third and fourth degree burns over thirty percent of my upper body, but that's okay now.

Six days after the accident, I was in the burn unit of St. Frances regional hospital in Wichita, Kansas and with a catholic priest. He ridiculed me and called my experience the work of the devil---and that I should renounce Satan and ask God for forgiveness. WHAT A PILE OF CRAP!

My experience was definitely real. At first I felt it was meant for someone else. Someone with more authority and knowledge of what I was supposed to do! Now that I have had a few years to dwell on it, I feel it was a lesson in humility, grace, and love. A moment of clarity and purity of soul. A divine intervention and redirection. A lesson in cause and effect (that every action affects everything else) and in the connectivity of everything. A sudden realization that there are many paths to richness and that acceptance is the key to peace.

Now I have a greater tolerance and acceptance of others that I meet. And I pity those who can't see beyond their religious bigotry.

Stella’s NDE IN 1972---From Italy. Original in Italian.

I was crossing the street and lost my sandal. I turned back to fetch it without thinking and I was hit head-on by a car. It was the most memorable blow of my life, and that was nothing compared to what was coming!
I saw myself rolling into a small ditch at the side of the street and knew that I was very badly injured; maybe I was dying? As soon as I asked that, I was catapulted into the inside of an ambulance that was supposed to save me. I saw the nurse lose her ring, the ring that belonged to her mother, and I saw where the ring fell. Then the driver lost his way. At that point, I figured that I would never get to the hospital, but I was overjoyed! I had entered a tunnel (which I strangely seemed to know well) and traveled rapidly toward home, without any intention of stopping to observe anything in the tunnel. I just wanted to get “home”.

The tunnel was semi-transparent and I saw points of light like distant stars becoming rays of irregular lights, like the headlights on a car that is speeding down a curved road. My speed kept growing until the light could no longer reach me and I saw that the tunnel was one giant curve. The curvature was barely discernible, yet I could feel it. Then I was home. The light surrounded me and I was in eternity. Every question I asked had an instant clear response, even if I didn't understand every answer.

The gentle song of many voices surrounded me, but I couldn't understand the song. Then my past flashed before me---Being born, my mother, father, the cold of winter, the yelling and abuse at home. The trips to the countryside where I communed with 'God', who was in everything.

Then I walked barefoot in an undulating field on soft grass, and, not far away, an oak tree stood out. It was more imposing than anything I had ever seen, a brilliant green, like life. Beneath the oak tree, a young boy was waiting for me. He was beautiful and dignified. He invited me to take a rest, having me take a seat on a wooden bench at a table on top of which were bread and red wine. My father had made wine, so I love red wine.

After I had eaten, he said, 'Everything you see is like looking at clouds. You see the shape of a little dog, but you know it's a cloud. Now you see yourself at home here but know that you must return to earth.' I answered with a dry and distinct 'No.' I didn't understand why I had to leave when I felt so good here. He objected, 'Don't you miss your mother and father?' I said, 'No, soon they'll be here, and I will see them again! With extreme love and patience, he showed me that I still have so much to learn, and he showed me my life as though it were a journey.

I could choose various paths in the journey, but I had to get from A to B. The important events, my goals, were symbolized by marble statues, while others were made from fresh clay and still malleable, still time to make them into something else. I understood that the point is that all the conditions must be satisfied. A series of free will choices and reactions to events determines the conditions to find the destination or to miss it. It is so free that one can always try and try again. It doesn't matter how long it takes or where it happens (time and space do not exist), the only important thing is to 'meet the conditions' to arrive at the proper destination. I hadn't reached any such place yet.

Notwithstanding all this explanation, I still refused to go back. So he took me in his arms and showed me the river from which there would be no return and all the cities that existed beyond the river. He told me many things, but I was determined to remain cuddled in his arms and lulled by his voice, and I didn't listen. I refused with all the stubbornness that a child is capable of. 'So you'll have to speak to my Father,' he said.

I wasn't at all afraid but was very determined. Then I was picked up by 'the loving arms of the Father.' He called me by my real name (which means 'little monkey full of curiosity and rebellion') and I recognized him as 'my GOD' with whom I had 'played' so much. God said, ‘if you love me and you love mankind as much as you love me, then go back, and live so that my Will be done for their good!

So, using my own words, he tricked me for the good of all!! 'The problem with arguing with God is that He is always right!' I thought---but he heard my thought and together we had a good laugh.

Then, because I had to leave, I was desperately crying as I turned towards the youth. He asked me not to remember all this, because the homesickness would do me harm. But I rarely take advice; therefore I suffer to this day with my desire to return to the Other Side.

The journey back was very painful in every sense, and I don't want to relive it now. I can say that I re-entered my body as though I was putting on a glove, first the fingers then finally the rest of the hand. Then came the intense pain of the body, and I awoke on my own from the coma. When I came out of my coma, I was yelling at all the doctors: Let me go back! Damn you all! Help me die!' I only became calm when I saw the nurse who had lost her ring and I told her where to find it. And so with an enormous effort, I began to remember everything, and I mean everything: even the stuff I shouldn't have. The doctors were very worried about me and my state of mind and ordered psychological support---and they also sent me to a group that investigates NDEs.

Today at forty years of age, I can say that my experience was definitely real, as these facts show: Before I entered the tunnel, I saw that the ambulance nurse lost her ring and saw where it fell---and I told her where to find it without her having to ask about it; I also knew that the ambulance had gotten lost in a neighboring county and knew who the driver was without ever having met him. I was brought to the hospital in a private automobile. These facts especially piqued the interest of the NDE research group.

Dr. J relates his Patient’s NDE in 1997

I am a general surgeon. The following event happened to a patient I was operating on AND was witnessed by the Anesthesiologist, Scott M, MD. I wish I could remember the patient's name. There was a hospital FULL of people who can confirm this story – verbatim!

An elderly patient of mine had gallstone-induced pancreatitis. I put her under general anesthesia without incident. I began the operation by making a small incision at the umbilicus. Then, while I was placing the first laparoscopic trocar into the abdomen, the anesthesiologist from California said, 'J, I've got a little arrhythmia here, just a touch.' I continued the operation. About fifteen seconds later he said, 'J, she's in what looks like atrial flutter; wait, no,V-tach! Shit! She's flat-lined.'

Remember, we had total control of her airway, so she was always getting oxygen---and we were monitoring her pulse-oximetry. But her heart stopped. I removed the carbon dioxide we had injected into her abdomen -- looking around the abdomen to make sure I had done no damage, and then we tore down the drapes and began CPR.

I worked on this elderly woman for an hour and a half!   I shocked her about 28 times!   By this time, the operating room was full of people -- nurses, orderlies, etc. I continued chest-compressions and shocks according to ACLS protocol, and her airway, maintained via an endotracheal tube, continued to receive 100 percent oxygen.

EVERYBODY - especially the nurses - said, 'J, give up - it's over.' I refused, because, quite simply, I had done nothing to this patient except make an incision in the abdomen. And yes, we thought about everything:   CO2 embolus. inadvertent aortic puncture, loss of airway, wrong or bad cardiac leads, etc. We tried everything! A chest x-ray was done to rule out pneumothorax.
After twenty-eight shocks (I think), I got her back. She was technically without a cardiac rhythm of her own for an hour and a half.

We took her to the intensive care unit. The family was flabbergasted. They thought I had 'done something to kill her’. The staff and anesthesiologist told the family (more bluntly than I would have) that, 'The only reason your mother is alive is because of Dr. J.   He refused to give up when everybody else told him to.   He's why she's alive.'

That night, Dr. S and I went to the intensive care unit and asked this elderly lady what she remembered from the experience.

She said, 'I was in the corner of the room -- floating -- and I saw you working on me. You shocked me, and I was dead. I was hovering in the operating room, watching you do chest compressions.

I saw a massive, bright, white light, and there were two angels there, telling me it wasn't my time and to go back. But I didn't want to.'

The next morning, Dr. Scott and I went back to see how she was doing. [Remember that this all happened at a small community hospital in California -- and there was skepticism on the family's part.] The following morning, the patient DENIED EVERYTHING!

I transferred the patient to University Medical Center the next day. They (with big balls, I must add), went ahead and took her gallbladder out and THE SAME THING HAPPENED TO THEM -- except, their electro-physiologist (cardiologist) did some cardiac 'mapping' and found this patient had an aberrant conduction system -- sensitive to anesthesia -- and he put an automatic defibrillator in her chest.

She came back to see me, a year afterward. She REFUSED to confirm what she had initially told me and Dr. Scott that first night in the intensive care unit in California.

From a doctor's viewpoint: Imagine if she'd died? How can you prove an aberrant-conduction defect in a DEAD body? You can't. There is no telling what a court or malpractice company would have said.

Bobbi D’s NDE in 1976

I had an apparent infectious illness. I was dying when I was rushed to the hospital. They put me in surgery three days later when I was not responding to antibiotics. They knew the risk was very high that I could die in surgery. I did. The surgeons (three of them) told me later that they didn't think they could resuscitate me. One said it took five minutes to bring me back from death. During that time I had a “near-death experience,” although, at that time, I had never heard of or read about such a thing!

I was being pulled out of my body. I was traveling at an incredible speed. There was no fear whatsoever in this experience, even though at this point, I didn’t know what was happening. It was at this time that I realized I had left my body, that I was dead. I didn't care that this had happened. I was peaceful.

The traveling began to slow, and I had a sense that I was arriving somewhere. There were six spirits there, and I could clearly see them, wearing the clothes of their day on earth. Five were males. One was a female. I did not know any of them from this life. I knew instantaneously that they all loved me deeply, unconditionally, and knew me thoroughly. I think of them now as my greeting party who came out to meet me at a designated point. I had no thoughts regarding this at the time. I was peaceful, happy, and free. They engulfed me in unconditional love. (Everything there is laid bare. There is no shame, guilt or deceit. It's not possible there. There is total understanding, without even experiencing the thought of needing to understand. It is already there -- total understanding in perfect clarity. I have to elaborate on this, because it is an important difference between our earthly physical reality, and the true, after-physical-death reality).

There, at this place, outside of the physical body, everything that you are, feel, think, and believe is clear for anyone to “see” (feel and understand) with perfect clarity. It was not what I did in physical life that mattered most. It was who I was, who I am inside, my soul that was more important than any physical thing I did. In other words, it was only who I really was at the time, in terms of my soul, that was most important. That's not to say that all of my life experiences had not significantly contributed to the person I was. They had. The impact of physical actions on the soul cannot be lessened. It's hard to explain. It's as if I might think that I could do bad things or have bad thoughts about others and it would be okay, as long as I remained a beautiful person inside. This is wrong. It does change your soul. Physical actions weren't as important as the person (me) that those experiences had created. Now, I couldn't see what the spirits who had greeted me had done in their physical lives. I could see (feel and understand) with perfect clarity who they were inside, just as they could see me clearly.

All of this happens with feelings/thoughts that occur simultaneously at incredible speed. I did not hear the way we hear in the physical world. The element of time, as we know it in physical life, does not exist. For instance, one of the souls who greeted me said to another soul, in a slow, pleading, pausing way, this sentence, 'She's been through so much, and she should be allowed to stay.' In physical terms, this might take fifteen seconds to say, at the speed with which he said it. However, it doesn't take time there. It's instantaneous, even though I know this sounds strange. The feeling of time is realized by an individual in communication. But, time doesn't exist in physical terms. It is the most wonderful language--- perfectly clear, perfectly understood, perfectly liberating, and just perfect! I never heard a tone that could identify a specific voice. It's not like that. The tone is there. It's a tone that identifies a specific soul, not something that's physically audible.

Now this is going to be hard for you to comprehend. I could understand all six souls speaking at the exact same time with perfect clarity, as well as knowing the purest depths of their hearts, and a multitude of other things happening and information that I was privileged to receive, all at the exact same instance. There are no doubts about what is said because of the dynamics of the form of communication (souls laid bare, plus you feel it, and know it's the truth). And I never questioned it. There was no need to. I knew instinctively that it's the true form of communication. I instantly felt I'd been freed from all the limitations of physical bondage. You feel that you are finally home, where you belong. Now, I never had a memory that this place was home. It was more of an instinctive and intuitive knowing. Doubts don't exist there. They're not possible. Everything is perfectly clear knowledge.

The greatest emphasis of this experience was LOVE. I was totally engulfed with a love that does not exist in our physical world. No matter how deep a love you feel for your children, it does not compare with this love. This love is the purest, truest, deepest, totally unconditional love and is beyond your abiiity to imagine.

Then I saw a great Light that I felt compelled to move into. This light was the source of love, emitting love that was 'over-the-top' in terms of what a mother or father feels for their child. I think of this Light now as God. And I'm grateful that this Light revealed its love for me in my death experience.

Okay, now I'll give you the details of the experience in human terms, although I believe these details are totally insignificant in comparison to the real, important aspects I have tried to explain.

Upon arriving at the place where the six souls met me, they commenced in loving me, via their thoughts/feelings. I felt free, wonderful. They had an extensive conversation among themselves at the same time that was about me being allowed to stay, where I do not know. But, I was happy to stay right where I was. There was a deep blue-colored universe around them. It was pleasant. There was no land. But, it was not unnatural. Quite the contrary. It felt more natural than earth. It felt right. I can still see their faces clearly in my memories. The consensus among them was that I should be allowed to stay. I was so happy. There was no way I was going back. No way! I had no doubts about that. I had been released from the limited prison of the physical body. My mind was a thousand times sharper, freer, and able to operate at full capacity.

Then the Light drew closer, and everyone became aware of it, and their focus shifted to the Light. A woman came into view, completely surrounded by the Light (the entire visual field). The other souls were pleading with her to allow me to say. She stared at me deeply, then said 'She goes back.' My heart dropped. She was firm.

Suddenly I was again hovering above my body. A nurse was packing ice on my chest and telling me to wake up. I was naked, no sheet. I looked at my body in disgust. Next, I felt incredible pain, realizing I was back in my body.

I shared my experience on the Other Side with others, immediately upon regaining the strength to talk. In fact, I couldn't talk about anything else, once I was strong enough to talk. I wanted to share it with everyone! One surgeon told my mother that my NDE was most likely caused by hallucinations. I knew otherwise. Another surgeon told me it could have been real as he had heard similar stories from patients who were resuscitated. My spouse, who loved me deeply, drew closer to God during our years together. My NDE experience was the most real, vivid experience I've ever had in my life!

Robert L’s NDE in 2008

At the time this happened I had been living in a tent city for contractors in Beaumont, TX after hurricane Ike. After several weeks of non-stop work, we had a weekend off.

I had been drinking beer all day and there were some Mexicans camped next to us. They had some moonshine whiskey and all the cocaine you could possibly do. I partied hard into the evening. I didn't consider myself to be totally incapacitated in any way. I got up from where we were behind our tents and was walking out to my truck to relieve myself. I do this thing that is like a sneeze but it extends for a few seconds. As I was walking by my tent it happened and I can remember beginning to lose consciousness and falling to the ground.

The next thing I knew I was standing in an incredibly bright white light, the most brilliant, pure white light I've ever experienced. As I felt the light engulf me (this is where it gets hard to explain), I could feel all the problems, anger, fear, and any other negative emotions just lift out of my body. I instantly knew the light was pure goodness and love, like nothing I had ever felt before or since.

I noticed some people near me and walked over to them. One was my mother and another was my first wife. My mother had died four years before this, and my first wife three. I was very surprised to see them, but nonetheless they were there. There were some others, but I'm not able to say for sure who. My first question was this, 'Is this how it really feels?' It was such a feeling of peace and love I can't describe it. Their answer was 'Yes, isn't it wonderful.' 'Yes,' I said. I got to say hello and ask what happens next and they told me I was going back where I had come from but they would be watching over me and we would all be together again. Before I could respond, I opened my eyes and found myself lying on the ground.

It took me a few seconds to realize where I was and what had just happened. I had a profound sense of understanding that the existence we live in here is just not truly what is real. I now have no fear of death and know that where we are is just some place we must go through before we reach the prize that awaits us. The thing I remember feeling most was when I regained consciousness and found that I was back here. I immediately told the friend I was partying with what had happened. He could tell that to me this experience was real and I was convinced that it was real.

Think what you like, I'm sure most anyone that reads this will say, oh he was drunk and high and just hallucinated this. Let me tell you this, I've been drunk and high many, many times and have never, ever had an experience like this. I know now that the light I stood in was pure goodness, peace, and love. I felt the presence of God and it is wonderful beyond description.

Tom C’s NDE in 2003---another horrible accident

I had an NDE when I had a bad car accident six years ago. My right front tire blew out at about eighty mph and I left the road almost instantly and rolled several times. The most bizarre thing was that I have NO MEMORY of the accident at all - just memory of the blowout. Next thing was that I watched the emergency medical technicians try to revive me right afterward.   It took the fire and rescue men almost an hour to extract me from my car.

I was hovering overhead!   In this time, I felt no pain, no fear at all. I remember actually being over my body in the ambulance as they took me to the hospital!   A male emergency medical technician gave me CPR and I remember the tattoo he had on his upper forearm. I could draw it!   I don't remember his face or name at all. I 'followed' my body (from overhead) in the ambulance, then down the hospital corridor with the emergency medical technician still trying to revive me. I was covered with blood. They had cut my tee shirt and jeans off me. I was in one of those neck brace things. I had a broken pelvis, ribs, and both legs. The left side of my head bashed into the door column, which ripped my ear off, and gave me brain lacerations from the impact. My small intestines were ripped in two.   Blood kept coming out of my mouth and nose. I watched as I had a seizure!

I had the most unbelievable happiness and elation that really can't be put into words! The vividness and small details of this experience match nothing that has ever happened to me before!   I seemed to be backing away through a very long tunnel. This tunnel had rings with very bright dotted lights on each ring. The feeling of peace and happiness was unbelievable. Then I saw a movie of everything that had happened in my life, shown on a monstrous screen. As the movie reached the time of my accident, it all ended!

I awoke from a drug-induced coma after about two days. It was as if I was home from a very long vacation. Both my sisters were there when I came to. I was told by one of the doctors that my heart had stopped due to blood loss. I had been given seven or eight units of blood!   I was in the hospital for twenty-one days. It took me almost three months to walk again.

Sandra B’s NDE in 2001

At age 62, my brain aneurysm had been detected after I had several strokes. The brain operation to repair the aneurysm had been scheduled, but the aneurysm burst before the operation date. My brain surgeon had warned me it was ready to blow and to get to the hospital fast if it did burst early. He had warned me that I had only minutes to live if the brain aneurysm ruptured before he could operate. He told me how I would feel if it burst. When it happened, I called my man friend and asked if he could come take me to the emergency room as I was dying with only minutes to live. Lee, my companion, is a thirty year retired paramedic. We were childhood friends.

Lee went into the hospital emergency room with me. He later told me the details of what had happened, and we compared notes as follows. Lee said the minute they laid me on the emergency room table, my heart stopped. He timed it, and my heart was stopped for three minutes. Then, my heartbeat came back for two minutes, and then it stopped again for another three minutes. Each time it stopped, more doctors came in. After the second time, they rolled up my arm sleeve, gave me a shot in the arm, and my heart came back almost immediately.

Now, my account of the experience from my recall: The minute they laid me out on the table, I could not speak or move, but I heard everything. The doctor was yelling for me to answer him. I could not even move a finger, much less speak. I did not know that my heart had stopped. I struggled to answer him, but I could not, nor could I move any part of my body to signal I heard him. The reason, I believe, was that my body was dead! Only my “spiritual body” was present on the table!

I think this, because, after a short time, I left my body, and I was looking down at my body! I would say I was about six feet up over my body. I thought to myself, 'I must be dead, as I am looking down at my dead body.' I was very calm and began to move very slowly upwards, and I found that it was more and more beautiful as I moved into an infinity of light and peace and happiness. I knew I was going to heaven or somewhere very beautiful. I did not want to come back at this point, as it was the happiest I had ever been in my life! I felt so loved. I then became very alarmed, as I knew this is the end and I am dead, so I yelled out, 'God please do not take me; I am only sixty-two years old and I do not want to die. Please, God, put me back into my body.' And, I was put back as you now know!

I do not fear death at all now as I have complete faith my soul will leave my body right away after death, and I will be happy in this other world. So this is my story and it is true.

Sylvia R’s NDE in 1975

A surgeon had performed a hysterectomy on me and I was being wheeled to my room. I could barely comprehend that my two sisters were in the room when I arrived. They were whispering to each other. All of a sudden, my sister Joanne said to my sister Betty that she thought I was turning blue. They called for the nurse to come back into the room.

I was out of my body, observing my body lying on the hospital bed and I could hear everything that my two sisters and the nurse were saying. I tried to talk to my sisters to let them know that I was all right but they did not hear me. Immediately after this, my spirit went through a darkened tunnel, extremely fast and looking upwards, I could see a white light at the end. My spirit went through this tunnel with a ‘Whoosh’ and there I was, standing in the brightest white light I had ever known. The midday sun could not compare with its brightness or stark whiteness. I instantly felt this bright white light raining down on my spirit and felt an intense love all over my body, like soft rain falling on my skin. I felt loved beyond all shadow of a doubt from this bright whiteness surrounding my spirit. As I stood there feeling this great love flowing over me, I looked across a chasm and saw a neighbor who I knew had passed away. My neighbor belonged to the local Pentecostal Church in my area. I knew that she was deceased, but there she stood. I tried to speak to her, but she didn't open her mouth to speak, as we mortals do here on earth. She would think a thought and then it came directly into my mind and my thoughts went directly into her mind. It felt like a light bulb switching on inside my mind. Her garments were made of gossamer light that shone on me. She told me that my mission on earth was not completed and that I would have to go back. I protested and begged to stay to no avail. She said I would be ‘allowed’ to stay the next time. Not that I ‘could’ or ‘would’ stay she used the word ‘allowed’ to stay. Immediately after she had placed this thought into my mind I was sent back.

I would like to state that I felt no pain whatsoever while standing before this bright white light nor when conversing with my neighbor. I saw multitudes of other beings behind her for as far my eyes could see. I was not aware even that I had passed from life to death at any point in time. That realization came afterwards when my spirit was sent back into my body and I felt the awful searing pain in my abdomen. The pain was more than I could bear and I have the horrible scar even today. My sister held a pillow to my abdomen to allow me to cough; it hurt so much.

Up until this near death experience, I had always felt afraid of death and now I am no longer afraid. My experience was very real and gave me the courage to divorce an especially abusive and alcoholic husband. Previously he had broken a vertebra in my neck, and I wore a neck brace for almost a year while it healed. Previously, I was afraid I could not make it in my life alone with two small children. God showed me that I could.

Louise S’s NDE in 2008---from Scotland

I suffered a miscarriage after being pregnant for just three months. I had been to the hospital for a check-up after the miscarriage and was told that there were still parts left inside my womb that would come out naturally and not to worry.

Three days later, I noticed that I was bleeding, and when I stood up it ran down my legs. I thought this was normal after the miscarriage and told myself to not worry too much. I waited a couple of minutes and checked to see if the blood flow had stopped, but it had not. Now I was starting to panic. My husband was out at work and I was alone in the house. Being a registered nurse, I knew I had to do something quickly. I remembered that the maternity hospital, where I had received my check-up, had given me a card with their telephone number on it. I was to phone them if I had any problems. I called the number, trying to remain calm. The nurse who answered told me to go and unlock my front door, to telephone a relative and let them know that I had to be rushed into hospital and then to lie down on the sofa in the living room. She said she would call for an ambulance and the paramedics would let themselves in and take me to hospital. I did as instructed; left the front door slightly ajar. I phoned my mother-in-law to tell her that I had to go into hospital then lay down.

Then the paramedics came in and got me in to the ambulance. They took my blood pressure, which had dropped, and started the drive to hospital. My husband had arrived just after them and followed the ambulance in his car. It took about ten minutes to get to the nearest emergency hospital. I was put in a cubicle, given IV fluids, and told that they were going to get me transferred to a specialist ward in the hospital. My husband and I waited and waited. Time was going by and I had started to become frantic, as I knew that I was losing too much blood. The nurses had covered me up with blankets, and I could see blood seeping through them. Eventually, someone came, took me to a specialist ward, and left me in a small room with my husband. Again, we waited and waited. I started to feel light-headed and agitated.

Eventually, a young female doctor and a nurse came and asked me many questions. They took my blood pressure and gave me more IV fluids. They went to take my clothes off. I warned them that there would be a lot of blood and suggested they put aprons and gloves on, which they did after giving me a strange look. As they took off my clothes, they went pale and gave each other a 'look' as if to say, ‘Get a doctor, now!’
They put my clothes in the rubbish bin as they were covered with clotted blood.

Then I started to feel light-headed and sick. I was going to vomit, so I told the nurses. The next thing I knew there were about four doctors around me all putting more IV lines into me and putting up more IV fluids. One doctor started to examine me to find where the blood was coming from and the pain was excruciating. I think I screamed at one point and started to thrash around, as I could not bear the pain. Then I vomited and started sweating and shaking, I could not stop shaking.

Suddenly I felt a crushing pain in my chest, like a vice, squeezing the breath out of me, I shouted out to the doctors that something was happening, that I felt I was going to pass-out and I remember one of the doctors telling me not to worry, that I could not pass out because I was lying down. The pain was too, too much, I remember thinking that I could not take it anymore. I ‘decided’ that I did not want feel it anymore and that was when it happened.

The next thing I knew, I closed my eyes and felt my spirit lift out of my body. It just slipped out like a snail coming out of its shell. I felt very light and floated in the air. The pain had suddenly stopped, the stress that I had been feeling ceased and I felt very relaxed and at ease with the world. I had no worries any more. I felt at peace but aware of my surroundings at the same time. I knew that I was out of my body and I was floating just above it, near the ceiling of the room. I was aware of the doctors and nurses panicking over my lifeless body. I 'looked down' and could 'see' my still body, it looked a very blue color.

I felt so comfortable and serene, floating above my body, no worries, no pain. I felt wonderful. I remember thinking, ‘Wow, this is GREAT!!’ ‘What a feeling!’ I felt myself floating upwards and away from the scene below, still feeling amazing, but I wanted to go further, as I was enjoying the freedom from fear, pain, worry, stress, so much so that I wanted to stay in that wonderful state forever. I did not see anything else; I just floated upwards and away.

Then I heard a woman’s voice say that if I went any further I would not be able to go back and I had to make a decision - To go further or to go back? The feeling was so wonderful that I did not want to go back; I wanted to go further. Then I heard one of the nurses below asking me about my two daughters, she was shouting ‘Tell me your daughters names!? ‘Tell me your daughters names!?’ I stopped.

I suddenly thought about my two daughters, my eldest was 20 years old and my youngest was 2 years old. I couldn't leave them without a mother. I couldn't leave them to go through their lives on their own! I thought ‘I will have to go back’. The woman's voice told me that it would not be easy if I went back. But I could not leave my girls alone. So my decision to go back was accepted. The voice said no more and I started to think about getting back to my blue colored, lifeless body lying below, surrounded by the medical staff.

It was not easy getting back in to my body. I had to concentrate very, very hard before I managed to slip back in. I remember feeling the cold of my poor body. Then I felt the pain again. The pain. I opened my eyes and took a breath, much to the relief of the medical staff standing around me. Then I answered the nurse's question that I had heard her asking when I was floating above. ’My daughters names are Laura and Sophie’ I said. The medical staff and nurses standing around looked amazed, their mouths hanging open in shock. How did I know what I had been asked?

I looked at the poor young doctor who I had told to put on an apron before and she was shaking like a leaf with shock! ’I'm sorry.’ I said to her.

I was then swiftly taken down to theatre for an operation to stop the bleeding. While I was wheeled there, one of the doctors said that my body had turned blue and they thought that they had lost me for good. He asked what had happened to me and how I had managed to remember anything. How did I know what the nurse had asked me? I told him that I was floating away from the room and could still hear them. He just looked confused. I had the operation and recovered within a couple of days.

Ray S’s NDE in 1965

I had been in an old 1957 Chevy on a cold day. I was playing with toys on the back seat. While sitting on the floor of the car, the carbon monoxide poison was coming in through the cracks in the floorboards. In the 1960s, it was common to leave a child in a car. As I said, it was cold; my brother and sister went into a store to get ink for our dad. I stayed in the car playing while the car was left running. Thirty minutes or so later, my brother and sister returned for the fifteen minute drive home. I remember feeling real sleepy. When we pulled into the driveway, my brother and sister just ran into the house, as I tried to get my toys together and was having a hard time thinking. I remember that I decided to just bring my Monopoly Game in, because I liked the red houses.

As I walked up the walkway, I felt my energy drain from my body, so I yelled out for my mother. Last thing I remember was watching as my mother came to the porch and yelled for my father---and watching my brother and sister crying. As for me? I was just calm. It was after Christmas, and I got the sheep skin coat that I bugged my parents for. I only bring this up because my brother had bought me a purple slush while he was in the store, and I could see my dad trying to revive me---and the slush staining my coat! So here I am dead, and I am upset over a coat!

I don't know how long this was all taking; I just know I was slowly rising higher, floating into the tree, looking down. Next thing I remember was waking up in the Union Hospital in Freetown, Massachusetts, with everyone around me asking if I was going to be okay now.

I looked at my mother and said, 'Mom, is my coat ruined now? Will the purple come out?' It was at that point the room went 'dead' silent. You could have heard a pin drop, because unknown to me, my clothes had been removed at the scene, and no one knew where they were. So how did I know the coat had been stained?---but only for the fact that I was there, viewing the actions from above! The first to speak was the doctor. He asked me how and at what point did I know that my coat had been soiled?

I told him “while I was floating in the tree, looking down at my body and my dad.” The doctor said it was very important that I speak to a special nurse---who then asked me all kinds of questions. When I asked her why so many questions, she said it isn't everyday a boy dies and can come back to talk about it. She said it was because I had died, and they wanted to know what it looked and felt like so they could keep a record of it.

Brice W’s NDE in 1972

Brice’s preliminary comments: The Military doctors were not forthcoming. There was a malpractice cover-up involved in my care. I believe I was gone from my body up to 18 hours earth time. The Medical staff was clearly surprised to see me rouse out of unconsciousness. I had a massive systemic infection associated with a ruptured intestinal abscess.

As I rose out of my body, I observed my body surrounded by a surgical team from above, then the hospital surrounded by wintering cornfields. I felt relief that the physical ordeal was over, colored with some minor apprehension about family.

I quickly lost all sight of my earthly environment. In space, it was not cold or particularly dark or foreign, but somehow familiar and pleasing. I came upon or was approached by familiar beings. They tried to talk with me, but I hesitated to connect with them. Instead, I was continuing to reflect on my life left behind. I was feeling anger and resentment about the medical malpractice leading to my ruined body. I heard assurances that I could return to a body that would be made serviceable. But I reacted negatively, because I didn't want to return to that situation. I was lovingly advised that this was my choice, which mollified me somewhat.

A life review of sorts followed, though the physical life just left made up only the smallest part of it. I seemed to be recalling (remembering) myself as a being prior to that physical incarnation, a being of the same character as those now with me. The recall was vivid. I had no doubt at the time of its accuracy. It was like rousing from a dream. The restored memory of a previous life included awareness that the choice to return to physicality, though rightly mine, had been already made prior. I 'saw' that I had previously known of and been in agreement with the plan to exit the body as just occurred, for the purpose of rousing transcendent awareness that would gradually unfold upon return. I 'saw' that most of the current vision would fade upon return, but slowly return, in order that I could do what I had gone there to do.

This vision of things seemed to draw me back toward Earth. Some part of me resisted, still wanting to stay, not wanting to return to the old situation with memory once again dimmed. It seemed such feeling had no effect on the transition, however. I was told not to fret, so to speak, that guidance would come to me in increasingly recognizable form, from that point on, and that I would at length become aware as I was then, even while 'in' the body.

Denise’s NDE in 1995

In April of 1995, I was a newly divorced mother of two boys, ages seven and two. I'd been working two jobs to support us, and fell ill with what I believed was the flu. Each day I worked, and each day I felt a greater weight on my chest. As I was in Georgia for only four years at this time, I had no family, only friends.

Neighbors often rallied to my side with help in a crisis; I felt blessed. As I grew weaker, the Lynch family stopped by and offered to take my sons for the night, and would drop them at school/daycare the next day. Another neighbor was instructed by the Lynch's to check up on me the next morning. With my children cared for, I crawled into the bottom bunk of my sons' bed. Excruciating pain grew stronger across my chest and shoulders. In a fraction of a moment, everything around me melted away. (Later I found out that I had suffered “clinical death,” a cessation of breathing or heart function or brain function.)

I was surrounded by a mass of solid glowing white. My eyes caught a girl to my right side. She was probably nineteen or twenty. Shorter than my five feet, eight inches stature, she starred up at me. She asked where we were. I had no clue. She proceeded to tell me she'd been driving home from work and didn't understand how she was now standing beside me. I revealed likewise, that I had been in my sons' bunk bed and had no recollection of moving!

In front of us, a man appeared and approached us. The best I can describe him was brown curly hair to the nape of his neck, liquid brown eyes, capable of illuminating the most unbelievable compassion, and a delicate mustache under a pronounced nose. His face literally glowed. His eyes kept mine to his. I asked him where we were. He smiled, nodded, and said, 'The best way to describe this is, you are in a form of limbo.'

My mind desperately tried to grasp what he was implying. Unfortunately, whenever I am stressed, excited, antsy etc. my bladder turns into a waterlogged tsetse fly. Embarrassed, I moved forward and asked where the restrooms were. This part is where I get emotional in repeating my NDE. This man simply smiled at me. Not a smirk. Not a condescending gesture. He smiled with every ounce of unconditional love and compassion that I will never properly explain. His smile covered my body like a blanket and made me feel so at peace. Asking me to move with him, I assumed he was taking me to the facilities.

Gesturing, he told me to walk forward and I would see what I would call 'a mirror'. Once in front of it, I would understand why I didn't need a bathroom. Moving in that direction, before me was a liquid pool of white, yet, it also appeared to be a mirror. I was completely mesmerized. There were colors - brilliant colors everywhere. I was an array of beautiful moving, shimmering, vibrating, and colors. He came closer and said, 'Do you understand now?' I realized I was pure energy, spirit, and part of a flowing consciousness; while still remaining 'Denise'. At that moment, he shared his name, 'John'. As we moved, he also shared with me what was happening. I noticed that “time” seemed to have stopped. Also, I do not recall seeing lips moving. It was more a sharing of thoughts and hearing it clearly. I felt incredible peace and joy while there.

Here is what he said: 'Everyone has choices. Everyone has free will. How this interacts in your life, and death, and with others, is all by choice. For instance, look at the girl who came here at the same time as you. If the ambulance driver takes a different road to the scene, if someone decides to move her and doesn't know what they are doing and causes more damage, if her internal organs are too crushed in the accident by speed and timing, she will stay here. You are lying in your sons' bedroom. Your one neighbor was given the responsibility to check on you. It is her choice, her free will. Will she find you? Will she decide to take a shower first and be too late? Each of us always hangs in a balance, by decisions, Not only by our own actions, but by the free will and actions of others.' He finished, 'I need to tell you, your neighbor is entering your home. She will find you. You will be going back.'

With these last words still ringing in my ears, I was sucked like a vacuum back into my body. My physical pain took my breath away. My neighbor was crying, pounding on my chest, and screaming for me to breathe. I was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with pleurisy. My left lung was so damaged the doctors informed me any future incidents with my lungs might kill me.

Jump ahead to 2003. On a trip with my mother and friend to Savannah, Georgia, we decided to visit the Catholic Cathedral. Upon entering the church and looking around, a short elderly man, with twinkling grey eyes, came softly up to my right side. He took my hand and asked me to walk with him. I wasn't afraid or fearful (besides my mom and friend were directly in front of us). As they walked ahead and moved towards the altar, the little man guided me to the last stained-glass window on the left, closest to the alter. He asked if I saw anyone I knew in the stained glass. It was a side profile, but I recognized him immediately.

It was John, my John from my NDE. I whispered in awe, 'That's John.' 'Yes it is my dear. He was an apostle on earth and he was called smiling John. You needed to see this. You needed to remember and know that it happened.' I stood there shaking my head in a yes motion and turned to look at the little man. He was gone, nowhere in sight. My mother and her friend had turned to me and asked where he went. I told them I did not know -- but I had something to share with them. And I've been sharing my NDE with anyone who needs to hear it ever since.

Lael’s NDE in 1968---eclampsia

I experienced an eclamptic convulsion the day after I gave birth. It was so severe that my heart stopped. [Eclampsia is the onset of seizures (convulsions) in a pregnant woman who has high blood pressure and either large amounts of protein in the urine or other organ dysfunction.]

At first, all I experienced was cold, and then my soul floated up out of my body! When I reached the level of the ceiling in my room, I turned around and saw my dead body on the bed. I felt a moment of regret, such as one might feel seeing a beautiful purebred dog dead on the side of the highway. It was a good body and it had served me well, but that part of my existence was over with and I was ready to move on.

I did see the medical personnel scrambling to resuscitate me and I wished I could tell them not to bother. I turned around, looked up at the ceiling, and floated up through the roof of the building. I noticed that I had 360-degree vision and hearing; that is, I could see and hear in all directions at once! Now I felt only elation!
Once I was outside, I had the feeling that it was night. A shaft of brilliant white light pierced the dark sky above me. By contrast, the dark around me was so deep it was palpable. I ‘fell’ upward through that light, but when I reached a threshold, a point of no return, I was stopped.

I kept looking into the light. I felt overwhelming, accepting love from the light. Within it were all the love, beauty, acceptance, and bliss imaginable. I felt incredible joy. How can one describe perfection? I am a former English teacher and writer, but there are simply no words to explain the perfection I saw. It's like trying to explain a color your eyes can't see. I knew God was behind that light, and I wanted more than anything to join the beings that I knew were with Him. However, a voice said, ‘Go back. It isn't your time.’

The light winked out and I woke up in my body, sick, hurting, and bitterly disappointed. The experience did leave me changed. I will never fear death again. I only wish I could tell everyone that at the end, God handles us gently. There will be only joy when we cross that barrier.

The kicker was the voice that told me to go back. I could never forget the timbre, pace, pitch, and pronunciation I heard. It was the voice my day-old son (at the time of the experience) has now as a grown man! It was God behind the light who told me I had to come back. He spoke to me in my son's voice because He has to communicate with us in terms we will understand.

Although I was and am now a Mormon, I received the knowledge that I have lived before and that this life is only one of many my soul has experienced and will experience again. My NDE was absolutely real.

Rob N’s NDE in 2005

August 15, 2005. In the Detroit area in mid-August, they have what is called the ‘Dream Cruise’. It is the largest car show in the United States and more than one million people flock to this area for the event. Steve and Evelyn, who were my girlfriend's parents, lived a block off the main strip. Donna and her son went over to their house to sit and watch the hot rods cruise the main street. I was at work since my shift started about 8 AM and it was about 8 PM when my shift ended. I wasn’t feeling well and was in a bit of a foul mood. I called her to tell her that I was going back to the apartment since I didn’t feel well. I thought I ate something bad at lunch, but told her I would relax a bit, change and then come over there. Her parents lived about three miles from where we lived.

I arrived home and changed into a T-Shirt and shorts. I had what I thought was the worst case of heartburn I had ever felt. I just couldn’t get rid of that feeling. I suddenly started to have shortness of breath. I called her and told her she needed to get home immediately. I didn’t know what was wrong but something was not right. She said for me to call 911 but I didn’t feel that was necessary; boy was I wrong! I kept tugging on the collar of my T-Shirt to try to breathe easier. It was getting worse and now I felt nausea coming on. It was all evolving so quickly. I put the cellphone on the coffee table and rushed into the bathroom. When I vomited, it was clear bile. I thought that was peculiar. Once again, clear bile came rushing out repeatedly, nothing but clear bile.
Then it hit full force, I got weak, felt pain on my left side and collapsed on the floor. I was unable to move. My cellular phone wasn’t close to me and I knew at that moment what was happening. I was in serious trouble and I didn’t have any control of my destiny. I was at the mercy of GOD’s will. I was having a heart attack, lying there on the bathroom floor staring at the toilet. I was hoping that my girlfriend took me serious enough to be on her way home.

Donna and her father Steve soon arrived. Steve found me on the bathroom floor while Donna called 911. When she walked into the bathroom, she told me the paramedics were on the way; I remember looking at her and saying, “Good you’re here. I am tired and going to sleep now.” My transition was starting for my journey to the Other Side; it was my time to go home.

Then, I remember entering a bright, cloud-like tunnel with a light at its end. While I was moving through it, the feelings I experienced were not exactly earthly; they were much more intense than on earth. The first feeling was a feeling of intense peace. It was so calm and serene with an incredible amount of tranquility. All of my earthly worries, thoughts, fears, and opinions were gone. The intensity of the tranquility was so overwhelming that I had no fear about where I was going and what to expect when I arrived there.

Then I felt warmth. It was as if I were wrapped in a blanket that came out of an oven. It wasn’t too hot, nor too cold. The warmth was simply perfect. Then I felt the love. This is a very difficult feeling to describe. Try to remember the first time you saw your child or met your significant other. Most people know what I am talking about. It is that feeling of first-time love that is so positive and so powerful. Now take that feeling and multiply it a thousand times. It is a love that is unimaginable on Earth.

Then there was the desire to be home; not at my earthly house, but home in Heaven. The desire to be home with all of my loved ones and with GOD was like a massive force pulling me toward it. The force was so strong that I couldn't get away from it, even if I had wanted to, which I guarantee that I didn’t.

Then in one moment, it all stopped. I felt as if someone had grabbed me and was pulling me backwards out of the tunnel. The Royal Oak Fire Department Paramedics had arrived on scene and were resuscitating me. I was lying on the gurney in the back of the ambulance and staring at the light on the ceiling. I felt the IVs going into my veins and could hear the call to the hospital, “47 year old male, myocardial infarction, with resuscitation, ETA 3 minutes.”

I don’t remember arriving at the hospital or being wheeled into the hospital emergency room. What I do recall is being in the upper corner of the emergency room looking down upon my body. I saw about twenty people diligently trying to save my life. I don’t remember seeing the faces of these emergency room personnel; I just saw their scrubs and white coats. I watched for a while as they frantically worked to revive me.

Suddenly, and for no reason I was aware of, I immediately returned to the tunnel with its warmth, glory, peace, and calmness! GOD was bringing me home again. The light was getting brighter the closer I got to home. I was surrounded by fragrantly sweet scents. It was kind of like the scents of all varieties of all the flowers all in one place. A gentle, warm breeze was flowing over me. I felt all was sheer perfection. As my vision began to clear, I saw numerous faces who were all happy and smiling. Their faces started to become familiar once again. The level of happiness that I felt can’t be explained in earthly terms. I saw my father, and my aunts and uncles that passed on before me. I saw my grandparents and others I knew who went before I did. I knew I was safe and I was meant to be there. I was glad to be home and surrounded by my loved ones. Then, it was a time to look backward at my life’s journey on earth, to view all that I had done, and to see if I completed the task I was sent to do. When this was complete, I was free to spend the time with those that meant so much to me.

The next thing I remember happening was suddenly sitting up. My girlfriend looked at me as if she had seen a ghost, ran out of the room, and returned with a nurse. A doctor arrived and began to check me over. I asked what all the commotion was about.
I found out that I had been in a coma for four days!
A few days later, after I was medically cleared, I was released from the hospital to go home. I had a full beard and I was 20 pounds lighter.

HERE IS ONE OF THE FEW EXAMPLES OF NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES CONTAINING A “HELLISH ELEMENT”. AN IMPORTANT NDE RESEARCHER, DR. JEFFREY LONG, A RADIATION ONCOLOGIST WHO HAS STUDIED THOUSANDS OF NDES, SAYS THAT ONLY 3.6% OF THEM ARE IN ANY WAY "FRIGHTENING" AND ONLY ABOUT 1% CONTAIN "HELLISH EXPERIENCES" LIKE THIS ONE. NOTE THAT SARAH WAS FRIGHTENED, BUT SHE WAS UNHARMED. ALSO NOTE THAT SHE DID NOT CALL FOR HELP WHEN SHE WAS FRIGHTENED.

Sarah’s NDE in 1989---pickup truck vs bicycle collision and a “hellish” experience

In August of 1989, I was bicycling home from a volunteer position around 10 p.m. As I was coming up on a light, I was hit from behind by a pickup truck traveling at approximately 50 mph. The bike and I were slammed against the truck. As the driver slammed on the brakes, I was catapulted 60 feet through the air to land on the shoulder of the road. My lungs collapsed, most of my internal organs were ruptured, and I broke my pelvis and several ribs. I was pretty close to road kill. Fortunately, a police officer was nearby and able to radio for an ambulance quickly. I, as I know myself, have no memory of all these events.

This is what I remember: One moment I was riding my bike, and the next, I was in a place of complete darkness. I had no sense of direction or perspective, but I did have an awareness of my body; that is, I still had one. Off in the "distance" I began to notice a hum and a pinprick of light. The sound began to grow louder and the light seemed to be coming toward me.

As the object drew closer, I noticed that it was a fantastic demonic creature surrounded by flames with huge eyes and teeth, dancing toward me, slavering and growling. There was menace in its gaze as it smashed its teeth and stuck out a long slobbering orange tongue at me. I was riveted to the "spot" in the dark where I stood. There seemed to be nowhere to go to avoid the thing as the creature was advancing at an increasing speed, determined to intercept me. I stood my "ground" and closed my eyes, expecting to be engulfed in flames or devoured or both. Instead, I had an awareness of the creature slowly passing painlessly through my body, and I turned an inward eye to it, only to discover that the creature was laughing with glee as it melted through me. It exited with a pop behind me and suddenly I was flying forward very fast through the dark.

As I flew, two more of the demon creatures came toward me, displaying different colors but still fearsome. Armed with my knowledge of the first one, I allowed these beings to approach and pass through me. Soon I came to the entrance of a tunnel in the black. The tunnel seemed to be constructed of gray, cloudlike material and wound far away and up to the right. Then it branched and I couldn't see where it led. From the branching on the right extended a yellow white light that helped to softly illuminate the tunnel. I glanced down at myself and noticed that I had no body. It had been replaced by a blue-white light sort of a “star” that pulsed. This seemed natural and pleasant to me at the time. It was very freeing to no longer be attached to a weighty form.

Looking back into the tunnel, I noticed there were doorways in both sides of the structure. A few other “stars” were wandering about in the tunnel, some blue like me, some amber colored. Two other blue stars appeared beside me and gently propelled me into the tunnel. I floated along, observing that some "door-ways" were open, while others seemed to have been shut. The first doorway I peered into looked like what resembled a classic Hell. There was the sound of shrieking and agonizing screams. Naked human beings were strewn about a blasted landscape with pools of bubbling excrement and jagged boulders. Devils and other animals were torturing people in all imaginable ways; and people were also torturing each other.

As I neared the doorway to this sinister scene, I felt a sucking sensation drawing me in like a whirlpool, and I found myself "flying" above the miserable landscape. The smell was putrid and the heat was almost unbearable, but a part of me was fascinated by the seemingly infinite varieties of pain and anguish that was being inflicted on the inhabitants of this realm. Most of me wanted to leave, so I had no difficulty---and my feeling was that anyone could leave if they wished. I felt that no one had put those people in captivity, except their belief in the agony they continued to suffer. I "flew" back to the doorway, which was clearly visible from everywhere in the "Hell." I left with nothing but joy, but I still had a sense of myself as apart from that joy.

The next doorway in the tunnel wasn't much better. As far as the eye could see, people walked on barren yellow ground with their heads down, completely engrossed in their own depressed self- pitying thoughts, unaware that anyone else was around them. A great feeling of loneliness and isolation emanated from the scene, and I shied away from getting too close, although no sucking sensation was felt near this opening in the cloud tunnel.

I flew along further up the tunnel and glanced in other doorways, but the next one that made a lasting impression on me was a world of almost indescribable beauty. I looked upon a beautiful wooded garden with fountains and waterfalls and streams and bridges that glowed and sparkled with iridescent colors. A feeling of peace and harmony flowed from this scene, and I moved toward the doorway with a great desire to enter. As I began to go through the opening, I was gently rebuffed and a voice said, "You do not have the information to enter this world". At the time, I remember feeling disappointed, but not judged as unworthy, just uninformed.

I then turned my attention to the light that was glowing around the fork to the right. I entered into the light, and was transformed by a feeling of utter absolute joy. There was nothing but joy. I said to the light "I'm here", and the light said "Great" in a voice that rang with happiness and bliss. I gave myself up to the bliss and learned many things that sound corny when described, but are truths for me that resonate through me now and forever. I learned that I am eternal and, though I may experience many forms of death, I will always know who I am. I have nothing to fear, only more to experience, and I am the one that ultimately chooses what I experience. It sounds hokey, but believe me, it feels really, really good to know these things inside yourself. Eventually, I decided to go further into the tunnel. I said to the light "I'm leaving", and the light said "Great", continuing its utter joyous and blissful existence, unaltered in anyway by my leaving.

I floated back down the tunnel, glancing about me in continued wonder, eventually settling on the threshold of a doorway that looked into outer space. Pieces of rock floated by and in the distance planets and galaxies spun and whirled. A rather conflicting feeling of both serenity and adventure surrounded me as I gazed upon the silent scene. The entrance to the tunnel was nearby, and I could hear voices shouting "Don't go, Sarah! What about Zane?" (My son Zane was five at the time of this incident). Then I heard a voice say "If you pass through this door, you can't come back."

My next conscious memory was of lying in a hospital bed with uncountable tubes sticking into me and a respirator tube in my mouth. I was full of joy and humming with power, although I was unable to move any part of my body of my own volition. I was also full of pain and that sensation quickly oriented me to my physical self again.

I have had to face many trials and challenges since my NDE, but the knowledge of the eternity of my spirit and the freedom from the fear of death have created in me a foundation of peace that no temporary physical condition can shake. I have a great wish that everyone could experience the wonders I have, without having to suffer the trauma I did, for it would transform the world!

IS THIS COMPLEX NDE TRUSTWORTHY? REMEMBER, JUST HAVING AN NDE DOES NOT MAKE YOUR INTERPRETATIONS OF WHAT YOU ENCOUNTER INFALLIBLE. DOES IT HAVE THE “RING OF TRUTH” FOR YOU?

Wayne H’s NDE in 1996---complex

I was a pedestrian pushing a disabled car when it was struck from behind. I was between the cars and the impact was so great it bent the frames on both cars. I regained consciousness on a gurney in the emergency room. I knew I was going to die and welcomed the release from pain. Because of my religious upbringing (Southern Baptist), I was expecting a man in white robes on a golden throne to greet me. As I died, there was a cessation of all feeling and blackness closed in and light shrank to a pinpoint. I felt myself falling backwards into the blackness and a cool sensation of wind. I felt myself turn and then a pinpoint of light appeared in the blackness.

I came out into the light and was in an upper corner of the emergency room looking down at my body on the gurney. I was not disturbed by being dead or by seeing my body on the gurney. I was in a state of euphoria and a sense of perfect peace and being. I had no pain, wants, or needs of any kind. I had a sense of being home. I sensed a presence behind me and then had a communication. This was beyond telepathy. This was not hearing words in my mind and translating them into thoughts, this was knowing as the other presence knew, an instant sharing of knowledge. I had no interest in asking questions or in seeing anything, I was completely at peace. I understood that I was to return. At this point, I had my first want, the desire to remain. I wanted to know why I was to return.

The wall beyond my gurney became transparent and I was shown what appeared to be a flowing river. It was silver and shimmering as it flowed. The drops in the river were each a different color yet all flowed together as one body of water. Nothing gave me the impression this was actually water or a river but this is the best descriptive example that can be given of something I witnessed for which there are no words. The main body of the flow was silvery shimmering lights with different colored drops in the flow. I understood (I use this term because I did not actually hear) the colored drops were the experiences of all who had lived. The experiences existed as separate items yet belonged to the whole. The whole was the collective knowledge of all. I understood there was no individual, just one, yet each experience was an individual making up the whole. This concept of ONE is so foreign to any description I can give; there seems to be no way now of describing it. My previous understanding of ONE was a single uniqueness. In this case, ONE is something else. Many being ONE and ONE being many, both existing simultaneously in the same time and space.

I further understood that the collective experiences are omniscient knowledge. Everything that has been spoken, heard, and experienced. These colored drops contained each experience down to the memory of every cell division, every thought. All experiences were known at once by the collective consciousness that was the stream. Any experience could be known as if it were a first person experience happening at the time it happened originally.

There was no fear, or joy from this stream. I use the term river of life to describe the stream. There was an understanding of complete peace, happiness, and contentment without need or want, coming from the river of life. I had a strong desire now to join the river of life and felt this was home, where I came from. Touching the river gave me insight into realms beyond realms, universes beyond universes, dimensions beyond dimensions; I experienced infinity.

I was shown a long line of experiences in other realms of realities and on other worlds. It was some time later I realized it was my past 'lives' review of all existences of which I had been part. There were beings and objects unlike anything I had ever seen or heard of, even in the imaginings of science fiction writers I had read. I was made to know there were an infinite number of realms of existence and all were part of the One, the Source. The stream had distinct layers or levels that were not divided by any kind of barrier but each seemed to be of a different density. The one I experienced was the highest level. Where I first came after death was into the lowest level; I call it the 'between place' or 'lowest level of transition.'

That stream of consciousness and knowledge is what might be termed the 'mind of God'. I understood I was not to join the river of life at that time, I was to go back. I again reiterated I did not want to go. I understood I was to go back. I then was made to understand there would be great pain. I did not want to face the pain that awaited me. I understood the pain would be great and it would change and mold me. I wanted to know why and what I was to do. At that point, the light dimmed and I felt myself falling backwards into blackness. There was a cool wind and I felt myself turning. There was a pinpoint of light in the blackness and I reemerged into light on the gurney and in my body. I was mostly unconscious for the next thirty hours and underwent surgery. I understood from family members tha I died again but I did not have another experience.

Additional Comments: Time seemed to stop or did not exist. I am no longer a Southern Baptist and have very little use for religions. I knew I could not die because it was not my time even though the doctors anticipated my death for almost a week. I have never questioned the reality of the experience.

Caan S’s NDE in 2001---a Muslim experience

During the afternoon of May 15th, 2001, while working from atop an eight feet ladder, I lost my balance when the ladder I was working on moved. Unfortunately, I fell backward through a T-bar ceiling head first, landing on concrete. I could hear the bones in my neck popping upon impact. At almost the same time, my mind and body seemed to separate.

The 'journey' I then took, though short lived, can only be described as beautiful. There is a show called 'Sliders' on the Sci-Fi channel, where the characters step into a tunnel of light and travel from world to world. The visual effects used to create that tunnel closely resemble what I experienced; except in my case the tunnel was black and white and I seemed to travel at high speed.

I got the impression that we are all part of a much bigger picture that Allah has in store for us all. One of the opening verses in the Qur'an first chapter, states that Allah is Lord of all the worlds. During my journey I did not feel as though I was alone, nor was I scared---and believe it or not, I did not care about my body or how it was doing. I was conscious during this ride through the tunnel; I remember looking both left to right, and forward, up and down, all while moving through this conduit back to the source of my life. I did not feel as though I had come to the end of my journey but had been given a chance to see what else is in store from Allah, the ALL IN ALL.

A co-worker had apparently grabbed me after I had fallen and hit my head a few times. Others describe my body hitting the concrete as a bouncing basketball. I can vividly remember this co-worker shaking me on my return, because the first senses to reconnect after my consciousness was my sight and hearing in that order.

I was really upset with the guy who grabbed me. I'm sure it was because I had been disconnected from my journey, only to be reconnected to this body, space, and time. I knew my accident was bad, because my co-worker was pulling on me as I regained consciousness in this reality. I could see what he was doing and how my body was twisted like a pretzel. Then my hearing returned in increments. After I returned, I found myself a mess.

My experience was definitely real. I do not even question it. All I do know is to compare and listen to others NDEs. Since my experience, I truly do believe that Allah has given man many roads to get to him and none has a monopoly on Heaven. I have changed slowly over the years since. I'm more carefree, forgiving, and more humble. And I love diversity.

Carson D’s NDE in 1978

I was a latch-key kid, but also the type that hated staying home. I had been sick in bed with pneumonia, for a week. On Friday, my parents were at work. I decided enough was enough and headed off to school. We lived in the country and my school was about a mile away. It was a gray overcast, rainy day. I walked to school in my windbreaker and baseball cap. By the time I got to school, I was soaked to the bone. I slid into class and, after about an hour, I felt really bad. By lunchtime, I decided to leave school to go home. By the time I walked in the door, I was delirious. I walked out of my clothes and fell into bed. I remember coughing and coughing, and feeling so, so sick.   I was so cold.

Slowly everything went dark. I heard a roar of what sounded like an engine, and then there was nothing. I remember standing up and seeing my body lying in my bed. I felt very calm. I turned to see my grandmother standing there in her pink dress. I knew it wasn't her as she had passed away only months before. She smiled and held out her hand. I took her hand and the next thing I knew I was flying and moving incredibly fast! There were these beautiful beings all around me.   I felt love, wonder, excitement, sorrow, and peace.   I began to cry.

One of them stopped me abruptly. They all surrounded me; they were full of love. One reached out and touched my chest. The touch was so warm that it seemed to smile. They talked to me without moving their mouths; I actually can't remember if they had mouths. They took me by the hands and we flew to a golden city that was surreal in color. Another Being approached me who was different and older than the rest. We talked for what seemed like forever. Then the Being placed its hand on my shoulder and BAM!

I felt like I was rising on an escalator in some unfamiliar shopping mall.    At the top of the escalator, waiting for me, were both of my deceased grandmas dressed in their Sunday best dresses.   I remember their words as if this happened yesterday. “Well, little man, you have quite the journey ahead, but this is not your time.” They began to tell me things that would happen in my life, like the woman I would eventually meet, fall in love with, and marry. They showed me the death of my cousin, including when that would happen. I was told I would meet my wife, where she was from, and a very important detail about her past. Then they told me I must return to my body. Before I left, they said I would live a long and prosperous life, and then BOOM!

I felt pain; I heard the sound of a thousand freight trains. I opened my eyes to see our next-door neighbor who was a nurse. She was on the floor bent over me, with eyes full of tears.   I was very confused and embarrassed that I was lying there in only my underwear. “Are you okay?” I asked.   She smiled and hugged me. Her husband came rushing into the room. He looked gray and older. About five minutes later, a fire truck and an ambulance arrived. My mom and dad came home a short time after that.

I found out later that the school had called my mom and asked why I went home. She told them that I wasn't at school and that I was home sick still. She then called home and after I didn't answer, she called the neighbor to check on me. When the neighbor came over, she found me. I was not breathing and did not have a heartbeat. She screamed for her husband and then started CPR (Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation). She said she worked on me for 10 minutes and was about to stop when I awoke.

Since my experience, I am more spiritual. I don't attend church of any sort, but I have a deep connection to God. I am no longer afraid of dying.

Dan’s NDE in 2002---car accident and reaction to penicillin

When I was sixteen years old, I was driving home with my dad from the mall. When we got sideswiped by a passing, speeding car as it changed lanes too fast, we were pushed into a transport trailer and dragged under it for about two hundred feet. My dad was minimally injured because the car hit on his side, but the transport hit on mine. I was pretty much in and out of it through most of the time I spent still in the car, emergency crews trying to get me out into the ambulance; my dad was already gone in another. Once I was in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, I was more alert and talking to the paramedics.

I was in a lot of pain, and I remember one of the paramedics saying to me, 'You're a lucky kid, you know that?' He then prepared a syringe and gave me a shot of medication, not knowing that I have a very serious deadly reaction to penicillin. The drug he gave me had some in it. (Penicillin helps fight bacteria in the blood stream after one suffers from large deep wounds.) It was only a matter of a few seconds when my vision went dark. I could not breathe; I could still hear the paramedics. They were freaking out.

Suddenly I felt as if I could breathe again, no effort. And I could see a small white light in the center of my vision at the end of a tunnel with an orange glow. I started to move through the tunnel. I thought, ‘I'm dead and that's it’. I now had no sensation of the pain I’d felt before. I was completely out of my body, but I was one hundred percent conscious.

Then I remember seeing an image in my head. Something told me that it was the universe, kind of bluish, with billions of points of light, all different colors. I only saw this for a second or two, but knew the science behind it; it's very hard to explain. Then I was back in the 'tunnel', all different colors now, some colors I haven't ever seen before, maybe not in our spectrum. There was also a gentle chiming noise, with a tune to it; it was comforting. The colors seemed to change with the notes. This experience at this point gave me a sense of energy, happiness, and peace. I didn’t have to fear anything.

I also had the sense that I knew the answer to everything, and I was awestruck by this realization. I felt more and more content. When I got to the end of the tunnel, it was like a big white room with a bright glow to it, and there was the light close in front of me. I saw the silhouette of someone at the end of the tunnel. He was speaking to me through thought. I looked at the person, and it was my old friend Brydon, who had died five years earlier in a boating accident; but he looked my age. I remember him saying to me, ‘this is not your time yet Dan; I'll see you later.' And he walked into the light.

Almost at that same second, I was traveling back down the tunnel at warp speed. This time I seemed to fall into one of the points of light in the universe. Then it became difficult to breathe again, my normal vision came back, and I could hear the sirens again and the paramedics. I remember hearing one yell, 'He's back, he's back,' and seeing the other with paddles.

I've only discussed this experience with my parents and my close friend Jesse. People look at you weird when you say these kinds of things. I have lost much of the knowledge I gained during in my experience, especially the knowledge surrounding Time. About two weeks later, I found out the paramedic that used the drug on me lost his job.

Deborah D’s NDE in 2002--- thirteen gallons of fluid in her chest!

On October 2nd, 2002 I went to the emergency room because I had sharp pain under my right shoulder blade. When I breathed, it was beyond excruciating pain. My x-rays and other tests came back normal. They admitted me anyhow because my blood pressure was 187/127 and they couldn't get it to drop. The next day all I did was sleep. But on the third day fluid filled around my heart and in and around my lungs. I stopped breathing due to thirteen gallons of fluid in my upper body! They moved me to the intensive care unit and put me on full life support. On October 7, 2002, I awoke and ripped out all of the wires and tubes and went into cardiac arrest.

That's when it happened. I went to a place that was the most comfortable, peaceful place that I had ever been. I was at the lighted end of a tunnel, where I saw dead relatives, all glad to see me. They were my brother, my papa Joe, and my uncle Denny. They didn't really speak; it was like our minds were linked. I was told they missed me and when they heard I was coming they came to greet me. They each asked about other loved ones. When I looked down the tunnel, I saw my body being frantically worked on. At 2:12 pm, I was pronounced dead. At the same time, out of the blinding white light, a voice I assumed to be God asked me,' Are you ready to come home?' I said, 'No!'

I could see my dead body lying with a sheet over my face and I watched my mother cry---this is the main reason I came back.

I was later told there was a blip on the heart monitor. They shocked my heart and I woke up with the paddles inches off my chest. Within two days, I was off life support and back in a regular room. I fully recovered without any damage from being dead for ten minutes. My doctors called me their miracle patient. They never had anyone survive Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome as severe as mine and make a full recovery.

Everyone's purpose on earth is to help others. God has many names; he answers all faiths equally. Now I treat everyone with respect; even people I don't like.

Debra C’s NDE in 1980---drinking liquor and smoking pot

I was so excited. it was my first concert and date as a sixteen year old. Mike had invited me to a 'Styx' concert along with a group of friends. I had never drunk alcohol before or used substances in my life. But, to fit in because I really liked Mike, I just followed what they were doing. They were drinking Southern Comfort and smoking pot. So, I followed suit, wanting to fit in.

After a while, I started feeling really sick; I could not catch my breath. I needed to get up off the bench and go for a walk trying to breathe. As Mike was walking me by the bleachers, all of a sudden I grabbed him and yelled his name, I remember seeing his face as I went directly down on the concrete.

At the same instance, I could feel myself (my spirit) start moving up out of my body. I was floating and looking around, thinking 'WOW' I am still alive but I am in spirit form! I realized too that 'WOW' I was super alert! I was talking but talking through my consciousness. I could feel someone on my left side and someone on my right side. It was very calming, but I could not see anyone. It's as if I knew them but was not sure who they were. At the same time, I could see the concert (I was near the ceiling, looking down, watching everything). I could hear, but it was odd.

As I was floating in place, colored orbs of indescribable color were coming toward me. They surrounded me with a feeling of peace and calm that is indescribable. Beautiful! Then whoever was beside me started running through my life at a pace you cannot describe in words (like they did with Scrooge in the Christmas story), showing bad and good. The part that got to me the most was when I was shown the pain and devastation that my leaving would cause my parents, especially my mother. The cry (wailing) of my mother's voice was unbelievable. At the same time, I was looking for ways to get out of the building.

I could see the attic fan spinning around at the rooftop. I could get out there. I kept looking down at the doors watching a police officer at the entrance, knowing when the door opened up I could float out that way but at the same time, I knew I couldn't come back if I left. Everything seemed to be happening at a rate of speed that I have never experienced; it was like having full knowledge of life, but, at the same time, whoever was next to me said I needed to make a choice.

They did tell me that my mother really needed me later in life; that she was not strong enough to go on without me; that I needed to show her the way later on, but it was still my choice. As soon as I made the choice to stay, there was a flash like no other, and I was shoved back into my body. I was angry! The weight of my body was unbelievable. When I opened my eyes, a lady paramedic was standing over me with a look on her face that was very distraught. My feeling of sickness came back; my body kept shivering for hours.

The actual feeling of euphoria, weightlessness, consciousness, and revelation was indescribable. It was beyond anything you will ever experience here on earth. The colors, my thought process during this time, everything that you see when you realize that you are no longer in your body, but you are communicating with something. You can't see them, but you can communicate by your consciousness.

The being told me that my mother would need me later in life. This has come true. I could tell you everything going on while I was lying unconscious in the corridor; I could see people's faces, the police officer, and the lady paramedic over me all at the same time my body was out cold. My experience was definitely real. It happened. It was as clear as day even to this day. I have never experienced anything like it since.

Ginny R’s NDE in 1986---viral pneumonia

I lay in the hospital sicker than I ever believed possible. I had pneumonia. It took too much energy to even lift my head. I couldn't eat or drink. I don't even remember the food trays coming or going. My 15 year old daughter, Amber, had taken my temperature, called the doctor and literally carried me to the car, the doctor’s office, and the hospital. She didn't even have her driver’s license, yet it was she and my two younger children (Maggie, 9, and Josh, 6) who got me everywhere in one piece. I was admitted Wednesday afternoon, and over the next few days, I remember being semi-awakened to some familiar face or voice on the phone only to fade back into the peace of sleep. I can't even recall seeing the nurses or my doctor. I was so weak and breathing was very difficult. My fever must have still been extremely high because there seemed to be a fog or mist clouding everything and I remember pressure in my ears. I could almost hear my heart thud-thudding, not to mention the fact that I was shivering cold even under blankets.

The orderly wheeled me back to my room and I remember he asked me if it would be all right if he left me at the door. I attempted to stand and walk to the bed only to crash on the floor. I could not breathe, I was gasping for air. There was an immense pain in my chest. I was trying to crawl to the bed on my hands and knees and I could hardly move. I remember thinking, "I'm dying, I must be dying." I was engulfed by fear. The next thing I remember was being on the phone, pleading with someone to get my doctor and then I was hearing his voice. I remember so clearly saying, "Doctor, please help me, I think I'm dying." The last conscious memory I recall was "white coats surrounding my bed."

There was total peace. I was surrounded on all sides by a black void. I was no longer frightened. I was comfortable and content to be where I was. No fear...no pain...just peace and comfort and amazingly undaunted curiosity. Immediately the blackness began to erupt into a myriad of stars, and I felt as if I were at the center of the Universe with a complete panoramic view in all directions. The next instant I began to feel a forward surge of movement. The stars seemed to fly past me so rapidly that they formed a tunnel around me. I began to sense awareness, knowledge. The farther forward I was propelled, the more knowledge I received. My mind felt like a sponge, growing and expanding in size with each addition. The knowledge came in single words and in whole idea blocks. I just seemed to be able to understand everything as it was being soaked up or absorbed. I could feel my mind expanding and absorbing, and each new piece of information somehow seemed to belong. It was as if I had known already but forgotten or mislaid it, as if it were waiting here for me to pick it up on my way by. I kept growing with knowledge, evolving, expanding and thirsting for more. It was amazing, like being a child again and experiencing something brand new and beautiful, a wonderful new playground. As each second passed there was more to learn, answers to questions, meanings and definitions, philosophies and reasons, histories, mysteries and so much more, all pouring into my mind. I remember thinking, "I knew that, I know I did, where has it all been?”

I felt completely at peace. I could have stayed in this place for eternity with this pulse of love and beauty throughout my soul. I was still being propelled forward at what seemed great speed. Each passing second I was absorbing more and more knowledge.

A tiny pin point of light appeared far in front of me at the other end of my kaleidoscopic tunnel. The light grew larger and larger as I was soaring closer and closer to it, until finally I had arrived at my destination.

At once there was total and absolute awareness. There was not a question I could ask for which I did not already have the answer. I looked over to the presence I knew would be there and thought "God, it was so simple, why didn't I know that?" I could not see God as I can see you. Yet I knew it was Him. It was God, his love, his light, his very essence, the force of creation emanating to the ends of all eternity...reaching out as a pulsing beacon of love to bring me "Home."

There was a time of exchange, complete and absolute knowing and approval of me and what I had become. In that instant or millennium I knew, he had seen my entire life and he loved me still. Pure unadulterated, unselfish, ever-loving, unconditional Love. God had seen my life and still loved me endlessly, eternally for myself, for my existence. He never spoke to me in words that I could hear with my ears, yet I heard his thoughts as clearly as words. No experience, no closeness has ever been so complete.

He told me many things of which I have little or no recollection. I only remember that we spoke or rather he inspired and I learned. I remember only two things from that exchange. First, God told me there were only two things that we could bring back with us when we died...LOVE and KNOWLEDGE...So I was to learn as much about both as possible. Second, God told me that I had to return, I could not stay, there was something I had yet to accomplish. I remember knowing at that moment what it was, I have no recollection now.

I remember pain. Great emotional sorrow, not physical pain. I think my soul cried. I begged not to leave. I pleaded. I told him how no one would miss me. My children would be better off without me. My mother and father and brother would take better care of them than I. My heart ached as if it were physically crushed. Again he told me there was something I must accomplish and his love began to soothe my tears and sorrow. I understood and He knew from the bottom of my soul that I wanted to return to be with him as soon as I did what was to be done.

Immediately I began to recede from where he was. Not of my own volition but propelled backwards as I was forward in the beginning. I could feel the knowledge I had gained beginning to withdraw. I was forgetting. I tried desperately to remember, to keep the knowledge. The further away I floated, flew, drifted or was pulled, the more awareness seeped away and the smaller the light became. I was forced back faster and faster until there was nothing but blackness. I opened my eyes and I was back in my hospital bed with a man standing over me. He said something like "Welcome back" and I lost consciousness again. The next memory was when I opened my eyes and saw my mother sitting across the room. She looked up and saw that my eyes were open and began to cry. She said the doctors had told her they didn't think I was going to make it. I had been diagnosed with viral pneumonia. Antibiotics are not effective against viruses. My fever was apparently astronomically high.

I had two distinctly opposite reactions. I was so elated that upon waking I immediately began to relate my experience to my mother. I wanted to tell the whole world, God is real. My faith, all the things she had tried to teach me were true. Yet...I ached at having been thrown out of heaven, at not being able to stay in his light.

I do know he is so all loving and all forgiving, that he does not care how long it takes us to learn the lessons we have set out to learn. He knows that in the end we will all come back to him. There is no Hell, except that which we each create for ourselves. That our every thought can bring about wars and sickness. That it is vital that we learn to think with love and generosity. Each time we think and do goodness and love it comes back to us tenfold, and many times from the least expected direction. I have learned that there is great love on the other side to surround us and comfort us and to help us on our way.

THIS NDE HAPPENED TO A YOUNG CHILD, BUT WAS OBVIOUSLY WRITTEN DOWN YEARS LATER IN MATURITY.

Glauco S’s NDE in 1970---drowning

At age eight my father took me and my two brothers (ages ten and eleven) to go fishing in a river called Rio Guaiba in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

It was a hot day and very sunny. When we got there, my father was setting up camp, so we asked him if we could walk upriver a little bit. At first, he said no, but after we begged a little bit he agreed, but told us not to go in the water; he said that a few times.

We started to walk near the water and we got to a bush that was half in the land and half on the water. I don't remember which one of us had the idea to go into the water and grabbing the bush to get to the other side.   My brother Marco age ten went first, He took a few steps and I don't remember how he lost his footing, but he did; he went under. Then my older brother Carlon tried to help him and went under. I don't know why, but I went after them. None of us knew how to swim.

I started to panic,   I was really scared. I remember trying to breathe, but I couldn't, water was going into my mouth and nose instead; there was no more oxygen. I remember moving my arms and legs, frantically trying to save my life. I remember my body hitting things under water, which was painful. That day the river was moving fast from west to east towards the ocean. I don't know how much time went by, but I couldn't move any more. I remember just floating under water, and I hit the bottom. The water was brown, and I couldn't see anything.   I knew I was dying, and I screamed 'PLEASE GOD HELP ME!' (My mom used to take me to church.) I don't know how, but I knew that God was the only one who could help me.

That was when I felt my life fading. Then I heard the most pleasing voice telling me to relax and that everything was going to be okay. I then felt arms embracing me; I knew it was a man, and he was very kind and gentle. I was so happy and confused at the same time. We were floating in midair. I then realized that I was not dead, not yet anyway. I sensed we were going up very fast. All my pains were gone and I could breathe again. My body was not solid anymore, I could see right through it, but I could feel me.

Then I saw that we going towards a light, slowly at first. When we got close, the very bright light just engulfed me. The angel that was with me said 'Bye' and faded away. I was floating there for a moment, wondering, 'What's happening?'   I felt connected to everything and that everything was connected to me. (Hard to explain.) Then I felt I was not alone anymore. I could see this shape of a man coming closer. When he got close enough, I felt the most beautiful feeling of love and belonging; there are no words my human mind can find to describe these feelings (sorry). Imagine yourself in an airplane and the airplane blows up! Then you wake up - just a dream. Kind of like that. I was so happy I wasn't dead for real, but where am I?   That place felt more real than this one. I never felt more alive in my life.

This angel (I call them angels) came closer to my right side and spoke to me, but his lips were not moving. He was talking to my mind. I could hear him through mind, being, and my soul. He told me he was there to help me with my questions (and boy did I have questions) but first he started to show me my life like a movie (hard to explain). My life was going backwards. The first image I saw was something bad that I did (I used a key to scratch a car). I could feel the pain that I caused because of my actions. Then I remember thinking 'Oooh no! I'm in trouble!' My angel surprised me by saying, 'Don't worry, these are just lessons.' I remember thinking 'Oh crap, he can read my mind too.' He heard that too and gave me this lovely, beautiful smile. This movie was showing, second by second, my entire life; everything I saw, I could feel the results of it. Everything I did had a life of its own. Like when I felt the feelings and thoughts of the owner of the car I had scratched, and then he told his wife about it. I could feel her pain too, and on and on and on. (Not a good feeling.)

He didn't show me just the bad things I did; he showed me the things I did out of love too. He showed me the time I befriended this homeless boy and took him home with me. We showered, ate, and I give him some of my clothes, too.   I could feel how happy this made my angel feel.   He told me that those are the things that really matter, those that make a difference in the world for the better.

Then the movie stopped, and all my questions were answered in an instant. Then I started to miss my life, as I knew it. I started to think about my mother, and I could feel her pain when she heard the news that all her sons had drowned. I knew my angel was showing me this because it wasn't my time. My mission wasn't done. But what mission? I still don't know. I don't know how long all of this took; I didn't have a sense of time anymore. Anyway, I was missing my life, and I wanted to go back. I had flashbacks about playing soccer with my friend, being hugged by my mom, the sun, the rain, things that made me happy. I also knew my angel did this for a reason because any sane person would not want to go back. While there, I had feelings of belonging, joy, happiness, and love. Mention a good feeling---and I had that feeling ten-fold!

I also realized for the first time how beautiful and fragile Earth really is. I could sense the earth breathing like it was alive. I could see a light around everything that was alive, trees, flowers, grass, animals, and humans. I have the word (aura) stamped in my mind ever since. I sensed that humans were in control over other living things.   Don't know why, but the angel told me not to tell anyone and that time will reveal it itself.   I said 'What?' But then I felt a jolt in my soul, a feeling that I was back in my body. Next thing I know, I was being held by another angel. He was pushing me out of the water. It was then that I realized that I was human again. Oh my God, what a feeling!

Then I felt like I was drunk.   The first thing I saw was this beautiful blue sky; and I could breathe again. Then I realized, 'Where my brothers?' I looked to my right and there they were, walking out of the water with me!   OH MY GOD! THANK-YOU! THANK-YOU! THANK-YOU! I have tears in my eyes thinking about it.   Our God and father is so good to us. Then I saw people rushing towards us: some were crying, some were smiling and hugging each other. They felt as happy as I did! Why? Then this police officer was talking on his radio he said, 'I found them, I found the kids!' He told the others to come up river, the other officers were looking for us down river where they thought we were. After a couple of minutes, they got there and said, 'This can't be them! They couldn't survive twenty-two minutes underwater and talk about it!' The medical personal that were there agreed with them, and they all went back down river. I was trying to tell what happened but I couldn't speak. I mean my mouth was moving but no sound. I looked up in the sky and said 'Please give me my voice back, I won't tell anyone!'--- I got my voice back!

I have a little stutter today, but I don't care about that.   I don't know which is better, being back here or having the knowledge that we never die! Today, I take things as they come, and I try to do everything with love. But that is sometimes really hard, because we live in a world of uncertainty. People don't know who God really is. They make it really hard for me to love them as I should, but I forgive them and love them on the inside, even if I don't show them sometimes. God knows what I mean.

My brothers and I never talked about our drowning experience until Christmas of 2007 (thirty-eight years later). I can cry just thinking about the Light. I felt that the Light was God.   I saw and felt all the wonders of the universe and how all things were made. I remember knowing all that, but as soon I came back, everything went blank. I asked Marco if he remembered anything.    He told me that he saw the Light.   He also saw his life review and they told him things, too.   He had no pain, he felt loved, and he told the angels he wanted to come back. The angel told him not to tell anyone.

Later I asked Carlon what happened. He said that he died and that an angel saved him. He said he also saw the “movie.” I don't know why, but we never got too deep into this conversation. I think we are scared that something will happen, because we were asked not to tell. But as I get older, I have the urge to tell the world that God and heaven are very real. I have to be very responsible when talking about this. I don't feel that I am the one writing this, but my soul.

I pray that one day the human race, the sons and daughters of God will live on Earth with that Love and Peace that I felt, and come to realize that we are One. Loving one another is the most important thing we can do.

Glen D’s NDE in 2001---osteomyelitis and anaphylactic shock, veridical OBE

I had become seriously ill with osteomyelitis, contracted through what was eventually determined to be a golf ball-sized polyp located behind my larynx that had ruptured.   Little pieces of it attached to my spine, creating penetrating abscesses, inward, into my upper spine. I was rushed from one hospital to another larger one.

Once stabilized, I was scheduled for throat surgery the following day to remove the polyp before attacking the osteomyelitis.

I remember surgery prep and entering the OR. The next thing I remember is waking up to a roomful of panic-stricken doctors, nurses and staff. They were all scrambling, moving very quickly about, and all constantly staring back at me with grave looks of concern. I was propped up to about a 45-degree angle.

The doctor directly in front of me told me that I was in anaphylactic shock, that one of my lungs had already collapsed, and that they were going to insert a chest tube to try to prevent the other from going down.

The doctor was literally screaming at me to, 'Breathe! Breathe, God dammit!' I tried to take a breath, realizing instantly there was no air in my lungs. It was at this point that I instantly realized I was dying and that I'd essentially taken my last breath.

Suddenly, I was consumed in a state of extreme peacefulness, and a calmness and serenity that made me feel safer than I'd ever felt in my life. I remember seeing the beginning of a “life-review,” but I only vaguely recall any of its details.

The next thing I remember is standing above the room, viewing the medical team’s work on my lifeless body from the upper-left hand corner of the back of the room.

I could see the flat-line on the heart monitor, similar to what I have seen in movies, and I could see and hear everything as they prepared a defibrillator to attempt to revive my heart.   I was able to hear every word that was said in the conversations that were taking place amid the chaos. It was almost as if I were standing directly next to anyone who spoke, and yet I estimate that I was standing at least 15-20 ft. from where the action was taking place. And none of the conversations ran together, even though there were several taking place simultaneously.

Here is the unusual part that I found odd during my NDE.   At the time, I was 46 years old and didn't see all that well without my glasses. But I remember seeing clearly as new cardiac nurses entered the room to assist. These are nurses who I'd had no contact with when I entered the room for surgery. Oddly enough, from my vantage point I could read the names on their badges, Landers and McCarthy, and I had no glasses on.   After approximately four and a half minutes they were able to get a heartbeat in my body, after which, they hooked me up to life support, since I was still unconscious.

I heard the doctors say that I needed to be rushed to ICU. In somewhat of a panic, I watched as they wheeled my body to the door of the room. When the doors to the operating room opened, it revealed this blinding white light that relayed to me the most peaceful feeling I have ever encountered. It was pure white and it penetrated every fiber of my being, spreading warmth, comfort, and a feeling of safety. I felt strangely familiar with it. I remember looking to my right and seeing my mother, Phyllis, who died exactly one year prior to this event, 10/27/2001. She was standing there, smiling with her left hand outstretched. We acknowledged each other. She smiled, I smiled back, but when I looked back, she was gone.

As I watched my body being rolled, almost as if in slow motion, into the light, I wanted to go into it very badly. The next thing I remember is waking up six days later in the intensive care unit. I was told that I'd been in a coma and kept alive on life support for the six days. I was livid. Still unable to speak from the throat surgery, I was given a board on which to write. My first words were, “Please pull the plug. I want to go back.”

The odd thing is that during my subsequent stay in the unit, I became chummy with some nurses who I shared my experience with. I told them how I recalled reading the names of the two cardiac nurses who had come in while I was “dead.” The nurses were able to check the duty roster for the day the event happened ---and sure enough, the two nurses, Landers and McCarthy, were the two who rushed in to assist with my resuscitation!

One of these two nurses actually dropped by to see me at one point during my hospital stay. She assured me that my body was virtually lifeless when she got there, and that at no point in time did I ever regain consciousness while she was there, which would have been necessary in order for me to be able to read the name on her badge, never mind without my glasses.

Being dead was by far the most enjoyable experience I've ever had. While I don't preach, I do try to relate to others, in certain circumstances, what they can expect. I have found that to be comforting to others. I also have a sharpened value system now when it comes to being able to recognize the 'good' in everything. My life before had kept a frantic pace, with a limited tolerance for others and very little compassion for people. I still keep a busy schedule, but now I take the time to revel in both the ups and downs of life, for now I see that they all have meaning. Exactly what that meaning is, I still don't know, but I feel that if I take the time to embrace every aspect of life, every emotion I encounter, then maybe that 'meaning' will become clearer. I'm a much better 'listener' now too than I ever was before. My life is now an open book, and the humility that comes with this just makes me appreciate being around other people. I totally embrace every aspect of life now, something I didn't do before.

JoAnn M’s NDE in 1994

I was at home, folding laundry, not feeling so great, when my bronchials started tightening up and I knew I was getting into trouble. I took some of my usual inhaler, but it didn't work. My last resort, which I had never used before, was an Epi-Pen, a shot of epinephrine - a hormone sometimes called 'adrenaline'. That didn't kick in, either, so I called my dad who lived a few blocks away and told him I needed to go to the hospital. Prior to his arrival, I remember pacing my apartment like a caged animal. When he arrived, I insisted we go outside while we waited for a friend to drive us.

I remember going down the first five steps to the car, and that was it. I collapsed out in the street. Since it was a warm evening in September, neighbors were out and saw me go down. While people ran to get me out of the intersection (for some reason I had dragged my father out to the middle of the street!), someone called 911. The first to arrive on the scene was a fire truck. Then the paramedics arrived, did whatever blood work they do to determine if drugs were involved, and began life support. Calls were put into the hospital notifying them of our pending arrival. I was breathing erratically, and my pupils were fixed. When they felt I was stabilized enough to be moved, I was placed in the ambulance for transport.

It was then that my heart stopped the first time. We had only driven to the corner of my street. Since my dad was with the driver, he could hear the monitors buzz and with that, the driver cursed, hit the sirens, muttering “we are losing her.” My heart stopped twice more in the emergency room. Doctors and nurses were feverishly working on me. My vital signs were dangerously low. It was unknown how much oxygen I had lost and if there was any brain damage. Since my pupils were fixed and they could not elicit any response, the doctor went into the room where my parents and sister were to tell them he didn't know how much longer I would hold on, and he would leave them alone to discuss funeral arrangements.

It's very hard to explain what happened to ”me” during the time my heart was stopped. Where it starts, I do not know. At some point, a being came along and took me on a tour of the universe, explaining how the galaxies were created and giving me a sense of the vastness of the universe, and of my being a part of the universe from its beginnings. I was a part of all that has occurred, and all that will ever occur. It was as if I I was everything and everything was me. It was a very reassuring feeling, and I felt very safe and protected. I felt unconditional love, joy and profound peacefulness. I had no sense of linear time and even now, have a problem sometimes operating within the parameters of “time.”

Then I felt myself moving through a black, velvety tunnel, a color black I had never seen nor can I describe, toward a very distant pinpoint of light. So as I moved along, I suddenly came to a stop. I didn't want to go back into my body, but I encountered a large form, possibly God, who told me it was now time to go back. I started arguing with God in my own little obnoxious way, and was told I needed to go back because my mission here wasn't complete. Then I was back in my body!

I think that is the point in the emergency room when I started bucking up off the table and got violent. In one fluid movement I punched a nurse in the jaw! It took four of the team to wrestle me to the table and administer a shot of something to calm me down. After a while I opened my eyes, and, as the room became clear, I felt the wonderfulness of my journey beginning to fade. Needless to say, I was very disappointed that the lightness of the other side faded so quickly after I woke up. My family was gathered around and rushed me. Unfortunately, I could not talk, or, at that point, even move since I had been restrained. I didn't know why, but I did get them to untie my hands so I could write. I had to prove there was no loss of oxygen, no brain damage, so when the nurse came in, I held up a paper with my name, birth date, address, social security number, work phone number, parent's names, nieces and nephews, etc. My boss, who at that time was a surgical oncologist, delicately told the nurse to leave me alone, I was fine. Undaunted, she continued to ask questions, so I started to write nursery rhymes. Then she left.

Weeks later, I called IANDS (International Association for Near-Death Studies) in Seattle to see what they thought this experience was. The person on the line listened intently, and after I stopped, was very emotional. So I asked if he could tell me what was meant by “my mission.” He instructed me to put the call on hold, sit back, and ask the universe what my mission was. I have to admit I thought this was hokey, but I did as he said. I got back on the phone and told him I got the strangest response, that I hadn't “loved enough.” I asked what the heck could that mean? I haven't killed anyone, I always believed in God and all that stuff; heck, I wouldn’t even kill a fly. I'm just a regular female, not setting the world on fire, living day-to-day, doing what I have to do.

I think after I had babbled enough, he stopped me and said “congratulations, you have had a classic near death experience.” He told me that an “unfinished mission” is the reason why most people are sent back, and that there could be a zillion interpretations to what “not loving enough is.” I have to determine that for myself. But, he told me a secret: Part of that mission would be to let people know that death is not to be feared and the transition is a glorious one, and that I would find myself in situations where the topic would come up with complete strangers but would never feel strange to share.

My sense now of 'heaven,' of the afterlife, of the Other Side, is that what happens to you when you die is your choice. You can choose to stay in a state of unconditional love on the Other Side or not, and what you choose is often affected by how you forgive yourself for the blunders you made in your life. You totally judge yourself. No one else judges you. You feel the pain that you created during your life, and it all comes back to you. Since that time I haven't stopped trying to ”love enough.” But I know I'm here for a reason, as we all are. The pains of humanity can be unbearable sometimes. But there is so much more!!

Jodi S’s NDE in 1996

On December 16, 1996, I was driving to work with my sister. It was about 8 am and it was rainy and foggy that morning. We came to the stop sign at the intersection of Creek Road and Route 194. The intersection has a bridge off to the left and it sits on a rise preventing me from seeing any oncoming traffic. Two previous vehicles had their headlights on and passed by me without any problem, so I thought it was clear to pull out and I did.

Unfortunately, there was another car traveling at about sixty mph directly behind the bridge at the time of me pulling out. He did not have his headlights on and was driving a dark colored Honda Civic, which had a low profile, making it even more difficult to see from where I was sitting. My car was t-boned at about sixty mph. I was taken to the York Hospital where I was found to have a lacerated spleen and liver as well as three spinal fractures, three pelvic fractures, a collarbone fracture, left leg fracture, all ribs on my right side were fractured, and I had a head injury.

The doctors were unsure if I would ever walk again or even if I would survive the next twenty-four hours. My sister was unharmed because my body had taken most of the impact. Fortunately, my spleen and liver lacerations had clotted off and the trauma surgeon felt I would be okay without surgery. I was in and out of consciousness for the next five days.

On December 21, 1996, I woke up in the trauma unit and the doctor felt I was stable enough for the staff to make me get out of bed to a bedside lounge chair for a few minutes. I was not at all in agreement with the decision but with enough pain medicine on board they used a mechanical lift and got me into the chair where I remained for the next twenty minutes. The staff then returned me to my bed, much to my relief. About two minutes after the nurses left the room, I started having difficulty breathing and having severe pain in my chest. I rang the call bell for the nurse and the next thing I remember is the staff all running around me yelling. They put the head of my bed down and the foot of my bed up so I was in a slanted position.

A tall bald black man was wheeling me into the operating room because I started bleeding internally. I remember telling him through difficult breaths 'Don't let me die!' He looked right into my eyes and said, 'You're not going to die today!' That was the last words I heard.

I remember seeing a bright beautiful light that started out in front of me and quickly was all around me. It was intensely bright and white with a blue hue, but it did not hurt my eyes or make me squint. There is nothing on Earth I can compare it to, so it is very difficult for me to explain. But it was the most welcoming and beautiful feeling I ever had. I felt so incredibly free, and I was intensely happy and felt no need for anything. There was no sense of Time during this period. I just knew I never wanted to leave this sense of peace and wellbeing. I felt I was more alive than I had ever been.

I saw a figure come towards me out of the light. This figure was very tall and spoke to me, although I did not hear the words with my ears. It was as if someone was speaking inside my head, although it was not my voice I heard. Everything was so crystal clear and seemed to make perfect sense, although logically it was impossible. The figure told me 'You must go back; we are not ready for you yet.' I remember feeling like I did not want to leave. I kept saying 'Why? I don't want to go.' But I was already leaving. I started to feel like I was falling from the ceiling back into my body and I remember landing with such a big jolt that I woke up.

I saw the surgeons standing around me for just a second. The next thing I remember was waking up after surgery the next day in intensive care. My family was crying and standing over me. I woke up and told them I saw an angel. They told me I had died on the operating table, but that the doctors had brought me back. I thought they were nuts! I didn't believe I was ever dead. It took two doctors showing me paddle burn marks on my chest to convince me that I had ever been gone.

I had lost three-quarters of my total blood volume and my heart had failed. I was without a heartbeat for eleven minutes until they brought me back through shocking my heart. I then had undergone surgery to repair the bleeding coming from my spleen and liver. I had such a hard time believing that I was ever dead, because I was never felt more alive!

I started telling my family about my experience as soon as I woke up. It was if I HAD to tell people even if they thought I was crazy. Now my family is much closer, and I am more open with my loved ones than before. I am sure that we do not die but go on to exist elsewhere.

THIS UNUSUAL NDEr SEEMED TO HAVE CONTROL OVER HER OBE: FIRST OUT, THEN IN, THEN OUT, THEN INTO HER BODY AGAIN! YOU WILL HAVE TO DECIDE FOR YOURSELF IF SHE IS TELLING THE TRUTH! OR DREAMING. OR JUST CONCOCTING A FANCIFUL STORY!

Lauren K’s NDE in 1978---death from a sledding accident

I was visiting a friend with Muscular Dystrophy, in Lake Tahoe. Barney was in a wheelchair, accompanied by his brother and friends. I had met Barney a short time before, at a camp where I had been living. Barney had called me and invited me up to visit with him and his brothers. I said “yes” and booked a flight. After a couple of days, things were getting a little boring and I needed some outside time. Barney was not able to get around, so the time was spent mostly inside.

His brothers had been playing outside and invited me to come join them. They had tied a rope around the bumper of a car and were pulling their friend in a snow saucer across the snow-covered road. Laughing and giggling, they were having a great time. All of a sudden, the young boy they were pulling went out of control. As I was watching, I was horrified and immediately made a declaration into the Universe: “Oh God, don”t let that happen to him. I know he won’t survive the accident!” He was heading for a parked car and I knew it wasn’t going to be good. At that moment, he rolled over, bruised his shoulder, got up and walked away.

The following day I found myself doing exactly the same thing. It was in the late afternoon and Barney’s brothers asked me if I wanted have a go at it. Not thinking about what had almost happened the day before, I said “Sure.” I sat down cross legged in the snow saucer and held onto the rope. The boys piled in the car and began to pull me through the snow. As I was being towed, I said “Go faster!” The boys turned off to the right and I swung out to the left, towards a parked car! I was moving at a rate of approximately 30 mph. A voice came in my head and said “You better turn your head or you will hit the car face on.” So I turned my head and took the impact to the left side of my head. “Oh my God, we killed Barney’s girlfriend! What are we going to tell him?”

I left my body and rapidly traveled through a tunnel into an all white light! It was totally warm and peaceful. Pure Love emanated through me and around me. I had a sense of all-knowingness. At that moment, my Grandfather, who had passed away earlier that year, appeared to me and we embraced. “My darling, you have a decision to make.” I knew the decision was to stay there with him or to come back to my body.

At that moment, I had an opportunity to view my life. Everything seemed whole and complete. I knew my dog and cat would be taken care of, and I was pretty much willing to go, but I had some questions first. I asked if there would be anything wrong with me if I chose to come back to my life. A voice answered “No. The only thing that would show would be the scar of the tracheotomy.” “Would I remember this dream?” The voice came back, “Yes and if anyone would ask you about the scar, it would be an opportunity to share your experience.” “If I chose to stay here, what would be the cause of death?” “It will show that your spinal cord had been severed.”

At that moment a Highway Patrol man showed up by my side. My brother was in the Highway Patrol, so I immediately recognized the uniform and came back into my body. I told him “I am having this incredible dream!” He said, “No, you hit the car.” I wanted to tell him about this out-of-body experience I was having, but he brought it back down to a physical level. With that, I wasn’t interested and went back out of my body! Soon the ambulance showed up, rolled me over, put me inside the ambulance, and rushed me off to the hospital.

On the way, I remember sitting up, out of my body, and looking out the ambulance window. I remember remarking to myself “Oh, there is Lake Tahoe, and I have a ticket to fly.” So once again, I was out of my body, looking over Lake Tahoe from above. The ambulance pulled into the hospital, wheeled my body into the emergency room, and I remember them asking about emergency contact numbers. I came back into my body and tried to give them the phone number of my mom, but I then started throwing up. There was blood and yuck and grossness all over me, and I didn’t want to hang around for that. So once again, back out of my body I went.

When I finally came back into my body, I was sitting up on the operating table. I was looking over my left shoulder, watching the doctors do the tracheotomy. When they finished, I lay back down in my body and resumed my life.

Now getting back to the point as to when I made my decision to come back. In the beginning, I met my grandfather in the Light. When the voice in the Light was talking to me, it seemed like it was coming from above. The voice was neither female nor male. When I was having the question/answer period, it was as if my Grandfather had left. I remember there was a period of time that I was left alone, in this beautiful white marble surrounding, which I later described as a Maxfield Parrish painting.

Later I came to learn about my mother’s dream that night. My grandfather had come to her in the dream. He told her “Lauren is dead.” My mother then said “No, you will not have her. She was only your granddaughter and you will not take her from me.” She then became physically violent with him, and then he left. That was her dream she shared with me, later on in the hospital. Simultaneously to my mother’s dream, I remembered being in the Light and acknowledging the space, saying “that the gift I am being given is to stay here, but I can’t accept the gift right now, because my mother will grieve greatly for my loss.” I saw that every time she fell into depression, she would sink deeper, because of my death. The voice came back and said, “So shall it be and what you shall receive is a blessing.” At that moment, I knew I was going to survive the accident. Nobody else knew I was going to live, but I did.

I think that is why I was having so much fun coming in and out of my body. When I was out of my body, everything was so clear, and my “hearing” was not through my ears, but all encompassing, even though I described the voice as “coming from above,” it really seemed as if it were all around.
I had no control over my physical body, nor did I want it; but my spiritual body could come and go as it pleased, and boy, did I have fun with it!

I was in the intensive care unit for several days in order to stabilize my body. I then had 9 hours of reconstructive surgery to wire my face back together. I had 5 skull fractures, broke both orbits of my eyes, destroyed my left cheek bone, and broke my jaw in 3 places. I remained in the hospital for several days after surgery. I was known in the hospital as a miracle case. I came back, full of Joy, making people laugh, doing the IV Disco down the halls, and making obscene calls to respiratory therapy, holding the phone up to my tracheotomy and breathing heavily!

Prior to the accident I was a “wild child,” taking chances, saying things like “This joke will kill you.” Afterwards, I realized these bodies are a gift and to be more careful with them. Now I have a greater respect for myself and for others and for the Love that unites us all. This experience was a blessing and was definitely real. It was as real as I am, sitting here typing this! Since my grandfather was born in Santa Cruz, I now tell others, “God speed and remember: You don’t die, you just move to Santa Cruz!”

Linda R’s NDE in 1979---horrible bleeding after her second birth

Ten days after the birth of our second child, my husband and I had planned an evening for just the two of us. We celebrated the success of giving birth to our son the way most happily married couples do, but something seemed 'odd' within my body. I remember going to the bathroom and seeing myself in the mirror. My face was drained of all color and I felt very shaky. It was then that I decided to sit on the toilet for a moment in order to still myself. When I sat down, everything inside of me seemed to fall out. I remember looking into the toilet and seeing huge blood clots, the size of a man's fist dropping into the water. At the time, I didn't know what the blood clots were, in fact, I remember thinking, 'My God, my insides just dropped out!' I was convinced that I was going to die right then and there.

The next thing I remember, I was suddenly rushing through a very large tunnel at a tremendous speed. The sound of rushing through the tunnel was like a deafening roar. Lights flashed by me as I rushed toward a light at the end of the tunnel. Pictures of my past rushed by me. At first, I was afraid of what was happening, so I closed my eyes. When I opened them, I was still in the tunnel, moving faster than before and someone was with me. I couldn't tell if this person was male or female. The presence felt like both. She appeared to wear a long white gown and had shoulder length, dark hair. He was taller than I was and was slender in build. She didn't speak to me but her presence gave me courage. There seemed to be others in the tunnel as well. They too, were traveling toward the light. I could feel myself picking up speed as I approached the light. It was as if I were compelled to go to it as a moth is to a flame! I felt 'love' and 'happiness' as I have never felt on this earth the moment I stepped into the light. This was no ordinary light by the way; it was a pure, white light. It was the atmosphere. And, it made me giddy with love and happiness from the moment I stepped into it. I recall seeing a beautiful garden with a white fence around it. I remember thinking that the colors in the garden were so much more vivid here than at my home.

Just as I reached to unlatch to gate, someone stopped me. This wasn't the same person that was with me in the tunnel. I knew this because his presence was most definitely male. He was dressed in a long white gown and had shoulder-length hair, only his was lighter than the first person's. He guided me to a marble bench just outside of the garden, where we sat down to talk. He told me things that I cannot remember now but he told me that I would remember what we spoke about when the time was right. And then he said that it was not my time to be there and that I needed to return to my family. Afterward, I felt as though I had spoken with Jesus.

Even though my son was only a few days old, I didn't want to leave this place. I argued and pleaded, but it did no good. Suddenly I heard my name, in a whisper, in my ear. Just like that, I found myself back in my body on the bathroom floor. My husband, who had found me lying in a pool of blood, convulsing in the last throes of life, was shaking me and screaming my name into my face. It was his voice that I had heard as a whisper that brought me back into my physical body. I was to learn later that I had a toxic Infection caused by some leftover afterbirth.
My experience felt more real there than my life does here. It has changed my life dramatically. Most importantly, I live my life without fear of dying.

THOSE WHO THINK THAT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF DEATH YOU WILL EXIST ONLY AS A SPIRIT (DISEMBODIED CONSCIOUSNESS) SHOULD TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT THE VARIETY OF REALITIES ENCOUNTERED BY NDErs! THERE SEEMS TO BE A GREAT DEAL OF FREEDOM AND CONTROL WE CAN HAVE OVER WHAT HAPPENS TO US ON THE OTHER SIDE. THIS ITALIAN’S NDE SHOWS WHAT I MEAN!

Roberto P’s NDE in 1986---from Italy

About the accident, I remember only the crashing sound of the truck I was driving. Then, for me, drifting from life into death was painless.

I found myself standing in a canoe on a dark, calm tropical river, like the Amazon. I was working hard, pushing the boat forward with a long pole that reached down to the river bottom. I remember I was wearing a straw hat, white trousers and a rope as a belt. It was a sunny day and I was navigating this river by its dimensions and features, which I seemed to know well. Its banks were lush with thick vegetation. I was immediately struck by the intense colors, much brighter and richer than the ones I was used to.

I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with the fragrant, moist air. As I removed my hat and wiped the sweat from my forehead with my sleeve, I felt a sensation of peace and bliss that I had never experienced before. I watched the birds, flying high in the sky, and then, staring at the horizon, I could see the mouth of the river flowing into the ocean. I felt myself so loved and so free. It was as if I had always been in that place; I had no memories of the life I just left behind. My canoe was floating onward and there were no sounds except for those of the wind, the birds singing, and the sloshing of the water on the pole as it broke the water, and then a little rushing sound as the boat surged gently forward.

At my right, far away, I noticed an inlet to the river, and a 30 meter long wooden bridge over it. Standing on this bridge was a man waving at me with the hat he held in his hand. I returned his salute. Then something incredible happened! In just an instant, my face was only a few centimeters away from the face of this man! The first thing he said to me was, 'Welcome! We have been waiting for you!' He was elderly, I think about 70 or 75 years old, with greyish hair, and blue eyes. As we gazed at each other, I sensed his face emanating a sort of a positive light that transmitted a feeling of peace.

Space and time did not seem to exist. I remember that in order to move, it was enough to want to be in a place in order to actually be there. I did not speak using my voice but only my thoughts. I could see my body, but I felt myself as a soul and, as such, I could tell I would not need to eat or to sleep. I was totally free of any limitation.

At some point my past flashed before me, out of my control.   I couldn't tell how long I had been there, but back on the Earth, I had been in a coma for about 35 to 40 days. In my new reality, I was living in a wooden shelter, and I remember that it could rain or be sunny at the snap of one's fingers, and when the rain stopped, the leaves were immediately dry as if it had never rained. Then one day I found myself face to face with that man. I suddenly experienced a feeling of anguish, realizing he was telling me that I was going to have to go back to my old life on Earth. My hands were in his and his face was reassuring. I told him that I did not want to go back, because where I was, I felt so good!

Suddenly the man disappeared, and in his place, I saw a being of light that said to me, 'I am sorry but it has been decided otherwise.' Gripped by anguish, I tried to keep holding on tightly to his hands, as if that could keep me from having to leave, but in the next moment, my hands were empty. I raised my eyes and I saw a multitude of such beings of light surrounding me and caressing me. I could feel their sadness about my having to go back. I did not know them but they knew me. At first I saw them as human persons, and at the end, as beings of light. These beings always communicated to me with their thoughts.    I began perceiving a force drawing me, pulling me, and taking me back little by little. Then I was speeding through a tunnel of white light with my arms ever outstretched toward those beings. I kept stretching my arms out to them until the very end, even as they were vanishing.

Back in my body, as I opened my eyes, pain seized me. My physical being was devastated by severe traumas from the accident. And for weeks, amongst puzzled physicians, I kept stretching my arms out, again and again.   My experience was definitely real.   It was a godsend to be able to peek at what awaits me when I shall leave this body.

Irene O’s Out of Body Experience in 1983

I remember ascending the ladder to the top of the high diving board. It was the second or third time I was brave enough to jump off. I guess I took too long to jump because a boy behind me rushed up and pushed me. I slipped through the side railings of the high dive and ended up falling onto the concrete below, not the swimming pool.

As soon as my body hit the concrete, my spirit flew straight up into the air and hovered. I was about twenty feet or so above myself looking down. I could see everyone and everything at the swimming pool simultaneously. I could see the circle of children gathered around my lifeless body.

I could hear and understand every conversation simultaneously as well. I watched the lifeguards rush in horror to my body. I watched them waving over emergency personnel to try to resuscitate me. I watched and listened to other children talking about me ‘being dead’ to their mothers. I could observe absolutely everything that was happening around me.

Looking back, the strangest part was that I had no feeling about what I was watching. None at all. It wasn't good or bad. I wasn't happy or sad. I was just watching.

Years later, I ran into a lifeguard that was working at the pool that day. I recognized him from my ‘viewing’ episode. I asked if he was there that day, told him who I was (because I was now an adult, not a seven year old girl), and he confirmed everything I asked and explained to him. He said he will never forget that day because that was his first job and he had just started.

I woke up one week later in the hospital, inside of a concussion ‘cage’ they would use for young children in traumatic accidents.

Jim T’s PARTIAL NDE in 2000

I am a type one diabetic and have been since 1982. During this time, I have experienced numerous episodes of severe low blood sugar. These have always involved unconsciousness with no memory of events. One of the first things to occur during my low blood sugar episodes is a loss of brain function. The brain requires glucose to function properly.

This episode was different. I had stumbled out of my bedroom and collapsed on my kitchen floor. I suddenly was aware that I was somehow floating in the air near the ceiling and observed a body on the floor surrounded by people wearing dark blue jackets. It took me some time to realize that the body on the floor was me! The people surrounding me were paramedics. They were working quickly and methodically, trying to revive me.

During all this, I felt an indescribable peace and calm. It's hard to put into words but I have never felt such a feeling before in my life. To simply say that I felt calm and peaceful does not do it justice. Low blood sugar, once consciousness returns, produces intense feelings of anxiety, agitation, confusion, fear and panic. I felt none of this. Quite the opposite. I have never felt such peace, calm, warmth and love in my life.

I experienced a presence who reassured me that everything would be all right. It was not a spoken voice but rather a telepathic message, which was just as clear as a spoken voice. It reassured me and put me at ease. I firmly believe it was a higher power communicating this message to me.

Just as quick as it started, it was over. One of the paramedics told me my blood sugar was seven. He had never seen one so low. It remains the most powerful spiritual experience of my life. I didn't want it to end but it just wasn't my time. My wife was pregnant at the time and I also had a year old son. I was given a second chance to live and raise my children. I no longer fear death as a result if this experience.

Juanita M’s NDE

I was shown my newborn baby boy---felt love for him---then I blacked out. I could hear the doctors and nurses talking in echoes---and I felt very cold! The echoes stopped and a terrible very unpleasant shrill but rushing noise filled my ears. The noise frightened me; it was unbearable, and I wanted it to stop. I could not determine what was happening to me. I was "in a dark place" and then became aware that I was in a tunnel lined with multi-fine concentric circles (gray colored) and that my body was moving rapidly down the tunnel feet first.

I was aware of my feet, but they were not solid---more of a filmy nature. My eyes focused on a beautiful golden light at the end of the tunnel where I was headed. When I came near the light, what I presumed to be an "angel" appeared at my side. By this time the terrible noise in my ears had stopped! "He" had no wings but had shoulder length light brown hair and a plain white gown. I had never seen this being before in my life. I now recall seeing him at my side from waist up only. I do not recall if he "glowed". As I picture him in my mind now, he didn't.

We communicated by telepathy only---not in words. I did not ask the angel who he was; I just surrendered to the "experience", to whatever would happen next. The "angel being” showed me a rapid movie of my life---of me as a little kid playing, then school, then adulthood. Nothing remarkable, no scolding for "sins" I had done, or any lessons mentioned that I needed to learn---only a very quick look.

This quick look at my life didn't seem important, and later as I recalled the whole experience, I wondered WHY I was even shown this movie! What was the point? Then the angel asked me, "Would you like to go back to your life? Or continue to the Light? (I interpreted his words "the Light" as being Heaven and God). You can go there if you choose to!".

After he said that, I thought about my "difficult" (alcoholic) husband, my 3 year old firstborn son, Tommy, and the wonderful little baby boy I had just given birth to. There was no hesitation---I told the angel "I want to go back. My husband needs me, and I feel so much love for my two little boys who need their mother".

Immediately, I was aware of being back in the world, waking up full of energy, with a most wonderfully inexpressible feeling of joy. I remember trying to raise myself up off the bed--- full of energy as I told the nurse (who was smiling and pushing me back down ) "I feel so good!" The nurse replied, "You feel so good because we are putting blood back into you. Look at your arm", and then I saw that I was receiving a transfusion. "We almost lost you" she said, and the doctor verified that they had had to resuscitate me and were successful after I was "gone" for a few minutes. My wonderful feeling soon left, but not my experience of being "somewhere near the next world". This was not a dream; it was a "real" experience!

Cyril C’s NDE in 1971---From the United Kingdom

It started in 1971. I was twenty years old and had just been laid off from my job (upholsterer). To make ends meet, I got a job at a builder's merchant's factory. After being there a few months, I started getting severe headaches. They were so severe that I was going to the pub to try to rid them by having a few beers. NO GOOD. It didn't work. So the next step was trying out a few spliffs; hope you know what I mean. [marijuana cigarettes]

Anyway, things were getting so bad, my dad phoned the doctor. I went there, just normal headaches she said. I was going to work week in week out, until the day came when I couldn't move from the sofa to the door. I was sick everywhere every ten minutes, so, finally, they rushed me to the hospital.   It was there that I went in and out of coma. They decided then to send me to the Neurological Centre. I died twice on the way. (These are things I was told, as I was unconscious.)

Well, I had abscess on the brain, caused by blockage in the ear. Weeping from the ear, instead of coming out of my ear traveled upwards and onto the brain. They told my mum and dad and my brother there wasn't much hope. While I was in bed and a priest was at the end of the bed reading last rites, I left my body. I was above everyone, looking down.   I could see what was going on: my mum and brother cuddling each other, my dad hiding behind a large curtain and crying silently.

I was then wheeled on a trolley to the operating theatre while I'm still ABOVE, looking down on everything. In theatre I see gleaming silver dishes and the surgeon. Anyway, he picked up this green drill. Then there were two nurses passing objects to the surgeon. The nurses’ faces were half covered but I could still see them. The drilling began, and I now started to leave the operating theatre, and traveled into a TUNNEL. Yes, I know, we have all heard of the tunnel. It was a pleasant trip, because at the end of the tunnel I could hear children laughing and playing.   The grass there was so lush Green, not a weed in sight.

Then there was this dark shadow looking at me. I didn't know who it was, but the shape looked like my grandfather. I will never know, or maybe I will when I finally die. It was so, so, so nice and peaceful in this place. I started to go to a hill where I'm sure I would have seen all the children and people on other side, but then an ENORMOUS but GENTLE hand pushed me back and a calming voice said “you are not ready”.   Next thing I can remember is going back into my body, which was lying in a bed on the ward. The priest had gone, but I was out for a few weeks, then slowly but surely, I was getting better.

Now when I was fit enough on the ward, I saw the two nurses that had been at my operation in the theatre.   I called them both over when they were together, and I said you were in the theatre when I was being operated on. They were AMAZED and said “how did you know that?” I told them, and they didn't know what to say, but they confirmed, “YES, you are right! We were.”

When I later saw the doctor, he confirmed that the drill he used was indeed Green!
To my parents I said, “the priest that was standing right there in that the very spot”.   They couldn't believe I knew exactly where he was standing.

I expect there are non-believers among you; but I KNOW what happened to me. I believe there is life after death, there is a heaven because I think I was nearly there and GOD pushed me away, back to my body. And to know which nurses were in theatre from the hundreds in the hospital, and to know the color of the drill?

I also had another operation while in hospital on the inner ear, called a cavity operation. A cavity was made in the ear, so weeping couldn't travel upwards and cause the same problem.   I was told I was the first person in the United Kingdom to have that operation!

My outlook on life is still good, and I love my family, and I'm not afraid to die. I know there is good to come. Also, the only thing that is in my mind (bothering me) was when my dad passed away about twelve years ago now. I was only person that didn't cry; I knew he was going to be okay. I felt happy for him, sorry for my mum, but happy for my dad. Does that seem right to you?

Katie W’s NDE in 2016---Unlike most NDErs, Katie identifies her welcomer as Jesus.

I attempted suicide. I experienced total respiratory failure and cardiac arrest. I left my body as my husband pulled our car under the awning of the emergency room.

I saw them take my body out of the vehicle and put me into a wheelbarrow chair looking thing. I saw the way each of the workers looked and what they were wearing. I saw my husband off to the side as I began to float farther and farther up. Then, I just saw their legs under the awning, the top of the hospital, and the mall to the side.

It looked like I was floating into a huge light that looked like the full moon. It was cold outside but I was perfectly warm. I was still wearing my clothes as I floated out because as I looked down and saw my legs, they were clad with the same clothes I had been wearing.

Then all of the sudden, I was rapidly sucked into what I thought was this full moon. That night the moon was a sliver, so I guess this was 'the light' that NDErs talk about. Then, I felt total love, joy, acceptance and peace.

When I got there, I saw a line of people waiting in a white room. The light of the room was unnatural but beautiful and comforting light. Just when I thought to myself, 'Wow there are lines even in heaven,' I was immediately sitting with my knees to my chest.

I was with Jesus who was also sitting the same way. He was tall with beautiful, tan skin. His eyes were the most vibrant green-blue that I had never seen. His eyes looked like jewels. They were so full of love and I felt full of love and comfort, acceptance and utter joy. I saw myself in a glorified type of body. My hair was thick and long; my blue eyes were even more blue and my skin was flawless. When Jesus spoke with me, we never used words or voice; it was all a telepathic type of conversation. Jesus took my hand and said, 'Look.'

At that moment, I was shown incidents in my life where I was very mean to people or hurt people without realizing it, due to self-absorption or distraction. The events were shown in succession, but all at the same time, in a way I can't describe. The review was so fast, in a rush, but I could see all of the incidents at once with such efficiency.

When He showed me all of these things, he did not condemn me, but just showed me all of the lost moments of love and how it had a domino effect on others. I felt sadness at my selfishness that was shown to me, but the Lord comforted me and made me feel loved, despite this. Then, I looked at Him and told Him, 'I don't want to leave. I want to stay with you.'

Then I was shown that my son would have a son. I saw him holding him. Jesus told me, 'I know you want to stay. But if you stayed, this is what would happen to your children and husband.' I saw flashes of the consequences of my early departure from their life. In the very moment that I said “I could not do that to them,” I was instantly back in my body with such a jolt.

I came back to my body and heard a priest praying for me. I heard the medical personnel say things like, 'Could this get any worse?' and I heard a nurse say, 'God help her!' I heard them announce that I was a 'bleeder,' because, apparently, when they were intubating me, I had a traumatic intubation. They were apparently recovering and cleaning me after the intubation. Then I went to sleep in critical condition and didn't wake up for three days.

ADDED COMMENTS:

As I was floating up, I saw all who worked on me. It was verified, because when I made my recovery, I revisited the trauma team and had “thank you” cards for them, addressed by using their physical descriptions. The supervisor intercepted them and knew exactly who the people were from my written descriptions. I even knew the color of one nurse's hairstreak and her jacket.

I also confirmed with the head of the ministry as I described the priest who was called to read my last rites. He was an Indian man of small stature. There was only one such man, and he was there the night that I died. The head priest confirmed this through the records, listened to my experience, and we both drew a lot of comfort from it.

Since my NDE, I am not so stuck in condemning any religion or person, because I know how precious we all are to God. If we are too religious, we forget the love of Christ. We have to accept Him but even if we don't initially, I have the feeling because of the mercy I experienced, He would give people chances to reach for Him. God and Jesus seemed to be one. He held my hand and reviewed my life. He was total love and acceptance with no condemnation, so gentle and so tender.

I immediately shared my experience with some of the medical staff and my husband. It was just so vivid, and when I woke up, I felt the need to confirm so many things. There was somewhat of a disconnect with my husband, because I wanted to talk about it because it was so amazing, and I think he got tired of that. My experience was definitely real; I have no doubts. It changed my entire life and how I feel living in this body.

Mary J’s NDE in 2008

I had surgery on 6/2/2008 and was kept in the hospital overnight for observation. The doctor told the nurse to hold all medications. The nurse erroneously told my family it was okay to give me medications.

I went into respiratory arrest and the doctor said narcotics had caused my arrest. My husband said I was sleeping, but at 4:00 am, I started gurgling and having trouble breathing. He called the nurse and she called the intensive care unit team and about fifteen people were on top of me giving me chest compressions. I had a bag on my mouth pumping air into my lungs.

I had a feeling I was drowning and could hear my husband crying and saying, 'Mary, don't leave me.'

Then I woke up in a tunnel of clouds going round and round with a brilliant bright light at the top. I felt a peace and joy I have never felt before. There were others there with me. I looked up and saw someone dressed all in white floating down. I saw his face, and it was my brother, Billy, who had died in 1990. He smiled at me, reached down, and took my hands, and I smiled back at him. He looked like he did when he was in his mid-twenties. We started moving (floating) up towards the bright light. I saw my three granddaughters’ heads, as if they had stuck their heads inside the tunnel, and they were saying 'Nana, don't go.’ Their voices sounded distorted, as if they were far, far away, but I wanted to keep going and we did. Then, they popped in again and said 'Nana, don't go,' but we kept floating up, and for a third time, their heads popped in again, and they said 'Nana don't go - We need you.' At that moment, my brother let go of my hands, looked at me, and said 'You have to go back, it's not your time.' He put his hands around my waist and guided me to where those three little heads were and they reached in and pulled me out - I remember the feeling.

The next thing I knew, I could hear my husband crying and saying 'Mary, don't leave me.' All the doctors and nurses were pawing all over me, and I knew I was back, but I felt so foggy. I woke up in the intensive care unit, and I was upset. I wanted Billy to come back and get me, I didn't belong here on earth anymore, and I wanted to go back. I didn't tell anyone where I had been; I just kept waiting for Billy to come back.

On June 4th, I was moved to a private room and that night Billy was standing at the foot of my bed, much older looking and in a shirt I well remember. I was so excited to see him. I said aloud to him, 'Do you want me to stay here or go?' He patted my footboard. I looked up and he had gone. I felt like he just wanted to check on me.

I got pneumonia from aspirating during my respiratory distress. The night before I left the hospital, the intensive care unit lung specialist came into my room to check on me, and my husband and daughter-in-law were with me. He told me he wanted to let me know that after I got home, I might start to remember having an experience of leaving for a while, as my oxygen level was so low, at 34 you are very close to death. I told him I did have an experience, and he wanted me to tell him.

My family was shocked. I had not told them. My husband and daughter in law were in awe. I guess I thought people would think I was crazy, but I knew better; you just can't make up something like what I experienced. He told me that, while working in the intensive care unit, he hears stories like that all the time, and he had heard stories just like mine many times. I told him I was upset to be here, but I understand I have a purpose and God was not ready for me yet. My experience was definitely real. I feel like I got just a little touch of what the afterlife is going to be like, and it is just as clear in my mind today as it will be for the rest of my life on earth.

I feel like a different person who loves to share my experience with anyone who will listen. Two weeks after it happened I was having an echocardiogram, and the technician and I started talking. I shared my NDE with her, and she shared hers with me---how she had floated over her body.

I just had my two year mark; I call it my second birthday to myself. I know where I am going when I die and look forward to that day where I can once again have complete peace and joy. I feel the reason I was sent back was to be with and watch over my three granddaughters.

Muriel N’s NDE in 2009---from France. Original in French

Following a hysterectomy, I felt strong pain in my belly and I was really tired. I looked at the catheter drain at my right side and saw that the bag was filling with blood too fast. (I have a rare blood type AB+). I had time to inform the medical staff. They noticed the state I was in and then everything happened very fast.

There was a palpable tension in all the nurses and doctors taking turns at my side. I was getting more and more tired. I heard a nurse saying to one of her colleagues, ‘We are losing her...her blood pressure is dropping.’ Shortly after this, I felt my “self” pop out through the top of my head. I hovered over my weary body that I no longer wanted as I saw the medical team busy itself in silence.

At the same time that the nurses noticed my distress, I suddenly saw at the end of my bed a very bright white light that seemed alive. Then a silhouette took shape. At the same time, my abdominal pain vanished. I felt total well-being. The silhouette was a tall gentleman of great beauty, his face illuminated by perfect features. He sported a short beard; his hair mingled with the white light. He had an intense and deep look that penetrates the soul coming from his pale blue eyes. I felt LOVE pouring from this Being of light. A Love I had never felt before. (As I write this, I'm crying. Despite the years, remembering this event always moves me just as much). He appeared with a big book that he was carrying open on his left arm. He intensified his focus on my eyes and asked me a question (which I heard in my mind):

“Who would you like me to inform in case of . . .?” He questioned me kindly. I replied, “Inform my mother, she doesn't know that I'm not well.”
“What else do you want?” he asked in a soft, audible voice.
“I want time to kiss my 5 children, the time to tell my family how much I love them. And to tell them they should love life!”
'What do you want in your life?'
“I would like to understand my mistakes.   I would like to understand nature, science, love.”
The man slowly wrote down all my wishes in his book and said, “I'll show you your life.”
(It still makes me cry ...)

Suddenly, I was flying above regions such as a forest, a savannah, and beings of all nationalities.   I was, at the same time, a spectator and a student, I was learning, as I flew.    I saw trees, nature, oceans, sky, animals as they passed in front of my eyes. I understood, or rather I learned, as in a lesson; all my senses were awakened and my entire being reacted.   I saw my life in review. I saw my mistakes. This was mainly my fears of my violent alcoholic husband, maybe my lack of courage to face the rest. Then I felt strength that I didn't know I had. I felt like a brave little soldier in myself and a desire to make a 180° turn in my life.

I felt like the doors of my new life were just asking to open. I felt LOVE, an unconditional love, a state of grace. I had no notion of time passing. In fact, all was LOVE; even mathematics (which was really not for me!) I felt like I was reintroduced to happiness. I was given a mission with battered women because, unfortunately, I was one of those women abused by their husbands. I had no notion of how long the Light and I spent LOVING one another. It was an unconditional Love without physical contact. It was through all thoughts, in all tenderness, and maybe, in all simplicity. I remember that at the moment of my coming back to the “world of the living” that this Being who was full of compassion disappeared ‘vaporously’ along with the extreme white brightness. I will admit that at the time, that I was strongly tempted to stay with the Light to continue on this path of Love.

My coming back was accompanied by violence and pain. But my mother came fast to my side, without anybody from the hospital having informed her. She told me that a strange feeling had stopped her in her everyday work and that she had pestered my father to bring her quickly to my side. She felt that I wasn't well. My father was stunned by such determination and did as she demanded.

Since then I have moved away from my atheism. I have discovered the world of religions and have a great tolerance for each. It is LOVE that predominates, in any case. I have become much more compassionate and understanding, and much more patient, and attuned to human beings. Concerning nature, I'm pretty sure that I feel the pain of trees, plants, and animals. Every time I relate my experience, I again enter a world of Peace and Love. I cry, and as years pass, it does not change in any way; the feelings remain as sharp as the first time.

WHAT KIND OF NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE WOULD BE HAD BY A NATIVE AMERICAN MAN? WOULD IT BE THE SAME AS A “WHITE MAN” WOULD HAVE? OR, WOULD NATIVE CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING SHAPE THE EXPERIENCE? I HAVE PREVIOUSLY NOTED THAT EACH NDE SEEMS DESIGNED TO MAKE THE NDEr COMFORTABLE!

Rick M’s NDE in 2009---Native American

Being Native American, I don't have a view of your heaven. No white light for me, or heavenly beings. What happened to me was very real, even as funny as it may sound!

On February 2, 2009, I was rushed to the hospital, after already having gone there for three weeks and undergoing all kinds of tests. I even had my duodenal ulcer cauterized. I was told to go home again for the fourth time. What the doctors never checked was the artery attached to the duodenum. By the time I got home, it had ruptured. By the time the emergency medical technicians got me to the hospital, I had flatlined. When they resuscitated me, I woke up with tubes all over the place. I had one right in my chest! There was blood all over! So, they knocked me out again, and I flatlined again in surgery. In summary, I was bleeding internally for several days, until the duodenal artery finally ruptured. By the time they found the bleeder, I had to be resuscitated twice. I was given 13 units of blood.

Now for my amazing experience. During the times I flatlined, I went to a place that was in the stars. At first, my friend Kuauhtli reached out and took me by the hand. Kuauhtli is a Peyote Road Man, who does ceremonies all over the world. He is also a twenty year Sun Dancer, who has given his flesh for twenty years.

Kuauhtli led me inside a big yellow school bus. I looked around like, ‘where are we going?’ All Kuauhtli did was smile. There were no words spoken. When we entered the school bus, the interior had transformed into a Peyote Ceremony, and we were in a tepee! There were many Elders, sitting around the beautiful Sacred Fire. They were singing Peyote songs and praying for me! Some looked to be very old. Some I recognized! One was Floyd, another was Kuauhtli. I believe Floyd was still alive at the time, but I'm not sure. The rest were very old men I didn't know, but for some reason I felt that Sitting Bull was there! I felt more conscious and alert than normal!

I was amazed! I had just walked into a school bus, and now I was in a Peyote Ceremony! I went to look out of the windows, and we were in the cosmos (in space)!!! I could see the Pleiades! I touched the window, and something outside touched back! I could feel the pressure. I felt such a rush! It was as if the shape of my hand was outside pushing back, trying to absorb me. I could feel a tingling around my fingers! It was like there was something on the outside calling me, and I had the choice to go or not!

It was more than I could take in! We were floating in space, having a Peyote Ceremony!!! I was loving it! I had never felt such peace before in my life. There was never any talk of death, only the Elders singing their songs. I knew well that I was in the hospital as this all unfolded. I had no fear because of the people involved. My Creator is Great. I had to die to fulfill my place on the Mayan Calendar. On it, I am ruled by Death, which we all know is rebirth. My Mayan name is Piltzintecuhtli.

Then I was in the intensive care unit, with tubes all over the place. I was told I was given thirteen units of blood. I spent nine days in the intensive care unit.

I have custody of my twelve year old daughter, so it didn't take long for us to have a long talk about the whole experience. My daughter was with me on the way to the hospital when I flat lined the first time. Now she is more sensitive to our native beliefs and goes to ceremonies with me.

Adria B’s NDE IN 2018---from Canada

A week before this happened, I had a minor car accident. The doctor said that I had a concussion, but nothing that I should worry about. A week later, I almost died.

I remember standing in front of the cafeteria with some of my friends. Suddenly, I felt extreme dizziness, lost my balance, and fell on the ground. I think this is when I passed out.

The next thing I remember is that I was standing in the hallway staring at my body. I was surprised I wasn't in it! I could see my girlfriend calling me and trying to wake me up. I wanted to tell her and my friends that I am here and that I am fine, but they couldn't hear me. It was like I didn't exist. I could see my girlfriend bursting into tears, but I couldn't talk to her. It was really difficult watching her break like that.

I saw the paramedics come in. It was odd to see a child come in with the paramedics, but nobody tried to keep the child away. It was a baby boy, about 2 years old. He was very cute with dark blue eyes, pale skin, and dark hair. The child was staring at me and acting like he could see me! I could see the paramedics giving me CPR for maybe two minutes as they tried to get me to breathe. It may have been longer or shorter in time, I don't know. The EMT put the defibrillators on my chest to shock me back to life. The child was still staring at me.

I spoke to the child, because I thought that he could see me. I remember him touching me. I hugged him. The hug felt familiar, like I knew him and like he was a part of me. He looked at me and smiled. His smile gave me just enough incentive to go back to my body. I knew it was now or never and that this was my only chance to go back to my body. By this time, I think the EMT was still preparing the defibrillators on my chest. The child was looking at my body, like he wanted me to go back into it. I wanted to go back, but at the same time I was hesitant. I saw the paramedics shock me; I could see the electricity going through my body. I can't remember what happened that made me get up and run to my body but just before I dove into my body, I looked back at the child. He was still smiling. Then I dove into my body.

The next thing I remember is the light that the EMT was shining into my eyes as he was asking me if I know where I am. In the hospital, all types of test were done on me, but the doctors couldn't find what caused my NDE. They said that it may have been from the concussion, but they couldn't confirm it. Up to this date, the cause my NDE remains a mystery. It seems obvious that I might suspect the child may be my future son!

Andrew G’s NDE in 1976

On October 28 1976, I, my brother, his wife, and his 4-year-old daughter went down to the lake with our kayak. We put the kayak in the water. He, I, and my niece got into it. After about 20 minutes, the weather changed for the worst. The lake became very rough and choppy with white caps. The waves went from about 18 inches to 4 foot high within a few minutes. The change in conditions caught us off guard. With my niece in the kayak, we decided to return to shore. The maneuver for turning around in these conditions would be very tricky and we knew it. We decided to reverse our positions in the kayak by turning around one at a time, instead of turning the kayak itself.

First, my brother turned around as I controlled the kayak. By this time, the waves were very close together and at least 4 foot high. Now he was in place and it was my turn. As I got into place to do this maneuver, I had to stand half way up in the kayak. Just as I did, a wave hit. I went overboard and landed in the freezing waters of Lake Tahoe. The water was so cold my body cramped and I couldn't move. Neither my arms nor legs would move. I must have sucked in water. I panicked and came up a third time, only to see the kayak more than 50 feet away from me and the panic in my brother’s eyes. I sank down.

It felt like I sank for hundreds of feet, as if I went into the abyss. Time just stopped. I had no more fear or panic. I was as calm as if I were asleep. All of a sudden, a light appeared. It was a light as bright as the sun, brighter than anything I have ever seen. Yet all around me was total darkness. The light just kept getting bigger, brighter, and closer to me. I became happier than I have ever been in my entire life. I was drawn to the light like a child to his mother, but more so.

All of a sudden, I stopped as if someone or something was not allowing me to get closer. Yet the light was right in front of me within arm's reach, and there, in the light, was a dark, shadowy figure along with two more. The other two figures said nothing to me and still I felt I knew them, I felt they were my grandparents from my mother's side, I have never met them, nor have I ever seen a picture of them. My vision was perfect as if my eyesight was the best it has ever been. My hearing was solely fixed on the voices and nothing else. My hearing was perfect, no other sounds. I asked, ‘Why can't I come in?’ I wanted in because I had never felt so much peace, love, and understanding. The feeling was so much more, such that I cannot explain it.

I knew the voice that came from within the light. He was a friend of mine who had passed away earlier that year. He said, ‘Andy, it is so beautiful here; it's beyond anything you can imagine.’ I asked Tim, ‘Why can't I come in?’ Tim replied, ‘It's not your time, it's not your time.’ I remember feeling so happy, so very happy. Just then, a voice so powerful said to me, ‘It is not yet your time to go, my son, there is yet something left on earth for you to do,’ the voice was so loving and so great. I felt so much love and so much more, it was the most incredible voice and yet so much more than a voice. In a flash, I was back on top of the water, right next to the kayak with one of my hands hanging onto it.

We got back to the shore and I asked what happened. My sister-in-law told me a lifeguard jumped into the water to save me; I looked up and asked him, ‘Did you save me?’ He said, ‘No. By the time I got there, you were already up and hanging onto the kayak.’ I asked him, 'Are you sure?' He replied, 'Yes.' Then I asked him, 'Did you see it?' He asked, ‘What?’

I then realized what happened to me, and said to him, ‘Oh nothing, forget it.'
It was years before I could tell anyone this experience---to my wife who has only been my wife for a year. I told her because I knew I could. It took me two other marriages and 33 years to find her.

ANNALISE E’s NDE

I was 16 years old. I had been admitted for general surgery to remove four teeth that had grown through the roof of my mouth.

I was taken down to the operating room. There were two nurses in attendance and an anesthesiologist. All were fully gowned so I could not see their faces. I was sedated.
At some point during the surgery, my heart stopped and I stopped breathing. Then I became conscious.

I was floating. There was no ceiling or walls. But, there was an arched structure that was possibly a tunnel. I was aware of the light energy being bent around me, although this was not a conscious thought at the time. The light was excessively bright. If I had seen this on earth, it would have burnt my retinas. But it was the most beautiful light and it did not hurt at all. In fact, I would say it was as soft as it was bright.

I did not exist as a body, but was energy. I was an energy that was joined to all other energies; those that had been before and those that will be after. I became aware that we are all just energy and we are all intrinsically linked.

I recall no sound. Communication was or would have been via telepathy or just knowing; just knowing feels more appropriate. There is no human word for how amazing and peaceful this state of being feels.

This place was familiar, like I had been here before. I may have even come from here.

I did not want to come back but was made to come back. I felt myself being pulled back to the operating room. I did not want to come back. I did not want to leave that perfect feeling.

I was then on the ceiling of the operating theatre, looking down on the proceedings. There were more people in the room. I could see a girl fighting with them as they tried to bring her back to life. The machines would bring her back with a shock and then she'd kick and punch at them. Then the machines would show her still and lifeless form again. I recall thinking she was a rude and bad girl. I saw her punch a nurse in the face and sprain another nurse's wrist.
Then, I realized the girl was me when I was no longer separate from her. I recalled nothing until I woke up the next day. I asked if I had died and was told someone would come to talk to me. Nobody came to talk with me.

Then there was a nurse who came onto the ward and I asked, 'How is your wrist?' She said, 'Still sore. How did you know about that?' I said, 'Well, I did it. I saw myself.' She replied, 'You're right, you did.' We talked some more and she confirmed that I had to be resuscitated midway through the surgery.

My mother asked me, while heavily sedated and on her deathbed, if heaven existed because I told her I had been there. I found this odd, as it was not something we talked about and she frowned upon it as she was a devout Christian. I told her it would be whatever she believed it to be and it would also be better than anything she could imagine.

My father asked me on his deathbed, if it was his choice when to die. I told him it was his choice and he died within 10 minutes after that. At the time of his death, he was clearly having 'silent' conversations with entities I could not see in the room. I had gone to check on him. I thought I heard him and my partner having a conversation. My father was the only one in the room. My partner was asleep in another room. The second person was nowhere to be seen. Yet my father was awake. We had been told he probably had a few months to live. However, I knew I had to stay awake that night.

Annette Q’s NDE in 1986

I had contracted tetanus after cutting my finger while taking small cuttings from plants in the garden. I was in the hospital to treat the tetanus. After getting out of isolation, I was given medication to initiate bowel action. This triggered severe convulsions and seizures. I was taken to the hospital operating room to get control of these tetanus seizures. [Tetanus is a serious bacterial disease that affects your nervous system, leading to painful muscle contractions, particularly of your jaw and neck muscles.] I was given intravenous injections that were supposed to help stop them, but that resulted in my going into total cardiac arrest. I heard the two doctors and nurses talking to each other, saying there was no movement on the monitors. They shocked me three times to try to get my heart going. While this struggle to get my body to respond was going on, I was watching them from above. I saw the doctor leave the operating room to go tell my husband that it was all over. [Later, my husband confirmed this.] But right then, there was a commotion in the operating room, and when the doctor came back, he told my husband it must have been just a malfunction of the equipment.

During the time I was dead, I was surrounded by the purest white light and experienced an indescribable feeling of unconditional love. The peace and love in which I was engulfed was simply too vast to be described in words. What I really wanted was to get lost in this peace and love. But, instead, I asked God, (the awesome presence that surrounded me) to let me go back. I said, ‘I have to go back, my baby is just over one year old and my other two daughters need me. I cannot stay here now.’ I awoke a week later in the intensive care unit. My experience was definitely real. I know it happened, and nothing will ever convince me otherwise. Also, I do not believe in just one church anymore, but in a universal God.

Arthur B’s NDE in 1984

I was suffering from testicular cancer. I had had my left testicle removed. Part of the cure was to undergo chemotherapy. This made me very sick and weak. At that time in my life, I was suffering from sleep apnea [a sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing or instances of very low breathing during sleep]. I had numerous ‘events’ of a cessation of breathing during sleep. Usually, I would go into a convulsion or spasm and wake up gasping for breath. I think the effect of the chemo weakened my body enough so that the waking up gasping part did not happen.

As I lay in bed sleeping, the logic part of my brain flashed a message: ‘Breathing has stopped. If it does not resume, death will occur.’ It was that simple. I could feel ‘pressure’ inside my body, sort of like the pressure in a balloon filled with air. No pain, just pressure. For a moment, I was seized with panic as I realized I was dying. Then the panic went away and I thought, ‘This is death? This is so easy, so natural. What was I frightened of?’ I felt a little silly at having been frightened.

At this point, a ‘sensation’ came over me. It was a warm emotion that permeated every part of me. It was very peaceful and unique. I had never felt anything like it before.

Then I felt as if I were lying on my back in a pool of water. I began to sink slowly down into the pool. It seemed to grow dark and empty. A moment later, it grew bright; very bright. There was a Light in front of me that looked like the sun. It was intensely bright, but it did not hurt my eyes to look at it. Suddenly, I began to understand things. I understood why I had cancer and how it was so very important for me to have cancer. In fact, it was so important that I realized I would not have it any other way. But I can't explain now why it was important, I just understood that it was. Then the Light spoke to me. It spoke in English and sounded just like any other person. It said, ‘Hello Arthur. I am so glad to see you.’

At that point, I mentioned something from my past that I was not very proud of. Then the Light said, ‘You didn't like that, did you’? I replied ‘No, I did not.’

The Light then said, ’I didn't think you would’.

At this point I felt there was an imaginary line in front of me, and I knew if I crossed it I could not go back. I was hesitating.

The Light then said, ‘What are you doing?’

I answered, ’I'm dying’.

The Light asked me, ‘Are you ready to die?’

I replied, ‘No! There are things I must do’.

The Light then said, ‘That's right. You go back and do them. When you are done, come back and see me’.

At this point, I re-entered my body. I remember touching my left arm with my right hand. It felt odd. The skin felt like the skin of a deceased person, cold and lifeless. It was as if the life energy had not settled all the way back into my body.

I sat up in the darkened bedroom. I looked at my wife sleeping next to me. I wondered what had just happened. I would have thought it was a dream except that warm glow, that peaceful feeling, was still with me. It lasted a couple of days.

That was the singular thing that told me something extraordinary had really happened.

Austin T’s NDE in 1976

My Boss told me he would "whip my ass and fire me" if I did not climb down into a tank and remove some paint that was clogging the tank. So I tried. However, when I climbed down, I was overcome by the chemicals that had been poured into the tank for days to eat away the paint clog. It has been many years since then. The problem was that when I reached the bottom of the tank, I tripped over a pipe and fell into the corrosive chemicals there. Immediately I was gone from my body!

Although I left my body, I realized that I still had a “body” (consciousness)! The first thing I can remember is the feeling. I could feel other beings' feelings of Happiness, Contentment, Knowledge, Overpowering wellbeing, no problems! I could feel their Happiness going ALL through my being! The feelings were above human understanding. “Wonderful” is not sufficient!

People that I knew were coming. They were there, waiting to greet and comfort me. I started asking questions like a Child. And as I did,.… suddenly I and everyone else KNEW to be quiet---and we All did!

Someone that I could not see spoke one sentence, one sentence that answered every question that I had ever asked and every question that I would ever ask!! I guess the best way for me to describe this would be to say that I was immediately Enlightened!!!!!! All of a sudden, I felt the same happiness as everyone else. I was now part of it!!!!!

I was enjoying it when one of the Ones that had come to greet me told me it was time to go back and reached for my right arm---and I popped back into my earth body as they were lifting me out of the tank!

I was not able to communicate very well with people at first, because of the chemical effects, but I held on to that sacred sentence with every fiber of my being and repeated it over and over again and again to myself, and I understood everything, everything!!! Unfortunately, when I returned to my body, I wasn't allowed to remember it.

I knew that if I could communicate that sentence to one live human, it would take over their life too, and they would turn and tell another, and it would spread all over this world. If I could have remembered it, I would have had the ability to fix this world!

HERE IS A VERY YOUNG NDEr WHO LABELS HERSELF A “FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIAN”. MOST NDEs ARE “NON-RELIGIOUS”.

Barbara J’s NDE in 2004---fundamentalist Christian

I was at my friend’s going away/birthday party, and she had a pool, so it was a pool party. So we were doing this game under water to see who could hold their breath the longest. Well I can hold my breath for about fifty seconds, so I went first. I dived into the pool, the pool sweeper was down there, and I had a lot of time left, so I tried to bring the pool sweeper up out of the pool. But I got tangled in the cord, which was stuck in the drain, so I couldn't get loose.

Then my friends Shelby and Lizzie dived in to see if I was okay. Well, Lizzie and I know Sign Language, so I signed to her 'H.E.L.P', so they found out and tried to help me. I was running out of air, and then I passed out and everything turned black.

When I “woke up”, I was up above the pool, but everyone else was jumping into the pool! When they came out, Shelby and Lizzie were holding my body! At this point, I was freaking out! Then Shelby put her ear next to my mouth and said, 'She's not breathing!' And Sarah (the birthday girl) started crying. So Lizzie said, 'Go call 911!' Sarah went into the house and then came back out into the back yard and said, 'The phone is dead!' Lizzie said, 'Go next door!' Then Shelby and Lizzie started CPR.

Then I turned around and saw this very, very bright light, and then I was in what seemed like a tunnel, but it was a very white color! (After all this happened I looked in paint stores, and I couldn't find a match for it anywhere!) Well I'm going up this tunnel, and my whole life flashed before my eyes! After that, BOOM!, I was standing before a golden city!

You see I am a Christian, and I believe in Jesus Christ. Now I know that he is real because in the Bible, it states that heaven's streets are so pure gold that you can see through them, and you can! [You cannot see through pure gold.] But I can't say how beautiful it is in words! So, I was waiting in line at first, behind all these people. Then it was my turn. I was standing in front of this BIG guy, who I think was an angel. He was holding this BIG book, and I think it was the lamb's book of life. Because if you let Jesus come into your life by asking him, your name will be in the lamb’s book of life, and nothing and nobody can take it out. So the angel guy asked me for my name, and I told him. When he looked for it, he said, 'I'm sorry but it is not your time.' That got me mad. I said to him, 'Why is it not my time?!?! I'm ready to die! My life sucks!! My best friend died three years ago!! Why is it not my time?!?!' Then he turned around as if someone was talking to him and then turned back around to me again and said, 'Someone wants to talk to you.'

Then he pointed to the gate with the city behind it. Someone was standing there. At first, I couldn't see who it was, but when I got close, I was so emotional I couldn't talk, cause it was Jake. You see, Jake, my best friend, died in a car accident five years ago. We were both seven years old then. When I saw him there, I ran to the gate as fast as I could! When I got there, we both reached out, grabbed each other's hands, and cried. He looked my age, but I knew it was him. I feel stupid in saying this, but he got cute since the last time I saw him! (Ha!) Then we talked for a while, about things that happened, about each other, and then the angel said, 'It's time for you to go back.' So I turned to Jake and said, 'Bye Jake.' Jake said, 'See you soon.' 'I hope so,' I said.

So I went back down the tunnel and watched Jake get smaller, and smaller as I went down. Then I was back on earth! Shelby and Lizzie were still doing CPR. But then Sarah came back to the backyard and said, 'Nobody's home! We looked on the WHOLE street and NOBODY is home!!!' 'How is that possible?!?!' Lizzie asked. 'I don't know!!' Sarah said.

Then out of nowhere, these two paramedics came to the backyard with a defibrillator, and a breathing mask and took over! Sarah was asking them, 'Who are you guys?!?!' They did not answer! They were just doing CPR and did not say a word the whole time! Then they shocked me with the defibrillator, eighteen times by my count. Then they did it again but this time I felt it and it did NOT feel good!! It feels like when you prick yourself with a needle, but ALL OVER YOUR BODY! Then they did it again, and I started spitting out water. I couldn't breathe, I was just scared!

Then Sarah said that right after I started breathing, the paramedics took off! She went after them! She said that she was so close that she could have grabbed their shirts! So they closed the door behind them, but since Sarah was that close, she opened the door right after that but they were gone! She looked everywhere but she could not find them! So we all got together to talk about it and we all guessed the paramedics were angels, and we didn't think anyone would believe us, so we all agreed not to tell anyone. But I won't forget that day, and I don't think the others will either.

Benjamin H’s NDE in 2008---IED explosion

My squad was out on patrol, and I was in a Humvee. We were going along, and all of a sudden, an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) detonated near the truck. I felt this intense burning on my legs, and I heard my legs breaking like twigs snapping. It was getting so hard to breathe, and everything was getting dark. I felt like I just wanted to let go of it all. Then I started to get cold. I'm not sure how long it was until I just started to let go, but when I did, I felt so at peace and I wasn't scared.

I came out of my body, it was like I was floating in the air; looking down at myself lying limp on the ground and the medics working on me. I could hear everything they were saying, see everything they were doing. Then, after a couple of minutes of watching that, it all started to get dark. It felt as if I were a blind person. Then, as soon as the darkness came, it went away, and I was in a field of some sort. It was just a field of grass, but it was so green, and the sky was the bluest I've ever seen. I was wearing jeans and a red plaid shirt. It was sunny outside, so it was all bright. I could hear so well, I could hear the wind rustling through the grass. Then I saw a man walking toward me, and I felt curious so I walked toward to him as well. When I got close enough to see him clearly, I realized I was looking at my dad.

My dad had died two years earlier from a heart attack. He was in his regular T-shirt and blue jeans with his John Deere hat that he always wore. He got about two feet from me. We were so close that I could've touched him if I wanted to. But we just stood still for what felt like forever. He just stared at me, never saying a word. I wanted to talk to him, to ask him what was going on, but I couldn't open my mouth, I could only stare right back. Then, he just smiled at me, and pointed in the direction that I came from. I remember feeling that I didn't want to go anywhere because I felt so much at peace. So I shook my head no, and he just smiled at me again and pointed in the direction that I came from again. Then, he walked up to me, and gave me a hug and a kiss on my cheek, and at that moment, I knew I had to go back.

I just let myself go again, and everything around me started to get dark again. Then it just felt like I was in an extremely deep sleep. The next thing I know, I woke up in a hospital room with a tube down my throat, the inability to feel my legs, and a major headache. I now am able to walk again, but I will never forget what happened to me when I legally died. They told me I was out for only two minutes, but it felt like an eternity to me. I'll also never forget how peaceful the whole experience was. Two months afterward, I shared this with my girlfriend at the time, now my fiancée. She was extremely supportive of me, and made me know that I could talk to her about this anytime. I told her that when people die, that no matter how they die, I think that it's peaceful. And if they just let go, then they'll be taken care of.

Bob L’s NDE

This “near-death experience” (NDE) was caused by Bob L’s fall from a three story building. Here is what he remembers:

“The light was strong and somewhat unearthly at the end of a long tunnel. The light was as much Love, as it was anything, in that it was pervasive.

My relatives (all deceased) were there, all at their prime in life. They were dressed in a 1940's style, which would have been their prime years. Relatives I knew of, such as my grandfathers, but never knew in life were there, as well as uncles and aunts who passed before I knew them. The unconditional love I felt was overwhelming and permeated all of us genuinely and richly.

There was no awareness of time and no verbally spoken word. Both time and verbal communication are of this world, and are not needed in the NDE world. Everything was open thought communication. Time is the invention of man in this world, not a part of our core spirit. All of this was very clear to me in my NDE. Any question or uncertainty was answered, confirmed, and known through our non-verbal understanding.

My deceased father was my main non-verbal communication point, but the love and support of all my deceased relatives flowed through him to me.

I could choose to stay in their world or choose to return. I knew this in the spirit of our non-verbal understanding. I found no judgment in the NDE world. We are all part of a larger way of thinking. Even those who were destructive in this world are loved and accepted in the NDE world.

I chose to return here, knowing that I had unfinished business in this life, which we all knew to be important, and my choice to return was fully supported with unconditional love from my relatives.

The experience was deeply moving, a joyous window to the world we have before us, but cannot achieve in this life.

C.D.’s NDE in 1978

I was in surgery with a blood clot in my head. I went out of my body.

I saw the doctors around my body working on me during surgery.

I went through a tunnel really fast. I was in a wonderful light. I felt love and warmth around me. The colors were so beautiful.

I saw a bridge. Across the bridge were people I knew who had died, like my father who had died less than a year before this. He was so happy to see me and said, 'Hi Mija.' There was light around them.

Other family members were all smiling at me. He was so proud for them to see me. I was happy to be there. My past flashed before me, and I learned that those who died around me had gone to a better place and were okay.

Then after a while, a voice said I had to go back. It wasn't my time. I had things to do. My dad's face dropped. He looked sad. I said I didn't want to go back. I was crying.

Then like in an instant, I went back through the tunnel, and I was back in my body.

Carlos V’s NDE in 1995---From Venezuela. Original in Spanish.

Here I will tell you what happened to me during the nine days when I was unconscious:

It happened early in the morning of January 6th 1995, right after I woke up for my routine tasks. After having my morning bath and having breakfast, I lost consciousness for nine days, when I awoke from my trip to the after-death.

I have been told that I was hospitalized in the nearest clinic to my house at the time; this is San Blas Clinic, not far from the area of Loma del Este, Valencia, Venezuela. It was a public holiday - Day of the Adoration. I was admitted to the emergency room clinically dead, with no vital signs. At this time there were no specialists in neurology on duty; however, they brought a neurosurgeon from Caracas, who had just arrived in Valencia, Dr. A., who proceeded with the craniotomy, due to bad sinuses that infected my brain with pus. They extracted a large quantity of pus blocking of my nasal cavity since childhood, that I was not aware of. [Illness: Sinusitis aguda, craneotomia Operación al cerebro Craneotomía ( Coma 9 días). In coma during a period of nine days.]

I was unaware of what had happened to me until the ninth day, when I woke up and two surgeons, one of them Dr. A., told me: 'Calm down, you've just had brain surgery.' One of my daughters living abroad was contacted, to say goodbye, since my life was at stake. In nine out of ten of these cases, the patient dies. My situation was so bad, that even doctors got my family ready for my funeral arrangements. This news spread easily with some visiting professors/teachers, friends/acquaintances of mine, who were told that it would be difficult for me to survive---like Professor R. and wife, who arrived from Maracay and bid farewell twice, as they corroborated.

However, what was going on with me? What was I experiencing? This is what I can recall:

I not only remember passing through a dark tunnel, but through a tunnel with lights of a wide range of colors. During the whole way, numerous voices could be heard, telling me: 'None that is on earth belongs to you any longer, everything is temporary. These are not your children - just roles to play - everything is temporary - your success is linked to the way you played your role - it depends on how you behaved.' And all of a sudden, a screen-like thing was opened, and they told me: 'This is all you have done until now.' I remember seeing scenes from my past life, since I was two; they were telling me: 'You failed this, you were wrong in this, here you can see mistakes made, here are the good deeds...'

It was incredible, since it reminded me of bad moments of my life, of grieving, moments of impureness - and all due to the simple fact that I was not paying attention to what I was supposed to do, due to being unable to handle my weakness, emotions. I felt bad when I realized all the suffering I had caused others and myself. I learnt how to interpret the karmic law (cause/effect) and its consequences.

It was pointed out repeatedly to me that everything in this physical/earthy plane is temporary and that we must free ourselves from any dependence, conditioning or attachment whatsoever, since they prevent us from growing and developing ourselves and they generate grief. I was reminded about the importance of not becoming too attached to the illusory shapes/features of roles I had played. I insisted on the importance of doing it well without generating dependence or demands. It was highlighted to me that during my existence on this plane, I must take advantage of opportunities given without causing harm to anybody. On the contrary, letting love manifest itself, respecting everybody's feelings, not lying to anybody, learning how to be authentic, not letting myself be trapped by the illusory or vanity. I was told, 'You will carry nothing over, just what you did for your own development. All that is mundane remains there, do not get attached to it - make use of it, without causing any harm, without creating dependency for yourself.'

I clearly remember how I arrived at a place with a beautiful light, shining in splendor, where many people who were entering a reception hall gathered; a vast hall well decorated. I did not know any of them. I was hearing many voices, and beautiful music unknown to me, Many beings dressed in white tunics; others wearing a yellow one.

Somebody approached me and said: 'Your stay here will be short. Somebody has been waiting for you and wants to say goodbye. This is your grandfather Abraham.'

The door opened and my grandfather came in, shining. He gave me a hug and talked to me. I remember him saying, 'I came to bid farewell. You are returning to your life on earth. There are some other tasks waiting for you. Take care and follow your path.' He told me some other things, but I do not remember them. He gave me another hug. I saw how the door opened and how he left, leaving me very sad.

However, somebody took my hand and told me that I had to go back, that there were too many things left for me to do. As on my way here, my way back was through shining colored lights, in particular green, yellow, and blue -- as if I was having a shower of lights -- and they gave me great peace. I did not understand why, but when I was back, somebody said that groups were praying for you, causing vibrations of colors to emanate from those lights.

I admit that I never got scared; on the contrary, this trip and proximity to death caused big changes in me; I experienced a transformation, more exalted/sublime than being in this dimension -- I knew how to accomplish my mission, how to be more alert in my relationships, with manners, and how to work harder on de-attachment and dependence.

Catherine M’s NDE---dog attack

I remained conscious during the dog attack, and while the dog's owner carried me across the street to my father, who was getting ready to go to work on the night shift as an engineer. My father blanched when he saw me and ran with me next door to the neighbors who were my sitters, and they packed towels over my face which was gushing blood and drove us to the hospital.

I was concerned about the drive to the hospital, telling my father that we should not be driving through red lights. My father carried me into the emergency department, calling for help. My mother was a nurse in the same hospital, and she was at work upstairs on another floor. I was lying on the gurney on my back, my feet pointed towards the sliding glass doors. The emergency room was painted in a "French mint" color, and the floors were a beige and speckled linoleum. The doctors were all around me, and a nurse was cutting my brown corduroy pants and orange turtleneck off my body. I was embarrassed.

The next thing I knew, I was hearing their voices muffled, like I was underwater, or the way your hearing is distorted when you hold your hands cupped over your ears, and I started to rise up out of my body. I moved up to the ceiling and was looking down at the scene below me. Everyone was running around frantically, and my father was seated, crying. I turned to look the other way, and moved effortlessly to the far corner of the room. I could feel that I had all of my limbs, but I had no body. I looked down to my hand, and could sense it, but it was not solid. I felt a being beside and slightly behind me. This being seemed female and like an older woman, but I do not know who she was.

I could feel her holding me, arms around me and under my knees, like being in a baby swing, so that I didn't feel any sense of being unstable. (I am afraid of heights, especially of falling). I was aware that there was a lot of commotion over by the gurney, but I wasn't recognizing the body on the gurney as me. I felt peaceful and completely comfortable. The temperature was perfect; I felt bathed in warmth and love. There was no fear, no pain, just great joy. There was whiteness all around me. There were no features of any kind, just bright, clear whiteness that sparkled and didn't hurt my eyes at all. It was beautiful.

I became aware of a second being moving towards me. This being was very bright and sparkled, but I could not see facial features, and that didn't bother me at all; it seemed perfectly acceptable. There were waves of love swirling all around me. I sensed the being speaking to me in my head. He asked if I wanted to go with "him" into the light. I asked if Mommy and Daddy and Teri (my little sister) could come with me. He said no, I had to go alone. I felt distressed and said I could not leave my Daddy. So he told me that I had to go back. I heard a whooshing, and felt shot back towards my body, through a tunnel extremely quickly. I was back in my body, looking up at the ceiling again, and feeling the hard gurney crinkling underneath me. And I had to pee.

My mother burst through the doors in her nurses whites and ran to my side. I told her I was sorry that my clothes were ruined, that the nurses had cut them off. According to my parents, I told everyone around me for a couple of weeks what had happened. Nurses, doctors, orderlies, everyone who came near me, until my father told me that it wasn't polite, and I should stop telling people. I remember feeling confused and embarrassed that I was not allowed to tell anyone that I had been to Heaven.

Christopher M’s NDE in 1996---veridical

In August of 1996, I was involved in an automobile accident. I received a large number of injuries, including a blow to the head. After I had been transported to a hospital, I slipped into a coma for four days. When I woke up I had a catheter inside me and my left hand was taped to my chest. My hand had been crushed and my wrist broken. I was also paralyzed on the left side and could not sit up. Quite a lot of tubes and wires were attached to my arms, chest and head. I was in a lot of pain but somehow I knew I would be all right. I did not remember how I had gotten in this bed or this shape. I still don't remember the accident. I understand this is normal for head injuries like mine.

It was not long before a nurse, like an angel of mercy, came to my rescue. As she was removing the catheter and all the unnecessary tubes, she explained that her name was Barbra, and that I had been brought in by life-flight four days earlier. Besides the crush injury to my left hand and wrist, some broken ribs and a whole list of cuts for which I had received some twenty-eight stitches, I also suffered a traumatic brain injury to my right frontal lobe.

Barbra told me my family had brought me some new clothing, including some shorts. They were in the closet, which was a wardrobe cabinet by the window. It stood away from the wall and was maybe six feet tall with two doors in the front and a drawer in the bottom. As she was helping me into my shorts, I told her I just remembered that someone had left an L.E.D. sign on the top of the wardrobe. I could tell it shocked her when I said this. She asked, 'What did it say?' I explained the sign had not been turned on and it had been dark. She helped me back into bed and said she would be right back. She returned with a doctor who questioned me about the sign. I told him that the sign was about 2 feet long by four inches wide. It had a dark color that either had a black or gray plastic face with red L.E.D.s. The L.E.D.s were not turned on, so it had no message. The doctor stood on a chair to get the sign and lifted it up so I could see it. It was the same sign that I had just described!!

[Note that Christopher must have seen this sign on top the wardrobe while out of his body, since no other explanation seems likely. Too bad he doesn’t remember or reveal more about his out of body experience.]

Cindy D’s NDE in 1976

I had an accident horseback riding and hit my head on some rocks. I was in intensive care with a concussion and went in and out of consciousness; they suspected a blood clot.

The first thing I recall is seeing my 'fiancé' beside my bed and then doctors/nurses surrounding the bed in a 'flurry of activity' and then seeing myself lying in the bed---and being shocked by that! Then 'realizing' I was 'floating' above the bed and then in the corner of the room and then leaving the room put me in a state of panic mentally/emotionally.

Things went dark and I had a sensation of floating but seeing nothing. I was very afraid and then I heard/felt a Presence. This Presence was telling me (not necessarily with words) that everything was okay and not to be afraid. The level of Peace and Comfort of this Presence is not describable. After lots of this 'support,' I realized that I recognized this Presence. In fact this Presence was closer -- more connected to me (and had a history with me) than any 'relationship' in my life. Again - not describable.

I do remember thinking at first when I realized I recognized the Presence, 'Oh, it must be my grandfather.' (Who had passed away about three years earlier and the only person close to me that had died.) I quickly realized it was not my grandfather, nor any human being I had had a relationship with.

This Presence continued to comfort me and assure me that everything was okay and that it was going to be wonderful. More incredible than anything I remembered. After some time of floating in darkness and being comforted, a light appeared at the end of a 'tunnel'. We drifted toward the light - again this is hard to describe because it was not only through 'senses' we normally use that the experience was being interpreted.

As we neared the LIGHT, the brightness and magnificence were indescribable. You could not 'look' into the LIGHT. It was humbling and magnificent. I was told that everything would be wonderful, and the feelings had become so peaceful and warm -- indescribable.

Even though I had calmed down and was not as afraid, I was protesting and adamant that 'I was not ready' and had a lot yet to do.

I then remember 'standing before GOD'. I can only describe GOD as a huge ENERGY presence radiating LIGHT so intense and brilliant that you could not look. Even though I had a sensation of 'standing before God' I was not in a body or any type of form. There were many other 'PRESENCES' around as well, but again nothing to 'describe' as far as visual or audio goes, just an awareness. I was aware of the presence of LOVE. I was 'told' that 'All there is is LOVE. There is nothing to fear. All that matters is LOVE.'

I heard the question (not with my ears) 'What do you want?' I adamantly replied 'I want to go back, I have a lot to do and I want to help Nelson (My fiancé) --- he needs me.') The next thing I was aware of was 'waking up' in my hospital bed.

My experience was definitely real. It was a huge blessing. However, there are no words to accurately describe the intensity of the experience.

Claud H’s NDE in 1986

My family doctor was dumbfounded with the pain sensations I was describing to him. Try as he may, he could not find the cause for what I had described as a burning pain that went from my abdomen to my lower back where it was worse. He ordered, ‘Have your son drive you to the emergency room, and I will be there a few minutes later.’ The pain and burning sensation were getting so strong I was doing everything possible not to scream.

A few minutes after my arrival, my family doctor arrived and I was immediately admitted to the hospital. I spent that night turning and twisting in pain because no test could tell the doctors the reason for the pain. The following morning, my doctor had brought another doctor with him, and he introduced him to me as Doctor W, who was an internal organ surgeon. Doctor W told me that he believed my problem was caused by my appendix and that he needed my permission to do surgery immediately. I used my right hand to grab him by the necktie, and I pulled him down until his face was less than an inch away from mine and yelled at him that I didn't care what he did with me because I was in too much pain.

Still grabbed by the necktie, Doctor W started barking orders and I was taken to the operating room without hesitation. The operating room was around 20 x 20 feet with the table in the middle. All kinds of machinery were above, below, and around the operating table. Besides Doctor W, there were two males and two females in the room.

After being anesthetized, without any signs or warning I found myself looking down at the whole operating scene. I will not say I was floating because it did not feel like floating. It was more like watching a television screen. Right after the anesthesiologist put the mask on me and I was looking at my surgery below me, I can still recall conversations, and the fact that I understood perfectly what was wrong with my body. It was like my brain opened up to receive knowledge. There seemed to be no limitations in what I understood or in time and space on the Other Side.

The sound of the machinery in the room and the conversation between the doctors and nurses were clear to me. I knew something was wrong with my body the moment I heard the surgeon say ‘I lost him, I lost him.’ I heard these last words in that room before finding myself somewhere else! Now, an extreme, almost blinding white light surrounded me. There are no words in the human language to do justice to describing this light and the love I could feel all around me. I knew that there were others there. I knew that they were all happy and loving each other and me. My mind was with theirs and theirs were with mine, as if we all could communicate instantly with one another. Others were there as well, but I could not see them. It was as if the white light was acting as a curtain that didn't let me see anything else.

Suddenly, I saw two hands coming out of the light in front of me and I knew instantly that those hands were my dear Grandfather Juan's hands. When I was a little boy, I used to sit on Grandpa Juan's lap to talk with him. I was always fascinated by the size and roughness of his hands. The joy in my heart and soul were so strong when I saw Grandpa Juan, that I just grabbed him and hugged him. He told me that he was very happy to see me and that he loved me. He then added, ‘But Claudie it is not your time, and you must go back. Don't worry because we will see each other again very soon.’ He was the only person in my life that called me 'Claudie.' I told him I didn't want to go back because I wanted to stay with him, but to excuse me for a moment because somebody was calling my name.

The voice calling my name got very loud, and I opened my physical eyes, yelling at the nurse that was trying to wake me up ‘WHAT!!!’ She was taken aback and asked me if I had a bad dream. I just stayed silent. I could still feel the warmth and love of the white light, and I could still smell my Grandfather. ’NO! I told her. I had a great dream and you woke me up at the worst time.’ The nurse just looked at me like saying to herself, ‘be patient, he is just waking up from anesthesia.’ I was rolled to my room and slept until the next day.

The following morning I learned that the operation had lasted hours because my appendix had burst more than 24 hours before I was admitted to the hospital. Somehow, the appendix ‘stood’ up and went behind my colon where it burst. The incision on my abdomen is 7 inches long and the reason for that is that the surgeon had to wipe my insides clean of the burst appendix infection that was all over my internal walls and organs. I was in the hospital for nine days with an IV in place. All nine days, the IV could only dispense the medication needed to combat the infection.

On the ninth morning in the hospital, I was ready for the surgeon's morning visit and checkup. I asked him to sit down, and then cautiously and slowly, I knelt in front of him and begged him to release me from the hospital. For the first time I confessed to him that I knew he had ‘lost’ me during the operation. He told me that he had ordered everybody to stay quiet about that because I was not out of the woods yet. When I finished describing to him the scene in the OR when he lost me, and my visit with my Grandfather, he clearly understood me when I said that I knew that I would die if I stayed in the hospital. He agreed to my release with incredibly difficult restrictions for home care.

Obviously I survived the whole ordeal, but as the years passed, I started doubting my own memory of the events from that surgery. Five years later, and while walking to my table at a restaurant, a man at a table I was passing stood up and hugged me. I had no idea who the man was who took my breath away with his hug. The man then released me and with tears in his eyes tells the other man at the table, ‘This is the patient I have told you about all these years. Yes, the one whose appendix burst behind his colon. He died in surgery, and his Grandfather sent him back!’ Doctor W then proceeded to tell his friend and me that when he released me, my prognosis was not good. He said that after nine days in the hospital, the chances were good that I could recover at home as long as I followed his instructions. He finished by saying that when I knelt in front of him and told him my side of the surgery, that he could see in my eyes that my Grandfather was right and that it was not my time.

Corina’s NDE in 1989---a woman with white hair

Around late summer of 1989, my doctor informed me I needed to have a hysterectomy. I didn't want to have the surgery. I felt I was too young and having lost my own mother to uterine cancer at the age of 30, I was petrified of what they might find. Having no choice in the matter because I was experiencing such severe pain and problems, I finally agreed to go ahead with the surgery. They put me in a single-bed ward, and I was left for the rest of the afternoon to think about what was about to happen to me the next morning. I remember praying, telling God that I was scared and to give me strength. All day, I prayed and told God that I didn't want to die.

Around 8 am, they wheeled me into surgery, and brought me back sometime later (perhaps around 11 am but I’m not sure). What I do remember is that from the time they took me back to my single room, I kept calling the nurses to tell them that something was wrong. They kept saying that nothing was wrong, and sometimes would just give me a shot thinking that I needed pain relief even though I kept telling them I didn't want any. Finally, around 8:30 pm that night, I remember opening my eyes and thinking, ‘I'm going to die’. When I tried to reach the buzzer to call the nurse, I didn't even have the energy to do it.

As my head dropped to the right, I saw a bed at the other end of my room, with the most beautiful older lady (with pure white hair) that I have ever seen. I had a feeling she was very old, and yet she looked so perfect, so young. She looked at me with the sweetest smile and said, ‘I will call the nurses, do not be afraid, everything will be alright.’ I must have passed out, for my next recollection is of the nurses hovering above me and asking, ’What do you want now?’ ‘I can't breathe, I think I'm dying!’

They took my blood pressure. In a panic, one nurse told the other one to quickly call the doctor because something was wrong. She gave me oxygen, and soon the doctor was by my bedside telling me that I had been bleeding internally all day, and that they would have to open me up again. Up to this point, I had been so scared thinking that I was going to die, but as they were flying me down the hallway back to the surgery room, suddenly a warm, cozy, comfortable feeling came over me and I wasn't afraid anymore.

I thought, ‘Oh, this is what is supposed to happen!’ and it felt good. I told the doctor who was talking to me as he was running beside my bed on wheels, ‘Your voice sounds funny, It sounds almost like an echo’. ‘Don't you leave us, Corina!’ he answered. The first thing that happened after they put me out [gave me a general anesthesia to make me unconscious], was that I was suddenly floating over my body watching them panic, the doctor saying, ‘I can't see anything, too much blood’. He cut me one way and then the other, up and down.

My next thought and feeling was of being in total darkness. I was feeling my body, but upon looking down, I was not seeing anything. I was petrified, and remember saying, ‘Please God, don't let me be alone, where are you?’ The next thing that I saw was the most brilliant, intense light that I have ever seen. It was so bright that I could barely look into it. In front of the light was like a huge cathedral-like doorway, and standing by that was my mother who had died when I was around eight years old. There were some others there, but I didn't recognize who they were.

The feeling that I experienced is somewhat hard to explain, but I will try my best. All and any abuse or pain that I experienced in my life, whether it had been physical, emotional, or mental, was completely gone. In its place, was an intense love, acceptance, devotion, and sense of wellbeing. For one second, I understood it all (so simple), but then it was gone - as if we are not meant to understand it ‘all’.

My mother then looked at me and said (but not in words, only in thought), ‘You have been given a second chance. I can take you the rest of the way, or you can go back’. I remember feeling so extremely good there and wanting to stay, but then I thought of my young children and said to my mother, ‘I have to go back, my children still need me, and you know how hard it was for you to leave us when we were young’.

All of the sudden, I felt like I had been on a huge rubber band stretched to the max, and then brought back again with a jolt so strong, it almost hurt and it felt awkward to be back in there. I opened my eyes to a nurse crying by my bed, in the Intensive Care Unit, whose eyes were as wide as saucers in exclamation. She said, ‘You're back! Oh! You gave all of us such a scare; I will go get the doctor.

I had two questions [for the medical team] right off the bat. One was; ’Who was, and where is, that old woman that was in my other room?’ They answered, ‘What old woman? You were alone in your room.’ Then I asked, ‘I died, didn't I?’ They would not answer me, but when I started telling the doctor about floating over my body, and everything that was said and the tools that were used; he almost fled from my room.

Well, since that experience, my intuitive gifts have become stronger and stronger. Sometimes I feel so connected to everything...plants, trees, sky and all that is. It's the most wonderful feeling in the world. Where I felt anger before, I now feel love. This experience has touched every facet of my life.

I know that God has a purpose for me, because I just had another abdominal surgery (which should have taken one and a half hours, but took four and a half hours) and apparently, I was very ‘lucky’. They called me the ‘tough cookie’, and the ‘miracle girl’. I don't remember having the same experience as the last time, but came back with the most tremendous, wonderful feeling. Before them putting me out for surgery, I remember saying to my doctor, ‘Don't worry, I have asked that God guides your hands and the specialist's hands when he's called in.’ And that's exactly what happened - they had to call a specialist halfway through because of complications.

I AM SHOWING A VERY SHORT NDE ONLY BECAUSE CYNTHIA, A BLACK GIRL, DRAWS AN INTERESTING CONCLUSION FROM HER EXPERIENCE!

Cynthia DM’s NDE in 1965

I was in my high school swim class and I had told the instructor that I did not float the way the other kids did--- black people have documented issues with buoyancy due to bone density and some other physical attributes. She forced me to push off from the side of the pool, and because there were many kids in the pool, she didn't see me struggling to get to the surface. I couldn't get back up for more than a nanosecond at a time, and I inhaled a lot of water and finally gave up.

I remember being terrified, then angry, that my life was ending so early. Then, when I couldn't breathe anymore, I remember this warm rush -- like the one you get when you're put under before surgery. I relaxed completely, and saw a little 'movie' of my life, thus far not very long then.

But as soon as it was over, and I saw that I liked myself and had been a 'good' person, I totally relaxed and floated almost to the top of the water, face down. It scared my teacher and the other students so badly that the teacher jumped into the water with her clothes on and pulled me out. I had to be resuscitated. But I knew from then on that 'Judgment Day' was actually the day that WE see our lives like that, before we die. I know that the object of life is to make sure that little movie is as pleasant as possible to view!

Darlene M’s NDE in 1977---from France. Original in French

After eighteen hours of labor, the delivery was not going well at all, and it was too late for a cesarean. I was exhausted. When the doctor decided to use forceps, I would have done anything for the pain to stop. They gave me anesthesia through a mask. I later learned that my daughter was being strangled by the umbilical cord. After she was born, she was immediately taken to a childcare center at the other end of Paris. The only thing they asked me when I regained consciousness was, ‘Would you like her to be baptized in the ambulance?’ It was then that I understood that we were not doing well.

My experience began as I went back to sleep. It started with the dizzying sensation of falling backwards, down a dark tunnel. At the far end of the tunnel, I saw a luminous point, which was approaching at a very high speed. I began to feel very sure of one thing. ‘If you cross into that light, you will then be dead.’ At the same time, I was in a state of total happiness and high excitement, and inside me, I was repeating this phrase over and over: ‘This is it! I’m going home!’

I was moving very fast, but I could still think clearly. Suddenly I remembered that I had had this same experience before, in my early childhood! I knew this light! I have to clarify that I had many health problems during my childhood. When I was eight, I had had a serious hemorrhage after my tonsil operation. In those days, where I lived, tonsillectomies were performed at home, which means that my parents had been present with me throughout, not out in a hospital waiting room. They told me later that they had been very scared that I might die. I had forgotten this incident, but, when I was in the tunnel, I knew that I had already made this trip. And at that moment, I also understood something that had haunted me all throughout my childhood.

As far back as I can remember, I had always felt certain that my life was a dream and that I did not belong to this world, and that I would wake up soon. But on my tenth birthday, I cried in despair as I resolved that I must accept the possibly that I was indeed dreaming, but that this dream was my life and that I would not ‘wake up’ until the end of it. I would also like to clarify that when this realization occurred to me in 1960, we did not yet have a television, so I could not have been influenced by science fiction shows!

That is why, I think, I was filled with the certainty that I was going home as I traveled down the tunnel.

When I arrived at the end of the tunnel, I saw a kind of doorstep. On the other side, there was an indescribable light, which I felt was like a substance composed of pure love. I thought, ‘It is a light from the fire of God!’ There was that one essential presence, and also there were beings whom I was sure I already knew, and who loved me. None of them had any form or face. We did not speak, but we understood each other.

I tried to enter, but I heard, ‘Go back, for you have not yet done what you had to do.’ I tried to negotiate, because I wanted very much to enter. But I was also totally happy and totally intrigued, because I did not feel any sadness or any worry for those I had left behind. I did not understand why I felt no sadness and no regret, but only the absolute desire to enter into that light.

I insisted on entering, but then I had the sensation of being taken by the shoulders and made to turn around, and of being pushed back in the direction from which I had come.
Instantly, I felt all the weight of my physical body and the sensation of a heavy haze, grey and oppressive. I heard, first from afar, then nearby, the voice of a woman shouting into my ears, ‘Breathe! Good God, Breathe!’ And so I made a superhuman effort and breathed deeply. Then I fell right to sleep.

When I woke up from the anesthesia, and in the hours that followed, I could only think of one thing: ‘What have you done with your talents?’ I understood that it was the key to my return.

I am from a large family of very modest means. We lived in the countryside. My teachers believed that I was gifted in the arts, so they helped me, supported me, lent me a musical instrument at the age of ten, and gave me free courses. Because of that, I studied music and went to the conservatory. Then came health problems, an unplanned pregnancy, and an unstable marriage. In sum, when I had this experience, I had stopped everything.

After my experience, this phrase, ‘What have you done with your talents?’ convinced me that I had come into this life with a number of cards in my hand, and that I had the duty to play some of them.

In the years that followed, I started playing music again, started writing, and became a visual artist. Today, I believe, I have realized to the best of my abilities the talents that were given to me.

HERE IS A WOMAN WHO HAD AN NDE IN WHICH SHE MET HER MOTHER ON THE “OTHER SIDE”---BEFORE SHE WAS MADE AWARE THAT HER MOTHER HAD DIED JUST BEFORE HER EXPERIENCE!

Debbie B’s NDE in 2001---revealing her mother’s death

In February 2001, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. My mother, who I have always been very close to, but lived 60 miles away, was naturally horrified. Although she was not particularly religious, I remember her saying that she had prayed that if anyone should die, let it be her rather than me. Ironically, she was diagnosed with terminal cancer literally two months after my own diagnosis. She was told that she could have chemotherapy but that there was no chance of it curing her so she refused treatment in the knowledge that she would die. I started an intensive course of radiotherapy after three operations to removed two growths in my breast and all my lymph nodes (which were thankfully clear of cancer cells).

Within a couple of weeks at home, my stomach wound was still not healing properly and I developed an infection resulting in cellulitis and severe septicemia and MRSA after an operation.
My mother, at this point in time, was still mobile and active and hoping to make it through till Christmas. Within the first week of November, I became very ill; I was feeling dreadful, with a temperature, vomiting up everything that I ate or drank.   24 hours later, I had a pulse rate of 180 and was totally red from head to toe. When my eyeballs started to roll back in my head and I was losing control of all my functions, my husband realized that he had to get me to a doctor immediately.

It was at this point that I had an out-of-body experience. I was floating above my body and totally aware of what was happening, but not being at all concerned about it! I could clearly hear conversations between the doctor and my husband and the nurse.   I felt very calm and peaceful and as if nothing mattered anymore, in fact quite euphoric!   I recall being driven to the health center by my husband on the Friday night and assisted into the doctor's room where he took one look at me and immediately called the hospital to tell them to get a bed ready for me. My blood pressure was taken and they were concerned because it had dropped considerably. I then lost consciousness for a couple of hours.   I remember having a vivid “dream” that I was in a beautiful, colorful flower garden with blue sky and sunshine, while in front of me as clear as day was my mother, looking about 20 years younger!   All she said to me was, “I'm okay now and you're going to be fine.”

I woke up and immediately said to my best friend, who was by my bedside, that I had to find out how my mother was, as I had just had the most amazing dream about her.   Little did I know that my friend had just taken a telephone call from my brother who said that my mother had just passed away!

Demi B’s NDE in 1962---drowning

My family was camping at Cape Lookout near Tillamook, Oregon, right on the ocean. I believe I was about 14 years old. I'd met a girl from another family camping there who was my same age and we were playing in the ocean together. I was in waist deep water when I stepped into a deep sinkhole and was pulled under by the current. I was terrified and fought desperately to reach the surface, but the current was too strong. Soon I felt an overwhelming feeling of peace and love and literally was aware of my soul leaving my body through the top of my head. There was no distress involved in this, and I felt no sorrow or sadness for the body I was leaving behind. I was immediately embraced by an overwhelming sense of love and acceptance and was in a tunnel-like space surrounded with indescribable colors and music. These were not colors or musical notes I'd ever heard before. There was no fear, just an unbelievable sense of love.

Ahead of me was a very bright light. I remember thinking that it was so bright, that if I looked at it, it would hurt my eyes; but it didn't. I didn't yet realize what the light was, but I immediately knew that that is where all things come from, and it is where all things return, and that when I was back inside the light I would know and be everything. I didn't see any people or sense their presence. I didn't see any sort of buildings or anything other than the beautiful colors. I didn't hear anything other than the music. I felt pure love, acceptance, warmth, peace, knowing without any doubt that this is where we all came from. Sweet, sweet love.

Then, I was given messages; no one gave them to me, I just knew them, and the closer I came to the light, the more anxious I was to be in it, to 'return' to all love and all knowledge. The first message I was given was that the single most important thing in the Universe is Love, that love is all that matters, that we are all the same and that we are all love. I knew I was to love and to help people. I knew my purpose is to offer kindness, love and happiness to people, even if it's just to smile at someone in the grocery store who hasn't been smiled at in a while. The message that caused me the most curiosity was that we are all the same, and it went on to say that I was exactly the same as everything in the universe and was specific enough to tell me that I was exactly the same as every blade of grass! Then I was given the message that it wasn't my time to be there, and that I had things I needed to do here on this plane.

I was upset by this news because this was the most indescribable, loving, and all-encompassing feeling I'd ever had and I didn't want to return to my body. I even remember protesting but being gently told that I had to come back to complete the things I was sent here to do. I had no sensation of returning to my body, my first memory was of being grabbed by my hair by my swimming companion, the girl I'd met on the beach, and being pulled back up to the surface. My initial reaction was anger because I didn't want to be back, I wanted to be in the light. My second reaction was fear over what had just happened.

As I grew up I never spoke of any of this because I thought people would think I was crazy. It wasn't until the seventies, when Kubler-Ross came out with her book 'On Death and Dying,' that I really did start to think about it. There were so many similar stories that I thought maybe I wasn't crazy after all.

As the years went on, I struggled with what the message about me being specifically the same as every blade of grass. I took college science, physics, biology, chemistry and math classes to understand this. When I was in college one of the great physics findings was the discovery of Quarks, the smallest part of atoms. Then I saw a TV program which explained that inside every Quark are thousands, if not millions of strings, which are pure energy. They are different shapes, closed like rubber bands or open, and the shape and vibration of the strings inside the quarks inside the atoms determined if something was going to be an atom or molecule of a rock, an elephant, a person or a blade of grass! That was my answer, I knew that we were all made up of energy. [To understand our material sameness, you only have to go to the level of atoms. Everything is made of the same 100 or so atoms!]

God is love and God is within me and in all of us. I am not a religious person. My experience tells me that the answers do not lie in any organized religion. To me the answers lie within us, but even with this knowledge and even with having actually been on the other side and gaining such knowledge, I still live in the human form, and it is far too easy to get caught up in life's events.

My experience in the water was real. It is unexplainable. It is the most amazing experience I’ve ever had, or ever will have while on this plane, but I know it's real because I was there, if only for a few moments. I know that similar experiences are different for different people, but I also know that there are enough similarities and shared experiences, that it's real. My goal for myself is to remember it all, to share with those who are open to it or interested in it.

Dianne H’s NDE in 2008

I was hospitalized and then admitted. No one seemed to know what was wrong except that I needed fluids. My oncologist had directed several tests to be run. I was feverish and my body functions were not as they should have been. I was uncomfortable with all the lines going in and out of my body.

All of a sudden, I was in a very beautiful place with soft green grass and a blue, blue sky. There was a perfect refreshing temperature (it was summer in Phoenix and hot in the hospital). There was a light, but no sun to be seen. I was standing barefooted on a slight downward slope with a clear brook not too deep and about two or three feet wide at the bottom of the incline. The other side of the brook/river was a slight incline, but a little higher than the one I was on -- the slope was not uncomfortable on which to stand.

I was walking slowly towards the water (I am not sure why I was drawn to the water) and was surprised to be able to breathe well and felt no pain. I was barefooted, but do not remember what I was wearing. I looked up towards the opposite bank and saw my Aunt Margaret coming rapidly towards me. (She had been a Christian and Junior High English teacher (retired) in life).

Now she was young and had a reddish cast to her hair; she was wearing what I would later learn from my mother was her favorite dress early in her life. It was brown with floral print, light yellow flowers, with a light brown background, and a lace collar, and a narrow belt. She also wore her hose and sensible shoes.

She pointed at me with an outstretched right arm and said, 'Dianne, turn around, you cannot cross the river today.' As she said that, I looked behind her at a large field of green as far as I could see and saw people coming behind her. I think that I recognized my mother-in-law (she was wearing a red sweater), my two grandmothers and maternal grandfather, and some others that I thought I should know, coming towards me at the horizon. They were all young and laughing. I just caught a glimpse of these people.

I felt at peace and content and felt no pain. I turned around and was again in the hospital bed. Almost at the same instant a nurse came in and took my vitals, humphed, then a second one and did the same (humphed, as well). Neither nurse said anything then, but later said that I was doing very well, and I went home after more tests a day or two later.

Dr. George R’s NDE in 1976---neuropathology MD and PhD

Here Dr. George R explains part of his amazing death experience. He was a psychiatric researcher who worked for the KGB and later became a dissident. He was a scientist trained in historical materialism and did not believe in God.

Dr. R holds an M.D. and a Ph.D. in neuropathology, and, after his NDE, obtained a Ph.D. in the psychology of religion. Most recently he delivered a keynote address to the United Nations on the “Emerging Global Spirituality.” Before immigrating to the United States from the Soviet Union in 1989, he worked as a research psychiatrist at the University of Moscow.

Dr. R underwent one of the most extended cases of a “clinical near death experience” ever recorded. Pronounced dead immediately after he was hit by a car (driven by the KGB) in 1976, he was left dead for three days in a morgue. He did not “return to life” until a doctor began to make an incision in his abdomen as part of an autopsy.

Dr. R’s NDE

“The first thing I remember about my near death experience is that I discovered myself in a realm of total darkness. I had no physical pain; I was still somehow aware of my existence as George, and all about me there was darkness. The one thought that kept rolling through my mind was, ‘How can I be when I’m not?’ That is what troubled me.

Slowly, I got a grip on myself and began to think about what had happened, what was going on. Then, suddenly, I was in Light, a bright white, shiny, and strong Light. At first I found the brilliance of the Light as painful. I couldn’t look directly at it. But little by little, I began to feel safe and warm, and everything suddenly seemed fine.

The next thing that happened was that I saw all these molecules flying around, atoms, protons, neutrons, just flying everywhere. I saw the universal form of life and nature laid out before my eyes. It was at this point that any concern I had for my body just slipped away, because it was clear to me that I didn’t need it anymore -- that it was actually a limitation.

Everything in this experience merged together, so it is difficult for me to put an exact sequence to events. Time as I had known it came to a halt; past, present and future were somehow fused together for me into a timeless unity.

At some point, I underwent what has been called the “life-review process,” for I saw my life from beginning to end all at once. I participated in the real life dramas of my life, almost like a holographic image of my life going on before me –- no sense of past, present or future, just now and the reality of my life. I didn’t experience any sense of guilt or remorse for things I’d done. I didn’t feel one way or another about my failures, faults or achievements. All I felt was my life for what it was and is. And I was content with that. I accepted my life for what it is.

During this time, the Light just radiated a sense of peace and joy to me. I was so happy to be in the Light. I learned that all the physical rules for human life were nothing when compared to this universal reality. This is not simply the earthly life but the infinite life. I felt a wholeness with the Light, a sense that all is right with me and the universe.

So there I was, flooded with all these good things and this wonderful experience, when someone begins to cut into my stomach. Can you imagine?

What had happened was that, after my car accident, I was taken to the morgue. I was pronounced dead and left there for three days. An investigation into the cause of my death was set up, so they sent someone out to do an autopsy on me. As they began to cut into my stomach, I opened my eyes and had this huge sense of pain. My body was cold and I began to shiver. They immediately stopped the autopsy and took me to the hospital, where I remained for the following nine months, most of which I spent under a respirator.

Slowly, I regained my health. But I would never be the same again, because all I wanted to do for the rest of my life was study religious wisdom. This new interest led me to attend the University of Georgia (in the Soviet Union) where I took my second Ph.D., in the psychology of religion. Anyone who has had such an experience of God, who has felt such a profound sense of connection with this reality, knows that there is only one truly significant work to do in life---and that is love. To love nature, to love people, to love animals, to love creation itself, just because it is. To serve God’s creation with a warm and loving hand of generosity and compassion – that is the only meaningful existence.”

Drew B’s NDE in 2012---moped vs Cadillac

On Halloween night in 2012, I was riding a moped to my friend's house to hang-out. I lived in a very small town and the fastest posted speed limit sign was 35mph. I was at a stop light when the light turned green, so I started to go. All of a sudden, I was hit by a Cadillac CTS sedan going just over 40 mph that had run a red light.

This caused a serious head injury accident since I was on a moped. I was airlifted to a level-one trauma hospital. I bled out in the helicopter. Once I arrived at the hospital, the emergency room doctor performed a clam-shell thoracotomy (an incision clear across the upper chest, if a chest injury is suspected).

I remember feeling very peaceful as I walked through the flaps of a massive, bright-white tent. Inside the tent, it was full of light and happiness. There was every kind of animal walking around in harmony with humans. All of the humans were younger. Nobody looked over 30 years old. Everybody was jovial and laughing. It was a place that I had never been before and I didn't want to leave.

I looked to my right and saw a young man in military fatigues. I thought to myself, 'I know him! That's my grandfather!' He was so young and I had never seen him like that. My grandfather was seated and told me to sit next to him. I gladly came over and sat down. We started talking. We talked for what seemed like hours upon hours. I specifically remember stressing that my legs are in so much pain and I'm fearful I will never walk again. My grandfather assured me that my legs would be all right. I always respected and trusted my grandfather and at that point, I knew I would be o.k.

Then I started hearing a female voice calling my name. After a few times of hearing my name, I recognized the voice as coming from my mother. I told my grandfather that I have to go because mom is calling me and I don't want her to be upset. My grandfather asked me to stay with him. I remember considering what I should do. I remember getting up from the chair and heading towards my mother's voice.

Then I woke up from my coma. My mother had kept whispering my name in my ear and telling me how much she loved me. I was back in this world we call life. After a few weeks, a nurse asked if I “went anywhere” while in my coma. I told her yes and proceeded to tell the nurse and my folks where I was and what I saw. They were amazed.

Duane’s NDE in 1991---short, veridical

I underwent a seven hour operation in a heart and lung hospital. After I was taken in to the operating theatre, my brother arrived at the hospital and was told I was in surgery. He left the hospital without seeing me and before the operation finished.

A couple of days later I told him that I had seen him during the operation. He laughed and said that I couldn't have. He then asked me what he was doing. I proceeded to describe what I had seen. I described his exact clothing, and the exact place that he was standing and I also told him what he had under his arm, and what he was doing. His eyes welled up with tears, and he has never spoken to me about it since. He did confirm that I was one hundred percent correct on all points.

A couple of days later I was informed by a surgeon of what had happened to me during the operation.

DW'S NDE in 1984---Make the Pain Stop

In December of 1984, I killed myself.

I wanted to make the pain stop.   I wanted the peace of death.    I wanted it now.
Like anyone, I had set my own path in my youth. Don't try to blame my parents or my family for the problems in my life. I know who made my decisions, it wasn't them. Pretty much, if you just pick something that humans call bad, I did it. If I liked it then I did it again and brought friends with me.
Like one little rock rolling down hill, my decisions had created an avalanche of events and situations that were beyond my ability to control. I didn't know what had gone wrong but I knew my life was not supposed to be like this.

Oblivion was a delightful thought compared to living any longer. I had heard suicide called everything from a deadly sin to the coward's way out, but I didn't care anymore. I hurt.
Those two words are so small they cannot convey to you how deeply in my heart I hurt. This desire for death was where my choices had brought me. I could see no way my life would be anything but the misery and useless struggle it had been since I was on my own. I wanted out of it; out of life, out of pain, out of hurt - OUT! I was twenty-nine and only wanted peace, whatever I had to do to get it.

I felt betrayed, deceived by my own heart. I couldn't trust it again. Just the thought of love in my heart, only to have it turn to dust, made me wince. I seemed to be cursed in picking whom I loved. This was just one time too many I had failed. I wanted the shame and hurt from it to stop driving me.
I only wanted the pain to stop. Just stop. 'Please let the pain stop', I chanted inside.   I cried all the time I wasn't with others. I hurt all the time.

I was living alone in a small apartment in Nebraska. It was nearing New Year's Eve. On a Friday night, I put together the things I needed, wrote the required note that told everyone I could think of that they were not guilty for my leaving and took the mixture that killed me.
I knew what I was taking would kill me. It was not an accident. I wanted what I saw as the gift of death. I reached out for it.

I took the drugs. I got woozy right away. The hallucinations started. Friends appeared to try and to talk me out of what I was doing. I knew they were not there, that they were projections of my mind.
I understand what a hallucination is and how alive they can seem. I understand the differences between reality and drugged reality. I had done enough drugs in my youth to know the effect they had on my body and mind.
I had gotten up to try to eat a last meal. I stopped cooking after a small fire on the stovetop. I realized it was a trick to slow the drugs down. My survival instinct was using it on me to try to keep me alive. I wouldn't let it.   I put out the fire, threw the pan in the sink and walked back to flop down on the couch. I lay there against one arm of it like a discarded doll. I could no longer make my body move to lie all the way down or put my feet up.   The drugs overcame me finally. My breathing slowed, I could hear my heart beat slowing, and then it became erratic. I wasn't worried about anyone finding me too soon. I lived alone and it was Friday night. The hallucinations stopped. My eyes fell shut. I couldn't open them. I quit trying to open them. I quit trying to do anything. I quit on life.    I died.

I did not 'almost' die.   I did not only ‘think' I died.
I was dead.

My body was dead, but I soon discovered that ‘I' was still alive.
My body stopped working, but the ‘self’ that I am did not.

It was quiet.   Complete silence.   It was so peaceful.
There was darkness all around me. It confused me that I was aware.
I also knew that 'I' was 'moving.'   I heard no sound of passing, but I felt I was going somewhere.
I was no longer in my body.   To discover that I was not dead, when I had just killed myself, left me confused and amazed.   A thought came to me.   I regretted the pain my death would cause my family.

Then something changed in me. That sad thought faded away and I was overcome by a deeply peaceful joy. It was like I left behind all my cares and concerns, along with my body. It was a healing of my heart and a removal of my pain and grief so complete, I felt like a rock was lifted off me.
I was all done with the responsibilities we create here for the living. I had no fears, no shame, no pain, and no broken heart, nothing left to do. I was released. I didn't have to pay the bills or go to work ever again.

All the hurt I knew in life was gone from me. I had no responsibility toward others now. They would be loved and cared for still. I would always love them. I had no shame or sadness that I had hurt them.
I was filled with joy by that knowing. It was a joy that was real.

Now, all I could see was a huge, brilliant light directly in front of me. I felt examined. I looked right at it, in curiosity. The glowing, golden globe of light was alive. It was a 'self.' It was a living, aware, loving being.

We were the same! We were both living beings. It was huge, loving and powerful, strong and gentle all at the same time. It felt human to me.

We were alike and alive, but I was in awe of it. I felt the power the Being appeared to create and that was sent out from it. It was like standing in the sun, but instead of sunshine, LOVE warmed me. The Power of Love created and sent out by that Being touched everything around it. I knew I was safe and loved. I try to describe it, but there are no experiences in my life to compare it to that capture the essence of what I felt. It was unlike anything in this world.
Now I learned it knew me. It knew me in all I was. I could not hide anything from it. I had no desire to hide anything. I felt no fear or shame that it 'saw' all of me. That being knew everything I ever was or ever will be---and loved me anyway. I knew that I was precious to it and treasured by it. I was perfectly what I was supposed to be, and it loved me just that way. I didn't have to be anything but just me.

We began to communicate when I understood it was 'speaking' to me. Then I knew it could 'hear' what I wanted to share with it. It was not with spoken words, but more like with complete thoughts, with no possibility of misunderstanding. It was a true communication of perfect understanding between us. I have little memory of all that passed between us. We 'talked' for a time, in loving joy at being together. I was small and asking questions. It was 'answering' me as fast as I could conceive the question in my thoughts.

I was so loved! I was loved completely and just as I was, as all I was. Small, confused, dead by my own hand, I was cherished and loved. I was precious to it. I responded to that with my own thoughts of my joy in the peace, love and total acceptance it was giving me. I tried to love it back with my little self.
The being knew I loved it and that I was thankful for its love of me. Then it loved me more. I loved it more. A cycle of pure love between us grew. It was like the most wonderful, perfect joining of hearts between two beings you can imagine. I call it perfect communion.

I saw the truth of what I was in its view. I was filled with joy in the knowledge that I was a loving self, and I loved the being who showed me the love in myself. That is the meaning of grace. You are loved as you are; not as what you wish to be, not as you should or could have been, not as someone else says you ought to be, but only for what you are now. I was at peace with myself. Nothing hurt. I could only see my life and self through that Being's Love. There was no negative in myself or from that Being for anything I had done, including killing myself. I was in a state of bliss from the love we shared. I was HOME. That is what it felt like, the ultimate homecoming. I was where I was meant to be.

Then came the blow I didn't know was coming. My loving friend had one more thing to tell me.
I had to go back; this was not my time.   I had no choice in this. It was not mine to decide. It was in that being's power to send me back.   It was only done of love. My new friend, in its love for me, chose for me.   Then I was alone again.
I was coughing, gagging, and back in my body. My body wasn't dead anymore.

I woke gagging, crying, and gasping for breath. It hurt to breathe. Tears ran down my face to my chest. I started sobbing harder, in deep grief again. I still couldn't figure out exactly what was happening. I wasn't dead; I knew that much. I opened my eyes. I looked up to see a friend standing there, smiling at me.
This really confused me.   Whoever it was, he pulled me up, tears and all, from the couch. My legs would not support me. He put his arm around me to hold me up. He got me to the bathroom. I collapsed next to the seat. I was still crying hard.

I heard the water run. He handed me a glass. He looked at me, gently smiling, and I knew I had to drink it. He had to hold it for me. Just seconds later the vomiting started. He pulled my hair back, holding it out of my way. I vomited some more. Hard, violent spasms shook my body. My throat and stomach burned from the acid.   I finally choked to a stop, breathing in gulps, and tried to clear my sinuses. When he tried to get me to drink from the glass again, I balked. Then I drank it all down. I threw that up, too.   I got my breathing under some sort of control. It was easier now. My crying hiccupped to a stop, almost. Tears still dribbled down my face. My sobbing stopped.

I crawled up from the floor using the sink for support and managed to get to my feet. I began the ritual of brushing my hair, then washing my hands and face with cool water. I felt a little less run over by a truck. My skin was cold and clammy. I was still very shaky. When I turned to go back to the couch, I started to fall. My friend caught me. He helped me back to the couch. I laid down gladly. He brought me a blanket and covered me. I felt safe and watched over. I slept.

I don't remember anything else until I woke in time for work on Monday. I don't know how long the experience lasted. Time had no meaning there. I didn't know that I slept two complete days. I only know that it was Monday when I woke up. Over time, I slowly started to feel connected to the world again. I went right back to thinking I had to do something, pay bills, work, move, something to justify my existence. I went on with being here, being alive as we know it.

I did not share my experience for a long time because I knew it was not going to be believed. I didn't want to be called crazy. I shared it with a few friends just after it happened... they thought I was nuts.

I quit talking about it for years. My NDE was totally outside of my former religious beliefs and learning. But it was real. For me it was a deeply spiritual experience that required no "faith" because I have seen it and experienced it. I can't attend church without wanting to debate their beliefs. What I know now is that all roads lead to 'home,' and that we are here to love one another and help each other the best we can in the most loving way we can.

Ellen K’s NDE

At first I was experiencing the most excruciating pain I had ever felt in my life. It was like being stabbed with a white hot sword over and over again!

After roughly twenty minutes of this pain, I began to feel serene and the pain was fading. I was apparently slipping in and out of consciousness. I vaguely remember people calling my name and touching me for a response, but I was too busy concentrating on a "golden vortex" that seemed to be reeling me in!

The pain was going and I remember a strong sensation of warmth, comfort and pure love. I was vaguely aware too when the ambulance crew arrived and were calling my name and trying to get a response out of me, but I could not respond as I was apparently unconscious! [Note that Ellen may have left her body at this time, but did not realize it.]

I also remember being taken into the emergency room in the hospital and the staff there calling my name, but getting no response. At this time I knew I was probably going to die as I could see the urgency in the faces of the doctors and my partner, but I didn't care, the pain had gone.

I eventually left the people here on earth and went into the brightest white light. There was nothing but light and love, warmth, comfort, and a feeling of forgiveness and understanding. I couldn't see anything or anyone, just the light; but I felt I was communicating with my "father," by which I mean the "ultimate Father” of us all. I hope you can understand that!!

I experienced a time of rest and love and healing, and then I had a review of my life which was quite funny, even though it was emotionally upsetting. I was asked what I thought of my life, and we agreed, much like the comments on all my school reports, "could have done better".

I was then asked what I would like to do next, whether I would like to go back to my life and try to improve, or if I wanted to stay in the light. I guess I must have been undecided, as I was then shown a vision of all my family around my hospital bed, crying and looking really worried. This tugged on my heartstrings, and I decided I wanted to go back, as I couldn't bear to upset my family by leaving them behind!

So then I remember sick feelings and pain as my eyes opened, and I awoke to see my family around my hospital bed all worried and upset!! I had been unconscious for two days, and it was touch and go whether I would survive.

Eric S’s NDE in 1987---kidnap and torture

I was a victim of a criminal attack. I had been kidnapped, drugged and tortured for many hours.

I was conscious throughout the entire process. I was terrified, in agony, and completely beyond endurance. I felt my heart stop beating. There was a sensation of 'letting go'; it was as if I had been clinging to my body the whole time I'd been alive, and now I let my body go. It all seemed so easy; I wondered why it had never occurred to me to do it before. I felt myself moving away from the Earth, spiraling outward. There was a growing awareness. Of course, now it all makes sense! There's even a reason we all have limited knowledge. Don't ask me for secrets, because I don't remember. When we exist as the flesh, we are bound by the laws of the flesh, like limited ability to remember.

Then I had a 'life review'. There was no judgment. With increased awareness, I simply remembered all of my life. I let go of all the things I loved, all the people I loved. There was no regret. It struck me as remarkable that the most painful moments of my life were the ones I most treasured when the pain was gone. There's a reason for this too. And no, I still don't remember.

My past flashed before me; it was like being able to remember all my life at once, with greater understanding and in a universal context. I learned many things, but most was forgotten upon returning to my body. I only remember that there were reasons for all the great mysteries of life and a purpose to our ignorance. I don't remember the answers, but the questions don't seem to matter anymore either.

I was met by a spirit. There was no communication, and I made no identification. Thoughts of material things slipped away, and I was guided into the presence I will refer to as God. There was sight without eyes to see. There were voices without words that I had no ears to hear. There were no streets of gold or peaceful green meadows, but there was something*, and it was heaven. I was simply existing within a love beyond mortal understanding.
I was filled with relief, joy, peace, wonder, and love---feelings very difficult to translate into words.

There was communication from God. I was shown some of the Plan. I witnessed the whole Earth from what I might estimate as a few thousand miles, but physical time/space doesn't have quite the same meaning there. I was given a glimpse of what was to come when all had come home to God. I never had any details, just a vast sense of wonder, amazement and love at what was to be. And then the vision was closed to me. I had thought I was already in heaven, but man was that something.

Then the unhappy news. God wanted me to come back down here. I'm told I still have work to do. I thought to myself, 'Oh crap, that's gonna be unpleasant.' I am comforted. I have a choice. I do not have to go, and His love for me will not diminish. Well, that's a relief. What if I get lost? What of the harm I might do? I was reassured that my place with God would remain. I prayed for the passing of the cup. I surrendered my will.

*SMACK*.

Oh man, 'reality' again. I had forgotten how bad this hurts.

Erik C’s NDE in 2015

I was having a normal evening and went to bed around 9:30 pm. I woke up around 4 a.m. the next morning to realize I had diarrhea in my sleep, then started vomiting profusely. I felt really weak so I had my wife take me to the emergency room. I felt like I was going to pass out the whole way to the hospital. When I got there, I lay on a bed in a room by myself and lost consciousness.
The next thing I knew, I was looking at my lifeless body on the hospital bed. Then I saw a light, brighter than the sun, but it was pure white. I then saw my grandmother and uncle who both passed in the late 1990s. I wanted to go to the light more than anything. All my pain was gone, no stress, and no worries. I have never felt so good in my entire life. I tried to walk around them to get to the light, when I felt a small hand on my right knee. I looked down to see my son, who had passed a couple years ago. He said, ‘Daddy, keep fighting.’ I noticed that there were three angels. One angel was standing behind my grandma and uncle and the other two were standing next to them. My uncle told me it wasn't my time yet and my grandma smiled at me but didn't say anything. The angel furthest to my left, placed its left hand on my left shoulder. I felt a firm squeeze and was sucked back into my body with a sort of popping noise/feeling.
I was back and called the nurse. I told her what happened. They brought in paddles just in case they needed them. They put me on an IV and gave me medicine for the nausea. I stabilized and they told me I had been poisoned. They ran a bunch of tests on me and said that I was in perfect health other than whatever poisoned my body.

Before, I had been very depressed and wanted to die but was scared of dying. Now, I am no longer scared of death, but have a new desire to live. The NDE has drastically changed my viewpoint on life. I want to be healthy now. I find my head full of questions I wish I could have asked. I wanted more time with my son, as I never even got to hear his voice in life. I will never forget the sound of his voice that night. I know I will see them all again when it’s my time. I somehow knew that heaven, or my perception of heaven, waited beyond the light I saw in the corner of that hospital room. The angels were the most beautiful things I've ever seen, surpassing any living thing on this world. There are no words to describe their beauty. The NDE happened a week ago this morning. Yesterday, I went back to the hospital with severe abdominal pain, but to a different hospital in a different state than in my home town. They said it was side-effects of being poisoned after the same tests plus a CT scan and x-rays, but had no more NDEs in that visit. They told that I had been poisoned and if the pain gets worse, they will just admit me and probably remove my limp nodes which were damaged as a result of being poisoned. Other than that, I am still in near perfect health.

Evan D’s NDE in 1975

I was driving to work at night and it was sleeting and raining heavily. I was running late and was speeding. I was driving at one hundred miles per hour when I hit the brakes too hard to take a corner. I ran off the road and struck two marker posts on the side of the road. Then everything went black.

I then was out of my body, floating about 3 meters above the car, looking down at myself slumped forward in the driver’s seat. I was bleeding heavily from cuts on my head and for a few moments was transfixed, watching myself bleed to death. I felt the greatest peace I have ever known and felt nothing but goodness flowing around me.

Although it was pitch black and raining, I could see clearly because there was a bright light behind me---even though I was 15 miles from the nearest light source, on a country road. It was a very bright light, lighting the scene up like daylight. It was behind me and I didn't turn to look at it.

Then my whole life flashed before me on fast forward. I saw myself being born; then it would pause a little at every major event that had happened to me. It seemed to take only a few seconds from start to finish.

Then a voice said to me ‘Do you want to live or die.’ By the tone of the voice, it was saying to make up my mind quickly, or else I wouldn't have a choice. I thought about how sad my family would be if I died, so I said ‘Live’ and I was instantly back in my body.

I got out of the car, walked up to the road, and got a lift to my workplace where I was immediately sent to the hospital. But apart from a lot of cuts and bruises, I wasn't badly hurt. I was released from the hospital after two days of observation.

I was told later that it looked like the car had flipped end over end three times, landed on the roof, then rolled over onto its wheels. When I went to see the car in daylight, I was shocked at the amount of damage done to the car. The roof was pushed down so low I couldn't get in the car and sit in the driver’s seat.

The best part of my experience was that wonderful feeling I got being out of my body. The worst part was wondering whether I did the right thing in choosing life. But when I look at my wonderful wife, I say yes, I did the right thing.

Evelyn’s NDE in 1973---From Denmark

I was in the hospital with an ectopic pregnancy. I was bleeding internally, and signs of blood poisoning were present. On the way to the operating room, after having an injection to settle me down, I asked for a Pastor, but was turned down. But it was all right, because I had made up my mind that if I were to die, so be it. "Into Your Hands, I place my life," I said to the Lord.

On the operating table, the nurses told me to count from 1 to 10. On the count of 5, instead of continuing to count, I started to pray the "Our Father." I did not finish it, because I was drawn into a black tunnel.

It was pitch-dark in the tunnel, and I felt like I was floating for a while. As I floated through the tunnel, I noticed that my abdominal pain had gone away. I saw a very bright light at the end of the tunnel. I felt nice, and the thought of being dead no longer bothered me. Near the end of the tunnel, I felt I was being pulled faster towards the light.

Faces of people who had died, some whom I recognized and some whom I did not, were shouting, "NO, Go back...Go back...Go back!!" After that, I heard murmuring sounds.

At the end of the tunnel, I found myself in the middle of all those people. I felt nice. I had no more pain, no more worries and plenty of warmth. My Daddy was also there. We were happy to see each other, but there were troubling whispers around. Almost everyone was saying, "NO!" There was a bad vibration in the air.

The bright light had slowly transformed into a figure dressed in a white robe. Everybody became silent as the figure came towards me. The face of the figure was very bright, smiling and calm. I could even feel its warmth. The figure was not very tall, but was of average height and weight, and was neither a man nor a woman. I asked, "Are you God or Jesus?" I received a smiling response, "Evelyn, not yet...go back…go back." I said that I wanted to stay with my father. I was told, with a shaking of the head, "Evelyn, Evelyn...not yet...you have to go back." The other people who were around smiled, but I kept insisting on staying. But the figure said firmly, still with a smile, "Evelyn, you have to go back!"

I felt I was being suctioned back into the tunnel, and the pain started to return. Somebody pulled my hands, and I was out of the tunnel! I was back in the operating room, aware of the pain again. I noticed the nurses doing CPR on the chest of "the body on the table." Still outside of my body, I tried to pull the nurses away, and I was telling them to stop because it hurt. However, they seemed unaware of my doing anything. Then one of them said, "She's breathing! She's back!" And, as I found myself on the table, I felt and heard myself breathe.

EVERYTHING IS LIFE--- strangled by her abusive boyfriend

I felt his thumbs all the way to the back of my throat. I tried to pry his fingers off but he was sitting on me and I could not free myself. I saw my son jump on his back and being pushed off. So many emotions at one time: I couldn't breathe, I couldn't help my son, and so angry that this fat creep just didn't leave. I remember thinking, "GOD, he is killing me."

All of a sudden, I felt thrown into another space. I felt myself moving into an area that looked like a theater, but it was not a room; it was just space. Not outer space, just space. It was sort of dark, but there was an illuminating light coming from somewhere. It was so peaceful and quiet. A quiet I never experienced before. I felt my body became part of a whole. I became one with my surroundings and became one with something I knew before. Like a drop of water becomes one with the ocean or the sea. I was aware of sensations I can't describe, aware that Everything is Life. I was aware that there is No Time, that everything exists together. That was Amazing!

I remember turning around and looking down, seeing my boyfriend sitting on top of me, strangling me. I didn't feel any emotion or attachment to my physical body.

I turned around and pictures the size of a movie screen started to pass in front of me, like a flip book at first, then faster like a movie in fast forward. It was my Life. I saw my past, present, and future. Even though the events moved very fast, I could see each one, remember that moment and feel every emotion I had or caused someone to feel. I could slow down and speed up the movie without stopping it. I never heard a voice or sound.

I remember saying mentally "my son", just as I was sucked back into my physical body. I remember feeling hands around my neck and opening my eyes. My boyfriend looked into my eyes, and all of the sudden got off of me. He left. For some reason I never felt any anger or other emotion towards him for nearly killing me. I have tried to remember my life review, but I can't. There was a message in it for me.

Francis G’s NDE in 1976---free-spirited motorcyclist

I was a fast-living, free-spirited soul living in Chicago. One day I picked up my friend on my motorcycle. Hours later, we were hit head-on by an intoxicated driver with no insurance. He turned into us traveling 50 mph as we were also traveling 50+ mph. My friend was thrown off the back. I stayed on the bike. Both of my legs were crushed until both femurs broke, as the motorcycle went down. I went up over the hood, into the windshield, then rolled in the gravel along the side of the road. I crawled to find my friend, worried he was dead, and kept holding on to him.
One hospital was within a mile and my friend went there. He ended up living in a body cast for 7 months. I, on other hand, was shipped off to a trauma center.

I don't know why I lived so wildly, even though I had an educated family. As nurses and doctors frantically ran around me, I left my body and left the hospital. I saw a white light, which pulled me like a strong magnet and grew larger as I approached it. Then stars and lights surrounded me. The sounds, smells, and the sights were indescribable.
A “spirit” told me that it was not my time, because I had to do beautiful things and help mankind and nature. I argued with that energy and told “it” that my body was mangled. I asked how I am going to do anything with such a damaged body? I was told how, but not in English, nor Hungarian or German, but by thoughts projected into my spirit. That is when I knew there was more to me than I could understand. My consciousness had a communication device so that I did not need to speak in order to use it.

I felt like Ralphy in ‘Christmas story’ when he told Santa that he wanted a BB gun as he's pushed by Santa's foot and goes sliding down the slide. I felt, and still feel, like that little boy. All my evil ways died. I became different, as if my soul was in a white coat! Then reality set back in as I floated above the hospital. I watched nurses and doctors running around me, the crash cart coming out, and then I saw my body shake up and down from the shock of the paddles.

Next, my eyes opened, looking up, and I could feel great pain. Later on, I couldn't explain why I could draw the scene from a bird's-eye view. For several years, I tried hiding from this truth, because people looked at me as if I were crazy if I mentioned it. I drank and did drugs while trying to live a better life. One day, I realized that I was holding myself back. I had fallen into everyone else’s way of living, but I knew how I should be. This was the catalyst of my 180 degree turn, and now I help man, birds, and even earthworms. I speak to people who lose loved ones, tell them my story, how their loved ones have just passed over, and are not dead like they think. The older I get, the stronger the energy inside of me gets. I can write more and more and more, because this experience was the greatest gift I ever received.

Francisco GV’s NDE in 2004---from Mexico. Original in Spanish.

I was studying during the ninth semester of my career, and in the university there were extracurricular activities like culture and sports. I practiced in the Aquatic and Diving Rescue [division of] sports activities. Only persons experienced in swimming and without fear of the water were admitted, since it was a high risk activity. The segments were three times per week: Monday, Wednesday and Friday, three hours per segment.

At the end of every segment, I practiced an exercise, which is called apnea. This exercise is swimming below water holding your breath. During my final apnea I commented to the instructor that I wanted to swim seventy-five [metros] underneath the water. He was in agreement. I hyperventilated, filled my lungs with air, and submerged myself to the bottom of the pool. I passed sixty metros without problems.

All of a sudden, my vision started to malfunction - I saw the edge of the pool [as if] very far away and I stopped feeling any kind of sensation, like cold, wanting to breathe, emotion, etc. Suddenly what I could see, I saw from afar as if I was drowning in my own vision. Everything turned dark for a very brief instant, because after that, I saw a tunnel of a dark color and I headed towards it. At the end of the tunnel I saw a light. When I arrived at the light I realized that it was a place without borders -- all lit up and completely silent.
When I reached the end of the tunnel I found a landscape of an intense white color, but it did not hurt my eyes. I didn't feel afraid. I felt very tranquil. Then I saw a friend who had died a while back; he had been my best friend. His name is Nestor. I felt very happy to see him, but at no time was I afraid. We had the following conversation:
Nestor: How are you?
Me: Good, very good.
Nestor: Don't worry about anything. Everything is fine.
Me: Thanks. How are you?
Nestor: I am good. Everything in life shall be fine; everything will come out very well for you. Don't worry about anything.

That was our conversation; I remember very well those words. The two of us were face to face and my friend touched my shoulder. I wasn't afraid and in that moment I was only happy to see him and his words made me feel very contented. It seemed as if he'd never died; his body and face were the same as the last time I saw him alive.
Then I wanted to ask him many questions, but I felt as if a force pulled me backwards; it pulled me in a very soft way. I saw how it pulled me towards the tunnel. I looked behind me and saw my body surrounded by a group of persons; they were pressing my chest to bring me back to life. I saw everything they were doing. Their faces were filled with fear and desperation, and I saw myself lying on the ground face up, totally pale.

All of a sudden, I opened my eyes and I was very calm. I didn't feel any fear whatsoever. I was very relaxed and content. I asked them what had happened and they couldn't answer me because they were too scared.   The instructor only told me to not to move, to stay calm, but I responded that I felt totally well. I was the one who was calming my companions. They asked me to sit and breathe.   I was calm and without problems. I didn't tell my friends about my NDE for fear of what they would say; I only told my father and one friend.
That is my version of what happened, but there is also the version of my companions and the instructor. Their version is very different from mine. They recounted the following:
When I was doing the apnea they saw that I reached the seventy-five meters without problems. I raised my head from the water and once more submerged myself into the pool. As they saw I had finished the apnea, they turned their eyes away and in another direction, towards the watering cans (showers). One of my companions had forgotten his visor and flippers and gotten out of the showers, heading toward the other side of the pool. Suddenly, he saw me submerged at the bottom and he thought it was a joke, but then he realized I was unconscious at the bottom.   He called the instructor and between all of them, they pulled me out of the pool. When they finally got me out, they couldn't bring me back to life. I wasn't breathing; they took my pulse and couldn't find it. They didn't give me mouth-to-mouth resuscitation; they only gave me a strong punch to my chest which is when I opened my eyes.
I don't remember having reached the seventy-five meters in my apnea, but they say that I did reach it; therefore, I lost that part of my memory. About the respiration and pulse, those who were present are experts in that. One is a fireman, another is an emergency nurse; another is the instructor of aquatic and diving rescue, and the rest were diving rescuers.
Although it was expected that I'd be afraid of the water after what happened, the contrary is true; the water seems even more agreeable from that moment on and I'm not at all afraid of death, even the site where I saw myself during my NDE seems pleasant.   I am not an expert on NDE's and I've recounted my experience on forums trying to resolve some concerns and to find people with similar experiences. The only awareness that I had was that what awaits me after death is something beautiful and wonderful; and that in my life I should not worry; that everything will be all right.

Frederick F’s NDE in 1984---surgery after a tractor accident

At age 27 I had a tractor accident, resulting in my having three surgeries in nine months. Something went terribly wrong during my third surgery. I remember that day like it was yesterday and that was twenty-six years ago. I can remember the doctors and nurses that day becoming panicky and someone calling for a crash cart while they worked on me.

I never felt any pain as I floated out of my body. I flipped over on my stomach and watched for a while. Then I noticed this rotating hole in the wall like a tunnel with the most beautiful light that offered so much peace. I followed the white light down the blue crystal tunnel and entered into a peaceful green valley surrounded by trees on both sides with the morning dew and fog still present. The vegetation was so lush, and the air was angelic. It was an effortless, almost dreamy-like pleasure to breathe. I could hear whispers, birds, and an abundance of life, overflowing with the noise of beauty.

Then my grandfather met me. I was so happy to see him! He had already died, but he was as real as when he was alive. I am still in shock today, but it still is wonderful to remember the experience. My grandfather was wearing a long white robe that glowed. It was illuminated with the whitest white you could imagine. There were a lot of other men and women wearing the same robes, and they were talking to people. Some had street clothes on and some had a spirit-like clothing that was also beautiful. While we talked and walked in this beautiful valley, my grandfather told me that I could not stay, but that this was my preview of what was to come, that he loved me very much, and that my time with him was up. He told me that I had to go back and raise my children. Then I returned through the tunnel, being led by the light. I reentered the operating room and reentered my body.

I awoke in my hospital room full of people doctors, nurses, parents, a chaplain, and an anesthesia team, asking me how I felt. All I wanted to do for the next four months was sleep and try to reconnect with where I had been, but it wasn't going to happen. It was like I was in a daze and just couldn't get going again; but what was bothering me was real.

Since this experience, my life is no longer the same. Now I look at life with purpose and love, a love of animals, the earth, and its people. My NDE was definitely real. It is the most comforting thing that I think about every day. I’m no longer afraid to die.

GaeLawree C's NDE in 1968

Before the accident, I was visiting my friends and a young man that I liked at his aunt's house. He had picked me up with his motorcycle, and he and his friend were riding on an outing with me and another girl. We spent some time at the aunt's home, and, late at night, we left to take me home.

It was about 1 am. I lived very far away. At some point on the ride, suddenly I was flying through the air. I flew 92 feet and hit the pavement on my head. I bounced and went another five feet and hit again. I rolled and stopped on my back. I had my eyes open and I could see the moon and the stars.

I then left my body and went into a tunnel of very bright light. It was very peaceful, with a feeling of ecstasy, peace, love, and belonging.

While I was going through the tunnel of light, I could look back and see people on the earth. I saw the boy who had caused the accident get up off the ground and run to my body. I saw him pick it up in his arms and look up and cry out, “Oh God, what have I done?” Then I saw the couple with us turn their motorcycle around and come back to where we were.

I began to see different levels or scenes of time; I am not sure, but it was like glimpses of time. I was given natural knowledge of things that I was not taught on earth.

I came to a place that seemed to be in space, a place of energy, and I was met by my maternal grandfather. He greeted me, and there were others that I knew.

They were all energy, all of them. They had no physical bodies, but I knew them, recognized them, each one. A huge energy swept around us. I believed this to be God.

He told me I had to go back. He told me I would experience great pain but I would come through it. I knew He would take care of me. I immediately went back down, in an instant. I went back into my body. I felt immense pain.

Geri R’s NDE in 2011---reaction to a dental anesthesia

On March 7th, 2011, I went to see my endodontist for what was supposed to be my final root canal. In the month prior, I had root canals, plus one extraction. On this particular day, I decided to bring my daughter with me to my dental visit for support. It made me a little less nervous bringing her because she was a registered nurse and was allowed in the treatment room watching the procedures. I was considered a slightly high-risk patient because of my allergies and sensitivities to local anesthesia, and so we had to purchase from our pharmacy plain lidocaine, which was all I could use medically to complete these series of dental treatments. Once the dentist used the first ampoule (capsule of lidocaine), I started to feel numb and he began drilling and filling the canal. I noticed it was taking longer than usual and the lidocaine was wearing off rapidly, so he injected a second ampule and continued working. Midway he was stopping and taking x-rays and again the lidocaine started wearing off, so a third injection was given, and, at that point, the dentist decided he could not finish the root canal because the tooth was so badly decayed it would have to be extracted.

I was horrified when he mentioned that, and by the time he explained what the extraction would entail, and what my options were in terms of implants or partial dentures, the lidocaine wore off again. So here comes the fourth and final shot and that's where my life changed. I heard my daughter talking with the doctor about routine things, but I could only hear their voices echoing, and I couldn't understand why.

Then I felt myself slipping out of my body. Again I heard my daughter's voice saying, 'Mom, mom, come back, where are those paramedics?' I saw them working on me in the dental chair, but I was moving forward. I had had enough of the pain and the tugging and the forceps and the pulling and the bleeding! I was floating towards a beautiful golden-bronzed light. It was there that I saw my mother and my husband smiling at me. They looked so happy and at peace. My mother smiled at me and took my hands, and for a brief instant I felt it; I felt the peace and tranquility, and it felt so good. Without talking, I was able to understand and communicate with mom and Philip. I looked towards my right, and I saw a big door that was closed. However, the cracks of the door showed a bright white light, and I felt the presence of people behind that door, pressed up against it waiting for me to open it. I wanted to go, but my mother took my hands, swung them back, and told me I had to go back, for my son I had to go back.

It was then that I found myself in the dental chair, crying with tears of happiness, and I told my daughter I saw grandma and her step-dad and it was beautiful. I also told the paramedics. It was afterwards in the hospital that my daughter told me that I had completely flat-lined for about a minute. I totally bottomed out, heart stopped, totally unresponsive.

I even remember hearing my dentist saying that he didn't want to do any more patients because his nerves were shot with what happened here today. My daughter couldn't believe I heard that because I was unconscious.

I am so happy that I was able to have this experience and validate the dearly departed and the afterlife and the beauty and peace that await us all, when the time comes.

Although as I type this I am still having dental challenges, I am grateful to be alive for my children, my business, and myself. I now know that my mom and my husband hear my prayers and thoughts and that they watch and guide and bless me and my family. I am at peace now.

Ginny H’s NDE in 1995---asthmatic attack

I am an asthmatic and was having a really bad attack. I was an undergraduate at the time and went to the health center for treatment. From there, I was transferred to hospital. My breathing became increasingly labored. By the time I arrived at the hospital, I was turning blue. I was fighting for each breath. The next thing I know, I was no longer working so hard to breathe anymore. I thought to myself, 'That's strange.'

I tried to take a breath, but nothing happened. I was not afraid. In fact, I was very calm. I felt as light as air. I was floating above my body. I saw myself on the gurney and the medical staff working diligently to put a breathing tube down my throat. Again, I felt no fear. I was not quite sure what I was seeing. I heard them talking, machines going off, and the doctor barking orders. Then I was floating higher until I was surrounded by the whitest, brightest light I have ever seen. At the same time, I felt at peace. I found myself in this huge white space, a void of white light, of love, incredible joy, and peace.

I felt love, comfort, peace, and joy surrounding me. The feeling was in me, as if I could wrap myself in it and it was Beautiful. I walked forward to a curtain, a beautiful, flowing 'white lace' that was alive. I pushed the curtain aside and walked past it.

I found myself in the presence of a male figure in a white gown made of the same material as the white lace curtain. He had a glow around him. He had such great love for me. I had never felt so loved. This being, an angel perhaps, spoke to me saying, 'Don't worry, Ginny, the breath of life will be breathed back into you. Your time has not yet come.' I looked at him and replied, 'But I do not want to go.' The next thing I knew, I was moving fast, back from where I came. I slammed back into my body. I came to with the breathing tube into my mouth, down my throat, and into my trachea and lungs. I could see this. I then heard myself breathing, but it was not a natural kind breathing. It was mechanical, an unnatural kind of breathing.

That was the last thing I remember until I woke up in the intensive care unit five days later. I have never spoken of this until now. It sounds crazy I know. It took me a long time to understand it myself. Only now that I find myself in the middle of a career crisis, I find myself thinking about it. What did it mean? Was it real? Yes, I think so.

Guittard’s NDE in 1981--From Switzerland. Original in French.

My sister, two years younger than me, and I were at the swimming pool. I wanted to teach her to swim better; she had gained more confidence and was less fearful of water. I decided that it was time for her to leave the kids’ swimming pool and go to the bigger one. We started to swim, and then they announced that the five meter diving boards were going to be open for demonstrations. Since it was happening in some other pool, we were nearly alone. So we went on swimming up to the middle of the pool, until all of sudden my sister realized that she couldn't touch the bottom and started to panic. She held on tight to my neck, screaming and struggling.

I started to be fearful too, she was getting uncontrollable and she finally got over the top of my head. I was being drowned under water. The first minute was awful; I wanted to live. I didn't want to let my sister die. I had two choices: save myself by swimming to the side of the pool; or help keep her out of the water. I was fearful about facing my parents, so I stayed there. The lack of air was beginning to be felt; I wanted to breathe, but I was keeping my mouth closed. Finally came a kind of “giving up”.

Then, I felt an incredible well-being. I felt a lightness, happiness, my body felt like cotton wool, I was only love and here words are too weak, there are none in the dictionary which can describe this moment of intense ecstasy.

Meanwhile, my whole life was flashing by in detail, and I was staying there looking at the images with such a feeling of inner peace. There were also stars of light showering down on me, through me. I must admit that I don't remember now which came first, the life movie or the stars, but I remember that it was extraordinary.

Meanwhile, my sister was screaming, and nobody came to the rescue, because they thought we were playing games.

When I opened my eyes, we were beside the swimming pool, legs shaking, and not understanding what had really been going on!! We didn't dare talk about it to our parents because we had gone to the pool behind their back. We talked about it only years later, five years ago. To my astonishment, my sister had been experiencing this quite differently. According to her, while I was feeling this great happiness, I grabbed her underneath, raised her up with what seemed like a man's hand, since it was so strong and big -- and took her to the side of the pool. I don't remember anything like that, and I'm still amazed that we could make it to the side of the pool!

Hannah’s NDE in 1996---From Belgium---Original in Dutch.

I was 25, extremely pregnant, and a cesarean for my second child was planned. My first child had been born through a cesarean, so I knew what to expect. I had no fear, and was not nervous. After the epidural, everything would be over quick. So it went, I got an epidural, and surgery started shortly afterwards.

Unexpectedly, my situation worsened very fast. My blood pressure fell enormously. Suddenly, I felt very calm, in almost perfect peace. But I had not seen my child yet. The doctors pulled me through cardiac arrest two times. But I knew that I was going to die. Don’t ask how; I just had this certainty. Finally my daughter was born. They brought her to me. A beautiful baby, a wonderful daughter that I had brought into the world. And that’s what I thought, It was the only thing that counted, I had seen my daughter and it was ok. Now I could go.

Even today, I still feel guilty about that thought. How could I let her down to fend for herself? But nothing stopped me. Then, for the third time I felt myself dying, and this time I did not fight. I heard the doctors yelling; they had discovered tumors on my stomach and liver. It didn’t interest me anymore: ‘I had seen my daughter and it was ok’. Then I felt a peace as I had never felt before. Perfect, pure, delightful serenity. Peace. Happiness.

Words cannot describe that feeling. I am convinced that nobody during his earthly life can be so peaceful and happy as I felt then. Not even on the most wonderful day of a lifetime. This quietude and bliss are incomparable.

I saw an all-encompassing golden glow. For a moment, not long. Then I entered the most beautiful landscape that I could imagine. A bright green pasture, filled with red glowing tulips. I was very aware that I was dead. This was not a dream and I knew that. I looked next to me and saw a beautiful woman in a blue dress. Just a companion.

After what seemed hours to me I ‘woke up’ back in my body. Like that, suddenly. I had not seen myself lying there. Doctors rushed in, I was very angry. Mad at them, that they had brought me back; I didn't want to come back. I wanted to be over there, with peace and happiness. Not here, on earth. I shouted, yelled, cried..…Later they told me that was a “normal reaction” from somebody that had been ‘dead’ and brought back!

They had told my ex-husband that I had died. I think, therefore, that I was brought back by something else, not by the doctors. They had already given up on me. About ten minutes after they had declared me dead, I was back.

I couldn't handle it. I was very happy with my daughter, but I had such a desire to go back to the green field. For days, weeks, months, I felt I missed something. I wanted to go back. Which often gives me a feeling of guilt. Till today I think how beautiful it was. A lot has happened in the eight years since, bad and good. I want to go back, but know that the people I would leave behind would have too much sorrow. The yearning has lessened, but I still think about it. Often.

While there, I walked like here in my earthly life. I saw my hands and feet, but it did not look like I was walking. I kind of floated. Everything I saw there was very beautiful.

I AM THE ONLY GOD AND MY NAME MEANS LOVE

When I was 11 years old, we were swimming at Fall Creek Falls in Tennessee, when I fell asleep on a large boulder from which we had been jumping into the water. A person came up from behind me and pushed me in, not realizing I was asleep. I struggled and one person tried to save me, but I pulled them under and they got away from me so … to the bottom I went.

When I stopped fighting, this unbelievable feeling of relief and peace came over me. I left my body and was hovering over my body, which was clearly on the bottom.

The next thing I remember, I was in a dark tunnel with a bright light at the end, which I was quickly approaching.

Suddenly I became aware of a hard-to-describe entity of pure light and unconditional love. I asked it, "Are you the Christian god I have been taught about?" The answer was, "I am the only God, and my name means love."

I asked, "What should I do with my life?" Two giant black blocks of stone appeared with one word on each, HUSBAND and FATHER. It was made clear in my mind that this path was only one possibility if I chose certain forks in my future. It was not predetermined.

I thought, "This seems like a big deal; should I become a child preacher in front of a congregation, telling people this? The answer back was " No."

Suddenly it seemed like I appeared at the end of the tunnel nearest the light, and I was asked, "Will you stay or will you go back?" I replied, "I don't want to go back, but it would kill my mother if I stayed here, so I will go back."

The next thing I remember, my mother was pounding on my back and I was spitting up water. People there said I was under 3 or 4 minutes.

Jack M’s NDE---drowning

I have what I believe to be a unique experience to share, not because I had an NDE, but how I recovered from it.

Some years ago, I was at Lake Chelan in Washington state. I was around 15 feet below the surface when I was cut by a nail or something sharp that caused me to gasp. When I did, water poured into my mouth and into my body. I say poured because there was no gulping or gasping but more like fuel being pumped into a car.

After a few moments, I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was watching a kind of movie of my life. Not a whole life story, but only some great and happy childhood memories. I don't know how long this lasted, but after this, I was in a tunnel and out of my body. I realized that my body was behind me, but I was afraid to turn around and look. But then, being of a nature that is very analytical, I began taking an interest in the tunnel itself. There was an array of colors--not bright like psychedelic colors but rather pastel and soothing. They rotated with the entire tunnel, like colors move in a kaleidoscope.

I can remember vividly being extremely aware of moving further and further into this tunnel and being fully aware of having all the natural feelings of having a body but not being able to see it. For example, I would move my fingers and all the sensations were there without a physical form to identify them with.

I never saw a bright light before me or any god figures or anyone. I just continued deeper and deeper into the tunnel and I was having a great time of it. Then, in some unexpected moment, the thought occurred to me that I was dying. I swore a few cuss words and said, in effect---to hell with this. At this very moment, I was back in my body, awake and alert.

Now here is where I believe the story gets interesting. I would later learn that I had been under water for a good 5 to 6 minutes. I remind you that I had taken in a lot of water before passing out. Well, I recovered in perfect shape. I sat at the bottom as an experienced swimmer and scuba diver looking for the sunlight so I would know which direction was up. I found it, and swam to the surface and to the dock where I lifted myself up with no sign at all that I had just nearly drowned. I was in perfect shape, feeling as good and as healthy as before this NDE ever occurred. This recovery is, quite frankly, more curious to me than the tunnel experience, since it seems to me that my lungs should have been filled or maybe I should have been weak or something. But it was truly as if I had simply been out for a good swim and nothing more. In fact, I walked back to the lodge where I was staying, took a shower, dressed and went to work. I thought nothing more about the incident until some years later when people started reporting NDE's and I said, hey, that's what happened to me.

There is one other thing that you might find interesting. Around five years ago I was in the hospital and the doctors had been giving me a very strong painkiller for weeks. Then they took me off of it and this sent me into hallucinations.

Here is what I find important to share about this: I can tell you that I have had an NDE and I have had hallucinations and they are ABSOLUTELY NOT THE SAME. When one has hallucinations, there is always that experience of being an observer. This is so even if one is in the hallucination himself. This isn't to say that one doesn't from time to time get into the hallucination and assume it to be an actual experience, but even at this, the experience is nothing like an NDE.

Here is the difference explained: A person has conscious awareness during an NDE, no less than you're having right now if you are reading these words. That is, you are aware that you are reading, aware of the room you’re in and aware of what is outside the room. This is not how one experiences a hallucination. A hallucination seems to be a total experience, but there is a lack of (real) awareness of anything outside the experience itself. That is, a person is really seeing and feeling whatever circumstances he is in during the hallucination, and these images are absolutely real to him. If he is being chased by a tiger, he has all the feelings of fear, running and so forth. But he cannot project his thoughts into the next room or out of frame, so to speak, as one can during an NDE.

I hope this has been of interest to you even though I imagine you have heard stories like this by the truck load.

Jesse N’s NDE in 2001---From London, UK

It took place in my flat in London, UK in February of 2001.   After an exhausting day at work, I decided it was time for some release, so I went home with my friend and his girlfriend and a lot of drugs. I went to the bathroom, where I accidentally shot a lethal injection of cocaine and morphine into my arm.   It was an instant death, although I didn't realize it at first.   I thought I was kind of sleeping.

So I tried to stand up, and I literally came out of my physical body!   I immediately heard the sound of music I cannot possibly describe with words. It was breathtaking! It was so beautiful that I was ready to explode with joy!   I could see both worlds simultaneously at first----although the physical world resembled a black and white movie in comparison with the world now in front of me! The colors were out of this world, so deep, so luminous, so clear and beautiful! There was a door in front of me, and I could hear joyous laughter coming from inside the door from many people!   I had this uncontrollable desire to step inside the door and meet all those souls!

My perception increased on conscious levels I didn't think existed.   I was aware of everything around me with so much clarity; I could see the perfection in every sound, the LIFE inside everything, feeling immeasurable love and acceptance of everything!

I was HOME!   That's the word that rang in my ears so loud and so clear!   I was ready to cross the threshold when I heard footsteps coming from inside the door. My hearing was so acute; I could sense every little detail.

This man comes from the door. I don't think I can find the right words to describe him here. His eyes were like an endless sea of love; too bright to look at, I thought. However, I started to get used to it!   I know him, I thought! I KNOW HIM! I've been knowing him for a thousand years! A thousand years is nothing here, too short! No, I've been knowing him for ten thousand years! Hmm, ten thousand means nothing here; time doesn't exist! He smiled at me while I was having these thoughts; nothing is hidden here, and everything is revealed. He knew with immense clarity exactly what I was thinking, and I loved him, I loved him so much. He was gazing at me with this infinite love, infinite compassion and infinite peace.   I clearly sensed that everything I've ever done in my life was recorded, and that he knew every little detail. He knew me, he loved me, and he knew I was trying to remember who he was, as if I was waking up from a deep dream, trying to adjust to reality.
That's what it felt like, waking up from the dream of my earthly life, waking up to become who I truly am!

In that glorious moment, I had a desire to come back to my earthly life, so I could once again have this experience of rebirth while in a physical body. So he touched me on the forehead, smiling that compassionate smile, a smile of unlimited love, deeper than any ocean you can think of, knowing we'll meet again, sending me back to my physical body. In all, I had just been away for about five minutes of our earthly time. Back in my body, I found my friend resuscitating me. I was back!---knowing we all live forever, joined together by this great LIFE that orchestrates all physical life to the tune of LOVE! The tune of spiritual evolution in which everybody takes a part!

Jessie S’s NDE in 2013---a long struggle

Well, I have a story to share with you. A true story. My story.
It is far from easy for me to share this so publicly. As a matter of fact, hardly anyone knows about this most profound experience I went through. I kept it to myself for a while, terrified to open up to anyone about it. I needed time to contemplate the meaning and wrap my head around the experience itself. Plus, there is the fear of sharing it with people….’What will they think? How will I be judged? Will anyone actually believe me?’

This is my story.

Nothing tears at a family quite like illness can. A year ago, some very concerning symptoms started happening to me. For a young, relatively healthy female, I wasn’t too worried at first. Until the medical tests kept coming back negative and my symptoms kept getting worse. Stress wouldn’t be an adequate word to cover the feelings I had for months of not knowing what was wrong with me.

Reluctantly, it was proposed that a hysterectomy would be an end to the symptoms. Surgery would also give my doctors a better look at what may be happening inside me and possibly answers. We scheduled the hysterectomy and prepared ourselves for a long, but hopeful recovery.

I had no fear going into the procedure. It wasn’t my first major operation. I knew the risks. I knew there would be pain. I knew it would be difficult, not just for me, but for my family. So my total abdominal hysterectomy (I got to keep my ovaries, but one had to be biopsied) and a second aesthetic surgery proceeded like normal in mid-May of 2013. Afterward I had a morphine drip that I could push every 30 mins, my midsection was wrapped, and I had a very sexy drain tube coming out of my stomach. When the lab results came back of my uterus and the ovarian biopsy, we were all relieved to hear I was in the clear. Everything seemed fine. I was released after just two nights. Ready to recover at home and get my health back. Get my life back.

But that is not what happened. Just a few hours into being at home, my pain started to drastically increase. I popped a couple of Percocet and chalked it up to normal postsurgical pains. I have a very high tolerance, which has been tested numerous times before.

By midnight, I was on the floor of our bedroom in the fetal position, screaming. The pain was crushing. My husband, Sawyer, rushed me to the ER.

My gut-wrenching pain was so intense that nothing else in the world mattered to me, except ending that pain. At the ER, I was seen immediately All I wanted was an IV of Dilaudid, a very strong painkiller. I remember them saying my heart rate was 185 (my normal is 60) and I had a low grade fever. I can’t remember what my blood pressure was, because I honestly didn’t care about anything except the excruciating pain.

I was readmitted into the hospital. The CT scans showed that I had a paralytic ileus. A complication from anesthesia, in which my intestines had not “awakened” and were bloating. On a second look at my scan, it was seen that I also had a belly full of blood.
I was bleeding internally.

The next few days after that I can barely remember. I was sick, deathly sick. Doctors came in and out, nurses around the clock, medical staff, and visits from only family. Sawyer never left my side. Pain was all that existed to me.

My doctor talked of surgery to locate the mysterious bleeding site, but another surgeon countered the idea due to my “paralyzed intestines”, at least for then. We were at a standstill. I was stable…low, but stable. I was to continue to be closely monitored. During this time I received two blood transfusions and tons of antibiotics. My family fighting back tears when they were around me and my husband showing strength and empathy beyond expectation. It was the scariest thing that has ever happened to us as a family.

And yet, through all of it, the only thing I could think of was the pain. I hurt so badly. Pain was my living world. A level of pain that I could not imagine any living thing having to ever experience. I barely slept because I was so uncomfortable. When I did manage to close my eyes for a few minutes at a time, I dreamt of only of the pain and fear, usually scaring myself awake.

THEN THE MIRACULOUS HAPPENED. My eyes opened and I was surrounded by white. No walls, no floor. Only endless, misty, white space. I was standing up straight and tall. A feat which I had been unable to do since the surgery and the pain….the pain? To my utter disbelief it was gone! I was comfortable and warm, calm even. Feelings I had long forgotten. My body wasn’t sick anymore. I felt light and smooth. Free. I was wearing a soft, simple white gown and I felt amazing.

In the distance, through the mist, I saw him, Anthony. He was sitting on a white bench and waiting for someone. It seemed as if time had stopped and there was a strange formality about everything. As I approached, he stood and turned to face me. I was so happy to see my long-passed friend again. He smiled his famous smile at me and placed his right hand on my left shoulder. No words were spoken between us, but his eyes were locked on my face.

That is the moment I saw it start to appear. Behind Anthony, a brilliant Light. Small at first, but growing larger, brighter, stronger. It was the most glorious thing I have ever witnessed. Radiating colors and feelings that words alone could not ever possibly describe. Sparkling hues of golden blues and Love. It was brighter than the sun, but didn’t hurt my eyes to look directly into it. Heavenly. I could not look away. The feeling I had was similar to a feeling of seeing the person you love after being away from them for too long. That Light was pure, unconditional Love and I felt it. It was everything.

I looked back into Anthony’s eyes, his hand still on my shoulder. I was overwhelmed with joy and love. The expression on his face confirmed what I knew. Yes, that was The Light and Anthony was there to walk me into it. He was there to take me home.

Somehow, I remembered Sawyer. I looked down below my feet. Through the fogginess of the white floor, I could see my husband sleeping on the tiny fold out couch in the hospital next to my bed. Feet and arms hanging over the sides and fully dressed. I felt a longing towards him. I wanted to go down there and lie next to him. Comfort him and tell him everything will be okay. I wanted to be with him.

It was as if I had answered an unspoken question without speaking a word myself. I looked back at Anthony and he smiled once more and squeezed my shoulder lovingly. My decision had been made clear. I wasn’t ready to go.

I opened my eyes again. The pain. The pain was crippling. My body so weak and frail, there was nothing I could do but endure it.

The next day and night revolved around my pain, just like all the days before. As the dilaudid would wear off, it was like a countdown to see how much I could endure.

My body was wearing down. I was a skeleton covered in gray skin with a distended belly full of blood. My eyes glazed and dull, my hair oily, bruises from IVs covering my arms and multiple needle pricks from blood tests, hollowed cheeks, and cracked lips. I was breaking down, fragile. Life is so fragile.

The night following “my heavenly dream” was my miraculous turning point.

I felt wetness under my legs. Depressed that incontinence was now bestowed upon me, I reached under the sheets to check. I pulled up my hand and was horrified to see bloodsoaked fingers. I was sitting in a pool of my own blood.

After an emergency call to my doctor and checking my vitals the nurse informed us that the doctor said this was the blood that had been sitting inside my belly and was being expelled vaginally through the internal stitches. The blood they expected my body would eventually reabsorb was suddenly being expelled. As long as my vitals remained stable, as stable as they had been at least, then I was okay.

I passed over 2 liters of blood and well over 800 cc’s of fist-sized blood clots or larger, which the nurse said looked like my liver. This all happened in under 45 mins. My room looked like a horror scene. And, as if by some miracle, my pain was dramatically decreased in that instantaneous moment. I finally had some relief from the agony I had been enduring for almost a week and only at the price of an unexpected blood bath.

The next 48 hours my heart rate finally started to drop from the 140 range down into the 90s. My blood pressure improved, my hematocrit remained stable, and my intestines were waking up. I was finally allowed to start liquids. Campbell soup juice never tasted so good! I was getting better. Two nights after the blood bath, I was discharged from the hospital.

For months now I’ve kept this memory relatively private, but every day it has been on my mind. Just the sheer beauty of it still leaves me in awe. There is no doubt in my mind that what happened to me was real.

Although pain, selfishness, and brutality will sadly always be part of this living world, I know that there is a world of Love and Light beyond this. A place of peace beyond what our mortal bodies can comprehend and it is waiting for me and waiting for you.

John B’s NDE---angioplasty heart attack

I was undergoing the first of many angioplasty procedures to open a clogged artery. The doctors were having a hard time because my arteries were so small and the wire they were using was a bit too big for the vessel. Just as they got the wire through the blockage, the wire caused total restriction of blood flow through that artery, throwing me into a heart attack.

I immediately felt flushed, nauseous and broke out in sweat all over. I indicated my distress and heard the nurse saying something about my blood pressure. The doctor ordered a liquid dilate that was poured into my mouth. My distress continued and I felt myself losing consciousness. I heard a nurse saying "he's going" or something to that effect.

Suddenly, all pain stopped and I became as comfortable as I've ever been before in my life. I was still conscious and was aware of a warm, gentle feeling about my body, and the room was bathed in a warm, orangey glow. I felt myself rising off the slender table and looking down at the surgeons sitting beside my body, near my hip area, with both arms folded under their arms. They were intently watching the displays in front of them where my vital signs were being posted electronically. The nurses were frozen in place, also watching the monitors.

I felt myself rise to a corner of the room and then I stopped moving and watched the scene below me. I felt more loved than anything I can describe, with an incredible feeling of well-being, peace, and warmth. I recall vividly this moment when I examined the feelings I was experiencing and consciously thought about how wonderful I felt, and how I felt wrapped in a blanket of love. The room remained bathed in this warm orange glow and after a short moment or two I reluctantly thought to myself, "well, I had better get back down there."

The next thing I knew I was on the slab again, and the feeling of being loved was gone, and I could feel the uncomfortable table under me. The room was now dark again with only the green glow of the monitors lighting things. My cardiologist said to me, "ok, John, we've taken the wire out and we're done here." Later, in the recovery room, I told him of my experience and all he said was, "yes, we gave you a pretty powerful drug there." But, when I told him what I saw while up near the ceiling in the corner of the room, he was astounded. I had described things that I could never have seen from my position on the table. Still, he would not accept that I had anything other than a reaction to the drugs he gave me.

While I did not view this as a religious event, and it did not reinforce my religious beliefs, it did make me totally unafraid of dying. If what I felt is how it feels to die, then it's a wonderful experience! I am a journalist, but I can only wish I had the words to describe to you the feeling of love that I felt during that time. And, how comfortable, warm, worry-free, and secure I felt. More than anything else, however, it was the feeling of being loved -- not by someone, but by everything in the universe! Feeling totally loved gave me comfort and peace. The warm orange light also seemed to give me comfort, warmth and peace.

John F’s NDE in 1957---choking, speaks with Jesus (unusual)

While on duty in the United States Navy, I was munching on a hard-boiled egg and got choked. I could only breathe in. My lungs filled until they could fill no more. I believed that if I could get the egg out of my throat, I might live. I cleared some of the egg with a finger, but I still could not breathe. I was experiencing some panic by this time and could think of no way to help myself survive this accident. I thought of my Lord and said to myself. "At least I am a Christian."

I looked into the adjoining room and saw my supervisor sitting in a swivel chair working on a radio message. Realizing I could still walk, I did so until I reached his chair. I could not speak so I used the last of my energy to kick his chair in order to get his attention. He was knocked to the floor and there he lay along with the typewriter. I also fell to the floor near my supervisor.

Another sailor by the name of Joe was watching my actions. I was now quiet and not breathing. I was bleeding from the bridge of my nose, having struck the desk as I fell. In moments, Joe began back pressure lifesaving methods on me. Another sailor called an ambulance. Then I left my body!

I was near the ceiling of the room, watching the sailors doing things to save my life. I was feeling just fine. I realized that the unconscious body on the floor was mine, but I had little concern for it. I looked in a mirror and did not see my reflection! I felt good and energetic and soon lost any interest in watching the sailors working with my body.

I was in spirit form, and yet I still felt alive, as I had been earlier. I suppose I had expected to be dead, but all this was so new to me. I was learning this new life fast and without much concern for anything else. However, this new way of living had left me feeling puzzled. For instance, when I would think of something, I did it automatically. I looked at the wall near me and at the next moment, I was going through it. I was back into the room where I had been sitting when I got choked. I floated around this room at will. I traveled through the many radios and teletype machines with no problem.

My next realization was that I was in a tunnel. I estimate the size of this tunnel to be a diameter of six to seven feet. Immediately I was hurtling along the tunnel much faster than I wished. The speed was tremendous. I was scared. Somewhere along my journey in this tunnel, I slowed to a stop, and a man calmed me and told me the trip was nearing an end. Away I went again at the same speed as before. I felt no g-forces, only fear and the exhilaration of a terrific speed. Finally, I stopped moving through the tunnel and had a good chance to look at it. The tunnel looked like a large vent pipe used on clothes dryers. The light was not primarily inside the tunnel but from the outside shining in. During the trip inside the tunnel, I heard a loud buzzing sound, which hurt my ears. I wondered what supported the tunnel. Now I began walking, looking for the ending of this tunnel. I was now into a much larger area and surrounded by a white mist and daylight.

The light I was seeing diminished all my fears. I heard voices of people just outside this area. The voices were encouraging me to come through the white mist. I walked and saw about a dozen people. I had seen these people before but I could remember none of their names. One man told me not to worry about this. Soon someone came for me. This young man was wearing Levis and a white t-shirt. The other people were wearing white robes. The man wearing the Levis explained to me that he was my guide. He explained to me that later I would meet other people, but he wanted me to walk with him to see this new place.

We walked through the most beautiful flower gardens I had ever seen. I observed in detail the petals of the flowers. When viewing grass lawns, I focused upon single blades of grass and marveled at the beauty of each blade. This man and I communicated via thought transference as I had done with the other people.

I saw a city of large buildings in the distance. My guide told me, if I wished, I could think of being closer to the city and I would be. Sure enough, I thought of being closer and suddenly I was at the very edge of the city. I saw little waterfalls in the flower gardens that were absolutely breathtaking. I felt so good.

Later my guide turned me over to another man, and this man explained to me that I would now go through my life review. During this review, I saw all that I had previously done while living on earth. I relived every conversation I had had. I saw each pet I had owned. I saw again each piece of clothing I had worn. I relived every class I had attended in school. I saw everything again.

It was here in this building, looking much like a library that my life review ended. It was here also that I learned that I would not be staying in this heavenly place. I was so disappointed to learn I had to go back to earth. I cried and cursed those around me. My guide came for me and took me to see two schoolmates that had died four years earlier.

I was shocked to see them living. On earth, they had been football players in high school. One day they were late for football practice and their coach had made them run laps around the field after practice. This placed them into the dressing room long after the other players had left. There was no hot water for showers. The two sat waiting for the water heater to furnish hot water for their showers and were gassed to death by fumes that escaped from the natural gas water heater. Ironically, one of the boy's dads was the plumber who had installed the heater just days before and was coming back on another day to install the vent pipe to the outside of this new shower room!

I asked the two boys why they were here, because each was supposed to be dead. They explained to me that no one ever dies. The two boys were about the same age as I had last seen them on earth. Both appeared to be happy and contented to be here.

My guide took me back to where I had my life review. I asked once more if I could stay. A man told me I had to return to earth to live out my life. I remembered from my Sunday school classes that if a person asked to see the Lord, he shall see him. I asked to see Jesus. With my guide beside me, I walked or floated to a small stage. My guide left me here. I did not have to wait long before I heard a voice on this stage near where I stood. A mist was forming on the stage, and I heard a voice asking me if I could see him. I could only see the mist and hear the voice. The voice asked me to concentrate more and I would be able to see him. Soon I saw Jesus standing in front of me.

He asked me what I wanted of him. I told him I had learned I would have to return to earth, and I did not want to leave this Heavenly place. He explained to me that I had not yet performed his wishes that he had set forth for me in my lifetime. I asked him what some wishes of his were and he did not answer me. He said I would know at the right time, sometime in my future. Jesus told me of many things I would experience in my lifetime, but I have now forgotten these. (Now I only remember what he told me after I have experienced the event.). He told me to tell all people of my visit with him. He that I should tell people that he is real. Another thing I will never forget is feeling the radiation of his love as he stood near me. That was the most perfect love I have ever felt. Jesus told me I would be escorted back to my home on earth soon.

Two men came for me and explained they were my guardian angels. One of the men had been my guide earlier. I do not remember coming back to earth through the tunnel. We traveled through the darkness of space. I woke up on an examination table in the hospital. I asked the three doctors if I had been given any medication that would make me believe I had died and gone to Heaven. They said no. I said, "Well, I have just returned from Heaven." Two doctors immediately walked out and the remaining third doctor told me he just did not know what to think.

Sharon V NDE---shotgun death

A man I had dated for a year and a half started stalking me after I broke off our relationship. The police were involved, but were unable to stop him.

After 2 months of escalated stalking experiences, he came around the corner of my carport one evening after I'd driven home from a volleyball game. He was carrying a sawed-off shotgun.

As I saw him out of the corner of my eye in my carport, he started chasing me around my car. Many times, he tried to aim at me over the top of my car. At which point, I I knew I was going to die, but I didn't want it to be from having my head blown off. So I kept running as fast as I could around the car while screaming for help.

I was frantic, which is why I didn't notice that he'd stopped running and was waiting for me to run straight to him. When I saw what had happened, I turned and started running down my driveway. I didn't make it very far when I heard and felt the first blast. It had hit my left arm, completely shattering the bone and ripping away most of the muscle. My arm was still attached to my body by a bit of muscle and some skin. I fell down from the shock. I thought to myself, that this was it and closed my eyes.

Then I found myself thinking about the life I had led, and I found that I had no regrets whatsoever. I also thought of my 5 children. I knew they were all wonderful human beings and that they would succeed in whatever they had come here to do, with or without me. I felt very much at peace except for one thing; I felt that I was too young to die, and that I still needed to do my art.

Then I heard the second shot. The shooter had put the gun directly on my back and pulled the trigger. I knew it had hit me. But strangely enough, it was not painful. I saw and felt an amazing, golden, pulsating, and loving light surround me in a 10-foot diameter. It was, without a doubt, the most wonderful feeling I've ever felt in my life. The feeling is so much more as it is really indescribable with words. It was pure, unconditional love. It was incredible and had me completely in rapture. I could have stayed with that light forever.

But then I heard this voice, that was repeating to me the words, 'Roll over and play dead or he's going to shoot you till you're dead.' Finally, I was able to pull my attention from the light to this voice. I did as it told me to do. I was able to roll onto my back and let my right arm flop out to my side at a 90 degree angle. I let out a groan as I let my head fall to the side, just as I'd seen on TV. And I dared not breathe.

Then I heard another shot, but I didn't feel this one. What I felt instead was something landing on my outstretched arm. I opened my eyes for the first time, and I saw that he had shot himself and fallen onto my outstretched arm. He also letting out a groan, but he wasn't faking it. He died right there on my arm.

When I saw that he was dead and I was alive, I simply 'knew' that I was going to be okay. I had no doubt about it, although the reality was that I was barely hanging on to life. He'd blown out my right lung with the second shot and I was losing blood and air very fast.

Fortunately, my daughter had called 911. I could hear the sirens on their way. After 6 hours of surgery that night, I was put in the intensive care unit (ICU). I was given a 30% chance of making it and all my family was called to come say their good-byes. When I woke up in ICU, I wondered why everyone had come from so far away. I was still completely certain that I was going to be fine.

No one really knew what had transpired that night, so when I was awake and stable enough, a policeman visited to ask me what had happened. He told me that the shooter had another shell in the gun ready to use, but obviously he had thought I was dead so didn't use it. That's when I realized that the voice giving me the instructions to roll over and play dead had saved my life.

I was moved to another hospital where I underwent several surgeries to patch my arm up as best as was possible. After 6 weeks of being hospitalized, I returned home to begin the long road to recuperation.

Joseph L’s NDE in 1967---a dentist has an OBE.

I was driving a Ford station wagon to buy flowers for my wife who had just given birth to my son two days earlier. Suddenly, a drunk driver ran a stop sign and hit my car broadside on the driver's side front third of the car. I remember hitting the brake hard. I then felt warm blood running down my face. I thought I was dying and said a prayer asking God for forgiveness. [I had a broken skull and cracked ribs.]

It was at this time that I noticed that I was floating above my car a few feet. I remember vividly saying to myself that this must be what dying is all about. I was feeling EUPHORIC; it was an absolutely incredible feeling. I could see my body in the driver's seat, unconscious with bloody hair, while I was floating higher yet, with people gathering around the accident. I was no longer a few feet above the car. Now I was more like fifty or sixty feet above the car. At that time I had to wear glasses to see distant objects but, during my NDE, my vision was crystal-clear. It was at this point that I noticed that I had no arms or legs and I could not see any other part of my body, but my thinking was very clear and my feeling still EUPHORIC. It was the greatest feeling I have ever experienced in my entire life.

I kept floating higher and higher. Looking down, my car looked like it was only a half an inch long. At this point I awoke in an ambulance with the siren blaring, my head bandaged, hurting in my head and my ribs. My doctor had been notified and was awaiting me at the hospital in his tuxedo. He had been at a party. I recounted this event to him and he told me that I had been in shock and that was the reason that happened.

I had just started a dental practice and did not mention this experience to anyone for fear that if this got around, the public would not respond favorably to a crazy new dentist and his new practice. To this day only a few people know this story. You need to remember that this happened in the 1960's when NDEs were unheard of, and I did not want to be known as an unstable dentist; so I kept quiet.

This is my story and I remember it as if it happened yesterday. My experience was definitely real. I believed it was real at the time, forty-three years ago, and I still believe it now. The clarity of the experience is still vividly with me forty-three years later. I am no longer afraid of dying.

Kate B’s NDE in 1997---asthmatic death

I had been very ill with asthma for several weeks following the death of my father; I was also eighteen weeks pregnant. This particular night I was feeling extremely weak and out of breath. My husband was on night shift so my mother stayed with the kids and me until it was bedtime. It was about 11:30 pm when I awoke and knew that I was in great trouble; I could not breathe and was starting to really panic. I decided I should call my mother and get her over with the kids so that I could drive myself to the hospital. By the time I got myself downstairs to wait for my mother I knew that I could wait no longer, I was starting to slip away. I rang 000 for an ambulance [which is the correct # in Australia]. My mother and the ambulance arrived at the same time. I was already slipping in and out of consciousness. As they were working on me, I suddenly felt extremely calm and not scared at all. I felt overwhelmed to tell mum how much I loved her and to let the kids know how much I loved them and also my husband. While all this is happening in my mind, the paramedics were frantically trying to save my life without harming my unborn baby.

I knew that I was dying and it didn't bother me at all; I just felt so calm. At this point, I passed out and stopped breathing for six minutes! I can remember feeling incredible love around me, I didn't know where it was coming from but it was all around me. I felt like I was floating in a tunnel, and at the end was a light. I felt like I was flying through the tunnel at incredible speed, but as I was going through, I could sense all the things I had done through my life and all the people I had known and loved, it was the strangest feeling.

When I got to the end, I could sense my father and his love. I could not see him, but I knew that he was there; he was telling me how much he loved me and that he missed us all but he was okay. He also told me that it wasn't my time yet, that I had three children and another on the way that all needed their mother. I was very sad; I wanted to stay in this beautiful place. I couldn't see anything; it just felt beautiful. I also didn't speak to my father, as it was our thoughts that were communicating. With this I was back on my way to my body, I was traveling at incredible speeds with this amazing noise whirring through my head. As I was coming back, I could see myself in the intensive care unit with my mother and husband standing beside me crying and holding my hands. I could also see the nursing staff, paramedics and doctor all working on me. They were getting ready to intubate me. With one almighty whoosh, I was back in my body.

At the very time that I got the sense of coming back to my body, I began to vomit and regained consciousness. It was 2:30 am. I had been unconscious for two and a half hours. The first thing I said to my mother and husband was, 'I've seen the Light!' Everybody was amazed because they did not expect to bring me back. I am positive that this experience did definitely happen to me.

Kathleen S’s NDE in 2003---death by insulin overdose

In Kentucky, I was living with my husband and my mother-in-law, and I got in a bad fight with my husband Lloyd and took an overdose of insulin. I then passed out, and Lloyd put me in the car and took me to the hospital. After that I went into a diabetic low blood sugar coma.

I do not remember any of this, but I do remember waking up in the corner of the room ceiling, looking down at my lifeless body, watching a sheet being pulled over my head, and then “I” followed the doctor outside into the waiting room. The doctor told my husband that I had had two heart attacks in five minutes, and I died. While I was watching all this, I noticed everything now appeared brighter and clearer.

I then followed my husband outside, and he punched the building and screamed no, no, no and he screamed at the sky and said ‘why God why?’ I felt sad because the doctor had told my husband I had died.

Then I saw a brilliant white light which drew me toward it. Several of my dead relatives, my Uncle Richard, my aunt Mary, my grandma, and my grandpa, were waiting for me after I passed through the white light. They said, 'You need to go back, because your children and your family need you on earth, not in heaven yet.' I remember having a very nice ride back through the white light into my body.

I did not want to come back, but the nurse used something to bring me back. I was flown by helicopter sixty miles to the hospital. I do not remember the airlift to the other hospital, but a week later I woke up in the intensive care unit, and my husband Lloyd was sitting by my bedside. I do remember looking at him and crying. My near death experience was wonderful, but I was not meant to go yet.

Since then, my life has changed for the better, even though my mom is dying of cancer, and I do everything for her and my kids. I found out that God was not ready for me yet. My life has been better since that happened.

I lost my father to cancer a year and a half ago, and I am a totally changed person; but I changed for the better instead of for the worse. Life is so very wonderful now for me that words cannot even explain it. I now live to make my life better and help people.

My experience was definitely real, and I believe that I was sent that way for a good reason. It was wonderful and I will never forget it.

Kathy R’s NDE in 1979---reaction to alcohol and marijuana

I was celebrating my twentieth birthday and had invited just a few people around, mainly sisters and brothers. I remember being pleased people had made it and for some reason, unknown to me then or now, I started drinking sherry that someone had brought with them. My dad left and my husband was in bed by this time. Then my brother brought out a joint. My brother handed around the joint and I felt brave enough to have a drag. Then when it came around again, I had another. Very soon, I was in the bathroom with my head down the toilet---and, I remember, I couldn't breathe.

Next thing, I was traveling at a rapid speed through an incredibly colorful tube toward a beautiful light at the other end. The speed was indescribable, and I quickly 'erupted' out the other end to have this 'being' right in front of me. The feeling was amazing and a 'communication' began between us - I do not remember what was said, but it was not 'speech' as we know it on earth. I know it seemed in my soul that it was about 'me' and what I had done so far. The being was surrounded by a brilliant blue and white light that I had never seen before or since. I then realized that I was 'mind'; but I could still 'see' and I felt like a child, in a wonderful place!

Although it was probably very quick in earth time, it felt as though it was forever that we communicated. I felt immersed in comfort and peace and truth. My consciousness was fully alert and more. It was a super consciousness!

I seemed to not be allowed to go further because my purpose on earth had not yet been fulfilled. So, I was returned back to my body with my head down the toilet and my husband's voice 'shaking' in my ears. He had awakened and sent everybody home and was quite upset that my brother had given me dope. I remember hearing voices discussing the fact I 'would be with child soon' and should not be drinking and doing drugs. My husband helped me to bed quickly, but I was so sick and throwing up -– again, I just couldn't breathe.

Next thing, before I could get my breath, I was in front of the beautiful blue planet earth! I cannot describe the feeling that I didn’t just gradually travel to this location -– I was just suddenly there! I looked at the earth, which was incredibly 'blue' and beautiful, and then was 'told' that 'now I was going to see the universe.' I felt overwhelmed by how incredibly lucky – and weak and insignificant -- I was that this powerful being was sharing this with me! But, unfortunately, I was again unable to remember the details of what I had seen when I returned.

I eventually woke early the next morning -- feeling drastically changed. My husband then informed me I had apparently seen ‘Father Time.’ I ignored his comment, thinking he was bonkers at that time. It was certainly not a description I would have given this amazing experience. We separated not long after this.

That began my new chapter in life as I embarked on an emotional roller coaster over the next two to three years. This life-changing experience is always at the forefront of my mind, and I feel extremely honored to have had it. Also, the most important thing is that I've been able to share this with people who will take me seriously when I tell them it was not just a dream – but was real.

Kendra’s NDE in 1999---death from excessive medication

My memory of the event is vivid in my memory today, but I remember feeling very dizzy when I entered school that morning, and I went to my first period history class and passed out. I don't know how long I was unconscious, but I recall my teacher shaking me and asking if I was okay. I had told her yes and attempted to get up and walk but had fallen straight down and hit my head on her desk and began to choke and throw up a mix of vomit and blood.

I don't remember anything after that, because I awoke in a hospital bed with my mother, uncle, and sister standing over me. The doctors had asked me if I knew where I was. I looked at him very out of it and shook my head 'No.' He told me that I was in the hospital and that my medication was at a dangerous level and that some of my main organs were malfunctioning. He had told my family to step outside, so they could hook me up to some equipment, and then they gave me some anesthesia to put me out to give me treatment.

Next thing I know, I'm floating up by the ceiling directly over my body to see it shaking and eight nurses holding me down. I was having a seizure and heard one of the nurses yell for a staff member to get the doctor. That's all I saw. [Later on, Kendra’s neurologist verified for her that it took eight nurses to hold her down during her seizure.]

Then a light opened up from the ceiling, and I was lifted up into it. I was surrounded by a warm, white light. I traveled upwards and felt safe. I felt such love, more than I've ever felt before. At the end of the light, I saw a beautiful golden gate with three figures in front of me: my biological mother (who had died in a hit and run accident), my grandfather, whom I never knew but at that moment I felt like I had known all my life, and a man dressed in a white robe with medium brown hair radiating love in waves.

For the first time in a long time, I felt accepted and at home, and I didn't want to leave. My mother and grandfather told me to go back, that I didn't belong there yet. I shook my head no. I didn't want to leave the peace I felt there. The white-robed man smiled lovingly at me and told me that he loved me and that I had a choice to stay, or to go back and finish the rest of my life with my family. I chose to go back.

He smiled at me and said, 'It's not your time. Follow me and have faith in me, and I shall protect you.' Then I had been sent back full force into my body, where I awoke to find my adoptive mother and aunt waiting by my bedside. I was released from the hospital three days later.

[Note carefully: One of the most evidential aspects of NDEs is that the loved ones encountered during the NDE are deceased at the time of the NDE. On the other hand, dreams and hallucinations can often include living people!]

It then hit me that I had spoken with Jesus. Before then I had little faith left. However, now I believe once more and attend church every other Sunday. I am religious but not overly so. My life seemed to get better from that point. Now I truly follow my faith and have stayed true to it through the years.

Kimberly HA’s NDE in 1980---death by hypocalcemic seizure

The seizure could've been fatal. I was in high school at the time of the 'blessed event'. I had just finished running the six hundred yard dash.

What I didn't know was that my parathyroid gland was fluctuating, and so the exertion caused my body to go into a hypocalcemic seizure. All of the muscles in my body began to cramp and draw up, including my eyelids. I buckled into a fetal position and fell down on the stadium steps.

I knew that I was dying as I began to rise out of my body. I had a sensation like someone pulling a film strip through a viewer very fast. I experienced every color, every emotion of my life as it went by in a blur. I flew up very fast.

I was literally flying through outer space. I passed real, literal planets. I wasn't sure where I was going, but I knew the way. I was aware of someone following behind me, but I didn't look back at them. They felt familiar. It was wonderful to move without effort. I arrived at my destination quickly. I was in a rectangular room. It was white, almost as if it were made of light. It seemed to have three walls with a door at one end, a floor and a ceiling. The front wall was open to the universe.

A man came through a door at the far end of the room to meet me. We were each like silhouettes inside of impossibly bright lights. I couldn't exactly see features on the man, but somehow I knew that he was male and older. He seemed vaguely familiar. He asked me to wait there and he left through the same door.

After a moment, he returned and said, 'You have to go back. You still have a purpose.' I was very distressed and didn't want to leave this wonderful state, but suddenly I was flying back the way I came. I saw the earth, and the continent and the stadium as I shot very quickly down towards it. Then I saw my body lying on the ground. I slammed into it and there was a sensation like a hard impact.

My eyes flew open for a second and I saw a large man squatting over me. I was startled because I hadn't seen him during my descent. Once again, I was unable to move or keep my eyes opened. The guy was startled as well. He jumped up and ran off. I could hear him yelling for someone to call an ambulance.

I noticed that I could hear my brain screaming 'No, no, no ...!' just as it was before I left my body. While I had been 'out' it had been blissfully quiet. The guy came back and started trying to pry my arms away from my body, but my muscles were locked. I couldn't speak or make any noise. The ambulance arrived. They couldn't find any pulse on me at first, which frightened me since I could hear them. They said, maybe I was dead, but the guy told them that he'd seen my eyes fly open. They kept trying and eventually found my pulse. My limbs became warmer and looser. They were able to pull my limbs away from my body, and I could once again open my eyes. But I see things differently since that day.

P.S. One of the most unbelievable things about this experience is that the 'squatting man' turned out to be a celebrity. It was Jackie Slatter, a veteran player on the Los Angeles Rams football team. He just happened to be running in that stadium that day and exited out the same stair case that I collapsed on. Later I was able to meet him and thank him for his help. He said that my lips were blue and my limbs completely stiff when he found me.

Before this experience, I was a religious conservative (fundamentalist), a strict Southern Baptist. Now I am an Agnostic. I have no fear about passing to the next life now. I look forward to being freed from my body when the right time comes.

IN THIS NDE DUE TO SURGICAL COMPLICATION, WE FIND INTERESTING EVIDENCE AGAINST THE THEORY BY SOME SKEPTICS WHO CLAIM PARTIAL AWAKENING DURING GENERAL ANESTHESIA MAY ACCOUNT FOR NDES DURING SURGERY. HERE THERE IS A VERY CLEAR DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PARTIAL AWAKENING UNDER ANESTHESIA AND THE NDE WHICH FOLLOWED AFTERWARD.

Kerryanne M’s (Incomplete) NDE in 1983---from Australia

I was having a cholecystectomy (gallbladder removal). Sometime during the operation, I became conscious and was freezing cold. I could smell a strong antiseptic odor, could hear a continual beep (which I guess was the heart monitor), could hear conversation above me as people worked, and was aware of a tight clamping feeling over my abdomen.

I tried desperately to let the staff know I'd awoken, but I could not open my eyes or even move. So I just lay there hoping I'd sleep again, when very suddenly the beeping sound started to quicken….then flatlined! I knew what was happening and very calmly and clearly thought 'I'm dying' and felt no fear, which was surprising, as up until then I'd always been terrified of death. Just as this happened, I felt the most incredible feeling of everything just coming together inside me. It was the most beautiful feeling of warmth and joy. It is difficult to explain the feeling of totality and wholeness.

I felt myself rising upwards and was surprised that I could hear that level flatline sound so clearly, though I was not in my body. At the time of my experience, I had no knowledge of near death experiences (NDE), nor did I have any religion.

This was all very strange, because at that time I had just become involved with my current partner. I was deeply in love and ecstatically happy, with dying being nowhere near my desire, but that happiness does not compare with the very deep feeling of joy and totality I felt during this experience, and I would give anything and everything to feel this way again.

Kristy C’s NDE in 2000---death during gallbladder surgery

I was having Gallbladder surgery. In the middle of my surgery, I woke up, looked at the doctor and told him that what he was doing hurt. He told me they would be done shortly and then realized I had awakened from anesthesia. I remember they were talking about golf. He ordered more anesthesia; then I remember hearing my heart monitor beeping. The nurses started saying they were losing me and asking me to stay with them…..then 'beep, beep, beeeeepp'.
Next thing I knew, I was standing over the doctor, watching them work on me, I wasn't scared. I was fascinated. I could see everything. I knew they were working on me; they seemed extremely hurried, and I remember it amused me, because I was no longer in pain. I remember being pulled backwards and when I turned, I was in an earthy tunnel and a door was before me that opened into a spectacular light. The light was brilliant!   As I passed into it, it glowed with warmth, love, knowledge, and understanding. Not just my own knowledge, but knowledge of everything. I had complete understanding, Everything made sense. Everything was more vivid, the colors were brighter and deeper; everything was tranquil and at peace the moment I crossed into the light. Time seemed to stop---or seemed endless.   It didn't matter to hurry or rush, there was no need. My past flashed before me, out of my control. I felt like I knew everything would be okay.

I was now standing in a lush rolling meadow, covered with blooms and trees. I felt a presence strong and even more wonderful; I knew my family was with me. The presence had a deep resonating voice that touched the core of my soul. I don't remember what the voice told me, but the peace and calm seemed to magnify. I remember sitting in the meadow, I was cradling something in my arms, asking to cross a small. free-flowing stream, and not being allowed. I asked to stay. I did not want to go back. I knew the peace, warmth and light could not follow me back. I tried to walk toward the stream, but then I was being pulled down and backwards through the door. I remember leaving the warm glow of the light and being filled with immense sadness as all of the knowledge and peace left me, my senses dimmed, and my vision seemed muddied compared to the brilliant vibrancy of the meadow. I was angry.   I felt the air being knocked out of me as I hit my body and the pain returned.

I remember the nurse saying she's back and I started sobbing, telling them I didn't want to come back, begging for them to send me back to the light. The nurse just kept saying stay with us. Don't close your eyes just stay with us, and she was holding my hand. When I think about it now, I am filled with an extreme sense of grief and loss, but I know that I will be returning someday and then they will let me cross the stream. Since my NDE, I have learned to be more patient with people, because I know that while here, we all have a limited understanding.   I have a deeper understanding of what life is supposed to teach. My NDE was definitely real.

Lacee T’s NDE in 2017---from France. Original in French

My husband and I were riding our motorcycle when we had a terrible accident. During the accident, my body was slammed to the ground.
I left my body lying on the ground and found myself in a starry tunnel. I knew that if I let myself go all the way through it, I wouldn't come back. There was no fear or pain. I felt wonderful love, but at the same time I was focused on my struggle not to reach the end of the tunnel. I knew I didn't want to leave my children and that I needed to call emergency services for my husband.

As I began to fly through the tunnel, I felt the pull to go on further getting stronger and stronger. I saw a light appear at the end of the tunnel. But I kept fighting with all my strength to STOP and go no further.
Suddenly I was in a field of tall, beautiful green grass that was undulating in waves—yet there was no wind. Overhead, the sky was pink/rosy/purple and I felt a strong sense of well-being, as if I were in a wonderful paradise—a sort of Garden of Eden.

I saw my husband walking towards me through the grass. We looked at each other and without talking, I understood that he had died. I knew that at this moment we had to say goodbye. He let me know that he will be waiting for me, but for now I need to care for our boys.

Then I was on the ground again, back in my body and feeling overwhelming pain. Despite my serious injuries, I got up and walked. I was afraid I would die if I let myself just lie there. I had nine broken ribs, a hemopneumothorax [air and blood in the chest cavity], one fractured vertebrate, my thumb joint and knee were seriously sprained, and both shoulder blades were broken.

When I was told that my husband had died in the accident, I already knew.

ADDED COMMENTS:
During my NDE, I felt incredible peace and joy. My experience was not “religious” but I am now less materialistic and less driven by schedules. I'm here to raise my boys, bring them as far as possible in life, and my love for my husband is very strong and eternal, pure. On earth we are here to perpetuate life and love. My experience has caused large changes in my life. I now have a strongly developed empathy and sense the pain of other people, of the world. I don't see life in the same way, my priorities have changed. It is difficult to express my NDE in words….so much love, the full consciousness, but it was definitely real, as I really remember everything, as well as the feelings.

Zenaida’s NDE in 1976---from the Dominican Republic

It was January, 19, 1976, and I was seven months pregnant with my second child. I went to the shower and started having really strong contractions. I felt faint. There was nobody home except for one of my father's farm workers who was out front. The last thing I remembered before fainting and hitting the back of my head on the toilet was me screaming in Spanish for the worker to come help me.

The next thing I remembered was flying through a dark tunnel at a tremendous speed. I could see a golden light far in the distance. Then the light got progressively closer and bigger until I was at the point of collision with it. And bang! It was like the sparks from a fire cracker. I crashed into what felt like a swimming pool filled with love instead of water. I felt like I knew everything, like I was one with the universe, as if understood it all. I had crystal-clear vision.

Suddenly I was transported to a gigantic hall that seemed like Grand Central Station in Manhattan but a 100 times bigger. This place was filled with billions of people in white robes; people of all races, ethnicities, gender, and ages. There was a feeling of love that reverberated through everyone. I felt full of understanding and forgiveness for others and myself. There was a song that playing that was too perfect to describe.

As I was floating and enjoying the sense of love that permeated this beautiful, gigantic hall, a hand grabbed my hand. I couldn't see who it was, but it flew up with me and we left this place behind. We were flying through the clouds. Then I saw the surface of the earth and a map-sized image of my island. We came closer and closer to earth until I could see the central hospital in my town.

I woke up suddenly in the intensive care unit surrounded by my family and doctors. Two months later, I gave birth to my daughter. In retrospect, I had a significant injury to the back of my skull and I was unconscious for 25 minutes. Yet, in my experience, it seemed like years because time was endless.

Roland B’s NDE in 1960

My cousin and I were climbing a tree. As I climbed, I would grab onto the electrical wires that were within reach. These were the wires that ran between telephone poles. Things were uneventful until I reached the highest wire. Then I unknowingly grabbed a 2300 volt power cable. At that instant, I was totally paralyzed. I had no control of my body. I couldn't take a breath, nor remove my hand or even see. I don't know if my eyes were closed or open. Feeling the current run through my body was agonizing. I don't know how long this lasted but I suddenly saw my cousin below me in the tree. He was very upset and screaming to me.

Seeing him was extremely clear and confusing because I was facing away from him when I grabbed the wire. After that, the pain stopped and everything went silent. I began drifting through a fog like darkness toward what seemed to be human forms ahead in the fog. I wasn't afraid because I thought they were somehow familiar to me. I traveled on into this fog into what seemed like an opening with a spot of light in the middle. Because of the length of time involved between this event and my recounting them, the particulars may not be in the proper order. Yet everything that I recall is accurate, as I know it.

I had my life flash quickly before me. It was as if I were watching a movie run very fast! I continued through what looked like a tunnel towards a light in the distance. As I approached the light, it got brighter and I was enveloped in this unbelievable feeling of love and security. It's impossible to describe this feeling of contentment. All this time it was completely silent.

Then, I was startled out of my ecstasy by a question that suddenly arrived in my mind. I didn't hear a voice, yet it was as clear as if someone was standing before me. The question was, 'WHAT GOOD HAVE YOU DONE WITH YOUR LIFE?' Being only thirteen years old, I had no idea it meant. I didn't respond, maybe waiting for more information. Shortly, the question appeared in my mind again. This time I 'said' “I don't know what you mean.”

The next thing I knew, I was floating in the universe among the stars. Suddenly amazed that I knew everything there was to know, even reflecting to myself 'so that's how it works.' Then, I woke up in my body, thirty feet up, draped across two branches, facing the ground, staring at the green grass, thinking I was in heaven. Then, my earthly senses kicked in and I felt miserable.

Ruth’s NDE in 1965

My NDE was in 1965 when I was diagnosed with terminal cervical cancer. I was in a coma for ten days, and I was “out of my body” seeing how all the nurses and doctors were saying 'we have lost her now.' I did not recognize the body, as I only weighed sixty-five pounds at the time, and it was ugly to me.

Next, I was wandering the hospital and the next thing I knew, I was in a long tunnel and all my relations who had passed before were standing, smiling as I passed them. I could only discern one motivation and that was to reach the awesome Light at the end of the tunnel.

Meantime, I was shown all my life experiences, and I became the person whom I had hurt or helped in each experience of my life!---so that I felt what they had felt when I had erroneously acted against---or helped them. I realized that I was being judged in that, by being the other person affected by my actions, I was judging myself. Hard to explain; seems easiest for me to call it karma.

When I reached the Light, it was so bright, like nothing on Earth, pure white Light, and such a feeling of unconditional love and warmth. The Light answered any questions I had ever had. It seems like I was there for a long time, just absorbing all the answers.

Next thing I knew, the voice coming from the Light told me it was not my time to stay there. I BEGGED as hard as I could, but I was slammed back into my body in reverse, and I cursed all the doctors and nurses. I did not speak of this to anyone as my family was/is fundamentalist Pentecostal.

I had a heart attack in 1993 and another NDE, and the situation on the Other Side was the same but for ONE big difference. I was married at this time and I was shown my husband crying for me not to die, thus I was offered a decision to stay or to return to him. I myself chose life this time.

A FEW PEOPLE HAVE HAD MORE THAN ONE NDE! FOR EXAMPLE, BETTY J. HAS HAD TWO.

Betty J’s NDEs in 1951 and 1959

My first experience was in 1951. I was ten years old. I had been doing some artwork. My friend called to me, from outside. I ran to the window and pushed it up, to see what my friend wanted. I placed the paintbrush in my mouth, as I opened the heavy, old window in an apartment house on second floor. The rope on the window broke -- slamming the window into the top of my head and jamming the wooden, pointed end of the paintbrush up into the roof of my mouth. I was bleeding profusely. I went to the sink, and blood poured from my mouth. I said to my mother 'It's pouring like a fountain.' Next thing I knew I was inside of a long tunnel, heading (feet first) down the tunnel at an incredible speed, toward a very bright light at the end of this tunnel. I woke up, lying on my back on the floor, with my hands clawing at the floor on either side of me, trying to 'slow down' the speed.

My second experience was in 1959. I was eighteen and had just given birth (three weeks earlier) to my first child. I was out for a Saturday night with my husband and another couple. My husband and I were in the back seats of the car. It was raining and we were on our way home -- on Compton Road -- in Ohio, September 1959. We missed a curve and crashed into a tree. I went flying through the front passenger-side glass. My arm was nearly severed -- requiring seventy-two stitches.

After the crash, I viewed everything from up above, floating beneath the tree. I saw my husband and my body lying in a driveway. I saw a lady in her curlers and robe run from her house to help us. I was not frightened -- just very curious. Even though I could see my body lying below me, I looked at my left hand, turning it over and over; I was amazed that, as I floated, I still had a form. I could feel the rain falling on me. I saw the ambulances coming and noticed that one was a Ford and one a Cadillac. For some reason it seemed important to look at those models. I came to as they were putting me into the ambulance. I told them at the hospital what models the ambulances were, and they couldn't believe I could know this.

My experience was definitely real. As the years went on, and I first heard of NDEs and 'out of body' experiences, I realized that the “tunnel” I had been in had also been a part of others’ NDEs. But even if I'd never heard of these, I still knew that my experience was real.

Samantha H’s NDE in 1968

"I was at home, two days after delivering my first child. I bent over to put some newspapers down for our puppy and when I stood up again, I began to bleed. I went right to bed. Fortunately, my mother-in-law and her mother were with me at the time. The bleeding increased and I also began passing large blood clots, so we called the doctor. It was on the weekend around 9 pm at night. The doctor directed me to lie with my feet elevated so that the bleeding would decrease, but it did not. They kept placing more and more bath towels and blankets under me but I kept bleeding and we began to run out of them. After two additional calls and hours later, I was finally told to go to the emergency room. By that time, it was early the next morning. When I got off the bed with help, I made it to the living room, but there I collapsed, going unconscious.

At that point, I was totally unconcerned with whether I was alive or not. My focus was on what was being shown to me. A sort of film reel was directly in front of me but up just a bit. It was like watching an immense, very clear TV. I was watching images of every event that had taken place in my life. My entire life, all in pictures. The most interesting part of it was that with each picture, with all the pictures (there were more than I could count), I re-experienced the original feelings that had accompanied each one. And this was happening all at the same time! I could actually see my life in picture form and feel the emotion or the lesson in each one! All together and in complete unison. It was the most phenomenal experience! Not at all like we experience life. Here, you see a picture, for example, a photograph, and you have a memory. Then you pick up another picture and have another memory. But in this experience, I received complete knowledge of all my life events in picture form, reliving each picture's memory at the same moment! I have never forgotten what it was like to have the ability to relate to my life that way. Everything was so clear, so vivid!

When I regained consciousness, I was on the way to the hospital to undergo surgery, scheduled to be as soon as I got there. I had lost almost two-thirds of my blood, they told me. I still vividly remember everything that happened. I feel it changed my life in that I began to believe that there is so much more than we understand, both physically and mentally."

Sandra K’s NDE in 1980

My younger sister and I had been celebrating the birth of my cousin. We had been at a pizza and beer pub. We consumed a beer or two each, and then decided we should be getting home. I was almost twenty years old and my sister was seventeen, soon to be eighteen. It had been raining on and off throughout the day, and it was starting to get dark out.

Anyway, my sister had decided to show off her driving skills (which wasn't a good idea). I had told her that the Ford Torino that she was driving couldn't cut corners the way my Pinto station wagon could, and she shouldn't try!   I then proceeded to tell her that she would lose control of the car in this rain.   As I said those very words, she lost control of the car, and it spun around, slamming into a telephone pole!   We were not more than five blocks from our home. My side of the car hit the telephone pole.

Next thing I knew, my sister was calling out my name, 'Sandy, Sandy are you okay?'   I could hear myself answering, 'YES, YES I'm okay.'   But she kept calling out to me as if I weren't answering.

Finally, I looked to see if she was okay. That's when I noticed I was hovering in the air, just above our bodies, about where the roof of the car was.   I again answered my sister's cries, but this time I could see myself unconscious, with my head on my chest.   I was outside my body long enough to realize that she couldn't hear me because I wasn't in my physical body and therefore had no vocal cords. What was weird, though, was that I could hear my voice, just as I did when I was in my body.   What happened next was, since I couldn't reply to my sister's pleas, she reached over to shake me awake.   When she did this, she let out a scream of pain (I watched this all happen).

The next thing I knew, I was back in my body again. I don’t know how. I immediately woke up and got out of the car to help her.   Her collarbone had been broken in the crash, and she needed me!   I believe the reason I had to come back to my life is that my physical body wasn't broken beyond repair.   Therefore, I got to return to it.

Shalom G’s NDE---dead after a collision

I had just graduated Magna Cum Laude from Catholic High School, as the first Jewish kid in the school's brief history of education. I had just received a Congressional Appointment to the Merchant Marine Academy and life was good, at least I thought so.

My friend, Lou was taking me fishing early in the morning. We were driving in my first automobile, a ‘68 Mercury Montego, a present from my parents. I had just picked up Lou and we were heading west bound on route 80, in northern New Jersey, when everything went black. We were hit, broadside.

I found out that the side impact had thrown me to the right and clear out of my safety belt, where I had hit my head on the right side dash board, where it meets the door post and windshield. Lou found me crumpled up in a ball, stuck between the front seat and glove compartment. A State police officer and Lou dragged my body from the car, where I was pronounced dead.

Meanwhile, what I remember was as follows: After everything went black, I felt no pain, I simply looked down at my hands, which I could see through, and said, 'If this is death, then there is nothing to fear.' All I felt was peace, love, and the greatest sense of a warm fuzzy! I had no anger and no negative thoughts, only feelings of Love. Then I noticed I was in a tunnel and moving toward a bright light. Suddenly a voice told me, 'It's not your time, you must go back, you haven't completed your missions and purposes in life, yet'. I felt sad to leave this feeling of total Love, but somehow knew I didn't belong there yet. The next thing I knew was when I woke up on a cold metal gurney covered with a white sheet. I sat up, and the sheet fell away, revealing my startled parents, who had been told I had died.

I went on in life to become a Medical Examiner. Then, over the next twenty years I experienced a lot of pain. First, a failed marriage, then break ups with 12 girlfriends, a bankrupt business and lots of anger, greed and ego issues, to deal with. Then I began to lose weight and bleed rectally. Everything I ate made me sick.

During a surgery to remove polyps, cysts, and growths from my bowels and kidneys, the doctors accidentally overdosed me and my heart stopped, creating my second NDE. This time the journey down the tunnel seemed instantaneous, and as I met my guardian angels, I asked them, 'Can I go home now with you, since my body is a mess?' They then replied, 'NO, you have still not completely your missions and purposes in life yet. You will heal and then share what has happened to you with others. Simultaneously, I noticed my deceased grandfather, standing next to the entrance to Heaven. My Grandpa Sam, who had died before I was born, said to me that after I experienced my 'Life Review', I was to meet someone special, before my return to earth.

My Life Review then proceeded to show me my strengths, weaknesses, and all the people I had helped and all the people I had hurt. Not only did I get to feel the joy, pain and sadness in my own life, but also that in everyone else's life I had touched. All this seemed to transpire in an instant.

Then, suddenly I saw and sensed a very special man, standing over to the left of where I was standing. My Heart recognized HIM before my eyes did. I immediately walked over to him and asked, "Are You the Being called JESUS", and with a warm, soft, sense of Love and Laughter, he replied back, “I am called by many names; however, because of your background you can call me BIG BROTHER, and I will call you, My Little Prince of Peace”... He then went on to say that I could either stay with HIM or return to earth. However, if I did not return, many people would miss the connections needed to complete their missions and purposes in life. Reluctantly, but with a deeper understanding of My Mission, I chose to return to help ALL of my assigned brothers and sisters, on our planet.

My Big Brother instructed me that I was to do this, 'without greed or ego getting in the way.' I was to connect doctors, attorneys, priests, rabbis and peoples of ALL faiths, young and old, alike, to help one another. I was told to 'BE PATIENT', 'Heal yourself through forgiveness, Love, prayer and mediation. Then I was sent back to my body on the operating table.

Sincerely, with Many Blessings of Love and Gratitude

Shalom G

Sheba M’s NDE in 1992---from Australia

After being admitted, I was given morphine for the extreme pain and my blood pressure was noted as 190/80.   Up to this point, I had no idea I had gallstones but had been sick for about five years and was told I had 'indigestion'.   Once the morphine worked, I felt perfectly fine, was admitted to a private ward,   (I was in the best hospital in Melbourne and had top private cover, so very good care). Once settled, my husband and two small sons went home, and the next day I was to have some tests to evaluate the condition of my gall bladder (not a huge deal).

The ultrasound showed two hundred stones, liver function was not great, and the surgeon was undecided as to wait for me to improve and then remove the gall bladder using a laparoscope or do an emergency operation right away. I was hooked up to an IV and checked frequently. The surgeon came to see me and, although still undecided, he chose to give me vitamin K in case he decided to operate that night. The nurse administered the vitamin K, which I requested be put into my hip, so he gave me the injection in the hip (which saved my life I think).   My husband and sons left, a friend dropped in, and I complained to her that I felt 'itchy'; we joked it could be the 'posh' sheets.

I mentioned it to the nurse as he also popped in. My friend left and within a minute, I was going mad with itching and pain and swelling. I pressed the nurse buzzer, he came immediately, and he took one look and 'freaked out'. He ran for help, and another nurse came and pressed the emergency button. I was still conscious as they dragged me into the bathroom, pouring cold water over me.   I remember catching sight of myself in the mirror and thinking 'I'm horrendous and deformed for life'.   So bad was my swelling and redness, I looked like I had been badly burned.   With the panic button going on around the hospital, I was aware I was in serious danger.   I told the nurses that I was going to faint, and they dragged me to the bed just in time before I 'passed out'.

At this point, I was lying on my bed, unable to move or talk or communicate but I could see and hear everything.   I knew everything that was going on and could see everything but am not sure from what angle or how or why. There were about fifteen people in the room with a crash trolley. I could sense the panic but felt so calm and peaceful, I wanted to shout out and say 'I'm not in pain, it's okay.' One doctor was pressing with his fingers on my heart. At this point, I realized, 'Hey I am going into cardiac arrest.' Then the nurse on my left taking blood pressure said 'Blood pressure 70/40. We're losing her.'   I knew they were about to use the paddles on my heart, when I completely left the room!

The first thing I saw was an endless meadow of the most beautiful flowers. I told myself, 'Oh this is the Garden of Eden.' (In my mind, there was no doubt about this.) Then right next to the flowers was a huge pipe/tunnel, kind of reminded me of an underground drain, only massive. I immediately went into the tunnel - not walking - just floating upright, and I could hear a 'whooshy sound'. I went farther into the tunnel, and I saw the Light. I told myself, ‘If I go through there, then I will be in heaven.' Of this, I had no doubt and was very tempted to go.

Farther along still, I saw a 'man' dressed as a monk. I could not see his face, but I think that was due to the very strong light behind him. He spoke directly from his mind to my mind, at least I did not remember either of us moving our lips, but he was waving me through with one arm, just as you might direct traffic. I then felt he was important enough to be working for God in this important position of helping people pass over, so he was literally directing me to the Light and heaven. I really wanted to go, but when I realized that, once I went to the Light, I could not return, I said to him, 'Sorry, I can't go to the Light; I have to go back to the garden to pick up my children.' Almost immediately I was whisked back out of the tunnel, I saw the Garden of Eden, and came round in the hospital.

During my experience, I was perfectly fine, happy, and peaceful. All the pain had gone, my throat was unblocked and it was wonderful. I feel very blessed to have experienced this. The only time I got a little stressed was when I realized I could not leave my sons without their mother as they were only two and five years old, otherwise I would have gone to the Light without a doubt.

I was very reluctant to talk about all this after it happened, and of course, the hospital was very low-key saying, 'Oh you gave us a scare last night.' They had rung my husband, who had left me in good health and spirits to tell him that I had had a massive allergic reaction and had been brought back to life from cardiac arrest. I stayed in hospital for a week; the kids were not allowed to visit, as my body was still very badly swollen and looked burnt. Ten days later I had gall bladder removal with laparoscope and of course had red alert stickers everywhere regarding vitamin K.

Sheila B’s NDE in 2000

Prior to this surgery my anxiety level was very high. I have had surgery in the past and had no fear of surgery. I continued with this surgery even though I was fearful. Although it was not realized till later, during surgery the doctor lacerated my aorta and I began to bleed internally.

So after surgery, I awoke in the recovery room with a blood pressure of 40/14. I am an ICU Registered Nurse (RN), so I knew I was in trouble. I heard my surgeon ordering a CT scan. I remember thinking that if I go for a CT scan, I will die. My thoughts were echoed aloud by the nurse on duty. He said that a CT scan would kill me. There were multiple anesthesia doctors around my stretcher. One doctor was palpating my abdomen and when he pushed on my lower right abdomen, I almost blacked out from the pain. This was where the blood was collecting. They placed a central line in my left chest, whereupon I felt the pressure but not the pain. Shortly after this, I heard a female say, 'I don't have a pulse.'

Then I floated above my body, and saw the anesthesiologist rushing and calling for a surgeon. Next, I was floating in soft, beautiful clouds and felt no pain. I felt light with no gravity weighing me down. I'm not sure how to describe this, but when I came to my destination, the music or sound was calming and wonderful and not harsh noise.

Upon arrival, I was escorted by my (deceased) sister and we talked. Most of the conversation was my sister was reminding me that my children needed me and that it was not my time to come here. My grandma and grandpa were also there, along with other people I knew who had passed on.

Then I was amazed to see a patient I had cared for on earth and whose hand I had held as he passed over.   This patient told me that I have much more to do, and that I needed to return and continue to touch people like I did him. This unexpected encounter, for some reason, made me certain of the reality of the whole experience. Then I was dropped back into my body in the hospital.

When I reentered my body, I felt like I had fallen from the top of a building and landed on a concrete floor!   I lost my breath. I was aware of the difference in the noise. I had just come from a place where it was peaceful to a place where all the extraneous noise was deafening!   The lights were too bright; even with my eyes closed it was bright.

Later, the anesthesia doctor came by and asked if I wanted to talk.   At the time, I was still processing the experience. He told me that while I losing my pulse and leaving my body, I was loudly screaming.

The surgeon was not only my doctor but also a friend. While he did my surgery, I received 60 units of blood and multiple units of blood products. The doctor told me that if he had not known me, he would have quit after 20 minutes. But he kept going. He found the area of bleeding and grafted it. I have some minor lingering issues, but none that I can complain about.

ADDED COMMENTS:

My experience on the Other Side was definitely real. I know my experience happened, and it changed me for the better. It was replayed in my dreams each night for about three years! During my experience, it seemed like my vision was in my brain, not through my eyes. I also seemed to hear with my brain (mind) and not my ears! Where I was, was like a cloud. I believe I was visiting with my family in a comfortable, cloud-like conference area just outside of heaven. I was shown what my children’s lives would be like if I did not return. Since I chose to return, I have slowed down, and I now always listen to other opinions before I say anything. I am very nature loving and compassionate. My religion is not one belief, but many.

As a registered nurse in the intensive care unit, I sometimes share my experience with dying patients to help them move on when it is their time. I also share to help reassure families that their loved-one's pain is gone.

Sheila EP’s NDE in 1975

1975 was an extremely difficult year for our family of two parents and five kids.

My brother Greg was the oldest. He was an intelligent, very athletic, and handsome, 21 years old. While on break from college that previous January 1975, Greg had been bodysurfing in Acapulco, Mexico, when he became caught up into a 30-foot wave and smashed onto the rock hard bottom of the Pacific Ocean floor. Instantly, he was paralyzed, having crushed his spine at the level of his third and fourth cervical vertebra. Greg would have surely drowned, if not for the frantic actions of friends, family, and bystanders who pulled Greg out from the turbulent surf.

For 2 weeks, Greg was kept conscious and immobilized in the primitive, open-air Acapulco hospital, until being flown back to the states, as a Navy dependent, to Walter Reed Medical Center. Greg later described taking up the space of five commercial airliner seats, due to being sprawled out in traction, on a Stryker frame. My parents had their hands full; dealing with the aftermath of my brother's accident and his new reality, confined to a life in a wheelchair.

Between January 1975 and July 1975, in addition to my brother's accident, my mother's sister and father passed away. In April 1975 my oldest sister Stacey had gotten married and given birth to her first child. In July Stacey and her husband Dave were staying at our parents’ house to watch over us 3 younger siblings, while our parents were on their very first short vacation since Greg's accident.

On the evening of my accident, my girlfriend Talisa and I were with her boyfriend David, and his friend Jim, driving around in Dave's new, red Toyota Celica.   At some point, while the four of us were in the car, where I was in the passenger front seat, the car ran off the road at a very high rate of speed, and my face smashed through the windshield.

THEN EVERYTHING WENT COMPLETELY BLACK. I clearly remember experiencing complete comfort; of being totally free from any sort of pain or feelings of bodily sensations at all.   If you could think of your most enjoyable bodily sensations: sex, massage, runner's high, just anything pleasurable that you have ever felt, it could not compare to the experience of total comfort during that state of blackness. I think that it is because we experience feelings within our physical bodies through nerves and receptors. Yet in that state, I did not feel any of that.

I awoke to the face of Talisa's boyfriend, Dave, leaning directly over me, bloody, slapping my face into consciousness. I could tell that I was in a ditch at the roadside, apparently lying in very tall grass. Dave seemed relieved to see that I was alive. I asked him where Talisa was. He glanced over toward the highway and saw that she was wandering into the roadway, disoriented with the whiplash of her neck I later learned. Dave ran to move my friend Talisa to safety.   Then I fell into the totally comforting blackness again. I remember waking up from that complete black void several times. Then I saw myself lying in the ditch, while hovering above my body. My very long hair was matted in the grass, my eyes were closed, and I had a lot of abrasions and coagulated blood over one eye area. It seemed like I was floating in and out of that totally, comforting black void.

I hovered above the ambulance crew as they carefully immobilized me onto a stretcher and placed me into the bay of the ambulance for transport. I distinctly remember the faces of my friends and of the first responders; I have rarely seen such concern and compassion expressed in another person’s face that way since. I could also see and hear everything being said at the scene, as I floated above the roof of the ambulance.

At the local emergency room, I remember hearing a very rude doctor say, ‘That's what those kids get for being out there parking.’ For many years, that extremely inaccurate and unprofessional comment nauseated me. At some point, it was decided that I needed to be sent via ambulance, to the St. Louis University hospital for care. Weighted tongs were attached to my head for traction of my neck. I woke up in a trauma treatment area of the University hospital in St. Louis, and I was floating above myself, seeing my body there motionless, as my team of five neurosurgeons stood around me, considering my case. As I floated above them (and myself), I could tell that I was floating higher than the ceiling and could see that people with a lot of white shoes were walking right by me, as I seemed to hover near their feet (at the next floor up). I clearly remember hearing the neurosurgeons confer, and that one of them had a bald spot on the top of his head. As a nursing student a decade later, I did some clinical trials at that same hospital and found that the area I had seen while out of my body corresponded to my memories.

Out of my body, I felt like a ball of pure energy, like a bunch of atoms floating in a cohesive mass, no longer confined to that physical body lying “down there.” I was in a much less confining dimension than our three dimensional world. Communication was telepathic, just like how we talk to ourselves, within our own heads.

Then I became aware of an extremely compassionate interaction with a “light being” who was infused with life, energy, and pure love. I began to experience a ‘Life Review’ with a 360 degree view, very cool. It became clear after that Life Review, that it was just not my time to go. I must have seen that I had not completed the mission or task that I had come to earth to accomplish. Also, I'm pretty sure that I saw loved ones and family who had passed. I believe this forgetfulness was deliberate, because it would not be beneficial for my mission for me to know or remember everything from my review.

From then on, I just knew that I had important things to accomplish before it would be time for me to go. After I came out of my coma state, I immediately described my experiences to my father. He gave me a book called, ‘Life After Life’ by Dr. Raymond Moody, which led me to feel validation for my experiences, reading that others had similar events. When I mentioned the experiences to my chief neurosurgeon, he seemed a bit skeptical. He held on to the notion that head trauma and/or chemicals released into the brain after trauma likely caused me to believe that the experience was real.

I had broken my neck, between the atlas and axis vertebra at the base of my skull. There was a 1-inch separation, and I was technically decapitated!---as my team of neurosurgeons explained it to me later. I was told that I had the same type of injury as Christopher Reeves. After I survived, my physician said that I was one of the first people to survive such an injury. My brother Greg (who broke his neck 6 months before I broke mine) and I have discussed our experiences many times over the past 37 years. He was envious that I had had an out of body, near death experience and he did not. He said that as he floated in the Pacific Ocean face down, he did not think that he could not move, was paralyzed and likely to die; instead, Greg said he thought, ‘Damn, now I won't be able to meet up with friends in Florida after this trip!’

Since my NDE, I believe I have a duty to promote and develop love, tolerance, knowledge, and empathy. For this reason, I have accepted extra responsibilities such as comforting dying persons and their loved ones. I have sought education and understanding as much as I can. I have learned that service to and for others represents the most beautiful form of love and light.

Shelby M’s NDE in 1977

I was lying face down on the living room floor after having one of my many grand mal epileptic seizures, and my boyfriend picked me up and laid me on the couch while my grandpa called the ambulance.   Grandpa knew that this particular seizure was not like others I’ve had, because I wasn't responding and coming around like I normally did.   I remember going in and out of consciousness before the ambulance came.   I remember my boyfriend and grandpa yelling, 'She's not breathing. Shelby breathe!'   When they would yell my name, it brought me back to them and away from what I call the “dark place.”   It was a cold, dark brown room with no walls or floor.   I remember the paramedics carrying me on a stretcher down the front porch steps and pushing me into the back of an ambulance. The next thing I remember is being in the emergency room.

There was a sense of urgency all around me.   Everyone was running around and working on me, and they all were really concerned.   I was looking down at them from one corner of the room, not from the bed my body was lying on. Then I move from observing from the corner of the room to a position just above everyone's heads, looking down at it all.   I watched them poke me with needles and run tests. There had to be about twelve people working on me at the same time.   I remember hearing them all talking. The doctor at the time (who is now my cardiologist) was saying, 'She's only 16 years old, and we’re not going to let her die now!   Come on people; let's move!   Give me...' - and he was telling everyone else what he wanted or needed.

Then I went back from being just above everyone's heads, to again looking at all this with my back against the ceiling. The sense of urgency grew.   I remember seeing and hearing very clearly, my doctor saying to me, 'Come on, you got to fight. Shelby you got to fight. I'm not going to let you die, fight!'   While he was saying this, someone was making a cut in my right arm and then threading what looked like a tube or wire into my arm that was connected to a brown box at the foot of the bed.

I woke up in the intensive care unit two days later and the first thing I noticed was tubes sticking out of me everywhere and both arms being tied down.   I yelled, 'HEY!' through an air mask, because I couldn't move. A nurse came in right away, calmed me down, told me I was in the hospital, and explained what was in both arms and why they had them tied down. It was in case I had another seizure, so I wouldn't pull them out. One of the wires was a temporary pacemaker which was keeping me alive at the time.   I was awake on and off for a few hours, my mother there with me the whole time.   The next morning the doctor felt I was stabilized enough to undergo the surgery I needed to implant the permanent pacemaker I had to have. (This was over twenty years ago and pacemakers were a still fairly new gadget.)   I remember being prepared for the surgery and then wheeled into the operating room. They turned on the go-to-sleep medications, and I was out.

The next thing I remember is 'leaping' out of my body and standing at the doorway of the operating room.   I looked back at them working on me for just a second and then I started moving down the hall of the hospital.   I remember passing the nurse's station, then the admitting station, and then out the door of the hospital. I didn't actually open the door; it was like I was in the hospital one second and then outside of it the next.   When I was out of the hospital, it felt like something lifted me into the air and I started flying!   I looked down at the street and the cars on the street, and then I went higher and started moving in a specific direction. I was being pulled in this direction and not doing this on my own.   I continued to go higher and in this direction; I flew above a meadow full of flowers and then pine trees and mountains. The whole time I was flying and seeing these beautiful landscapes, I heard a soft music, not like what you would hear on the radio or a concert, but it was music. Then I saw a tiny light off in the distance, which grew bigger in size as I flew toward it. I went higher and higher, until I was above what I believe to be white clouds, like clouds on a sunny day to me; and then I stopped.

I started feeling the presence of 'others' around me, welcoming me and calling me by name.   I asked them who they were, and they told me their names.   I felt a connection to them somehow, but couldn't figure out how they knew me. I did not know them, but they 'felt' familiar.   Our communication was not like talking to people normally; it was more as if we talked to each other in our heads. I felt that I was ‘home’. The feeling of pure love that came from them was so intense, that just remembering it now still brings me to tears as I write this.   Just as I was re-acquainted (so to speak) with them, I noticed that they started to move away from me and I wanted to be near them because of the intense feeling of love, but I couldn't move forward to them. It was as if I were planted in that spot. Then a 'voice' said loud and firm, 'No, not yet, you have to go back.' And in that instant, I was whipped back into my body.

I woke up one day later after my pacemaker was put in. I told the first nurse I saw what happened to me. I told my doctor a little later when he came in to check on me. After the doctor left, my mom and another nurse told me that during the surgery, my heart had stopped again and they had called a code blue. I was told they worked on me for over fifteen minutes, until they got me stable enough to finish the surgery. I told my mom about the people I met, who were welcoming me.   She said that some of the names I told her were the names of our deceased relatives or friends of the family that had passed on before I was born; in fact, two of them were before she was born; my grandma had told her about them.

ADDED COMMENTS: The reason my heart had stopped beating was because I have a medical condition called a ‘third degree heart block’. I was born with it, but it was not discovered until this event when I was sixteen. At the age of four, I was found to have what the doctor called a ‘slow heart beat’ and a ‘loud heart murmur’. At the age of five I started suffering from grand mal seizures, was given a battery of tests, and placed on Phenobarbital for epilepsy. This is what they thought was wrong with me. The seizures continued to get worse and more frequent, and by the age of ten, I was taking Phenobarbital three times a day and Dilantin two times a day. At the age of fifteen, the seizures were hard to control, and my parents were looking into home schooling for me as I was having seizures at school no less than four times a week. At the age of sixteen, I had the experience I described above.

Of those I have shared this with, some acted interested, others said I was dreaming, and others found it fascinating. I remember my experience very clearly; it's something I will never forget! This was years before I gave birth to my four beautiful children. Now I know at least part of the reason why I had to come back.

Sheri G’s NDE

I had been out with a girlfriend and had come home. I snuggled up to my husband and he said, "Do you feel this?" It was the knife pressed to my throat. He raped me at knifepoint, and tried to get me to take a bunch of pills. All the while he was saying things like "Now you'll call the police" or "I'm going to kill you".

I had asked for a divorce a couple weeks before that, and he'd asked me to wait till after Xmas because of the kids. We had three, two of which were his from a previous marriage. Anyway, I had started calming down and getting pissed, and I scooted to the end of the bed to get up and the first stab got me in the back. We fought over the knife and he finally plunged it into my chest. He then hugged me, and I said "You've killed me".

He left the room and went upstairs where I could hear the girls screaming. I kept thinking I have to keep my hands closed because both of my thumbs were just hanging, having been cut to the bone while fighting over the knife. So I laid down and covered up with a quilt. I was getting cold and having a hard time breathing because, I found out later, the first stabbing had punctured my lung.

When the ambulance attendants came downstairs they checked me over, and I wouldn't let them take me till they put on me a clean pair of underwear. I guess my Mother's warning stuck in my head. When we got into the ambulance I started getting SO COLD! I still to this day, can't take the cold. I found out later I went into shock.

The next thing I knew I was in the ER floating above my body, watching the doctors shock me back into my body. They took me into surgery and the next thing I remember is someone pushing on my stomach and the pain was excruciating. Someone said "Rebound" and we were headed back into surgery.

I was in a coma for eight days, so I'm not sure exactly "When" but at some point I found myself traveling a dark tunnel with a bright light beckoning. The closer I got to the light, the more love I felt. The light got bigger and bigger and I could see all kinds of loved ones who had passed on. My grandma Jessie had her arms wide open to hug me, and the closer I got, the more overwhelming love I felt. I heard beautiful music and saw angels all lined up across the sky behind my relatives. I was so happy!! I felt SO MUCH love through every pore in my body. All of a sudden I heard my Mother saying "Think of Tina" (my daughter) "Think of Tina" and the light started getting farther away. I came to.

Stacy K’s NDE from 2015

During the school year, I was a Special Education Expressive Arts teacher focused exclusively on guiding others. My work was full of passion, persistence and joy.   In the summer of July 2015, I was giddy to start my summertime trek. That year I would anchor myself in Portland, Oregon and explore temperate rainforests, craft beer, waterfalls, coastal tidepools and the musings of a culture different than my own.   I left the Washington DC area in mid-July. I arrived on the west coast, rented a car, and settled into a lovely 1927 log cabin conveniently located in the back courtyard of a Japanese food restaurant in Portland's foodie district. What a cool city!   At the start of the trip I began to notice a few glitches in my physical self. I was 47 years old, active and in fairly decent shape. So, I was startled when I couldn't lift my carry-on suitcase into the top storage bin of the airplane.

I wondered why my right foot was feeling so strange and unable to seat itself properly into my sandal? It was surprising to feel shortness of breath and a little dizzy after walking up a garden hill. The days passed and the adventures swelled and swirled around and through me. Ahhhhhhh....Summertime!   The physical glitches continued, and I ignored them until I couldn't anymore.   On July 30, 2015, while driving through Oregon Wine country to visit a quirky mineral and gem museum, the right side of my body started to fail. My arm, leg, tongue and face went weak. I felt numb and disconnected. I knew I was having a stroke. As fortune would have it, I saw a blue and white 'H' sign by the next exit ramp and pulled into a Kaiser Permanente Hospital parking lot. I managed to get out of the car and bully my functional left side into dragging my unresponsively rubbery right side to the emergency room, where I cheerfully announced that I was having a stroke.

I got the feeling that the triage staff didn't quite believe me, but they were professional and kind as they gowned me up and put an IV into me. They set me up in a cubical while I waited for the doctor to see me. I wasn't in pain and I wasn't scared. I was curious. I had been working with folks with severe disabilities for about 30 years. 'So THIS is what partial paralysis feels like', I thought. 'It feels weird!' Calmly I focused on my sensations and surroundings. I remember thinking, 'I got this, I'm fine, it's all good, no worries.....'.

There was a nurse in my room when I felt some sort of shift within my body. Suddenly I was having trouble breathing. I remember calling out, 'Something's happening! I'm going south.' At this point, I popped out of my body and watched from the ceiling as the nurse quickly hurried out the door to the room.

Then I felt another shift. Suddenly I felt incredible peace and joy! I was in, what looked to me, like outer space. It was dark, but not black. I sensed that this place was vast beyond definition, and cracklingly alive with energy. God was by my right side and waves of overwhelming, warm, loving, and unconditional acceptance enveloped me. I felt God's pure, absolute love.   I clearly comprehended my situation. I understood that every moment of my life is governed by my own free will. As long as my human body is viable for life, it is my moment by moment choice to live inside of this body, on earth, with the rest of corporal mankind. True, I had popped out of my body for the time being, but I knew that I might return.

I had a choice in this between-time. I knew that behind me, if I turned around and went to the left, I would go back to my body. If I turned around and went to the right, I could abandon my body and join the delicious field of love energy that surrounded me. I knew that back on earth, my body was still viable. If I chose to abandon it, it would feel a bit like swimming upstream, but I could do it if that was my choice. I knew that joining God's energy field of love was goodness beyond any type of conceivable goodness. But to me, it felt like a foregone conclusion that I would turn to the left and rejoin my body. My interior dialogue was, 'Seriously? Come on now, you know you are going back. Be real, dingbat!'

As I turned to the left, I felt a bit heartbroken and resigned to my choice. I was moving rapidly with that turn. Over my right shoulder, I passed a shimmering starry path which curved up and out into the distance. Emanations of energy from the path overpowered me with pure welcoming love. I audibly gasped in awe from the river of love flowing from the starry path. With that gasp, air filled my earthly lungs and brought me back to a hospital gurney.

ADDED COMMENTS:
I believe that our human purpose is to experience free will. In contrast with God, we make decisions without knowing the outcome. This human journey gives God a chance to experience randomness and maybe even the 'Unknown,' which is stimulating to God. We give God something to love, and a brilliant venue for God's creativity and genius. Our randomness, provided by the free will God has granted us, allows for God's vicarious experience. Our linear perception of existence provides a beginning, a middle and an end for each choice we make. Each of those choices is a vicarious, maybe even an Unknown journey for God too. Perhaps similar to a supercharged parental experience?   Additionally, I understood that God realizes that it's tough out there to be a human and to have to continuously make decisions without knowing what's going to happen because of them. I understood that God appreciates this burden and grants each one of us unconditional dignity, respect, and the warmest type of love that wraps us into the welcoming river of universal energy.   God's love, and the love felt from the universal river of energy is really, really, really good. It's hard to explain!   I remember my NDE experience more accurately than other life events that occurred around the time of the experience. It usually plays like a full sensory movie in my memory. Sometimes I am 'closer to the movie screen' than at other times.   I am Jewish, and Judaism teaches that the answers are not usually as important as the questions.   And the thought processes enlivened from 'wrestling with God' over the meaning of life, etc., is what it's all about as the most noble pursuit. My experience of the ultimate choice of free will is in line with that philosophy.

Steve M’s NDE in 2007

I had my own NDE experience in 2007. I always laughed at people who claimed they had had near death experiences---until I had mine. I was bitten by a snake, and I died (heart stopped) in the ambulance for three minutes.

What I saw was unimaginable, but it was 100% real! I had heard about the tunnel, and that is exactly what I went through. I went very fast, but painlessly. When I got to the other side, I saw grass, a grayish sky with no clouds, a big river, and bright stars. I also noticed I had no body at all.

I was completely alone for a moment, and then out of nowhere, a man popped up. I was scared out my mind. He said “your life is temporarily on hold”. I said “am I dead?” He said “yes, for now.”

I then started looking around, and the man stuck his hands in the river, and it became so clear I could see right through it. Then, he disappeared across the river. He said “cross this river and come meet the others.”

I'm supposed to be dead, yet I was still scared of drowning! I never learned how to swim. I then told him “I can't.” He then said “fear has no place here. You must trust me.” I still refused because of my fear of drowning. I felt love everywhere, but I just didn't want to follow him.

He said with a loving voice, “it's OK, you will cross it next time. You will see that I'm going show you where we all go and you are loved here. You should now go back to your body.”

And just like that I was in my body coughing. I didn't see Hell, Heaven, or Jesus, but I saw the most loving place I've ever seen. There is no reason for anyone to fear death at all!

Steven L’s NDE in 2000

I came home from work really late in the morning around 3 am.   I had to get up early that morning because I had to go to the bank and it was a Saturday.   I went in, got my paycheck cashed, then I went to a restaurant and had a wonderful meal.   Then I drove back into town on the service street to go to a counseling appointment, because I was trying to get my life back together.

I came underneath the overpass of the freeway and I was coming to an intersection with the green light in my favor. I looked and saw no one in the intersection.   I got probably a quarter of the way into the intersection and noticed out of my peripheral on my left side this driver was going at a very, very high rate of speed. They later estimated his speed to be about 75 miles per hour.   He impacted the driver’s side of my car and that slid me around a telephone pole probably about 10 to 15 feet away. My car was literally wrapped around the pole.

The car I was in had a separate lap belt from the shoulder belt. The lap belt was literally cutting into my body and all I remember after looking at my windshield and seeing it all crashed out was this young man. I don’t know who he was; he was in blue coveralls. He reached through the car, looked and saw that the lap belt was cutting into me. He grabbed onto the lap belt and pulled it away from me, probably about 5 to 6 inches and I know for a fact that lap belt was locked so you couldn’t have done that.   He took a knife and he slit the lap belt and removed it. From there, I blacked out again.

Next thing I know there is a paramedic sitting in the passenger seat with me talking to me really softly. He told me he was going to put a surgical collar on me and he does. Then he tells me about the “jaws of life” and how they are going to have to cut the car away from me to get me out of the car.   I said, 'okay' and he managed to move my left arm, which was locked in a death grip on the steering wheel. He placed my hand in my lap and put a sheet over me, and he climbed under the sheet with me and he told me that I was going to hear some noise. I heard some loud noise outside the car. The jaws of life hit pretty hard and it shook the car.

The driver’s door popped open within a few minutes. They laid a backboard in the car and the paramedic says, 'We got blood.' I didn’t know where I was bleeding from or what I was bleeding from. I had a scalp laceration but what I believed was I had blood coming out of my ear.
They laid me carefully on the backboard and taped my head to the backboard and then put the backboard on a gurney. They wheeled me about 15 feet away to the ambulance. I remember that the backdoors to the ambulance were open. I also remember that I saw a light so bright that I told the paramedics that I needed to close my eyes. He said that I needed to keep my eyes open. I told him that I needed to close my eyes and I closed my eyes, and I remember a bump going back into the ambulance and the ambulance disappeared.

Now I remember seeing myself above the ambulance. I saw where the accident was, where the police cars were, where the fire department officials were, the people cleaning up the glass. I even saw where the guy that hit me was, his car.

Next thing I know, it’s like Star Trek in a warp speed kind of thing. I was literally transported incredibly fast into the Light that I had seen.   I went into this room that had no dimensions but had a 360 degree movie screen around me. These “light bodies” came up to me. This one “light body” looked at me and asked me the same question 4 times!

Throughout this time I am watching a review of my entire life going on all around me and I’m thinking, 'OK, this is not a good thing; I’m seeing everybody I’ve beaten up. I’m seeing everybody I’ve yelled at and lied to. I’m watching their faces and their faces are morphing into me, so I’m lying to myself or I am beating myself up or stealing from myself.'

This light being asked me, 'Who are you?'
I told them straight out who I was. “I’m Steven”.
The light being shook their head and asked me again, 'Who are you?'
I had gone into the light angry and was pissed that I had died. I felt I had more stuff to do on the earth. I was really violently angry, so I told the light body this. I said, 'Don’t you (censored) know who I am?'
I told him who I was again.
Again the question, 'Who are you?'
I’m watching my whole life flash before my eyes and it’s starting to sink in who I am. I tried to tell him what job I did.
The light being asked me for the fourth time, 'Who are you?'
I finally said the most intelligent thing in the world. I said, 'I don’t know. I don’t know who I am.'
The light being nodded its head and it said, 'You are love. That’s all you are. You are nothing more than love.' The anger that I had had washed completely away from me. I looked at my life image and I judged myself as not worthy to be there. I asked and said, 'I’d like to stay.'

They said, 'Maybe another time, but not now. You have a mission to do on the Earth and you must do it. No one else can do it but you.' I thought about it and I said, 'Ok. I’ll do it.'

My mission is basically to share my story down here on the Earth, to tell everybody that they are love too. I told the light body that I would do my mission. It said, 'We will be in touch once more.'

Next thing I know I’m feeling cold metal on my back and I thought that was an odd feeling. Then I heard this man’s voice on my right side, where most of the damage to my body was, and he said, “Ok, you’re back with us. You’re going to hear some noise. Don’t worry, you’re safe.” Then I heard this 'SHOOP' sound going through my head. And what I found out was they were stapling my scalp back together.

I spent about 8 hours in the trauma room, or at least my body did. I would say I spent about 2 hours in the light. My whole life before and my whole life now are totally different.
I remember everything that happened with the accident. I remember what I need to do. My experience was definitely real. And I have literally been sharing this with whoever will hear me.

Susan R’s NDE in 1973---death from bleeding while pregnant

I was in Hanau, Germany with my husband; he was in the army, and I had a four year old daughter and a three year old son. I was three months pregnant, and started to bleed. My husband took me to the army base clinic. The doctor said I was losing the baby and bleeding too much. He could not stop it, so they put me in an ambulance and sent me up to Frankfurt's Army hospital, which was fifty miles away. They could not stop the bleeding. I remember the attendant saying to the other attendant that he was losing my blood pressure and pulse. When they opened the ambulance's doors to take me out into the hospital, I had bled so much that the blood poured out of the floor of the ambulance like a slow waterfall.

That is when I realized that I was watching myself! I saw all that went on from above my body! There was no sense of pain, cold, heat, or fear, and no real sense that I was alive or dead. I watched them push me very fast into the hospital, and put me on a gurney. They were screaming, 'Get the doctor, we have no pulse.' The doctor came and looked at me. He did a few things, and said, 'Get her up to surgery, OB-GYN, I cannot do anything for her here.' So, they started running down the hall to the elevator. I was floating over all this. I was thinking, 'Wait, my husband is not here. I am okay. What are you guys doing?' We got into the elevator, and up to some floor. Then they took me into a small room. Another doctor came in and put my legs up. He took an instrument off a windowsill. I was thinking, 'No way! That thing is dirty.' Everybody was doing everything so fast, getting me ready, trying to start an IV, cutting my clothes off. Then the doctor said, 'Stop! She's gone. The only reason she has stopped bleeding is that she has no more blood left.' I think that is when I realized I was dead. Everyone left the room, covered me, and told an E4 to call the morgue.

At that time when everything became so quiet, I heard birds and quiet laughter. Everything was so surreal. Then I heard my brothers talking. They had died a few years before! I could not make out what they were saying; I just knew their voices. I turned and saw them, but I still could not understand what they were saying. There was no sadness, no worry, no regrets that I was leaving my kids and husband. Then I looked back over my shoulder and saw myself on that bed with blood everywhere.

There was this young nurse who was talking to my body on that bed. She was saying, 'I am going to try to save you. If it does not work, oh, well!' She hung a bag of blood on the IV and put a blood pressure cuff around it and started pumping it up. I remember trying to yell at her. I tried to tell her, 'Stop! Please stop! I do not want to come back!' [I struggled with that for a long time. Why would I not want to come back? My kids were my life. Before I married my last husband, it was just them and me for a long time. I thought there was nobody that could love or care for them as good or as much as I did. I now know that God would have cared for them.]

Anyway, this nurse pumped one bag of blood and started a new one. I had turned back to go to my brothers, and it was then I heard another voice -- a voice I had never heard, so warm, it surrounded you, it touched you, it was love. He was telling me it was not my time. I said, 'I do not want to go back!' I begged. At this time, I began to understand my brother's words. They said, 'Come here sister.' I remember that I did not want to let go of God's hem. My oldest brother took my hand. I looked down at myself on that bed. I looked back at my other brother, my twin, and he said, 'They need you, go.'

At that second, I was back in my body and with severe chest pains. I was trying to pull out the IV because I thought she was giving me the wrong blood. The nurse jumped back and said (I will never forget it, so please forgive me, but you must remember it was the army.) She said. 'Fuck - you're alive!' I said, 'Yes and get this blood out of my arm; it is killing me.' She stopped me and yelled out the door for the doctor. He came in. She was saying, 'She is alive!' He said, 'Stand down soldier, she is dead.' But then he saw I was not dead and he freaked out. My chest pain they said was because I had a dry chamber heart and when the blood hit it the muscle cramped.

Of course, they said I was never dead. They had told my husband when he got to the hospital, that I was dead. He had the kids, so he just had to go back home. He did not know that I was alive until three hours later, when someone from his company came to our door at home. We did not have a phone then. He was shocked to hear that I was alive!

My experience was definitely real. Now I try to live every day better, love more, and enjoy more.

Susannah W’s NDE in 1971---From the U.K.

I was playing with my sister, hanging upside down on the washing line over a stone path. The line broke and I fell straight down onto my head.

I left my body and looked back at it without any worry or care. I then travelled in a floating sort of way to a place in the air at the other side of the garden. This did not take long and I felt no pain and very light. I arrived at a sort of cave entrance or tunnel and there was someone or some being waiting for me. He knew who I was. He was very bright and seemed human but was not. He was so bright that he was quite hard to see or recognize. He was pleased to see me but did not seem to think I should be there. He said that he would go and ask what to do -- if I should be there. The words were just 'felt', not spoken.

I waited outside the entrance sort of floating in the love. It was so beautiful and so perfect. I had never felt anything even close to this and was just in absolute 'heaven' and I did not want it to ever end. I felt completely loved and that nothing bad could ever happen. This seemed to last for a long time.

Then the light person/being returned and said that he was sorry, but it was not my time; it was the wrong time. I was absolutely devastated. I went quickly back to my body, and my thoughts were, oh no, back to this horrible world.

I was very upset for weeks and felt bad because I thought the world was horrible. I could not tell anyone, as I knew that they would laugh at me and would not believe me.

Although I have never told anyone about this until lately, it has remained so clear and real. I feel that this is more real than anything that has happened in my life since.

After about ten years of marriage, I was brave enough to tell my husband, who thought I was being ridiculous. I have not mentioned it to anyone since.

Teenager’s NDE

It was a bitter cold day with a light snowfall on the day I "died." On January 27, 1996 I was skiing in Aspen, Colorado. I was with my girlfriend. I was hoping to impress her with my "hot dogging" skills when I had a close encounter with a very hard pine tree. I had knocked myself unconscious.

I was amazed to find myself floating a few feet above my body. My girlfriend was trying to revive my body to no avail. As soon as she could, she shouted to other skiers to get help. "Look, there is blood!" said one on-looker. I was mildly curious to note I was bleeding from a cut on the right side of my face as it rested on the snow. My date took off her furry white hat and placed it carefully under my head. The "pillow" soon turned red with my blood and I recalled thinking that I’d have to buy her a new hat.

I followed the ski patrol as they loaded up my limp body and took me down the mountain. It seemed like the ambulance was taking forever, so I flew into the town to see if I could see anything. I wasn’t particularly worried, but I was getting pissed that they were taking so long when I was dying. I spotted the ambulance and followed in back to the first aid station. The snowstorm turned into a full-blown, all out blizzard, which caused the ambulance driver to swerve on the corners. I heard him swear loudly each time he nearly lost it. "Hey man, get a grip!" I said aloud. This is where it really gets weird. Even though the snow was dense, I could see right through it. I noticed the snowflakes were passing right through my outstretched arms and I was glowing slightly. There was no sense of cold. I could sense the emotions of everyone connected to this scene. The whole thing seemed like a very intense movie. I floated in and out of the ambulance as it moved slowly through the streets.

Suddenly all sensations vanished as I became aware of another dimension in space. I felt a really peaceful feeling like being back at home and soaking in love from a source that seemed familiar and warm. I know it sounds nutty, but it felt that I belonged to a part of the greatness of all there is in the universe. This place (dimension) where I was defies mere words. It seems as if it always existed and is part of all things now and forever. I saw a beautiful purple place and felt a loving being ask me in "thought" transference if I wanted to stay or return. I thought about my college days ahead. I asked the "being" if I were to go back now, would there be any problem in returning later. There was a friendly chuckle from this being which made me laugh too and then it happened in an instant. I was back in a world of pain once again. I was told I had suffered a concussion and had been out of it for thirteen hours. It was so hard to deal with the whole thing afterwards.

I was very different after that. I couldn’t really discuss this with anyone, as they wouldn’t have a clue and just think I was cracking up. I became very serious and became interested in learning all about psychology, religions, philosophies, and generally searched for whatever truths I could find in literature, lectures, and meetings. My parents approved of the changes, but my girlfriend moved on to another guy. It’s all for the best. I think I spooked her too much when I told her about the bloody hat episode and all of her conversations with the ski patrol guys, etc. It’s good to know that someday I will be able to get back to that loving, peaceful place again. I’m no longer dreading my own death or the death of my grandparents.

SOME NDEs, LIKE THIS ONE, SHOW A GREAT DEAL OF REFLECTION AFTERWARD (OR WHAT MIGHT EVEN BE CALLED THEORIZING). THEY TRY TO EXPRESS THE MEANING OF THEIR NDEs IN MORE ABSTRACT LANGUAGE.

Teri R’s NDE in 1973

My car wreck in the country ended in a ditch. My body was crumpled under the steering wheel. My death experience happened there before the ambulance arrived. The ambulance took me to the hospital with head and neck injuries. I was in the hospital for a week. I still have amnesia from that period, other than the memory of leaving my body. I should also mention that I had no knowledge about near death experience (NDE) prior to my own experience.

All I remember was the sensation of being pulled into a vacuum or a tunnel. I could see lights flying by me. Then I emerged from the tunnel into an indescribable place of peace and tranquility. I saw there a beautiful Being of White Light. I understood that the Light took on an image to which I could relate and which made me feel comfortable, but that the true essence of the Light was Love.

The Light appeared to me as an older man with long gray hair and a beard. But what stood out above everything else was that he loved me unconditionally. Being in his presence felt like I was 'home' -- in a sense that I had never known.

I saw that my true essence was also Love, but as he reviewed my life with me, I received the understanding that I had removed myself from the benefits and bliss of love by the anger I felt over experiences I had growing up. I saw how important it is to project feelings of love instead of the negative energy I was projecting through my emotions and feelings about life. After my life review, I felt total love for the Being of Light, regret for wasting my life, hope that I could have a chance to do better, and appreciation for what I was being shown about peace, love and tranquility.

I saw how others either benefit from my energy, or they are negatively affected by it. I also came to an understanding that heaven isn't a place you are admitted, but a frequency that you attain. Being in the presence of the White Light was 'heaven.' It was more than the greatest feeling I had ever experienced or dreamed was possible. Having that feeling again became what I wanted to strive for, not going to a place. The feeling, the energy I was experiencing, became 'the place.'

I understood that you take yourself with you everywhere you go. What must change in order to experience the higher frequencies of love, peace, joy, bliss and tranquility is a person's own consciousness. They must truly become what they want to have and be.

So I begged for the opportunity to go back and do just that. I only wanted to come back because I understood that my consciousness at the time didn't mesh with the unconditional love I was experiencing. Therefore, I knew that, although it wasn't intended as punishment, I couldn't maintain the frequency that was allowing me to feel the bliss temporarily. I knew that somehow, I had to raise my vibration and become more loving in order to experience this indescribable love on a permanent basis.

These are the concepts that are difficult to explain, because it wasn't conveyed to me in words. It was an understanding that spoke to me in a way that I could relate to. It was never conveyed as judgment or with the intention of creating fear of punishment.

It made so much sense over there, and it seemed so easy. Then I 'came to' in the hospital days later with the memory of that experience and the feeling that my surroundings, the physical objects and things I could see, were very inconsequential and unimportant. This physical life I found myself back in could be compared to a speck of sand on the beach -- just a very small part of something much bigger. Things that once had all of my focus and attention now seemed so tiny as I thought about the big picture. All I wanted to do was get back to where I had been during my death experience. I knew that to do that, I had to change.

What I found was that no one believed my experience and that made me angry and hurt. None of that had changed. My 'buttons' were still easily pushed, which made me realize that just because I had understood what I needed to do, it didn't mean that I had brought back anything that was going to make it happen automatically. I felt very alone and confused yet still very driven to find a way to change.

I determined that I would keep my NDE to myself and just keep working until I found a way to change myself. It really took about 25 years of constant dedication to that purpose before I found a way to do it. I made slow progress over the years, but I had some very deep-seated wounds and anger that it seemed no amount of willpower and determination would help. Now my goal has become to feel nothing but unconditional love all the time

That is the impact that my NDE and experience with the 'White Light' had on my life. I am also no longer afraid of what people have to say about it. Sometimes I get 'hate mail' from Christians who think it is evil to say I wasn't judged and that I should consider that it was really the devil that I experienced. All I can say is that if the devil caused this impact on me, I Love the devil. People close to me know how my life has changed for the better and what it feels like to be around me now as opposed to then. I have felt compelled to tell my story to help people in recent years.

Terry E’s NDE in 1970

I had had a difficult birth of our first daughter on September 23, 1970. I was only nineteen, small boned, and the baby was over eight pounds in weight. After many hours of labor, the doctor finally performed a cesarean section to deliver her. I was told later that I had hemorrhaged on the operating table, and the doctors were afraid they had 'almost lost me'. But that was not when I had my NDE. That happened ten days later.

After giving birth, I was at home with my family (mom, sister and dad) because my husband was in the Air Force and deployed to training several states away. Then I had my first anaphylactic reaction; the doctors surmised it was probably a delayed reaction to the drugs received in the birth. My sister and mom drove me to the hospital (no 911 in those days) and I was declared clinically dead upon arrival.

I remember being wheeled into the emergency room and being up in the corner of the room looking down at my body on the table. My body was looking upward and my eyes were open, but unseeing. I had seen enough TV to know that I was 'dead'. I also remember seeing my mom and sister on the other side of the emergency room door trying to look in through the little window in the door. (Later I told them that I had seen them and could describe where they were, how they looked, and what they had said. They didn't believe me. My sister said, 'But you were dead. We saw you!' So, after their reaction, I didn't tell anyone else for many years.)

Even though this happened almost thirty-four years ago, I can still remember it vividly. I was enveloped in a beautiful light of love and knew I was being held on the lap of Jesus like a child. It was a feeling of unconditional love. The closest I can possibly come is the overwhelming love I felt for my tiny daughter when I first held her -- but even that is not the same. Jesus and I had an astounding conversation, where he patiently answered all my questions. One I distinctly remember: I had recently completed a grueling course in calculus and had gotten all the final exam answers correct except one -- and I wanted to know the answer to that question! Jesus laughed and then gave me the answer, not in words but in a 'knowing' that encompassed not just the element of the question, but a complete understanding of all relational aspects of the question. He has a wonderful sense of humor, and I distinctly got the feeling that He enjoys us humans as a father enjoys watching the minor scrapes children get themselves into.

I was allowed to have full knowledge and understanding of everything! I remember that the awareness hit me with complete clarity, and I thought, 'Of course, it's so obvious. Why are we all missing it?' Although not allowed to keep all the knowledge shown to me, there are two items I was allowed to keep:

1) In response to my question regarding religions of the world and which is the 'true' religion, He answered 'Men come to me on many paths,' and I had the complete understanding of the response, which is broader than the words can convey. The point is not religion, but faith.

2) In response to my question about why we are here, He answered 'To love one another.' Again, the understanding and meaning of His answer is so much more than the words. We are each part of Him, and by loving one another (and ourselves), we are in fact loving Him.

After what seemed like hours, but was only about seven minutes according to hospital records, He asked me if I would like to return. I felt that He already knew the answer, but was asking out of politeness. I told Him that I wanted to stay here and raise my daughter. He said, 'As you wish,' and at that instant, I was back in my body. I felt the needles in my body and the pain and heard the doctor say, 'I think we have her back.'

I have since had a second daughter, and our fourth grandchild is due this September. I know that my purpose here is to be a mother/grandmother and that that role is held in high esteem by God. I take that responsibility very seriously --- and I laugh a lot!

Thelma S’s NDE in 1989

The beating occurred July 3, 1989. I had taken my daughter and her girlfriend, and my other two older sons, to see one of my sons (a twin) who had just graduated military school with a perfect 4.0 grade average (never before done, so the military was giving my son a special honor and commendation), so I took the rest of my family (no husband as of eleven years) camping from Oklahoma and California, to watch and give support for the other child. I had always warned all my children and their guests, never to go alone to any place while there. They were to take one another, going everywhere with a partner. When I jumped up from the picnic table, running to go 'potty' which was a long way from where I was, I forgot what I had told them. My daughter had not, though, so she followed me. I was running toward the bathroom, when I heard something in the bushes. I remember thinking it was a deer or other small animal and slowed down so as not to scare it.

Then as I walked past the bushes, I was grabbed from behind by someone pulling my long hair and swinging me around to face him; and as he did, I was beaten in the face, with brass knuckles, then dragged by the hair, into the bushes. My daughter, who had run after me, saw me being dragged into the bushes; so she screamed, getting everyone's attention. The assailant fled.

I only remember bits and pieces of the start of my journey. As I lay bleeding and dying, I could hear everyone saying ‘oh my God’; she will never survive that! Get the police! Someone called an ambulance, and they were on their way. I was barely still alive. They started to transport me by ambulance, but i flat lined, so they called for the air medivac. I was dead, but I '' came back'', apparently on my own, after hearing my child's cries in a police car. My face was bashed in, with no way to even get air into my lungs, as blood was flowing outward from every orifice in my upper torso.

Then, I felt this overwhelming warmth, this overwhelming sense of peace, love, and warmth, like I had never felt in this world before.

I remember my life speeding past me, like a fast train that does not stop, and at times, a sort of sadness came over me for a second. But it wasn't like a remorse. It was more like “not having done my best, but I did all I could” thing. Like getting a 'B' on a hard test. I was still overjoyed.

But as it passed, I was instructed by some mental means, to turn my head. Then pressure was put on each cheek. I felt some large object like a ball, going out of my mouth. I was told that I would be okay; that I was going to be shown some things. I was accompanied by two beings. I felt this almost floating feeling. It was what I would imagine a puff of smoke would feel if it were floating upward.

I felt incredible peace and joy. Still, I have not found human words to describe it. There just aren't words. Then I saw a light, but it was bigger, profoundly larger, than just light. It was vast! It was a cloud of warm love. It was as if I were in love with the whole world, and everyone loved me back! It was such a glorious feeling, that I wanted to stay there. I felt no pain, no negatives in anyway. Then, I asked if I could stay. I understood it was up to me. We all have choices. Our life is a gift to us. We make of it as we want. There is a 'God' for lack of a better word, and it would have to be called LOVE! Now I understand some of my father's Bible. I was going forward toward the light, and as I did so, the feeling of love got stronger; but suddenly I heard my daughter's screams and her 'praying to God', to not take her mommy! I instantly felt this 'pull' towards her cries. I then heard from the light that I could go back, but I would have great pain and suffering for a while, and I was told some pretty profound things. I experienced some of the 'future' that I would eventually start and need to finish, as it would help everyone.

So, here I am, much older, just now talking about it. My parents, all my siblings are gone ahead of me, as they were alive then. I have had so many operations, illnesses, and in all, I have come through it as if I were immune.

The man who beat me up, turned out to be my ex-husband, who had been very mean. I used to hate him, even before he did what he did. I truly am either stark raving mad---or someone very nice, very loving came back in me after my experience on the Other Side. I left all my negative, unusable feelings behind, and brought back a newer me. It has taken so many years for me to finally put my finger on when this change started in me. Everyone has seen it. Some just think I am more Christian than before. I would have to say, I am less what my father taught me as a child; a more boundless, loving kind of belief has taken over. I do not worry anymore. It too has gone. I went a place, if you can call it that, which changed my life forever. I cry a lot for everyone here. There is so much suffering. Bless you all.

HORSEBACK ACCIDENT NDE IN 1985, LEAVES YOUNG JEWISH WOMAN WITH PAIN AND INSIGHT

On the last nice weekend in October 1985, a few good friends and I decided to go horseback riding at a summer camp ranch in West Virginia where we had been teaching as department directors in our various fields. It was a beautiful day, clear blue skies, cool but comfortable breezes and a perfect day for riding. We rode around the pastures for several hours without incident. We went back to the corral, staying mounted in the saddle but slowly walking the horses around the ring, waiting for staff to come and take our horses in, one at a time.

Suddenly, everything seemed to happen simultaneously.... the horse in front of me seemed to get spooked by something and the rider lost control as the horse, which then bucked and backed into my horse. I was so relaxed that I was totally unprepared to suddenly have to reign in and control my horse and he bucked very fast and high. The next thing I knew I was airborne and landing very hard on my head with my neck bent inward so intensely that my face was forced onto my chest. My left leg was also yanked forcibly out of the stirrup, tearing the ligaments in my groin and thighs as I landed hard.

At this point, my consciousness seemed to 'bifurcate', and I was simultaneously aware of what was happening to my body, hearing and feeling the bones crack and the ligaments and muscles tear, but of also suddenly watching a "Life Review"! I thought "Oh, it's true! You do see your life pass before you!" It struck me as kind of funny for some reason and very fascinating as I watched the 'movie' of my life play. The recording went backwards, scene by scene, throughout my entire 31 years, every second, relationship, activity, feeling.... then finally back to my birth.

Then, there was blackness for a “moment” (I had no sense of time; it all was happening at the same time, seemingly taking longer than the actual event in physical time). Then. all of a sudden, I (my consciousness) was in a tunnel, traveling faster and faster toward a "Light".... I had no 'body' sense.... just pure beingness, consciousness....

Then there was suddenly a sense of quiet and total peace in this Light. I became aware of another consciousness near me and then another (no bodies!). We had a 'discussion' (there were no words, it was all like instantaneous understanding) ...I was given a choice to come back to my body or stay on the Other Side. I wanted to come back because I felt that I had things that I had to do in this lifetime. It seemed that I was also given a choice of 'paraplegic', 'quadriplegic' or just to be in constant pain for the remainder of my life in “this lifetime”.

I chose the latter, but when I came back to consciousness of my physical body, there was a brief moment when I had to again make the conscious decision to reconnect with my physical body so that I could move my limbs....

At that point, I opened my eyes to see my friends and staff all gathered around me, yelling and trying to figure out who to call and what to do. I insisted that I did not want to go to the hospital, for many reasons, including fear of doctors. I also had no insurance, and I did not want to sue the ranch, which belonged to my employer, where I loved working.

I was carefully taken home by my friends and was laid in bed for over a week, 'healing', only getting up with difficulty for bathroom breaks and food. My neck literally had 'disconnected' from the spinal column and then was 'snapped back'when I came back into my body. It was a disarticulation which badly damaged the cervical vertebrae and twisted the thorax around, off-center.

I think the only reason I did not die when I fractured my neck was because I had been doing yoga and meditating for about 8 years at that point, so I was both strong and flexible...and of course, because of 'G-d'! In retrospect, of course, now I wish I had gotten medical care at the time of my accident, because now I am in constant pain.

One of the very intense realizations was that life is very, very short and we need to love every moment of it and everyone. Because cold weather causes me more pain than usual, I moved to the Caribbean shortly after this. I had been working as an artist and teaching art and in my synagogue, which I loved doing, but the art field was changing (becoming digital, totally virtual now), and I just felt it was time to make a move.

From the islands I moved to south Florida, where I married and changed careers to animal medicine (which again, I loved and was very good at!) I think working with animals did a few things for me including helping that "animal" body of mine to heal, and it opened my heart in a way that was new, in a totally unconditional way, which I think helped me in all other ways in relationships and teaching.

After another twelve years, I divorced and went back to school for a degree in Earth Science and Biology, and I am now working on an ecology doctorate; my intent is to spend the last years of life teaching kids and adults meditation and yoga, organic gardening and art. It is possible, G-d willing, for me to live another 30+ years, and I hope to do so.

I still think about the life review a lot. It means the body is recording everything, like a biological recording device.... I think that I am still processing that part especially, and I've learned that it's very difficult to tell people about it (especially in the academic science world!). It's 'awkward' conversation because they either think you're crazy or you're not being professional Now I can see how visual arts, healing arts, and science can merge in this last third of my life.

Tim B’s NDE in 1983

The last thing I remember about the accident was seeing the patch of gravel and thinking 'This is going to hurt,' and that's all. I flipped my car end-over-end seven times, totaling it, and I was thrown through the roof of my hardtop '67 Corvette headfirst.

There was no pain. The next thing I remember, vividly, is a scene of the ambulance and three people working on me. It was real, but I was not really caring very much. I heard the people restoring my vital signs and one of them said, 'He's paralyzed.' What was strange is that I observed this whole thing looking down onto my body from 12 feet above it and then at the ambulance from twenty feet behind. It was very vivid; I could see and hear everything, but felt detached.

Next thing I 'remember' is that I am somehow near the ceiling and corner of a hospital room, looking down at two or three people working on someone (me) in a hospital bed. It was very weird, and again vividly real. I could see through walls if I wanted to and pass through the ceiling of the hospital room as if it wasn’t even there.

Next, I remember moving, flying very fast, like through a tunnel. I saw a small light in the distance that quickly became large and enveloping. I felt a sense of peace and love and still no pain. I felt I was enveloped by something wonderful, and it must have been God, I guessed. I also felt there was another entity, another creature of light nearby, who communicated with me through something like wordless telepathy. It asked me if I wanted to go back; I didn't really, not feeling like this. The being let me know that I could return, but there would be pain all my life. I recall that he asked me a second time, and I made the bargain. Immediately I returned to regular consciousness in the hospital bed and was hit by unbelievable pain for the first time. I woke in my body looking up and felt for the first time, pieces of broken teeth in my mouth. Pain was back. It was about a day from the accident to my reawakening.

This 'bargain' was so clear to me that I believe it was real, and even though I have tested and tried to deny these events, I cannot. I heard my wife's voice in the emergency room and called out to her. I told her I had been paralyzed. I could not have possibly known this, except that I had somehow 'heard' it when I was unconscious. When I discussed this with my doctor some time later, he was surprised. When I asked him how this could have happened, he said, 'It is the body's natural defense mechanism to shut down.' Well maybe. Similarly, the very few people I have ever talked to about this would also dismiss my experiences as neural last-minute misfires and hallucinations. I am a trained observer and scientist, and I have struggled all my life to try to understand these events.

The post-accident doctor that I spent several years working with---I had crushed the first and third lumbar vertebra, broken several ribs, and crushed most of my teeth---told me he could not really understand why I was not paralyzed and warned me never to go to a chiropractor as any manipulation of my spine could cause damage.

I have never been able to discuss this experience meaningfully with anyone. It's like saying you believe in ghosts or the like, but It was definitely real. In my past I have tried most recreational drugs at one time or another. Nothing at all even comes close to reproducing this experience. I have thought about the experience a lot, and it is amazing that it remains so clear to me, even more than thirty years later.

Tim’s NDE in 1993

During emergency major surgery for perforated diverticulitis that destroyed much of my large and small colon, I rose above the operating table! I saw everyone frantically working to save me. I thought, 'What are they doing?' Then I recognized my face and knew I had died. I was confused for a moment.

Then I was pulled through the ceiling of the room and roof of the hospital and could see I was swiftly ascending. I was drawn inexorably higher away from Earth at an impossible speed. Then I was in the midst of a bright cloudy light with silhouettes waiting to greet me. Soon I saw my dear departed twin sister, grandmother, grandfather, and rows of departed uncles, aunts, etc. I also realized that I could see the entire past and future and present simultaneously!

As I approached my relatives, amidst this incredible Light, I heard a voice that was pure love, compassion, all-knowing, and a total kind authority that spoke to me using my own name. The voice came from the direction of the light and said, 'Tim, it's not your time, you must go back, it's not your time to be here.'

I paused, then argued for what seemed like forever. No way was I returning, I loved it here and was thrilled to be with my departed loved ones again.

Each time I had a 'good reason” why it indeed WAS my time to be there, I was told the same thing: 'But Tim, it's just not your time to be here, you must go back.' The voice was extremely kind and powerful and coming from the left side of the light I saw.

Finally, I realized who was going to win this argument, so I thought I'd have to think of reasons I needed to return. I couldn't think of any. Then I imagined my husband of twenty years waiting for me in the hospital waiting room.

As soon as I thought, 'okay,'--- zoom, I'm back, awake to a horrible, noisy, too-energy-filled place, buzzing with life that seemed too intense and difficult. I had a feeling of déjà vu, probably like the first time I was born from a warm cozy place to this hard cold noisy rock.

I no longer fear death, but I fear the process might not be so easy and painless next time, since I now have advanced cancer.

SOME NDEs ARE LONG AND COMPLEX; OTHERS ARE SHORT AND INCOMPLETE, LIKE THIS ONE. REMEMBER THAT NDEs SEEM TO BE TAILORED TO THE PARTICULAR PERSON WHO EXPERIENCES THEM. FOR EXAMPLE, THIS NDEr DECIDED THAT HIS NDE INVOLVING HIS FATHER WAS UNDERWATER BECAUSE HE HAD BURIED HIS FATHER AT SEA!

Tracy D’s NDE in 2009

I experienced an NDE in February 2009.    Let me start by informing you that I am diabetic, I have psoriasis, and my overall general health is a bit below par. My fault, mostly, as I am not diligently monitoring blood sugar levels or going to the doctor.

I was visiting my mother who had just come out of hip surgery when I began feeling sharp pangs in my abdominal area/lower back region. The pains became severe, so I left the hospital for my mother’s house where I was staying. By the time I arrived, the pangs were very intense and as a result, I called an ambulance. On arrival at the hospital, I had become unconscious, my kidneys then shut down and I went into cardiac arrest…

I found myself sitting 'Indian style' at the bottom of a beautiful tropical lagoon. The water was a beautiful, crystal clear turquoise, type of color. The sand was pure and bright white, and the visibility seemed infinite. There were numerous tropical fish swimming all around that were so vivid in color it seemed as if they were plugged into an electrical outlet and covered in neon lights (difficult to actually describe). I had never seen anything like this before. There was no plant life or coral, rocks or reefs, just white sand, beautiful water, the fish and myself.   I remember thinking ‘Well this is kind of weird’ and ‘How am I breathing underwater on my own?’-- also, ‘Where am I, and how did I get here?’ Then something above caught my eye. I looked up and could see the surface of the water about 10 feet above me, and beyond that, a ball of light that was very bright and descending in my direction. I watched, and as it broke the water’s surface, it dispersed and engulfed the lagoon and beyond.

Thinking it was blinding (but not sure if that was an instinctive reaction, or not, because I do not recall being blinded or even sensitive to any of the brightness during the entire experience) I looked downward at the ocean floor. Suddenly a wooden post impaled itself into the sand about 3 or 4 feet away at somewhat of an angle.   I began to look up and as I did, I saw a pair of feet in sandals and a pair of incredibly pure, bright white pants (also appearing to be neon for lack of a more accurate description). As I continued further upward, I was totally amazed to find that it was my deceased father who had passed two years earlier. He had been diagnosed with a golf ball size brain tumor in the center of his brainstem that was inoperable. Two weeks after the diagnosis it began to bleed and he fell whilst walking out of a restaurant, and was transported via ambulance to the nearest hospital.

There were no ‘Living Will’ or ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ instructions, so we did not know how to proceed. All we knew was that our father was a good man, and lived an exceptional life. He had treated us, and those around him, well, and did not deserve to suffer a prolonged life as a vegetable, nor would he want to. We chose intravenous pain relief and oxygen, with no feeding tube, to make him pain free and as comfortable as possible on his way out. Three different opinions were all describing the same ending: he would not live through surgery, and if by some miracle he did, he would be a vegetable. He passed away three days later somewhat peacefully. His heart just stopped. Racing faster in the end in an effort to increase oxygen levels it just got tired and quit. It was not an easy choice for us.

When I realized it was my father on the post, I realized that I had left life as I knew it, and somehow (I do not recall the journey) had come to this place of beauty and total tranquility. I don't know if it has anything to do with it or not, but we had buried my father at sea, having spread his ashes out of Newport Beach. My first reaction was to say ‘We didn’t know what to do dad … I’m sorry’. He just smiled down at me and said ‘It’s ok, son, you did just fine. I am in a good place. It’s wonderful beyond your imagination. It was my time’.   He looked so perfect, and so at peace. I can't really describe how awesome, calm, and perfect he looked. When he passed, he was 73 years old and all grey beard and moustache. As he appeared before me, he was much younger: in his prime with thick, wavy, bright deep red hair, as he had when he was younger, only much more vivid and intense. Any imperfection or flaw he had was sculptured, chiseled away, to a smooth perfection. he looked perfect, beautiful and consumed with peace and joy and overflowing with understanding and love (I could go on and on). We visited for what seemed like hours, but after my NDE, I discovered I had only been without a heartbeat for 1 min and 14 seconds. We laughed and hugged and cried, and then he hopped down off his post onto the ocean floor and started to walk away. I jumped up and said ‘Dad, hey… wait a minute’ and began to follow him and it was at that moment he stopped, turned around, smiled this huge heartwarming and indescribable smile and said ‘No, son, you’ve gotta go back. They’re fixing you. it’s not your time’.

Then he reached out and touched my shoulder and I don't know how to describe what it felt like, but I believe upon him touching me he placed my life back in me, and I woke up in the hospital back to life as I knew it.

I had suffered a blocked intestine, blood poisoning, kidney failure, and a cardiac arrest, which took me to my NDE.   When I awoke, I aspirated into my lungs and passed back out. I woke up three days later with tubes coming out of everywhere, going who knew where, but I would do it all over again, and again, just to see my POP and know that something absolutely incredible awaits us upon our departure from this human life.   I don't know exactly what it looks like, but I know this - WHEREVER MY FATHER WENT IS ONE AWESOME AND WONDERFUL PLACE BECAUSE HE NEVER LOOKED SO GOOD, AND NEVER LOOKED SO AT PEACE AND SO COMPLETE.

I really cannot find the right words to do justice in relating this whole experience. I believe without doubt IT WAS REAL, LIKE NOTHING I HAD EVER EXPERIENCED BEFORE, NOT EVEN CLOSE. I don't think I gained any special powers nor do I have any more answers to the mysteries of the world. I do not know the future except that death is not an end, but a new and wonderful beginning.

Trisha H’s NDE in 1997

I was 7 months pregnant with my third child when I developed HELLP Syndrome. I had to be hospitalized; then I died.

[HELLP syndrome is a life-threatening condition that can potentially complicate pregnancy. It is named for 3 features of the condition: Hemolysis, Elevated Liver enzyme levels, and Low Platelet levels. It typically occurs in the last 3 months of pregnancy (the third trimester) but can also start soon after delivery. A wide range of non-specific symptoms may be present in women with HELLP syndrome. Symptoms may include fatigue; malaise; fluid retention and excess weight gain; headache; nausea and vomiting; pain in the upper right or middle of the abdomen; blurry vision; and rarely, nosebleed or seizures.]

As I came through a white light, I saw him standing there - tall, young, and wearing a brown military uniform, and I just knew who he was when he reached out his hand, a hand like my dad's hand, my grandfather. As I went to hug him, I was overcome with a deep sorrow and I just cried -- a deep cry that I know I have never felt before. I cried for his short life, for his 3-year old son (my dad) he never saw grow up, for my grandmother who never remarried, and, for me, the grandfather I never knew.

We talked about his plane crash in WWII. I told him that his death was never a subject brought up when I was growing up, and that I only knew a little about him. He explained that my grandmother (his wife) had dealt with her grief in 1945, but that this subject was hard for her. I told him that I was feeling guilty for really never taking an interest in him. He laughed and said, ‘I know, but now the time has come.’ We walked and talked for what seems like a very long time. It was not rushed; it was peaceful.

As we walked, we met other men who had been killed in action. My grandfather stressed over and over how it was my time ‘to set the plane crash right.’ At that time, I knew I wanted to stay, but my grandfather walked me back to what seemed like the outskirts of a town that was still in 1945. At the edge of town was the white light, and at that moment I felt a deep sadness for leaving him. He gave me a hug and said, ‘When you have doubt, or sadness, remember this hug and the warm breeze and you will know it was real.’ I took in every scent of him. I even ‘thought’ I caught my hand on a medal on his jacket.

I felt so torn, but with his words of ‘I love you, and I will be here when you are ready; but not now, for there is so much for you to do,’ I was willing to go back. I asked him about my son I had just birthed. He told me to be strong, ‘Joey will have a mild problem but it will all work out.’ We hugged again and I walked back to the warm light. I saw myself lying on the hospital bed with many tubes before I reentered by body.

TWO NDEs OF A MAN WITH A BAD HEART BUT A GOOD FAMILY!

Hello. I am a 40 year old male. I want to share my near death experiences with you because I really haven't told anyone about everything that I witnessed and saw while I was dead twice.

But let me back up a bit and tell you a bit of background. Like I said, I'm 40 years old but my medical problems started a lot earlier in my life. I had my first heart attack when I was 25 and then almost every year after that I either had a heart attack or another medical issue. When I was a kid, I was very active and never chose to sit inside and be lazy, but instead I would go outside and do something.... anything. I loved sports and the outdoors, and that went on till my first heart attack at 25. The following year I had another one and that was when I had my first NDE.

I remember being in my mom's room while she was on her computer, talking with her and next thing I remember being in an ambulance with the paramedics working on me. I was freaking out telling them I was fine and asked what were they doing and why were they all rushing around? It was confusing but as I was telling them I was fine, I started feeling my chest hurt and BOOM. I woke up again and I was standing in front of a massive Roman-like building with really tall pillars. Light seemed to be coming from all around. As I looked at this building, my uncle, who had died approximately five or six years before this, was standing beside me. He told me that I'm going to have to go into the building, but he will walk with me.

I walked with my uncle through this massive coliseum building with the huge pillars lining the entire way through the middle. As we were walking, nothing was said and it felt like nothing needed to be said. I was calm and didn't feel like I needed to worry at all. As I got to the middle of this room I heard my grandfather's voice saying "This is not your time" and we stopped and I opened my eyes and I was in the hospital. Well after that happened, the heart doctor put in a stent and said that I was lucky to be alive and had been clinically dead for 14 minutes.

So fast forwarding through about 10 years, time in which I had more heart attacks, multiple knee surgeries, neck fusion, all my lower back was fused also and after all that BOOM, another major heart attack... again. This time I woke up in a beautiful rolling field standing on the edge of a large pond. As I looked around I could see that same huge pillar building on the top of a hill in the back left part of this field and a waterfall that seemed to be coming from nowhere that was falling into the other side of this large pond, but as I looked, I had noticed that where the water was falling into the pond that it was causing no disturbance to the water of the pond. It was quite beautiful. There was also a tree line on the back right side of this field that came all the way out almost to the middle of this field. As I'm looking around, I again see my uncle that had met me when I died the first time. When I noticed him, he was smiling at me and said "Hello again". I remember laughing, and he raised his arms and asked "Do you like it?"--referring to my surroundings. I said to him "Yes, I do". He brought one of his arms down motioning towards the pond and said "This is where we are going to be doing our fishing." And as I looked down I could see that I was standing about an inch off the top of the water looking straight down into the pond and seeing large fish swimming around. Then I looked back up to him and he was motioning to me to join him on the other side.

So my uncle says "There is someone waiting for you". I immediately got this feeling of Love but also knowledge, not from my uncle saying anything to me and not from me guessing; it was knowledge that was absolute...infinite. This knowledge was telling me that I knew exactly who was waiting for me, which made me even happier.

Let me pause right here and say something and then I'll get back to my story. Because of all of my medical problems, I am always in a lot of pain. Moving is hard to do, standing or sitting for long periods both give me pain on top of the pain that I already have. Along with other medical issues, walking sucks and running is just out of the question. But when I was dead and on the other side, I felt none of that pain, none of that depression. I felt happy, and this was the kind of happy when all your happiest times are all rolled up into a constant feeling of true happiness. And also when I said that my uncle "told me" or "he said", I never saw his mouth move, he just kept that smile. It was more like his voice was put right into my head. And when I say that we walked....well, it was more like gliding, so while I was there I felt no pain at all and did not get tired from moving or gliding.

Now back to my story. I immediately knew who was waiting for me and where I needed to go, both my uncle and I started off across this field, going toward the tree line in the back right section of this field. The trees were large and full of spring time colored leaves. When we reached the edge of the tree line that stopped about midway through the field, we saw a house. This was a two story beautiful house with a porch, but as I walked to the corner of the house to look down the side I noticed that the house was attached to a truck, like the house was the bed of the truck! Like someone could get in and drive and take the house with them, kinda weird. But when I saw what truck, it was larger than a normal pickup truck. So I came back to the porch of the house and went to the door and knocked on it, because I knew exactly who was going to open it. I just knew it; it was going to be my dad, who had passed a few years before this happened. But before he got to open the door, I heard another familiar voice behind me. It was my grandfather who passed around the same time my dad did... and the same grandfather that pulled me away from the Other Side the last time I died! My grandfather was speaking to my uncle (which is his son), in a concerned voice, " HE IS NOT DONE YET, HE HAS TO GO BACK." I felt my grandfather's hand grab my arm and I was pulled back.

Then my eyes opened and I was lying on a hospital bed with nurses and doctors standing over me. I had a few follow-up appointments with this heart doctor who was the doctor that was standing over me when I woke up, and he said. "Mr Bagwell, you are the luckiest man I've seen." He told me that I had been clinically dead for 27 minutes and that they had been working on me the whole time. Right there at the end of CPR, he put down the defibrillator and said "I'm calling it." So he continued by saying "I put the paddles down, looked up at the clock and said "Mark down TIME OF DEA..." He tells me that as he was starting to say the word 'death', when the heart monitor that was still hooked up beeped once. He said " Huh?" then "Well, let's try one more shock." So they shocked me one more time and my eyes popped open wide looking around the room and trying to move around. I remember hearing one nurse say "Oh, my God" and another say "He must have a guardian angel looking over him." The doctor also told me that they had shocked me with the defibrillator over 13 times and that I had the burns on my chest, if anyone needed proof.

Let me end with this, I have been to the same place twice after dying, seen the same person greet me both times. I've been pulled from that place twice by the same person each time, and each time it was not identical. So, it wasn't like my brain was trying to show me the same thing twice. There are people that will say that it was the brain releasing chemicals or that I was being given drugs in my I.V. along with the chemicals that my brain was releasing or other medical mumbo-jumbo. Nevertheless, this was an experience that showed me exactly where I was going when I do die!

The first time I died, I believed that the hallway of pillars that I was walking down was bringing me to something or someone very important. But not like the second time where I was going to see my dad, the first time felt different as it felt more important. Well that's the end, but I do every once in a while remember things that I didn't think of the first time, so I probably will be adding to this post when that happens.

For those of you that have negative things to say about my experiences or want to make comments about the medical way this happened, I'm not interested. I know what happened. I know I was in a beautiful, good place with family that loved me and that's all that matters.

Vadra P’s NDE in 1994

I was being choked to death by an acquaintance. I tried to ask him to let go, but I was being choked so hard that I couldn't even get words out of my mouth. The last thing that I remembered was looking at him in pain.

All of a sudden, I was in the most beautiful place that I had ever seen, and I felt like I was really there. The grass was so very green and the trees were more beautiful than I had ever seen. I was happier and freer then I have ever felt (even to this day). It was wonderful and peaceful. The smell of the air was a freshness that I cannot explain. I could move from one place to another in a blink of an eye, and everywhere I went was different, but just as beautiful. I could actually fly. It just took a thought, and off I would go. I felt as though I was in a very familiar place and was afraid of nothing. I was around many children, and I felt even younger then I actually was. It's hard to explain the sensations I felt. I was playing, flying, and looking down on the earth from far above. I had no fear, anxiety, confused feelings or anything like that. I felt whole, like that peaceful life that everybody longs for. I'll never forget it because it was absolutely wonderful.

Then all of a sudden my body, which had felt no pain to that time, started to tingle, and everything went black. I woke up in the same spot where he had choked me. I could feel my body again, and I felt pain all over! I felt like a million knives were stabbing me, then I opened my eyes and felt the comfort of God by my side, and I felt a peace knowing where I'm going when I do die. It was a wonderful place, but, of course, I'm not in a hurry to get back there now. GOD be with you All!!

Valerie H’s NDE in 1977

I was taken into surgery early in the morning of April 6, 1977. I was given an epidural for the Cesarean. They made me lie back on the table. The anesthesiologist pinpricked me from the chest down to make sure I couldn't feel pain for the surgery. (It is unusual for a Cesarean patient to go under general anesthesia, so I was awake for the surgery.) My arms were tied away from my body. A class of student nurses from Old Dominion University were invited in to view their first surgery. There were eight to ten of them.

The surgeon began to make the first incision, but the epidural had not taken effect. The pain was incredible. The surgeon was working quickly as he made the incision on the uterus. At that time, an explosion of blood blew out all over the surgical team and the student nurses. During the incision of the uterus, the surgeon had cut through large veins causing me to bleed out. The students began to scream and the surgeon was shouting to get them out of there. Then I left my body.

I was above everything with absolutely no pain! I felt total peace. I knew that I was dying or dead and that didn't bother me. I saw my son being lifted out of me and then being worked on. The operating room had windows very high toward the ceiling, and there was a woman sitting on the tile window sill. She was wearing a white drape and was very pretty, with short dark hair. She was smiling at me, and I went over near her, watching what was happening below. I could see snow on the ground outside of the window. I felt total peace and incredible joy. She nodded to me, and, unexpectedly, I moved instantly down corridors of the hospital into a room where my husband and mother were waiting. The room had a brown leather and metal recliner and my mother was buying a Dr. Pepper from the vending machine. I confirmed the accuracy of these observations later with my mother. She and my husband were talking.

I then sped back to the operating room and back into my lifeless body. I woke up later in recovery and was given unit after unit of blood. I was in terrible pain and quite frightened and wished for the tranquility of my experience again.

The experience, which I believe was real, changed my life. Now I have a peace which attracts a lot of my very-best-friends. Most people are very comfortable around me and can talk to me. I feel good in my own skin. I see my sons as gifts, and I have wonderful relationships with them. I take more time to get to know people.

Veronica W’s NDE in 1995

I will share my near death experience and will make it as brief as possible. In the summer of 1995 in Connecticut, I was alone home gardening and by accident put my hand into a black wasp or hornet's nest. I had multiple stings. Being allergic, I went into anaphylactic shock, but had enough time to call 911 before I went into full shock.

While in the ambulance, I could hear the paramedics discussing the severity of my condition and the last words I remember from then was, ‘We don’t have a pulse. She is flat lining. If we give her any more medication, it will kill her.’ Then some other debate over what to do. Then I was gone.

I went directly to a place of light. It was calm and immediate. There was no sensation of travel. The place seemed to be the exterior of an entry way. There was one major being and several other beings with actual personhood or souls. I could not see much but light and vague outlines. There was nothing but love, goodness, and truth. There was no room for fear or evil or anything but this love. It was more wonderful than any of my best hopes or experiences on this planet. It was beyond perfect and loving, as we in our human state know it. There are no words to describe it. I was so happy to be there.

I was shown a close up picture of my daughter's face and was told that she would need me. I was fifty-five at the time and my daughter was in her junior year of college. The major heavenly being of love, who I call God, imparted the message to me directly through thought that I could stay or I could go back. It ‘hit me’ or brought home to me that I was not in my earthly place. I knew that this was a very important decision, but when I sensed God's love for me, it was my most emotionally intense and heartbreakingly beautiful moment.

Remembering it, I am crying again. The emotions of love and gratitude toward God are overwhelming. I felt no fear, which is strange, because I get anxious easily on earth. I felt safe, known, loved, understood, and cared for like I have never known. I felt euphoric, yet calm. I wanted to stay immersed in God's love, to stay there. I had to be reminded of those I loved so much on earth, because the love in Heaven was so inviting.

But, my sense was that it would please God if I went back to earth. I loved God, so that just knowing this made me want to please Him. He warned that it would not be easy for me back on earth and gave me a chance to ‘consider.’ I was shown that if I chose to go back that I would encounter difficult times and that God wanted me to know that before I made my decision. Then the second I decided in my mind to go back, I woke up in the hospital bed.

The hives were like bunches of grapes on my body and I was on oxygen mixed with medication. I was hooked up to tubes. There were many doctors around me. They were amazed at my condition and that I regained consciousness.

Several months after that, I went through a horrible divorce. My divorce attorney as well as the judge was bribed or swayed in some way by my ex-husband to rule unfairly in my divorce. My beautiful home was foreclosed on and I was left in debt while my ex-husband kept millions. I had to take a teaching job in a dangerous school because of my age and lack of recent teaching experience. It was mid school year. One terrible experience after another occurred that compromised my health and physical condition.

I finally remarried after five years. Then my daughter did need me. She was married and had a dangerous, life -threatening pregnancy that left her on complete bed rest, hemorrhaging often, and having other complications. Her baby girl was born one month early but was healthy, beautiful, and identified as gifted now at five years of age. The child's chances were about one in a million to survive. My daughter and granddaughter did need me as I cared for her mother throughout her pregnancy. There have been many times that weren't as dramatic where my daughter did need me, as well.

So the hard times, my daughter needing me, and the vivid, indescribable near-death experience changed my life. I miss God and my taste of heaven, but I know there is a reason for me to be here. I feel sad that I have not reached the level of being a truly loving person yet, but I feel that God knows I love Him and I am trying. There is so very much more that words can't express, but what I have written is about the best I can describe of my experience in mere human words. Each experience of death is tailored for us, it seems, yet there are common elements.

THIS ATHEIST REPORTS HIS PARTIAL NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE. HE CAN REMEMBER IT IN DETAIL, BUT, PERHAPS, BECAUSE IT ENDED ABRUPTLY “IN THE MIDDLE”, IT DID NOT CONVINCE HIM THAT IT WAS A PROOF OF LIFE AFTER DEATH.

Walter R’s PARTIAL NDE--- FROM ITALY. ORIGINAL IN ITALIAN.

I don't remember the date of my experience for the simple fact that I've let a lot of years pass -- I never told anybody about it because I didn't want to be ridiculed. I was seventeen years old at the time. I was thinking about the girls, and I certainly didn't want to be made fun of by them -- I preferred to keep everything inside.

I was at the beach. It was a splendid sunny Sunday and just like all the others, I wanted to enjoy my day off in the warm ultraviolet rays that give you a bronze colored tan. I remember that it was very hot and the better alternative was to take a healthy swim out to the rocks and then to return to the sun. The water was calm, like a sheet of crystal, clear and as warm as a thermal bath. I dove in and, as was my habit, swam underwater, keeping my eyes open so as not to bump into the rock that I was headed for.

Once I arrived at the rocks, I decided to dive in twice where I knew the water was the deepest. Before I did so, I clung to the rock. I looked down and could see the wonders of the ocean floor, the fish, the starfish, etc. Then I went back toward the beach to eat a meal of pasta. I was practically out of the water, wiping my face with both palms of my hands, and then in one second I felt myself fall into a hole in the sand beneath the water. I managed to take a breath and instinctively used my arms to break my fall as my body very slowly was engulfed by sand. I remember feeling intense cold in my feet. I tried to wriggle about to get out, but my legs were folded and the pressure of the sand was so strong that I was held in its grip. The worst problem was the fact of having my arms and head out of the sand but - under water! I don't know how long all of this lasted, but time seemed to pass both very quickly and very slowly. Then the panic dominated me with a devastating force. I was conscious and understood that this was not the classic gulping in of water that leads to vomiting. I was hoping that someone would come and pull me out of the tight grip of the sand, which had become my torture chamber.

The instinct to take a breath was overwhelming, and I was incredulous at what was happening to me. I don't remember breathing in the water, but I knew it was in my mouth by the sound of the grains of sand crackling between my teeth. I could taste the bitterness and the saltiness of an ocean that I had never hated as much as at that moment.

I then entered into a calm phase, where my memories flowed past in a fantastic way; things I would have never remembered without the help of someone else, and yet there they were before my eyes like books that had been written. During all the memories, a particular and strange question kept being asked and it overrode all the rest: If I die now, how will I be at work tomorrow? It might seem absurd, but I wasn't even concerned in the least about the pain my family would feel. I only cared about work.

Then a new wave of panic took over, which little by little dissipated, and I remember that I lost awareness as if an iron curtain slowly descended. I reopened my eyes. The situation had changed; it seemed like a dream. I found myself about 30 feet above the ground, immobile, levitated into the air, and below me on the shore was my body, lying there with a bunch of people around it. They were screaming, they lifted my legs, someone gave me mouth to mouth and cardiac massage. I had no questions and no answers; I felt neutral and just observed the scene, knowing full well that this body on the ground was me.

Like a change in scene on TV, I found myself flying (still at the same height above the ground, 30 feet) over a green field, but the green was a splendid color.   I flew through this amazing green at a good clip, and I remember that this field was like a hillside, and I needed to get over the top. Below me the grass passed by but the horizon did not get any closer.

Then another change of scene: In a flash I was in a tunnel of light, but there I wasn't flying and I wasn't walking.   I moved as though zooming. I got to the middle of the tunnel and the light was becoming more and more intense, but the brighter it got, the more my joy grew, a warm joy, a sensation of peace, it was like looking at the sun, but the sun compared to this light is weak, very weak: in addition, the sun is very annoying.

The closer I came to the end of the tunnel, the more I became aware that on my right, something or someone was waiting for me. I couldn't make out who or what it was, but it certainly was a shadow with human form from the waist up. Once I arrived at the source of the light, I only saw this immobile shadow. Suddenly the joy that the light was giving me became even more complete. It was as though I had become a child again and was feeling the affection and the warmth of a hug, but not the loving embrace of a friend; it was more a feeling of a newborn in the arms of its mother, or grandmother. Through all these amazing feelings, one in particular impressed me the most. I was free of all weight and had no physical form. As I spent time with this immobile shadow, I felt a caress on my face, and then suddenly darkness, and then right away the light again, but it was a different light, annoying. I felt chaos and an aggravating feeling of stickiness on my skin, not to mention the pain in my chest.   I had returned to the beach.

I didn't remember everything in that moment. I was in a 'state' and it was only after several hours that all memories returned. I am an atheist and don't believe in any religion whatsoever.   I believe in science and not in heaven or life after death.   I think it's all a product of the subconscious, but I wanted to tell my story as one of my outlets and also for those who study these phenomena.

FEW NDEs END AS THIS ONE DOES. MAKES ME WISH I KNEW HOW WAN FU IS DOING.

Wan Fu’s Suicide and NDE---from China. Original in Chinese

I am twenty-five years old this year. A childhood illness resulted in muscle atrophy of my body. From the age of sixteen, this atrophy was so bad that I was confined to a wheelchair. The failure of my business added to my depression. I started to get tired of the world and felt that I couldn’t live any longer. Life had no meaning for me, I had no future, and even the colors of the world were gray, black and white. Although I was alive, I was in so much pain, I chose to end my life. I took a bottle of the sleeping pills I used for my depression.

Lying in bed, I quietly waiting for death. I thought that taking sleeping pills would be the easiest way to die, but I was wrong. My consciousness gradually became blurred, and my five senses began to be out of control. Gradually, I could not hear any sounds around me. I felt that I was slowly separating from the world. My pain was gone; my heart was calm.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach, like it was burning. It felt like I had drunk sulfuric acid and I was roasting in a fire. This heat spread from the left side, to the right side, and down the intestines. My lungs felt like they were burning, so I couldn't breathe.

The scary thing was that I still had a clear sense of consciousness. Something kept coming out of my mouth, probably stomach juice, which soon blocked my respiratory tract. I could not breathe. The brain began to lack oxygen. At this time, I blamed myself very much. I felt regret. I should not have chosen this way to kill myself. I couldn't move, couldn't ask for help, couldn't talk, and couldn't open my eyes. There was nothing to do except to accept the imminent death. I could feel the tears and vomit mixing on my face. This was a death without dignity. Suicide has always been the way of a coward, where death has lost its nobility.

I don't know how much time passed. Then there was no feeling at all! I felt all my uncomfortable feelings dissipate. I felt very warm, like the warmth of a winter when wrapped in a quilt at my parents without the threat of the cold. I expected this to be my last moment.

Suddenly, my brain felt like it exploded! All my memories in life were blown out to see! Every detail was very clear in the form of my visual senses. Yes, I could see myself young and asking for five cents from my mother to buy popsicles. Looking concerned, my mother told to cross the road carefully. As I watched myself tasting the popsicles, it was like a re-experience. I again experienced my past life in the first-and-second-person perspective, before I took the sleeping pills. It turned out to be, that everything is worth remembering. It is like a revolving lantern.

Then I saw my father's orange cat that he had before he died. He rubbed his head against my body as usual, seeking my soft strokes. I could still smell the shampoo that my mother used to bathe. My surroundings gradually came into focus. I saw the sofa, stove, coffee table, TV cabinet, TV, wall, clock on the wall, and a security door. This was the house I had lived in growing up. I had lived there for twenty years. My father was sitting on the opposite sofa. I was lying on the couch. The TV was showing the soap opera, 'The Zhong’s Grocery Store', a melodrama comedy shown on our local TV station at 6 o'clock every night.

Dad smoked a cigarette as he held a teacup. He asked me, 'Did you wake up?' I didn't dare talk because I couldn't tell if this was reality, a dream, or something else. I got scared because I knew that my father was dead. It is impossible for him to be alive before my eyes. It has been four years, so how is it possible? Am I dead? I dare not ask this. My dad said, 'Get up and eat the food left for you.' I did, and then my dad spoke again saying, 'You still have something to do.' He then was talking to himself, 'She will be so sad. We are not there. How can she live?' His voice was getting louder, like a stereo in amplified sound, and his face was also getting scarier. This concern for my mother forced me to come back into my body.

I woke up again. This time I saw my mother, who was looking at me with tears. She told my aunt that I was conscious. I still didn't know if this was reality or another horrible dream. My cousin's cousin and my good friends were sitting on the bedside. My ex and first love girlfriend I had dated for seven years was also there. With so many acquaintances, I knew that I had been rescued from death. Everyone said, 'You should not do such a silly thing (suicide).'

I have now recuperated, but I have seen two worlds and they are both real. I don't know which one is the world I am in. Since my experience, I have been left fearful and anxious.

Wayne R’s NDE

I was traveling home from work in the fog in a car driven by my work mate Mark. I was sitting in the back seat of the car without a seatbelt when a car appeared out of the fog and struck us head on. I was thrown violently through the car and impacted the door which burst open, and I landed on the road face down. It all happened in slow motion and I do not remember any pain at the time.

I remember feeling the ice cold stones on the road sticking to my face, and I remember just standing up and immediately thinking what a wonderful feeling of no cold air---the temperature was exactly the same as my body. I remember looking down because I couldn't feel the road below my feet and yet I was standing there. I looked at a body lying face down and did not know that it was me. I had no fear and concern about this person, and yet I was starting to wonder what was going on as people were running around a car accident. I tried to ask a person if there was any one hurt and they ignored me. They placed a blanket completely over the body on the road.

I remember wondering why the body had a droopy sort of “monk shirt” on. As I walked forward, I moved right through the car body in front of me! Something seemed very peculiar about what I had just done, but I could not put my finger on what it was. I then felt a pull on me and had no power to stop it from dragging me into the body under the blanket!

I felt sudden pain as the road stuck to my bleeding face was so cold. I again stood up (without my body), and this time I asked about the person under the blanket. Again no one was seeing or hearing me and I was now becoming frightened. No longer feeling the road on my face, I walked over to a person lying in the grass at the side of the road. It was Mark, and I was asking if he was alright? I looked around and saw the car’s steering wheel lying down the embankment.

Then I heard a voice in my right ear. It said “Do not look at the light.” I could feel what I thought was the sun behind me but knew instinctively not to look at it. The pull of the light on me was great, but at the same time I again felt a pull on my face and upper body, drawing me back into my body under the blanket. The pain and cold from the reality of the road was accompanied by a voice saying "He's not dead; take the blanket off him.”

I was put into the ambulance and, after a couple of days, I was considered medically alright but very bruised. I went to saw Mark in hospital, and we talked about what had happened. He said that they cleaned up the wreck but could not find the steering wheel that had ripped off on impact. I told him where it was lying and he laughed, saying that he had heard that I was dead and covered up. I then told him my story, and later we went back to the crash site, and I went straight to the place where the steering wheel was. It was there.

Wendy G’s NDE in 1982---from Canada

I had not been well for about a week. I had extreme abdominal pain and went to the doctor for a noon appointment. I almost cancelled the doctor's appointment as the pain had subsided around 10 a.m. When I got to the doctor's office, I was examined quickly and he ordered an emergency ultrasound. During the ultrasound, they stopped and I was booked into emergency surgery for 12:30 p.m. that day. I was put to sleep in the operating room.

Then all of the sudden, I started floating out of my body. I felt free, peaceful, no pain. I looked down and they were doing compressions on me. I continued to float up and a tunnel appeared. There was a beautiful tunnel with a bright light at the end of it. The light was brighter than the sun but did not hurt my eyes. It was pure white light. I knew that I had died and would be leaving behind a 5-6 month old infant and my husband, but I did not care. I wanted to go into the light. I wanted to go home.

When I came through the light, I knew everyone there and they were so happy to see me, welcoming me home. They were all dead relatives I had never met before, but I knew everyone. They also appeared in human-form, to be recognized, but somehow I sensed that was not their true form now. I had a connection with everyone and almost a collective consciousness.

I do not know how to describe it. There are so many emotions right now as I recall it, but before I saw everyone when I came through the light, it felt like a blanket of love was wrapped around me. No words on earth can express the love or the feelings. Everything was ‘pure’, the brightest blues, greens, reds, yellows, whites, purples. It was like a filter being removed to see the purity of everything. I turned and saw what I believe was God. It was pure energy, but you knew who it was and the great wisdom that was within. God spoke to me that the message to bring back was love. “We all have to live in love.”

The next thing I saw was a meadow in the mountains with indescribable beauty. The sky was the bluest blue; the grass was the greenest green. All colors here are extremely pale compared to there. I saw my grandmother, running with children, towards me. She took me by the hand and we were at the beginning of a bridge over a small creek. We talked for what seemed like hours about my life since she had died. I had just turned 9 years old when she died. She was so vibrant and healthy, despite dying of a brain tumor. I told her how much I missed her and she said that she watches over my son and me. She then said something unexpected to me, 'You have to go back, it is not your time, yet.' She also said that a ‘blink of an eye could be 80 years’ in our time but that time was man-made. ‘There is no time here.’ I understood what she meant. I said that I wanted to stay and she said ‘it is not your time’. All of the sudden, I was falling back through the tunnel; the light was getting farther away.

All of the sudden, I felt all this pain, excruciating pain from being back in my body. As I was falling back into my body, they were still doing compressions on me. The next thing I knew I woke up in the recovery room; the nurses called to the doctor that I was awake. There was a lot of fussing around me. I was confused and extremely angry that I was back in my body.

It took me about 4 years to bring up this event to my husband and then he belittled me, stating that I was crazy. I never spoke about it again for about 10 years. By that time I was divorced and getting my life back together. I was still angry about being here but have come to terms with it and the anger is gone. I know I will be going back there when it is my time.

William L’s NDE 1991

I was with friends enjoying the evening. One of my friends decided to punch me in the chest in an attempt to make me play 'the knockout' game. I was furious.

But before I could react, I found myself in the greenest field and landscape I've ever seen. At the end of the field was what looked like a beach or cove with high cliffs. On my way to the beach, I realized I wasn't walking or running. I was just in a timeless float to the beach.

On the way there, I realized several things at once. I had no body, but if I wanted to see my hands, they appeared, but not solid. I also realized that the only feeling was bliss, like being wrapped in a blanket of love.

When I reach the cove, there are several shapes coming to me. I realize the closest shape as my grandfather who starts laughing and telling me that, 'All is well.' The other people don't allow me to see their faces. I asked who they are and why I can't see them. All my grandfather said was that they loved me and wanted me to know that.

Being adopted, I think they may be biologically associated to me, but I don't know for sure. Soon, my grandfather said it was time to go. I gave no thought about the physical place I just was in. Earth never crossed my mind. I was home and wanted to stay.

My grandfather laid me down, said 'bye' and then he made me repeat a phrase over and over. I knew instantly that I was to repeat it as soon as I woke up. And I did.

Soon, full consciousness hit me hard. I opened my eyes and saw all my friends gathered around me looking down at me on the floor. My first words were, 'Quick! What was I just repeating?' They all said they didn't know. They were too scared at what had happened and they were working on bringing me to consciousness. I still don't remember what the phrase was.

This memory is more vivid than any dream or waking experience for decades now. I didn't even realize what had happened until years later, when I heard of NDEs. I had just always put it off as some brain malfunction.

Young Mother Drowns in Sailing Accident

It was a windy day for sailing our 18 ft “Flying Dutchman” sailboat with 3 onboard, my husband at tiller, his father (crew), and I was attached to a “trapeze” for ballast. My harness was velcroed to my waist with a “quick release” toggle (the trapeze wire was attached to the top of the mast).

My husband asked his dad to lean back for more ballast as a gust hit our sails. By mistake, Dad leaned forward and the boat capsized, and I found myself trapped under 15 ft of water. My harness would not disconnect. I panicked and expelled all my air (after about 30 seconds of struggling with the harness). I also clearly remember sucking in a lot of water into my lungs, and shortly afterward gave up fighting, accepting my drowning, and I “gave in” to death.

At that point, I vividly remember seeing a white light. I felt absolutely calm, happy, and eager to join other dying people going to the light. I felt deceased family members (Grandmother, Grandfather) with me, helping me, guiding me. I remember other souls, which I believed were angels, more white in appearance, helping me. As I approached a tunnel leading toward the light, I heard a clear male voice say to me, “Go back, it’s not your time, you have a son to take care of.” My son was about a year old at the time.

Those words jarred me back to my bad situation but gave me strength to fight some more, and, at the same time, my husband began to dive down with a mouthful of air to “buddy breathe” me. He also got my harness to release from my waist (on his third dive down), and I bolted to the water's surface to find I was under the boat, breathing stale air! I dove down again, through ropes and sails, to finally reach the surface to breathe fresh air!

I was under the water for almost 3 minutes, according to my husband and his father.

I will never forget this NDE and feel blessed to know how pleasant the next stage will be (after my death). I am not afraid. I have experienced a few close calls with my health since then, still not afraid. I also believe and read and practice spirituality, meditation, and compassion, trying to make sense of this event in my life.

NDE had by a patient with a heart attack, told by his physician

A prominent figure in the field of resuscitation science told about his own recollection of the first patient he had resuscitated back to life as a new medical intern. He said:

I was a brand-new doctor. . . . I had in fact been a doctor for just five days and had never treated a patient with a cardiac arrest. I was told [by my superiors] to go and see a patient who was having a heart attack in the CCU. I walked into the room and introduced myself, and the gentleman introduced himself back. Then at that point his eyes suddenly rolled back in his head, and he fell back into his bed. Being a doctor for just five days, I figured there were probably only two options to account for what had just happened—either he had fainted, or he had suffered a cardiac arrest. I knew it was the latter, as I suddenly saw five nurses run into the room with terrified faces! At that moment my own worst fears had been realized. I was all alone. I had no one to collaborate with, and I had never taken care of a cardiac arrest patient before. A thought directed to my seniors who had sent me to the room alone rushed through my head: “How could you do this to me?”

But I got over that really quickly and started CPR. In those days there was no catheter lab. There was no therapy for a heart attack. You would just leave the person to finish his heart attack, and if he had a cardiac arrest you would shock him quickly [give an electrical shock using a defibrillator]. Finally after ten minutes of CPR, many more people came into the room, but he just kept on rearresting [having cardiac arrests]. This process went on for quite some time, and the doctors who were in the room had other things to attend to—so what did they do? They left the intern to stand by and deliver the shock treatment when he needed it again. So I remained at this man’s bedside from 5:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. in the afternoon, shocking him repeatedly when he went into ventricular fibrillation. He had a prolonged cardiac arrest. At this point the housekeeping staff came into his room to serve his lunch. I was hungry. So I ate his lunch! I certainly couldn’t leave his room, and he wasn’t going to eat it!

We finally stabilized him after many hours, and he ended up having a long and complicated hospital course. Then some thirty days later, on his last day before discharge, he said to me, “Can you please shut the door and come and sit down?” I thought that was kind of funny, so I went and shut the door and sat down. He said, “I want to tell you something. I have been meaning to tell someone, and you are really my doctor. You have been here the most, and I felt I can share this with you.” He then went on to describe a complete near-death experience. He went down a tunnel. He saw the light. He talked to his dead relatives. He talked to a higher being and was ultimately told he needed to come back. This was a really detailed and prolonged near-death experience, but at the end of it he said, “You know, I thought it was awfully funny . . . here I was dying in front of you, and you were thinking to yourself, ‘How could you do this to me?’ And then, later, you ate my lunch!”

So that certainly got my attention as a new physician! I have been fascinated by the experience ever since, and I often ask my patients about their experiences. It seems to be recalled by about 10 percent of them.

Later on somebody in the audience asked him whether he had vocalized or expressed to the nurses his thoughts, fears, and frustrations about being left alone by his seniors to deal with this very complicated medical emergency. He said, “No, I just thought it to myself and hadn’t said a word to anyone else. The thought just glanced past my mind for an instant.”

DKG’s NDE in 2017---This woman told me her NDE at a quilt show!

It happened when I was 18, just graduated from high school, newly engaged, and accepted into nursing school. (A time when I had many questions and some rebellion about life and religion)

I was eating a cold hamburger left-over and aspirated a piece of the meat. I cleared my throat and thought I was okay; so I walked into the living room, sat down to play cards with my sister, and “passed out” My Mom turned me over and stuck her finger down my throat to get the aspirated meat out. By that time I had stopped breathing; and, from my sister’s description later, it sounds like I convulsed.

My Dad ran upstairs and started the old fireman style breathing. I remember knowing I was going to die, and there was an acceptance that came over me. I watched my Dad work on me from up above. I heard my mother yell, but my sister and Dad later said she did not say a word.

Then I was in a place of wonderful light. I don’t know how I got there; it was a a seamless transition. There are no earthly words to describe this experience but I will try. The light was bright but pleasing and comforting. There was a feeling of LOVE greater than anything on earth. A feeling of acceptance and welcome. I had a “feeling’ that there were many beings there. I did not feel a body; it was more like spirit or maybe better – a weightlessness.

I heard a chorus singing – it was beautiful and I have discovered no music on earth that comes close to what I heard. I saw my coffin and it was empty, my Mom and Dad were there crying, my new fianceé was there and I had this silly thought that since I was dead would he let me keep the ring?! As I was seeing this, I was told it was not my time – it was not a voice but a thought that entered my head from somewhere.

I woke up and was on the floor with Dad working on me. Then I was taken to the hospital via ambulance. I was given a sedative. I told my mother and father and sister about what had happened to me while I was dead after I returned home. Since my mother “saw” relatives before they died – they would come visit her usually the night before they died, she had no trouble believing my story. My father was raised Catholic and had no trouble believing it. I told my fianceé, and he felt like I was dreaming it. He believed I dreamt that I had experienced this. I told no one else because I knew, at that time, they would think I was crazy. So much has now been documented about NDE that it is different today.

My NDE experience is very real to me, and I am 70 years old now. I have no fear of death, as the place I will go is wonderful bliss! Of course I still have a fear of the dying process. That may be an effect of my profession. I am a retired RN and have seen many people die in various states of pain, decreased mental capacity, or injury inflicted by someone else. My NDE did change my views about life and religion – I know that there is a time and a place each of us will die. It will be determined by the creature of LOVE – we name God. I believe there is no one true religion. Although I was raised Protestant, I have converted to Catholic as my husband is Catholic with a capital C. I think that many of the religious teachings are true but have been corrupted by translation and man to control people – that is not the LOVE and LIGHT I felt. That experience left me with the impression that there is no “hell”. There is compassion and understanding in “heaven”. I live knowing that I have had a good life – that there will be a time and place for me to leave this earth. That is totally ok. My earthly being is filled with love and light – I am not sure how to explain this. There is a heaven with the greatest LOVE of all!!

Bob R’s NDE in 1955

While boating on a river in deep water with my father and his friend, the boat turned over. I could not swim and there were no life jackets. I had no contact with the other two people while I struggled in the water and was terrified of drowning. When I opened my eyes, I saw a large white fish, which somehow calmed me down a bit. My lungs began to hurt a lot and I was forced to release some air. As they continued to hurt more, I gulped in some water. Shortly after that, I remember passing out.

The next thing I knew I was floating above the river and the overturned boat. I saw the two other people frantically looking for me. I thought this was rather strange and unnecessary, as I was fine and in no pain or danger, just floating comfortably. It did seem a little strange that I was floating, but it was so much better than being in the water that I was OK with it. I also saw two women on the shore who had not been there before, but I did not know who they were. I then entered a void. It was total blackness and total silence. I became afraid of the void. I did not know what it was and did not like it at all.

In a short time, I found myself moving through a tunnel. I was scared at first but it was better than the void, and I became comfortable there, especially as I approached a light. I was wondering where I was going. I found myself in a space that was very calm and comforting. The lighting was a little unusual. I could not see a particular source of the light, but it was there and was warm and welcoming.

Two beings were there, both males. I felt like I knew them, as if they were distant relatives, but I could not identify either one. They were dressed in clothes that we would wear on earth. We talked for a short time. I can't remember the exact details. I was asking them who they were and where I was. I remember having the feeling that they were not answering my questions in a clear and direct manner. I believe I was beginning to understand I had crossed over to the other side.

All talking was telepathic. No words were spoken. At that point, I reviewed/experienced a whole lot of information. I don't remember any of the specifics. What I understood was a decision had been made during that review/experience. One of the beings asked me if I was ready to go with them. I said, ‘no’. I actually said ‘I want my mama, I want my mama,’ which meant ‘no, I want to go back’. The being that asked me the question looked a little disappointed. The other being turned to him and said, ‘He wants to go back; he has more work to do.’ I did not know what he was talking about in regards to this ‘work’. As I wondered what he meant about ‘having more work to do,’ I suddenly found that there was a bright light in my eyes.

I could not understand what it was. I then realized my eyes were closed. When I opened them, I discovered I was looking directly at the sun. I blinked and looked around and immediately knew I was back in the water. My response was, and I said this to myself, ‘I don't want to be back here, in the water.’ My desire was to return to wherever I had just been: a very safe and comfortable place. I knew I could not go back. I had made a decision and I could not change it. I found that my fear was mostly gone, and I felt perfectly healthy as someone behind me held me above the water and I was breathing again. That made it easier to be ‘back,’ because my big fear was to be under the water, not above it. Somehow, we got to shore. I never had any ill effects from the drowning.

Brigitte B’s NDE in 1988 from Italy. Original in Italian

I am the second of four children and as a child, I was a brat. I drove everybody crazy, in particular my brothers. I remember that on the day of my fourteenth birthday, one of my brothers promised to take me shopping. I had been waiting for that day. Since I was the only girl in the family, they did not let me go out often. So this was an event for me that was not to be missed. Unfortunately, an unexpected phone call messed with my plans. The fact my little brother wasn't keeping his promise with me so he could meet a girl was unacceptable to me. So I decided to waste his meeting. I saw my brother leaning on the basin to wash his hair and I decided to hide his shampoo, knowing that it would make him mad. I wanted him to change his mind. He asked me gently to give it back to him; once, twice, and thrice. But instead of giving him his shampoo back, I turned to run away. At that time, he instinctively seized me by my neck. I felt no pain, but my brother was accidentally strangling me!

From that moment on, my reality changed. I felt my shoulders seized by an indescribable force. It was as if I were being pushed into a tunnel of stars. I was going so fast that the stars were dashing by me at light speed! Then suddenly, everything stood still. I found myself hovering in one place that was in the most absolute and dense darkness. I remember I was vainly struggling to see something. I remember this feeling of waiting, as if something or somebody was to arrive. I had the feeling that there was something else after that standstill. Slowly, the thick and unfathomable darkness turned into a warm and comfy gray color. Then I noticed I could see 360° in all directions at once. I began to realize that I wasn't afraid. I glanced downward, and to my amazement I found that my body looked different. At chest height, there was a sphere of white light emanating rays. I could around me, although there was still all darkness beyond that.

Suddenly, I had a shower of questions I wanted to have answered. They were questions like: What is God, if It exists, how were we born on earth, questions that in all honesty I never asked myself before, because I was too young to ask myself such serious questions. At the same time, I began receiving answers! I was startled! Then I began to feel at one with that place. The knowledge was filling the voids. Being so young, my mind was yearning for knowledge. I remember all the positive sensations I experienced as time went by. I felt more and more as if I were acquiring some amazing energy. Not now feeling the burden of my physical body was supplying an experience of freedom that cannot be reached on earth. All the positive feelings I was experiencing were amplified to their highest degree. Suddenly all came to a close.

I felt my body, like each inch was pierced by needles; even my eyes! It was as if I were waking up to unbearable pains. I also felt tired, as if I were going to fall asleep. I began seeing some sort of flashes. A guy next to me was asking: “Can you hear me? Stay awake!” I remember I tried to say to him not to touch me because I felt pain everywhere. The next recollection I have was of awaking in a hospital under observation. At times, I tried to open my eyes, and I could see white overalls or my mother or my brother. Later they told me what had happened; namely, that my brother had caught me by my neck. He had squeezed my carotid artery, blocking the blood flow to my brain. When my brain got no more oxygen, I had a cardiac malfunction, and the combination of these made my heart stop. I remember bruises on my chest from resuscitation attempts and blows given because they weren't succeeding in bringing bring me back.

It took me a long time not to hate the whole world. I spent many months alone in my room. I remember this experience left me with a wish to be alone; weird, but true. Now, years later, I remember all of the experience with pleasure! I felt---and I still feel that my experience on the Other Side was more real than my “reality” here in this life! I would surely be a different person without this experience. I am sure that there always is a reason for all that happens in our lives. Without my NDE, maybe I wouldn't have come to Italy, I wouldn't have been a painter, I couldn't have adopted a child, and I wouldn't have had my partner with whom to celebrate our twentieth year together!

Cindy S’s NDE in 1969

My friend and I set out to enjoy a day of tubing in the river. It was a warm spring day after an early winter thaw. We synchronized our watches so we would know how long it took to get to the Boy Scout Dam. Unfortunately, I got caught in a current and went over the dam. I remembered not to panic. I started to take in (breathe) water and then found myself traveling up a tunnel at a steep angle toward a light at the end.

The light was very, very bright white.   I soon arrived in a room where an unknown entity showed me a life review. This ended with a newspaper report of my death!---which even included a clerical error (typo) of the location!   I was then told that it was not my time yet, because I had many life lessons to experience. I did not want to go back, but I was sent back anyway.

Suddenly, I was catapulted out of the water about two to three feet into the air. Meanwhile, my friend had been searching frantically for me. He kept saying “I ran all the way home to get help, but no one was home.” He subsequently ran back to resume looking for me. When I suddenly and forcefully emerged from the water, my friend was surprised, then thought I was joking or pulling a prank!   He was very angry, scared, and in shock. He said I had been missing for almost an hour!   I gasped, vomited, and finally regained my composure.   While all this was transpiring, there were two older boys who were pelting us with rocks. I never did figure out why.

My friend and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was underwater for almost an hour, and we know there is no logical way to explain this!   After I became conscious, I coughed and vomited water for an extended time.

Since this event, I believe I have been able to feel others’ pain in an unexpected and profound way. I mostly try to not tell people my story, because they may think I may have exaggerated it or that it was caused by hypoxia. But I assure them it was real and that the Other Side is where we all will go!

While I know that my description of what happened after I traveled through the tunnel and encountered the Light is not sufficiently detailed, I also want the reader to know that what happened to me on the Other Side is a very personal, emotional experience which truly cannot be explained with the English language! It was beyond imagination---and I will not try to convey it in this forum. Let me just say that I felt Indescribable love and incredible peace---and a serene connection to GOD, with an awareness that we will all come back to this place after our life lessons are finished. This event is tattooed to my mind, and I shall never ever forget it. When I do share it, I do so because I want others to share in my certainty of life after death.

Dr Sandrine B’s NDE in 1985

I was on holiday with my parents at my uncle and aunt’s place. We came back from a walk. Hastily, I strode across the room to go upstairs and change my clothes. My father was sitting in the living room near the stairs, listening to some music. I started to rush up the stairs, but both my feet slipped on the first steps and I fell. The thought flashed through my mind, 'This is where I die.' After absorbing this thought for a moment, I left my body. I was no longer in the room and could no longer see my father.

I saw in a 'moment' (although time was different from how it is on Earth) my whole life, from birth to my current age of fifteen years. It was something like watching a movie, but with the addition of all the sensations, feelings, and experiences that I had lived through, including what my consciousness was like and even my ability to love others. Everything about me was present in what I was being shown. I watched this 'film' without being able to change anything, but with no sense of judgment, no regret, and no enmity. I was perfectly ready to die… and I felt so good!!!

Then a cone of white light greeted me. It was pure and intense love, peace, compassion and absolute knowledge. This cone had opened up right at the top of my head and so I found myself thus against a kind of luminous 'robe' worn by a being made of light, a man I did not know but with whom I felt I belonged - as I had never felt on Earth with anyone else. Surrounding this central being, there were human figures of a very light gray color, almost white, but not as white as the central being was. These human silhouettes were facing me.
I felt so good that I wanted to remain there so I said, not with words but with a sort of telepathic communication, 'I want to stay here.' One of the figures responded, 'But this is not your time, you must go back.' I felt annoyed because I thought the reason they were telling me 'no' was that they didn't want me, so I asked again, 'I want to stay.' 'No, it’s not your time, you must go back.' was the answer, again.

With anger, I said, 'I want to stay!', and then the main being communicated with me, saying, 'You must go back. You must become a doctor.' He said it with such love, so gently and compassionately, but still so firmly, that I knew I did not have a choice.

As soon as I heard those words I returned to my body very abruptly, and realized that the right side of my head had violently hit the stairs. Regaining consciousness, I immediately stood up. I felt a sharp pain coming from my right ear. I reached back, touched my ear, and then observed that my fingers were red with blood. My father ran over towards me, along with my mother and my uncle and my aunt. They drove me to the hospital so that my ear could be stitched up.

Todd N’s NDE in 1990

It was a hot summer day in Florida. I was a twelve year old boy who loved to skateboard and just fit in with the other kids on the block. My neighbors two houses down had two boys who were approximately three and six years older than I was. So, obviously, they hung out with even older kids, too. Well, we were all talking and skateboarding and doing tricks in the street, when they started to play-fight around me. I just stood and watched as they did this. Then one of the older boys, approximately sixteen years old, snuck up behind me and put me in a 'sleeper hold' (otherwise known as a 'choke hold.') I tried to get out of it, but I was far outmatched by the older, stronger boy. Within seconds, I was out! 'Out went the lights' for me!

It's hard to explain what transpired next, but I was above everyone, like, say, ten feet or so, looking down. I didn't notice whether 'I' had a body or not. What I saw was like the view from a camera. I could see and hear them laughing, standing around me. I could see my body actually lying there on the road! But I wasn't in it! I felt no pain whatsoever. Actually I felt great! I was just in awe of seeing myself and trying to figure out how I got outside of myself. Trying to figure out why I and was able to see everything unfolding from a viewpoint above everyone!

Then, poof! I was back in my body and awake. I felt refreshed and slowly got up off the hot road. Most of the kids were still just laughing at me. I'm sure they didn't realize how you can easily die within seconds from the technique that was used on me. I'm pretty sure I told one of the kids about this and he said it must have been a dream, so I naturally believed him, given that he was the older, wiser kid on the block.

SOME PEOPLE WHO DIE AND ARE "BROUGHT BACK" DESCRIBE THEIR NDEs IN VERY PLAIN TERMS, SOMEWHAT EASY TO UNDERSTAND. OTHERS BECOME ALMOST PHILOSOPHICAL IN THEIR DESCRIPTIONS, TRYING TO EXPRESS POSSIBLY DEEPER MEANINGS, AND THEY USE VOCABULARY WHICH WE FIND UNFAMILIAR. THIS NDE IS ONE LIKE THAT.

William H’s NDE in 2003

I was fully awake, when my heart stopped beating. My last breath passed my lips. In the spring of 2003, a genetic time bomb went off and my body’s time ended. The moment of death was upon me at age fifty-three and I found it a curious thing indeed.

People around me grew quite excited, but an untroubled calm came over me, carrying me further and further away from the scene, as if moving me to an invisible but familiar place, just to the side of where my body lay. The sirens of the ambulance were soft and melodic. The questions of the emergency room doctors sounded like a different language. Minutes after they placed me on the emergency room table and fit an oxygen mask over my face, I felt my heart stop beating. I sighed my last breath.

There was the briefest pause while my conscious personality puzzled that I did not gasp for breath nor seem concerned that my body had just died. Then it was suddenly cradled in my higher soul and I was catapulted, for that is the only word for it, catapulted, wide-awake, out of my body. My whole life, it turned out, had been practice for the moment of dying.   My higher soul stepped forward, speaking reassuringly about how it had been through this so many times before.
While my lower soul, this lifetime’s personality, went mute in the face of the vast Unknown, my higher soul catapulted into It with one last sigh of joy and gratitude: What a glorious Creation!     I was fully awake when I entered the Sphere of Universal Communion. How do I know that is its true name? I don’t. I’m not even sure it’s possible for it to have a single true name.

The Sphere of Universal Communion is what I saw and what I felt? It’s the only true name that I can imagine and the only one I can use to describe it at all.   It appeared to me as a sphere of light, but light that is aware. The light is not something so much seen as sensed, since we have no physical eyes without a body. Something like the warmth of sunlight even when your eyes are squeezed shut. But with the additional sense of someone present, close by, their attention resting on the edges of your awareness gently. An aware light is both the substance and the medium of communion within its own spherical spaciousness. An aware light that creates and sustains the possibility of shared awareness on a universal basis.

I was fully awake when I realized I was myself a sphere of communion. I was a sphere of aware light: Surrounded by an infinite number of other spheres of aware light. As I experienced it, then, the Sphere of Universal Communion is an infinite space of aware light that is occupied by all the individual spheres of aware light that ever have or ever will exist. As if it were One Mind, occupied by all the individual Ideas it ever has, or ever will conceive; or a timeless, limitless, Over-soul, occupied by all the individual souls that ever have or ever will enter the realm of time, space, and personality. As I said, I do not pretend to know what its true name is, but the relation between the Whole and its parts, these I can still see with diamond clarity.

What can I still see of that bodiless state? Each of us, as an individual sphere of communion seems the embodiment of two complementary halves: Understanding and Memory. While Understanding seems the principal characteristic of the higher soul, Memory seems to be the principal characteristic of the lower soul. As I experienced it, Understanding is our individual portion of the limitless Knowledge of the One Soul, the evolving insight we possess into the Way of the One, our individual spark of immortality. Memory, on the other hand, is the accumulated impressions of all the lifetimes we recall, the sum of all the personalities we have yoked to our soul, our enduring storehouse of mortal treasures.

I was fully awake, when I realized that whenever another sphere of aware light came into contact with me, there was an immediate and spontaneous exchange between us of our respective Memory and Understanding. This is why I say that we are individual spheres of communion within the Universal Sphere of Communion. Because when we come into contact there, all that we know and all that we are passes uninhibited between us in a natural and open communion of shared being. Spheres of aware light touch and so exchange the totality of their experience and assimilate one another’s experience into their own.

I was fully awake when all the individual spheres of communion encountered one another at the same time, breaking through every dam of individuality and flooding us all in the totality of our shared being. This is why I suspect its name is the Sphere of Universal Communion, because when all the individual spheres of aware light periodically come into contact at the same time, every individual awareness, that ever has or ever will exist, is spontaneously and immediately At-One with the One. I cannot say what it is that periodically draws all of us together at the same time but, cause aside: its effect is the complete and overwhelming experience of every drop of awareness in the ocean suddenly merging into the single sea of awareness.

My body was dead for two minutes but for me, the time passed as if it were many years. Other individual spheres of aware light, many of great depth of Understanding with the Memory of thousands of lifetimes, generously taught me lessons to bring back and make use of in this lifetime. Such, it seems, is the loving-kindness of our collective ancestors, who care so deeply that this era of transformation is one of metamorphosis and not one of atrophy. There is one last thing I have come to believe since returning to this realm of the body and its five senses: Although it is much more difficult to perceive here, than in the Sphere of Universal Communion, we are no less individual spheres of communion here than we are there.

Once I had experienced what it feels like to recognize myself as a sphere of aware light in the bodiless state, I found I had become sensitive enough to perceive myself as that same sphere of communion here with a body. I became sensitive enough to recognize that everyone else is a similar sphere of aware light, as well. However, although it is more difficult to perceive the spontaneous and immediate exchange of Understanding and Memory that occurs when we individual spheres of communion come into contact here, I believe it occurs nonetheless, even if not in our conscious awareness. What I have come to believe moving from life to death and back again is this: just as learning to live is actually preparing to die, it seems clear that preparing to die is actually learning to live.

It’s been eleven years since I died and I have been reticent to speak about it too soon, for fear of coloring my account with the profound emotions of the experience. As with so many others who have undergone such an experience, the depth of those emotions has moved me to dedicate the remainder of this lifetime to giving expression to the lessons I learned while outside this lifetime. There you have it, that’s the best account I can give. It’s all still as fresh today as it was when it happened. By now, it doesn’t seem strange at all to say things like, ‘Dying is one of the most meaningful events in life’. Clearly, the near-death experience has changed me, filled me with a deeper appreciation of the sacredness of everything. I apologize ahead of time for the clumsiness of my report: Words that were invented to describe this world fail to paint a picture of that other realm.

Nichole BD’s NDE in 1994

I had gone in for a common routine surgery. I am not sure what happened during the surgery as I was knocked out; all I know is suddenly I was running in a grassy field toward a giant sun. I remembered looking down at my legs and they were short to the ground, I was a child again. There was another child holding my hand and running beside me. It was a little blonde hair boy with blue eyes.

The most amazing part was a pure feeling of the most intense love I can barely describe. It was just wave after wave of pure love. It was within me, it was around me, it was EVERYTHING. It felt like heartbeats of love, one wave of love after another. Yet there was love in the interim as well, then the wave would come with even more and more. It was endless, eternal and complete. I had no fear whatsoever; I had no feeling other than LOVE. I had no thought other than reaching the LIGHT. I felt pure happiness and joy. It was the most beautiful feeling that words could never even come close to describing. The closest thing I can think of to relate it to on this earth would be the moment I brought my child into this world. That moment of pure unconditional love that I'm sure most mothers and some fathers have felt. Still that is only but a very small fraction of what I am trying to explain. Words seem so small and insignificant in comparison to the experience.

So I am running towards this massive sun experiencing total acceptance and love. I knew that nothing earthly mattered anymore and I had this complete sense of peace about everything that I had ever done. I just wanted to keep running toward the Light. Then suddenly I heard my name being called from behind me.

I stopped and paused for a moment, and I knew I had a choice. To keep going forward or to go back. I never remembered making that choice however. The next thing I remembered were doctors standing over me frantically repeating, “NICHOLE, Stay with us Nichole” and then the pain came. The pain in my body was so intense I could barely stand it. I now believe that they must have cut off my anesthesia completely at that point and were frantically trying to sew me back up quickly. I have never experienced physical pain like that again, thank God. I felt like my body was in a vice and they were squeezing it tighter and tighter.

I do remember lying there, saying aloud over and over, "NO, LET ME GO BACK! WANT TO GO BACK!" with tears streaming down my face. I was so upset and I felt for the longest time that I never got to make the choice, that the doctors did it for me and I was so MAD at them.

I think I spent many years depressed and angry because I believed that they robbed me of my graduation date from this planet. I truly believed for so long that I was meant to leave on that day. I couldn’t understand why I would be given a glimpse of something so beautiful only to have to return to such pain. Pain in that moment and pain in the disillusionment of the world in general . I was only 25 at the time but I believed I was done here and that I belonged where the LOVE is. I have always had a tender heart and the violence and greed on this planet seem so foreign to me and ridiculously unnecessary. It’s taken me 20 years to realize that I did indeed make the choice to stay. I know if I had chosen to leave, no doctor could have prevented that. I believe I was given a glimpse so that I could carry on KNOWING what we are truly made of. To reinforce my conviction in The Power of LOVE and knowing that it's all there really is and all that really matters. I think I was given this blessing so I could share it with others. I have read other stories so similar to my own, with slight variations in the visual experience, I'm sure due to our own life paths, but the feeling of LOVE seems to be the common theme. A Return to Love is no cliché, it is truly LOVE we are made of. It is where we came from and where we will return when we are done with this body. I know we come here to anchor this love in this place, to increase this LOVE, to remember what we are is LOVE.

Today, I work so hard to raise the awareness of how powerful collective LOVE is. It’s what the entire universe is made of. We can call it anything we want, like God, Allah, Jesus, or Mohammad. But, the name is all the same under the word LOVE. Now I try to help others to Just BE LOVE. My daily mantra is "I LOVE therefore I AM." I am looking forward to my final return to love, but in the meantime, I hope to share the love I touched for a moment with everyone I meet.

Kristin K’s NDE---from Germany. Translated from German.

My near-death experience happened 30 years ago, but I still can remember it as if it happened only yesterday.

At the time I was 14 years old. I had bad bronchitis and hadn't been to school in days. The day I had the near-death experience was on mother's day and my grandparents, with whom I had a very close relationship, came to visit.

I was lying down in my bed and in my room. I felt very sluggish from the bronchitis and was very apathetic. I can still remember looking at the ceiling when I felt a state of weightlessness. Then I realized that I was floating towards the ceiling. From above, I looked down and saw my body lying in bed. I did not feel afraid; it felt so normal and easy. I felt like I was held, safe, and loved.

Then everything around me became very luminously bright and a warm light pervaded everything. I saw a brightly shining circle whose edges dissolved into soft, yellowish-red colors. In my head I heard a voice. It told me that I could decide if I wanted to stay forever in the Light or if I wanted to go back to my body.

As I thought about what I wanted to do, I noticed that below me the door of my room opened. I saw my beloved grandma peeking through to check on me. I suddenly felt that I wanted my heart back in my body because I loved my family so much.

Again, I heard the voice in my head. It said, 'When you are back in your body you have to tell your grandma that you need to get quickly to a hospital, otherwise you will not survive.' Then everything happened very fast. I left the warm, bright, and safe light and found myself back in my body. To my grandma I said that I needed to go very fast to the hospital because I felt so bad.

I still can remember that my father carried me down the stairs. I collapsed and woke up at the hospital, connected to tubes and a respirator. The doctors said that the bronchitis had developed into a life-threatening pneumonia. I had had only 5% oxygen left in my blood. Later on they said, had I arrived only 15 minutes later at the hospital I would have died.

Since this experience, my grandma and I had an even deeper connection. Since the experience of my near-death, I have lost my fear of dying.

Estelle D’s NDE

I was 16 years old and born into a practicing Catholic family. On Saturday in January 1982, I was walking to church to attend mass. I was very disappointed to not be allowed to go to a dance party with a friend. I had just left her house, saying this prayer inwardly, 'Lord, you see what this sacrifice is costing me, make it at least so that it’s not in vain!'

I crossed a bridge and came to an intersection, where I entered the crosswalk. The last image I saw was the horrified face of the driver in the car. Simultaneously, I heard a terrifying sound of brakes. I told myself, 'I'm going to die!'

I flew over the vehicle, and was dragged under the wheels of the car behind that one. At that moment, I saw the scene from above, in 360° spherical vision but without realizing that this scene was about me. I saw disturbed onlookers, a crowd, and heard the shouts and howls.

I was thinking, 'Why are they getting disturbed?' Then I saw my parents run up to the bridge. I said to myself, 'Why is Mum in slippers? She looks distraught; there's something bad going on. Oh, hey, there's a wrecked car and some feet sticking out…” Then I saw a young man I knew who was watching from the curb. (Later I was able to tell him afterwards that I knew he was there on that day, and I accurately described how he was dressed.)

I was then suddenly sucked into a luminous tunnel. I saw an immense light. I moved toward the light, feeling intense Happiness and a fullness and peace I had never known. I felt my soul expand such that it felt like it encompassed the whole universe. It was wonderful, as I was bathed in universal love. There were multitudes of people, but I couldn't see any faces. Instead, I 'felt' them. All my senses were heightened in an extraordinary way.

At that moment, I never wanted to go back or to leave this Happiness. Then a magnificent lady, who was dressed in a luminous white dress, was standing in front of this great light. I was sucked into this light. This woman was very beautiful, because of the kindness that I saw in her smile and the way she looked at me. I knew I was loved. I thought then that it was my grandmother who had passed away shortly before this experience. She seemed to be fully listening to the person behind her, whom I call 'the luminous star'. I wanted to move forward, but she stopped me by waving me back. It was a very painful rejection that stayed with me for several years. I insisted, without using words, that I wanted to stay with her. Words weren't necessary. She listened to the luminous star who seemed to speak to her but I couldn't hear it. Then she told me, 'You still have things to do on Earth; you must go back.'

At that moment, I saw, as in a kaleidoscope, a kind of flashback movie showing all the moments of my life where I had not loved enough. There were some very concrete situations, but I can't remember exactly. What I remember is that all of those moments were like hot mud thrown in my face. It was very painful, so I begged God to stop this torture. I made a last prayer in what I thought was the Kingdom of the dead, 'If you save my life, I promise to make up for all these moments and to love more.'

At that moment, I opened my eyes and saw the stretcher-bearers. I was dazed and didn't speak. The police and firefighters told me that I should have died under the circumstances. They couldn't believe that I only had a few broken bones, bruises, and head trauma.

For two years, I had nightmares upon hearing the sound of the brakes. But each time, like a reassuring hand, the memory of the lady soothed me. Then I wrote a note to my mother who told me that from what I had written her, she thought that I had seen not my grandmother but the Virgin Mary. I couldn't tell anyone else, as I feared that I would be mocked, except I did tell my husband ten years later.

This brief moment of a few seconds is unforgettable. It helped me greatly in the following years to endure significantly painful ordeals. I had another serious accident that resulted in multiple transplant operations and one year of rehabilitation. I experienced the loss of our first baby. I had two acute pancreatitis attacks two years apart during the period of post-partum. I had several hospitalizations in intensive care. I have experienced five births and the departure of my grandfather, and then of my father.

Before this experience, my life was a black and white movie. Afterwards, it was a movie in color.

Kerry B’s NDE---gay, dead from anaphylactic shock

I was walking my dog and began sneezing. At first, I thought it was normal, but the sneezing was relentless. I felt the need to get back inside. By the time I got to my apartment on the 5th floor, I was still sneezing and starting to itch. My wife was home and I told her that I felt weird. My tongue was swelling and my eyes were red and starting to swell too. My palms were itching, as well as my neck and back. She knew I was having an allergic reaction and went to get Benadryl at the grocery store across the street. Shortly after she left, I started gasping for air and was sweating profusely. I texted her that I needed an ambulance. There happened to be an ambulance out in front of our apartment building and she pleaded with them to let a member of their crew to come to help me. They said they couldn't split up because they were there on another call, but they called for another ambulance.

My wife texted me to come to P2 (parking level 2) to meet her and the Paramedics that were on the way. I read the text as my airways swelled shut and I could no longer breathe. I toppled over from the chair that I was sitting on and experienced my first of 4 deaths that were to follow that night. I went into darkness. Nothing was there; no sound and no light. I wasn’t in this place long because my dog started barking at a high pitch. He knew I was in distress. The frequency pierced my consciousness and I came to.

I still couldn’t breathe, but I knew I had someplace to go. I staggered to the front door to make my way to the elevator. I didn’t remember to pick up my phone. The elevator was 50-60 feet away. I made it 5 steps outside of my door and was gasping for air. I remember thinking to myself, 'This is how I’m going to go out? Really?' I fell to the floor in the hallway after not being able to breathe and what happened next was life changing.

As I took my last breath, my eyes closed in death as I left my body. Then, not through my eyes, I was able to see a beautiful, radiant, white limitless light. It was crystal clear. My physical form was no longer a human form. I was a Light Body. I could tell because I could see my reflection. It was like I was looking in a mirror. I found myself pulled up through the Light at an accelerated rate of speed. It was like I was being sucked through the air by a powerful, yet gentle and loving force. It was like I was riding a cosmic elevator. I wasn’t afraid, though. All I could feel was love that was so powerful that I knew I was going Home.

While continuing at an accelerated speed, I was stopped by my grandparents who came out of the Void. They were luminous light bodies that I could recognize by their energy. I could feel them. They were apologetic and wanted to let me know that they were sorry. Through telepathy, they said that now that they are on the other side, they understand that by being gay I had lived in so much fear. I had to live in terrified silence during my childhood and didn’t come out until I was 31. By being gay I lived in fear in my own home because my Mom would have beat me or kicked me out of the house. Being gay had a particular stigma associated it because it meant that my sin was unique. I was taught that I was an abomination destined to the Lake of Fire since I grew up as a Southern Baptist in the Bible Belt. In 2009, I had been targeted in a hate crime because I was gay, attacked, and left for dead on the street. I understood what my grandparents were telling me. It made me feel good to hear this apology. They said it wasn’t my time, and that I needed to go back. They radiated love through their energy. I accepted their apology. I said I love you, too, but I have somewhere else to go, as I pointed toward the Light. I affectionately shooed them away.
At that moment I looked up and saw my destination. I was looking in awe at God. It was like everything was happening at once. As I was staring up at God in amazement, every gay slur or violent act ever impressed upon me ran through me with such a flow. Events in my life played back in my mind like a movie. I felt a deep heaviness as I stared directly at an Almighty, Genderless God. I was thinking, 'Was this the Lake of Fire moment? Would I be cast into Hell for being an abomination?' With absolute humility, I uttered 7 words, 'I’m gay, will you still love me?'

The Brilliant, Loving Light formed into Wings. At GodSpeed, He whisked me into His vast spiritual arms. As God brought me in for a Cosmic Hug, He said, 'You are my child. I love you. I love you. I love you. Go tell ‘em.' He said it with a Southern accent. He patted me on the back like a coach encouraging his player to get back in the game.

At that moment my grandparents ran into the Light and I was dropped back into my body. This explained their sense of humor and slight arrogance. They knew what was going to happen.

Being dropped back into my body wasn’t pleasant. I felt my body bounce and I still couldn’t breathe. My blood pressure had plummeted. I was so free on the Other Side and now I was so restricted. I gained enough momentum to make it 25 more steps and I went down again. My wife had been timing me and became concerned that I had not made it down to the P2 floor. She took the stairs and came to the 5th floor. She was running straight down our hallway and looked left at the hallway that led to the elevator. She saw me on the floor and that I was unresponsive. She took control of the situation and carried my dead, limp body the remaining 25 feet to the elevator. My wife is 5’2' and I am 5’10'. During this time I was in total darkness. No God. No Grandparents. No Light. Just darkness. My wife was saying things to me to get me to hold on. There was despair in her voice as she situated us in the elevator. Out of nowhere, I spontaneously awoke in her arms and told her that I loved her and that I was going Home. I fell back on her with my dead, limp body as she was hitting the P2 button on the elevator. She missed the button and the elevator went up. Two men got on the elevator and Malia, my wife, begged for help. One of the men happened to be an Army medic. She explained that I had gone into Anaphylactic Shock and the Paramedics were meeting us on P2.

The Army medic laid me on the elevator floor and took control. I have no recollection of the elevator ride until I heard the medic say my name in a loud voice. He said, 'KERRY, I heard you played BASKETBALL.' 'KERRY, I heard you played BASKETBALL!' He placed emphasis on my name, on the word basketball. He had apparently met my wife a few weeks prior to this night and she told him that I was a gifted athlete. I remember waking up to the most beautiful smile from a distance. He was trained to know what to do. If he would have been in my face, I don’t think I would have come back. It would have been frightening.

Next, all of these Paramedics rushed into to the elevator and pulled me out. They were unaware of all that I had been through in the last 25 minutes. I was awake and breathing, but my body felt paralyzed. I just felt like a set of eyes in a body that was so heavy and dense. The Paramedics started talking to me and asked me if I could get up on my own. I looked at them like they were crazy. I was still talking telepathically. I said through telepathy, 'No, I can’t get up on my own! You know where I’ve been and you know how heavy and restricted these bodies are! I can’t move!' They didn’t hear me and I couldn’t speak. They looked at me like I was being difficult and was going to make them pick me up off the floor. After several minutes of me trying to get my bearings of where I was and what had happened, they managed to get me up to the stretcher.

I was taken to the emergency room, treated for Anaphylactic Shock, and released the next morning. Before this night, I had never had an allergic reaction to anything. I hadn’t done anything different this night than other nights. I hadn’t eaten anything that was strange or different. I walked my dog on the same route as every other day.

Over the next 20 days, I went into Anaphylactic Shock 6 more times. I had to use an Epi-Pen to save my life. I took 6 more rides in the ambulance to the emergency room. My body was drenched in Epinephrine. My head and my heart felt like they were going to explode. I was being tested at university medical for an answer to why I had gone into Anaphylactic Shock 7 times in 21 days. Nothing was testing positive for an allergic reaction. To this day they have no idea what caused the Anaphylactic Shock. It hasn’t happened again over the last 3 years. After the NDE, I started losing consciousness at random times and luckily these episodes happened when I was at my home.

Paramedics after they pulled me from the elevator. I was just brought back to life here.

One night, I got up off the couch to go to another room and felt like I was walking in quick sand. I dropped to the floor, fell into the closet door, and sliced my head open. I quickly regained consciousness as if nothing happened. I was being treated for Syncope, but they didn’t know what was causing it. This went on for a year and a half before my doctor decided to put a monitor on my Heart. I wore this monitor for 2 weeks straight and it recorded my Heart rhythm. The test results came back showing that my Heart had been stopping for 9 seconds at a time. Consequently, I needed a Pacemaker immediately. In January of 2017, I had a Pacemaker implanted. The cause for my Heart stopping is unknown. I haven’t experienced any other medical condition since this date.
[Prior to this Anaphylactic Shock, I was recovering from injuries from a Hate Crime that took place in 2009. I was attacked and brutally assaulted on Sunset Blvd. The perpetrator left me for dead on the sidewalk and was never caught. I had an Out of Body experience this night, but didn’t Cross Over. I saw my bloody body on the sidewalk. I recognized the body, but was impartial to it. I heard a voice say, 'Call 911' and someone responded, 'Does she have insurance?' Several people were gathered around me. People thought I had been stabbed because there was a pool of blood on my stomach. I was above my body and could see that blood was pouring from my face and the blood was streaming down my arm. My arm was crossed over my stomach where I was laying in a fetal position. I was out of my body for 15-20 minutes. I remember being back in my body when the paramedics were putting me into the ambulance. I looked over to the side and they were spraying my blood off of the pavement with a high-powered hose. My face was shattered. My teeth were knocked out. It took 5 months for the swelling to go down just so they could perform surgery. I had 2 facial reconstructive surgeries over the next 7 months. I developed Frozen Shoulder sustained from the fall in the assault. It took 7 years to recover. I developed PTSD and it wreaked havoc on my mind and body. Thankfully, I have fully recovered from this medical nightmare.]

Anni S’s NDE in 1974---from Denmark in Danish. Complex, including details about previous lives

I had my near death experience in the summer of 1974, when I was thirty years old. I had a serious headache and going to the hospital to see if I had a brain tumor. I was to be hospitalized for a couple of days. During the examination, one of the doctors inserted a needle into the back of my neck to blow air in. The needle hit my central nervous system by accident, causing my pulse to become abnormal. At that point, the doctor should have stopped his treatment. But he proceeded. He hit a wrong place again. Established protocol said that he was only allowed to insert a needle twice, but he did it five times. The result was that my central nervous system was hit several times and was damaged. I was mostly unconscious for a month. I don't remember anything from that month except my near death experience.

The first thing I experienced was that I could suddenly see my body from above. I saw that the doctors were incredibly busy treating me, but I didn't understand. I felt wonderful and light where I was. I had no pain and no problems.

This was evidence to me that the soul can leave the body. I clearly remember that I hovered over the doctor who conducted the treatment. He had gone home after work and was lying in his bed. I went into his home and saw him. I could see that he had nervous tics, and I knew telepathically that he was thinking of me. I felt so sorry for him and I thought, 'I wish I could straighten all the nervous tics, because I feel gorgeous.' I saw that he went to the toilet several times. I remember that he had problems with urination. While I was there, I noticed the arrangement of his home and the furniture around him.

Later, when I recovered, I told the doctor about my visit. I told him about the arrangement of his home and the furniture. I told him of his urination problem. He was stunned because all that I said was true. Later, when I recovered further, I visited him. I saw that everything was as I had experienced it. At one point, I asked if I could use his toilet. He rose in order to show me where it was. I told hime that he didn't have to show me because I had been there before in the out of body state.

Back to the experience. After hovering around at earth, I went through a tunnel. At the end of the tunnel there was a light so indescribably strong. It was nothing like an earthly light. I went to a peaceful place. It was so beautiful that I thought, 'The earth is like a film that hasn’t been developed. Not until we reach the other side, is the film developed,. Everything will be seen in beautiful colors that don't exist here on earth.' I saw a beautiful meadow. There were flowers and colors that were so fantastic that our earthly brain can't comprehend it. The colors we have here on earth are very pale in comparison to the colors I experienced in the spiritual realm.

The people we claim are dead stood completely alive in front of me. But they looked younger than I experienced them on earth. At the same time there was a kind of a fog over their faces. But I knew it was them. I wanted to approach them, but I heard telepathically that it was not the right time. And then I was pulled back.

Afterwards, I had various spiritual experiences. They were correlated to one another. It was like a movie shown in clips. During one of the clips, I saw a portal that was like an arch. I felt that it was the arch of life. It wasn't ostentatious, but it was very simple. The arch opened so that I could look in. There I saw the whole meaning of life. I thought it was so simple that I couldn't understand why I hadn't thought of it. It was so simple that even a child could understand it. Unfortunately, I forgot it, But I do know there is a meaning of life.

I flew on. Then I was shown various clips from past lives. I had never before related to reincarnation. I had grown up in a family of non-believers, but I always felt Jesus in my heart.

I saw that I had a life as an Indian. I was so strong and powerful. I experienced the whole Indian life and I sensed that I was a man. I lived in harmony with nature and it felt like a wonderful life. Later in that life I was at war with others. I experienced falling into a hole where there were some dead people. But I was not dead. There was a nauseous and extremely noxious smell where I was lying.

Then things shifted to a new clip. I flew over a figure of Christ standing with open arms.

Then I experienced another life. I lived in a hut constructed on poles. There was no furniture, but there were mats on the floor. We were six, very beautiful and young girls. It was a wonderful time. We were there to please men, but it was all nice and decent. We were in harmony with nature.

Then there was another clip. I saw that I lived in France within the aristocracy. I was very arrogant, and definitely not a person I like. I was a big girl with a fine, white dress. I stood with my family and was about to be executed. Around us were a lot of dirty, gross people. They mocked us and spit on us. I thought, 'Mob! Mob!' Then there was a clip. I must have been beheaded. I saw the mob walking with a wooden vessel, flushing away the blood and dirt. Then there was another clip. It was all silent and peaceful. I saw the sun. That life was a terrible experience.

After that, a loving Being who was standing behind my left shoulder, showed me my current life. The love was so strong that I dared not turn around, but I think it was Jesus.

I was shown my life from birth to unconsciousness. I saw myself on the wrong side. I was not as good as I thought I was and was ashamed of myself. But the Being of love didn't judge me. He just supported me and gave me love. I saw not only the ACTIONS I had done, but also the THOUGHTS I had sent out. And the thoughts meant more than the actions. That surprised me. I hadn't thought it would be like that. It was scary. It's very good to do good deeds towards others, but the feelings and thoughts you send to them count more. For instance, it is bad to smile politely at someone while sending negative thoughts to them.

As you sow, you shall reap. I found out that there was too little for me to reap. I guess that was why I wanted to go down and finish my earthly life. There was so much that I had to do. I had to improve as a human being. I had to go down to sow in order to reap. I hadn't sowed much until then. I could see that. I was really ashamed of seeing myself. First and foremost, I had to sow love. Today it is the most important commandment to me.

I was also shown the good things I had done. In my childhood there was in the vicinity of my home a path where meth drinkers gathered. When I was walking with my dog, as I was about to pass them, instead, I sat down and talked with them. They were surprised that I wanted to be with them. I told them that there was someone who loved them, and that it was Jesus. I knew that Jesus loved these meth drinkers, and I felt they gave me so much love. They loved me for the person I was. I began going to their homes with them, and I cleaned for them. They lived in a little wooden hut in the moor. I picked flowers so their hut could be cozy, and I loved being of service. I enjoyed being together with these people. All this I was now shown again, and it counted as one of the good deeds I had done.

In connection with my life review, I saw an episode from my childhood when I was 10 or 11 years old. This episode was the cause of a deep psychic wound stemming from a father complex. In my childhood, I did everything to please my father. Before my near death experience I never understood why he suddenly distanced himself from me. But when I saw my life review, I understood.

I saw a girl who was me. We were going to my paternal grandfather's birthday party. Spontaneously I said, 'I don't want to go because grandpa is going to die.' My father was terror-stricken. I got a slap in the face, the only one in my life. Yet, I still didn't want to go. I told my father that I had a headache, so I was allowed to stay home. At 9:50 p.m., the clock in the living room stopped. I said, 'Well, now grandpa is dying.' I couldn't sleep despite going to bed.

At 1:30 a.m. my parents arrived. My father came into my room. He looked at me with strange eyes. Then he said, 'Grandpa is dead.' To me is wasn't a dreadful or unnatural thing, for I knew that grandpa was going to die. But my father was shocked. From that time on, it felt that he was afraid of me so he distanced himself. I developed some emotional blocking. I did everything to please him. I didn't know what had caused his distancing. But I found out when I saw my life review.

When I was in the spiritual realm, I saw that I had to return to earth in order to finish many things. There was a loving Being beside me. It wasn't anything visible, but I could sense it. It was a kind of spirit or soul. It showed me what I had to return to, my further course of life. But I have not retained that either.

My first thought was, 'I can easily endure that.' I was so strong because I had that loving Being at my side. But slowly, the loving being disappeared. I was sent back through the same tunnel that I had come through earlier. I returned to the hospital room where my body lay. I was under the ceiling. I could see the doctors busily treating me.

Now, I was afraid. I resisted as I didn't feel like coming back to the body. I wanted to stay in the spiritual world, because there I was happy and felt fine. But I did come back. And that was really cruel, because it felt as if I was strapped into a strait-jacket after I had been able to move freely. I felt terrible pain. I couldn't feel coldness, warmth or anything. I only felt pain and had spasms.
It felt as if I had split into two persons. On one hand, I was in the body with all the pain. On the other hand, I had all the spiritual experiences that lived so vigorously in me.

I have never doubted that it was true what I experienced. After my disease I wanted to be earth-bound. I tried to use my logic and tell myself that it was hallucinations. But I couldn't do that and I still can't. When it is so clear in my memory after so many years (44 years), it can't be hallucinations.

My near death experience has become the foundation of my life. After being unconscious, I have been through so much pain that I have thought of the loving Being I met. I could fetch so much power from that memory that I could endure the pain. By thinking of the loving Being and my past lives I could find the strength to live. God is almighty. God is so fantastically great.

The near death experience has made me feel that I don't belong here. I feel that I'm on a charter trip down here and that I belong to the spiritual world. I am grateful and happy for my family and my friends, and I live more intensely today than I did before. But I appreciate each year I get older, for then I know that I come closer to death and the spiritual world. We are all on such a charter trip on earth. Our true home is in the spiritual world with God. That is our point of origin. And we're all going back to our true home when we have fulfilled our tasks on the charter trip.

When I had to go back to earth, I realized that there is a meaning of life on earth. Life is like schooling. It can be incredibly tough, but we must not forget that the more good things we can sow, the more we will reap when we leave from here. The school of life is like a trip on earth. There are certain things we have to do on the trip. The most important assignment in life is love. I learned to begin with myself and create warm, human and loving vibrations.

Many people commit suicide in our time. I understand them. If I hadn't had all the spiritual experiences that I've had, I think I would also have committed suicide. The spiritual experiences gave me strength to live on. Suiciders will absolutely not meet any condemnation on the other side. We wouldn't condemn our children if they committed suicide. If we condemn our children, we condemn quite a bit in ourselves. I don't condemn someone I love because I love out of unconditional love and not out of egoism. I love my children so much, that I wouldn't condemn them but help and support them. And God will do that too.

I don't believe there is an eternal damnation. Because God is towards us like a good father is towards his children. If a child is unreasonable or does many terrible things, will a good father disown that child and send it out in the cold? No, he won't. Neither will ur spiritual father!

Sandra M’s NDE in 1976

There was a swimming pool built at the end of the yard within the walls of the newly built house. I talked my 6’4”mentally-retarded cousin to go swimming with me even though I was not allowed to go into the pool without an adult. I was pushing off the sides of the pool, demonstrating to my cousin that I knew how to swim. At one point, I didn’t push off the side of the pool hard enough causing me get stuck face down in the middle of the pool. I struggled for a short amount of time and swallowed one gulp of water. I remember making a conscious decision to not drink anymore water. When I shut my mouth and nose, I passed out.

Instantly, I found myself standing on the side of the pool and looking at myself facedown in the water. I was not moving. My cousin was standing behind me to watch the trick I told him I could do. I was completely at peace and had, what I would describe as, a better-than-bird's-eye view. I remember my attention being drawn towards the sky. When I looked up, I knew there were many different places I could go exploring. Even though I wanted to go, I looked back at my body and realized I needed help. I went through the yard looking for someone to help me. My feet were floating above the ground. I found it odd that there was nobody around because there usually were plenty of people around and it was broad daylight.

I went into the ground floor of the main house and straight into the cook's room. I saw the cook asleep on his stomach in his bed in his very small bedroom. The back of his head was facing me. I was floating against the wall at the foot of his bed. I screamed for him in a panic, but the words that came out - it was energy. That same instant, he startled me because he jumped out of the bed and ran out of the room. He made it to the threshold of the door that led to the yard. He fell to a sitting position with his hands on his head. I stayed next to him until I saw him look up and towards where my body was in the pool. When I saw him get up and run towards the pool, I followed but got there before him. I went right back to where I originally showed up when I first left my body. When he got to the pool, I was facing him and on the opposite side of the pool. I saw him teetering on the edge of the pool trying to reach me without jumping in. I then went back into my body.

I threw my hand up to him and he was able to grab my arm. He pulled me out of the pool. I didn’t cry, cough, throw up, or speak for the rest of the day. I only moved from the spot that I was last put in if I was led by someone to a new spot. I was in a state of total peace like I’ve never known before that moment and never known since. I remember every detail of that moment to this day, even though I can’t not remember anything else before or after that moment with that kind of detail. I remember the cook leading me back towards the main house and calling to several other people to join him so he could explain what just happened. He said he had just fallen asleep; when suddenly, he felt like the room exploded and he jumped out of bed so shaken that he barely made it to the threshold of the door before he had to sit down. As he was trying to figure out what had just happened. That’s when he saw clothes hanging on the rebar that was still exposed near the swimming pool. He said he knew I was in the pool and went running to find me. He said, as tears ran down his cheeks, 'She wasn’t moving. I thought she was gone!' I never talked about what I saw until I was in my late teens and most people were dismissive of my story. I started researching other accounts to compare my experience when I was in my 20's but never found an exact account like mine.

Barbara D’s NDE in 1967---like a few NDErs, she mentions cords connected to her pulling on her.

I was jumping off the top of a small dam into the river. I followed the example of some older boys who were doing it for fun. It was a dangerous and risky activity, but I thought I could do it successfully. My first few jumps off the dam were exhilarating. I just needed to be sure that I jumped out far enough to clear the cascade of water falling down from the dam. Otherwise, one could get pulled down under the water and pinned to the river bottom. Needless to say, I made too short of a jump, and fell into the cascading water. I was tumbled and pushed to the bottom of the river and pinned down flat by the water pressure. I tried to break free, but was not strong enough. I held my breath and thought to myself, 'This is it, I am going to die.' The moment I drew water into my lungs, I thought, 'Dying is so easy, only one breath-span between here and there.' It was soft, like gossamer on a butterfly's wing.

My life flashed before my eyes in rapid sequence, like flashcards or playing cards being ruffled quickly. All of my life moments, including the inconsequential moments as well as important instances. They all came flooding through. From the red canvas of my tennis shoes, to the wind and smell of the oak trees I loved to climb; everything I experienced was shown frame-by-frame in a part-second. I was suddenly pulled by many filaments located in the center of my chest. I went forward like a kite of a string, down through a tunnel or wormhole. I went extremely fast, like a bottle rocket - whoosh! I was flying toward a bright light at the end of the tunnel.

Then I was standing in bare feet on river sand. I was standing on the edge of a great river which flowed from left to right. It looked to be a couple of miles wide. Behind me were stabilized dunes with willow and alder trees, intermittently spaced along the rivers edge. There was grass in the dunes. I first looked for the sun, but found nothing that provided a light source for the daylight conditions. I then looked across the river, to see such an amazing world of mountains, trees, waterfalls, exotic flowers. Everywhere was green, green, green! It looked like our own natural world, but on steroids. There was so much life with colors, textures, light, and smells that were all in a state of absolute perfection and abundance. I could scarcely take it in.

Then whoooooooosh! I felt myself being pulled behind by the same filaments between my shoulder blades back through the wornhole. I found myself being resuscitated at the rivers edge. A couple of teenage boys had jumped into the water, found me, and pulled me out.

Tina G’s NDE in 2012---death from burst aneurysm

I had a somatic aneurysm burst and was rushed to the hospital by ambulance from home. I thought I had the flu, but then I knew it was something worse. I called my husband home.

I was sitting in a bamboo chair. The bamboo chair was simple, old but very simple, it had two slats of bamboo on the back and that was it. It was in an open area with a hard white floor. On the right side of the chair was a bluish green cart with wheels. It had a black grip and a no-slip top. On the cart was a film projector, which gave off warmth. It felt very good. The whole area was full of light, white misty clouds like a fog with a bright day sun shining through it. Little fuzzies went through the air, gliding through the light of the film projector. The projector was playing on two screens, one on the left and one on the right. The screens were extra-large, like a drive-in movie theater size.

The scene was the same on both screens. It was Sofie's graduation. She had just walked to get her diploma. On the left screen, I was not there. Sofie had tears in her eyes. Johnny's eyes showed that it was not a joyous occasion. Corey looked like he did not know what to do. It was obvious there had been difficulties on the road getting there. But I felt peace. Nothing could describe it: Never needing to take a breath, never feeling any pain, only feeling peace and joy. It was better than the best day ever. I could never explain how this felt.

The right screen showed a happy joyous occasion, Sofie was graduating, throwing her hat in the air. Johnny was hugging the whole family. The children are well on their way to a successful life. Corey and I held hands tight we were so happy. But the pain, it was agonizing. I took a breath in but I could not breathe out. I felt as if someone had hit me with 100 sledgehammers. This is how I would live for a period of time, I would have to heal for period of years but, I would know my purpose.

Could I endure such pain for my purpose? God would not have been upset with me if I could not; He was giving me the choice. The more time I spent on the left the harder the choice was getting, I needed to get out of the left. I had a choice. It should have been simple, right? I felt the peace I would have if I chose the left. And I felt the pain of choosing the right. I tried to turn around. Was there someone behind me who could give me some advice? I was unable to turn my head around, but felt the presence of hands on my shoulders. I closed my eyes and chose the screen to the right.

I gasped, and opened my eyes. I was in the hospital in pain, unbelievable pain. Now I live with pain and new health issues every day. I am embarrassed to say that some days I wonder why I did not make the easy choice. Then I am quickly and easily reminded why by one of my purposes. Right now, I feel worthless, not able to do a lot due to the pain. I do maintain. I struggle daily; it's hard to see most days. Other days it's a little too obvious. Pastor Jim once asked if I was ok. Well, he got the answer. I suppose you're wondering what my purpose is, I struggled with this a lot at the beginning, (cure cancer, save the children, invent something?) before it became clear: My Purpose is to be a wife and mother. Yes, that is my purpose. I am still in pain; I have had an angiogram in Feb 2014 and now am dealing with a tumor on my lung or scar tissue. I have fatigue issues every day. Life is hard but one day it will get better and I will enjoy it again.

GI ALMOST DIES, HAS PAINFUL LIFE REVIEW AND FLIES AROUND THE WORLD

In April 1996, I was deployed to Thailand to support this annual military joint exercise named “Cobra Gold.” I would say around 2,000 U.S. soldiers from all military branches were also deployed. Thailand was a beautiful place to live. The people were friendly, the food was delicious, and there was so much to explore. Unfortunately, the country is a public health nightmare. There is an incredible amount of disease and germs in Thailand. It was so bad, the military’s Public Health Department prescribed everyone Doxycycline as a preventative medicine. I am not totally sure about how I got the H. pylori germ.

I started feeling the symptoms somewhere around the tail end of my deployment in June. I remembered asking my friend Pic, “Does my neck looks swollen to you?” to which he replied, “Hell yeah!” At first, I felt fatigued. The fatigue was so extreme that I drank Pepsi nearly all day, for the caffeine. This chronic fatigue lasted weeks, until I returned from Thailand, sometime in late June 1996.

The symptoms got worse every week after I returned from Thailand. I had stabbing pains in my stomach, a constant burning pain in my throat, and I would poop this strange orange jelly-like material. I know, too much information. I drank Maalox like coffee. I would carry the small Maalox bottle in my back pocket like a flask of liquor. I even sipped on it like Hennessey. Eventually, I started going to the military doctor every two weeks, for three months. He would give me the same spiel, “Your body is fighting something. Let’s wait a little longer to see what manifests.”

Finally, he told me, “Look! The next time I see you, you’d better be in the emergency room!”

After hearing the same speech, I stopped going. I guess his words finally got to me. Therefore, I waited for a huge symptom, like an alien to pop out of my stomach.

As time passed, my symptoms became more severe. I started having some breathing issues, like wheezing and nasal flaring. I remember sitting in a college English classroom on the base, gasping for air. It felt like I was breathing through a straw. I looked at my other classmates to see if they were having breathing issues. After class was over, I went home, laid on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.

The next day was October 25th, my “Happy Birthday Eve day,” since my birthday was the following day, on the 26th. I remember feeling fatigued and wheezing that day. I remember thinking, “Why am I focusing on inhaling and exhaling today?” I remember clutching my chest, due to breathing issues. I laid in bed and immediately passed out while clutching my chest. Immediately after I lay down, I felt my body levitate from the bed. As I reached the ceiling of the bedroom, my body flipped around to a birds-eye view. That’s when I saw my real

motionless body on the bed, still clutching its chest. My spiritual body came back down from the ceiling and stood in front of the bed. The television was behind me on the dresser and the volume was very loud.

“Am I really out of my body?” What I did know at that point was that I didn’t have any more pain. I looked up at the ceiling and was blown away! The ceiling in the bedroom was completely gone. The ceiling was replaced with outer space, with small bright stars. It was as if the entire universe was condensed to what looked like a star map on my ceiling! This outer space, it was so dark that it seemed to glow. I had never seen any object so dark. The stars were tiny but bright, similar to white Christmas tree lights. I stared at this for at least five minutes. I remember saying, “I must be in another dimension.”

After gazing at the ceiling, I turned completely around. That’s when I saw him! Standing at the corner of the room was an angel who was around 7 ½ feet tall. He didn’t shine or have a glow like I would have imagined, nor did he have wings. However, I knew he was an angel because of his height and because he wore a Greek-like white robe. He was a tall and slender elderly man with a neatly trimmed beard that was perfectly edged.

Immediately after I saw him, I mumbled, “This ain’t gonna be pretty!” because I knew I was going straight to hell. Afterwards, we had a long discussion, but our mouths did not move. We conversed telepathically. Even though I was in spiritual form, I had all of my five senses. Another interesting fact is that you are still the same person, even in the spiritual world.

I cannot remember our conversation, but it had to do with me being on the wrong trajectory to Heaven. Around this time, I realized that this angel was more of a “guide.”

After our conversation, I hovered over the house, far enough to see that my house didn’t have a roof! It looked like a doll house or a house on a movie set. Only the side walls existed. I looked at my living room which was well lit. My wife was in the kitchen cooking. Six feet from her was another ball of light. That’s when I noticed that this wasn’t a ball of light, but another angel in the kitchen with my wife.

After hovering over my house, I remember flying through the air. If I had to guess the altitude, I would say I was at an altitude of about 50,000 feet! I remember flying over the Pacific Ocean at night and how the waves had small reflections of light, similar to how the moon shines on the ocean. Boy, was I flying! I felt afraid because I wasn’t in control of where I was going. It felt like my spirit was thrown across the ocean. I went from Guam to Los Angeles, 6000 miles, in probably 10 seconds. I also felt homesick because I knew that I was far away from my body. I thought, “I need to get back into my body and start living right!”

After I arrived in Los Angeles, that’s when my whole “dimensional” thinking became spiritual. I finally accepted that I was either dead or near death. I remember being in a bright orange/yellowish room. The light wasn’t super bright; however, it illuminated the entire room. I knew instantly that this wasn’t any ordinary light, but the presence of God in the room. It was as if the light was alive.

There was a glass pane across the room, which separated the dimension I was in and life on Earth. Even to this day, it’s hard for me to discuss this event because I was being judged on my past and future actions. I was shown how powerful your words or actions are. If you called someone fat 20 years ago, when you are judged, you will see and feel the “behind the scenes” of how your words affected them throughout their life. My past words made someone depressed in the future, to the point that it changed their life’s “trajectory.”

Just dwell on this. Think about all of the kids that you probably teased or bullied in elementary school. Think about later in their life, that you were the person responsible for that kid eventually abusing drugs or hurting him or herself. Sorry, I know this was dark and too much.

After watching my life review, I felt horrible and ashamed. I didn’t break down and cry, but I wanted to distance myself from that room and the “Light.” I even said to it, “Just take me straight to Hell.”

Suddenly, I was thrown back over the Pacific Ocean and into my body. I wish I had a camera in my bedroom because it felt like my body bounced up off the bed. When I woke up, I was disoriented. I didn’t know where I was. Seconds later, my wife came in the room singing “Happy Birthday” and holding a cake. I looked at the clock and it was exactly 12:00 AM, October 26, 1996, my 26th birthday!

After about a day or so, I went back to the hospital. God blessed me with another doctor, fresh out of medical school. I could tell he was a Second Lieutenant. He said, “Let me run some labs to see what’s in your blood.” That is when Helicobacter Pylori came back positive. He prescribed me Tagamet and around three months of antibiotics, and it took around that time to totally eradicate it.

A BIBLICAL SCHOLAR I HAVE READ AND RESPECTED FOR YEARS RECENTLY SUFFERED A STROKE WHICH FORCED HIM INTO RETIREMENT. HE HAS AUTHORED OVER 20 BOOKS AND APPEARED AS A GUEST ON MANY TELEVISION SHOWS, INCLUDING THE TODAY SHOW, DATELINE, 60 MINUTES, AND LARRY KING LIVE. JOHN S. HAS NEVER BEFORE WRITTEN ABOUT NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES. BUT WHEN HE HAD A STROKE, HE HAD AN OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE, SURPRISING BOTH HIMSELF AND HIS READERS! HERE IS HOW HE TELLS IT:

John S’s OBE in 2016----“Let me tell you a story, a true story.”

My wife and I had planned on finishing my last lecture tour, beginning at the Chautauqua Institution in western New York, where I had previously lectured to audiences including a series of stars from the world of Hollywood, television, Broadway and the arts, including Tom Brokaw, Jane Pauley, Garry Trudeau, Julie Andrews, and Alan Alda; then continuing my lectures in Paris, Scotland, and England, and finally finishing in Wales.

Alas, it was not to be. I had gotten up early the first day, run my regular four miles on the track, taken my wife to breakfast, then come back to shower and shave and get dressed for the day. That was when it happened.

Suddenly I was on the floor and unconscious. I say unconscious for that is what it seemed at first, but then I was high above my body, surveying the whole scene. I was wonderfully at peace. I did not feel a thing.

Soon, the medical technicians attending to me felt a need to cut off my clerical shirt. From my vantage point above them, I watched them do it, and then I truly did enter into a state of unconsciousness.

I later asked my wife, who had been present in the room, what had happened, and she told me that they had cut off my shirt, just as I had seen them do, in order to place medical sensors on my body.

They even gave the shirt back to Christine. I have it now. It was quite surreal, but in fact it was a stroke hitting the right side of my body, which I could no longer move. That was in 2016. I stayed in hospital for about 3 weeks, learning slowly and patiently to walk again. Now I seem fully recovered. I walk on my treadmill every day. However, I still have trouble writing. Oh, I can do it all right, but as yet no one can read it! I expect that to improve with time.

NOTE THAT, WHILE VIEWING HIS OWN BODY FROM ABOVE, DR. S’s CONSCIOUSNESS WAS SEPARATED FROM HIS BRAIN!! AT THIS TIME, THIS IS SCIENTIFICALLY INEXPLICABLE!

Nurse’s NDE in 1989---dead for 20 minutes, sees God but can't enter

In 1989 I had graduated nursing school and was working as a nurse in a hospital. I had a patient that was in isolation with pneumonia. Somehow I contracted the same type of pneumonia, even though I used all necessary precautions. I was sick overnight. I woke up with severe chills and a fever of 102. I still lived in the nursing dorm, so I woke up another nurse who took me to the hospital across the street. The doctors in the ER admitted me immediately.

By the next day I was running fevers of 104 to 105.2. I was very sick. I couldn't breathe out of my nose or mouth. The infection control doctor said I had Klebsiella pneumonia, which has a high mortality rate. I was in the hospital for about 2 months. One day I was running fevers of around 104-105, couldn't breathe, and just wanted to be out of the sickness. I wanted to get better. I'm an only child, and my mother was told by the doctors that I wasn't improving, even though I was being given massive doses of antibiotics. They even told my mother I would probably die, because I was septic by then. She was screaming, "But she's only 23!!"

One day I remember hearing the doctors and nurses around my bed in ICU saying, "She's not gonna make it." I closed my eyes and then I was in another realm. I was just there. At first I was slightly confused. Where am I? I was on a path and I could see hills, green grass, a flowing brook, and a low stone wall. I saw animals of all kinds and lots of flowers. The colors were very vivid. I could hear soft music. I saw bearded irises on the path I was on, and I leaned over to smell them. They smelled just like lemonade!!

All of a sudden a large golden coach appeared. There were people in it, and the door opened. I got in without any question. There were no drivers on the coach. We were taken to a mansion; that's the only way I can describe it, and into a very large room with people of all ages, races, etc. The room was round and there were gold candles on the walls. The walls were a robin’s egg blue with gold trim. Two huge doors were on one side of the room. There were many, many people in this room.

All of a sudden I felt a strong presence behind me. I turned around and there was my great-grandmother and my grandmother!! I grew up in the same house with them, so I knew who they were, but they looked like they were about 20 years old. My GG died in 1978 at the age of 100, and my grandmother, whom I was extremely close to, had passed away 3 years before. There was no way I could have recognised my GG, since I had no picture of her when she was 20 in 1898. But I knew them both. They wouldn't let me touch them and said I wasn't ready and would see them again someday.

About that time the two huge doors opened. Beings appeared that somehow I knew were angels. They wore a very bright white and were very tall. I was not frightened by their presence. They began to take groups of people through these doors. I wanted to go, but they said it wasn't my time. Through the doors I could see a very bright light, and somehow I knew it was God.

All of a sudden, everything I ever questioned made sense. I knew instantly we are one with everything. Everyone spoke, but it was like telepathy. I turned around to see my GG and grandmother, saying I wanted to stay. They said again no, you're not ready.

And the next thing I knew, I was opening my eyes back in ICU. Just like that. I closed my eyes again wanting so much to go back, but I couldn't. One of the nurses turned around and gasped. She said I was pronounced dead about 20 minutes ago. The doctors could never understand how I "recovered" in their words. I knew then I had died and I got a small glimpse of heaven.

It has taken me over 30 years for me to ever tell anyone what I experienced. The first person I told was my husband, and that was after we had been married for years. I was not oxygen deprived, I was not on any narcotics, and I did not dream this!! It was VERY REAL, very vivid, and beyond wonderful!! And to this day, when I lean over to smell an iris, I still smell the scent of lemonade.

Christian’s Near-Death Experience

On June 2nd, 1995 I had a reaction to medications I was taking while having dental surgery performed. Two weeks prior to going in for the dental surgery, I had sprained several major muscles in my lower back. I remained bedridden for over a week on pain killers. On the day of my dental surgery, now weary of the thought of any additional pain and discomfort, I purposefully took a rather large dose of the pain killers. Then the inevitable happened.

The large dose of pain killers ended up conflicting with the anesthesia given to me in the dentist’s office and the result was that my blood pressure fell too low and I was literally knocked unconscious and right out of my body. During a brief amount of time, my spirit traveled through a “Heavenly Realm.” During the experience, all time stopped … and two minutes of Earth time turned into what seemed to be days, weeks and even months on the Other Side. I saw an uncountable amount of wonderful places that were not of this world and many spiritual truths were lovingly and generously revealed to me with mind-bending answers. Almost the whole time I was guided by four beings who were robed with a beautiful glistening white, diamond-like material. I recognized these beings as having been some of my closest friends that have been with me for all time. They were very kind to me and very caring about my feelings. There are no secrets in Heaven, so information that might have been considered embarrassing was treated with tremendous sensitivity. Wonderful warm laughter was often exchanged between us. I knew that I was eternally and unconditionally Loved!

I felt the presence of God everywhere in this Realm (Heaven). My very loving guides imparted amazing information. Toward the end of my experience, I stood in the wonderful presence of a great Being of brightness who was my Creator, a being of unconditional Love and infinite Light. I saw that, before each of us is sent forth into our various missions of LOVE, we are brought into a vast Cathedral of Light. Because our Souls are covered by what is known as a “veil of forgetfulness,” we are made to seek out God in ways that hopefully has us seeking God in each other. Each of us carries the Light of the Creator within us, and it is through this experience we call “life in the flesh” that helps us to better understand the Creator and, by practicing Love, develop the inner Light he placed within us. A time will come soon enough where we will be back in the Loving arms of God and it will be a very joyous time for us all. Then, as I looked up, I saw four translucent screens appear and form a kind of gigantic box around me. On these walls I was shown my life review. Or, rather, I should say my LIVES IN REVIEW! Without even having to turn my head, I saw my past, my present, and my future. There was even a screen that displayed a tremendous amount of scientific data. I saw the beginning of my existence as a Soul and saw that I had existed Spiritually long before this incarnation (in which I am a male human known as Christian Andréason).

In Heaven, I saw that I had lived innumerable lives. I am not exactly speaking of being born again and again on this planet alone. I saw that it is a big Universe out there and God has it all organized perfectly. Each of us is sent where we can obtain the best growth according to our Divine purpose. Before the review ended I felt fully embraced by my Creator. I knew without a doubt that this omnipresent being found great delight in me.

I was then shown the time we call the beginning of Creation. There was a huge explosion, coming from a singing, pulsing, Joy-filled ball of bright Golden Light. I knew that I had been a part of this great Light, as have the rest of us. From this Light exploding, I found myself happily and quite excitedly hurling through space and time. Heaven is glorious! There are many levels and dimensions. There are great cities very similar to the ones we live in now, only these places have great harmony and balance. Individuals are laughing, relaxing and enjoying one another’s company. There is a tremendous amount of Love and Grace in Heaven. No matter where you go, the feeling of Love and Joy is everywhere. There is no other place you would rather be. I was amazed to see how each of us is connected eternally, that we will always exist, that our spirit (or consciousness) will never die.

Contrary to what many of us were taught in our various religions, “Heaven” is not a reward for good behavior. We are ALL children of God. Each and every one of us plays a vital role on this planet. No one is insignificant or unloved. So now, I never EVER judge anyone. In fact, if you really want to know what true worship looks like, it is how you treat others, when you are kind and gracious with them.

Sheila’s NDE--- severe allergic reaction to a medication during an operation

I have always suffered from multiple allergies. This was merely a lifelong nuisance until that fateful day that my allergies became a much greater threat to my life. I told the surgeon and anesthesiologist about all my allergies. This was elective surgery and not an emergency. In spite of the medical team doing everything they could, I had a severe allergic reaction to a medication during the operation. This allergic reaction was so severe that my heart stopped. Immediately after my heart stopped I found myself at ceiling level. I could see the EKG machine I was hooked to. The EKG was flatlined. The doctors and nurses were frantically trying to bring me back to life. The scene below me was a near-panic situation. In contrast to the chaos below, I felt a profound sense of peace. I was completely free of any pain. My consciousness drifted out of the operating room and moved into a nursing station. I immediately recognized that this was the nursing station on the floor where I had been prior to my surgery. From my vantage point near the ceiling, I saw the nurses bustling about performing their daily duties. After I watched the nurses a while, a tunnel opened up. I was drawn to the tunnel. I then passed through the tunnel and became aware of a bright light at the end of the tunnel. I felt peaceful. After I passed through the tunnel, I found myself in an area of beautiful, mystical light. In front of me were several of my beloved relatives who had previously died. It was a joyous reunion, and we embraced.

I found myself with a mystical being of overwhelming love and compassion. “Do you want to go back?” I was asked. I responded, “I don’t know,” which was just like my old indecisive self at the time. After further discussion, I knew the choice to return to my physical body was mine. It was a most difficult decision. I was in a realm of overwhelming love. In this realm I knew I was truly home. Finally, I returned to my body. I awoke in the ICU over a day later. I had tubes and wires all over me. I could not talk about my profound experience. Later I returned to the floor of the hospital where I had been before surgery. Here was the nursing station I visited during my NDE. I finally worked up the courage to share what I saw during my NDE with one of the nurses. The nurse responded with a look of shock and fright. This was a Catholic hospital. Not surprisingly, a nun was sent to talk with me. I patiently explained all that I had experienced. The nun listened carefully and then declared my experience to be the “work of the devil.” You can understand my enormous reluctance to share my NDE with anyone after this.

I FELT LIKE I WAS WHO I WAS ALWAYS SUPPOSED TO BE

I remember going to bed happy that night. As a special education teacher, I was on Thanksgiving vacation. I was planning on going to San Diego to visit my family. My partner and I had laid around all week binge-watching everything we could on Netflix, and life was good.

Out of a dead sleep, I heard a voice in my head, so loud, "WAKE UP!" I felt jolted awake with electricity and kind of jumped right out of the bed. I felt like I had been working out; my heart was beating fast and I was breathing heavy. I thought this was all because I had high blood pressure or something so I tried to distract myself by wiping down the kitchen counters. Everything was so slow and then a feeling came over me. I knew I was dying.

Everything was going weird; the apartment was lit by a strange light that was coming from nowhere and everywhere. I woke my partner up and remember saying as calmly as I could, "Get your phone and call 911. I'm dying." Somehow I ended up on the couch, arms spread wide, trying to breathe, gasping, drowning, panicking; the horror of the situation was overwhelming. The pain in my body was so intense, I fought and fought, but it spread up my body to my neck and I fell forward. I just remember thinking, "Oh my god, I'm only in my underwear and they are totally inappropriate to die in," then black.

I was later told that, by the time the paramedics arrived, my head was grey and blue and my body was bright red. My body was swollen from all the muscles seizing and beginning to die.

I'm in blackness now. Total thick velvety blackness and it's all around me. I feel fine, safe, happy, and I am me -- but something is not right. I didn't care, I wasn't scared but something was just odd. Then I could hear voices, people talking but I couldn't hear what exactly they were saying. I heard the chime of the elevator, the slam of car doors. I knew I was in this ambulance but I was in black. I think they are talking about me but I'm not sure. Then alarms going off inside the ambulance. Lots of frantic activity, someone is screaming, "He's Crashing,” something about 94-degree body temperature, no blood pressure. I was actually getting pissed off. I just remember thinking, "There is nothing wrong with me!"

I felt I was there in my body and I was in a hospital emergency room. I sensed lots of people scurrying around me. I heard things like core temp, blood pressure, heart-stopping, machines, beeping, alarms. They put a thermometer like a long wire up my butt to get a core temperature reading. I couldn't move or talk but I knew what was going on around me. Next thing, I am out of my body. I'm up in the air, like 8 feet looking down. I'm me; I have the same mind and I am looking around. I looked over to the left and someone was there. I didn't need to look at it. I saw it through my peripheral vision and it was like a friend, someone I had known for a long time

I looked into the hallway and there were these paramedic guys there. There was an African American lady who I thought was the ambulance driver. They all looked really concerned and I thought, "Wow what's going on with them?" Then I saw my partner; he was there in the hallway, and he looked horrified. I was thinking, "Why could they possibly be so upset?”

I felt kind of like I was at a baseball game, up in the stands, looking down at the game now. I see a hospital table down below and a guy on it. He has a beard, he kinda looks like me. Slowly I realize it is me -- It is me! There were people working on me and I'm sensing this big bright light behind me. I know there is no roof or walls behind me, just a big void. I could sense it. I feel great. I'm sensing there are all these people standing behind me, but I never turn around to see them. I can just feel them. I felt like I was who I was always supposed to be. Everything was so clear, I could see so well out of both eyes. I understood and felt what everyone in the room was thinking and feeling. Everything made sense to me. I saw myself like some old clothes laying on the floor and I really didn't want to put them back on.

There were no words, but this person I sensed on my left communicated, "Do you want to go back?” and “Why don't you go back?" in the same thought and feeling. I hesitated. I didn't really want to go back to my stupid life. Then I'm being pulled fast. Backward and up and back into the air. "Me" on the table is disappearing way below. Then in this weird split-second 5-hour thing, I felt absolute and total love and acceptance. Unconditional love; god, I guess. Like nothing I have ever felt. I can't explain it. I just don't have the words. Then in a second, I felt what everyone was feeling in the room: Adam - the doctors - the paramedics -and I felt all the students I have ever worked with in my life, at the same time. I thought “Wow, that's a lot of kids with disabilities. I never thought about it before.”

Now, I am noticing that the "me" on the table is being held in the arms of some lady and I stop moving backward and start moving back down towards me. She is holding me like a mother or something. And the feeling was amazing; it just so touched me, and it moved me like nothing else ever has. Then I just thought, with mixed feelings, "Whatever! I'll go back." The next second I am slammed into my body, my eyes open, and I am hurting again. I pass out.

Later learned that I had actually died in the bed before I woke up. My doctor explained that my heart had gone into a fatal V-tach arrhythmia, and my body temperature was so low because I had been dead. Whoever screamed WAKE UP in my head saved my life. If I hadn't of thrown myself out of bed, I would just be dead now. Hard to wrap your mind around.

Some Famous Veridical NDEs

Veridical near-death experiences are NDEs in which people reportedly out-of-body have observed events or gathered information that was verified by others upon the experiencer’s return to a conscious state. These are a few famous cases of anecdotal veridical evidence:

The Case of Pam Reynolds:

In order to remove a life threatening aneurysm deep in her brain, Pam Reynolds underwent a rare surgical procedure called “Operation Standstill” in which the blood is drained from the body like oil from a car, stopping all brain, heart and organ activity. The body temperature is lowered to 60 degrees. While fully anesthetized, with sound-emitting earplugs, Pam’s ordeal began. Dr. Spetzler, the surgeon, was sawing into her skull when Pam suddenly heard the saw and began to observe the surgical procedure from a vantage point over his shoulder. She also heard what the nurses said to the doctors. Upon returning to consciousness, she was able to accurately describe the unique surgical instrument used and report the statements made by the nurses.

A Report from a Dutch Nurse:

“During night shift an ambulance brings in a 44-year old cyanotic, comatose man into the coronary care unit… When we go to intubate the patient, he turns out to have dentures in his mouth. I remove these dentures and put them onto the ‘crash cart.’ [..] Only after more than a week do I meet again with the patient, who is by now back on the cardiac ward. The moment he sees me he says: ‘O, that nurse knows where my dentures are.’ I am very surprised. Then he elucidates: ‘You were there when I was brought into hospital and you took my dentures out of my mouth and put them onto that cart, it had all these bottles on it and there was this sliding drawer underneath, and there you put my teeth.’.” Sure enough, the nurse retrieved the dentures where the patient said they were!

Maria’s Shoe

Kimberly Clark Sharp (1995) was a social worker in Harborview Hospital in Seattle when Maria was brought in unconscious from cardiac arrest. Sharp visited her the following day in her hospital room, at which point Maria described leaving her body and floating above the hospital. Desperate to prove that she had in fact left her body and was not crazy, she described seeing a worn, dark blue tennis shoe on the ledge outside a window on the far side of the hospital. Not believing her, but wanting to help, Sharp checked the ledge by pressing her face against the sealed windows and found a shoe that perfectly matched the details Maria had related.

Nevie G’s NDE in 1973---Summarizes the meaning of life discovered by NDErs

It was my birthday, and my parents let me have a small party. One of my girlfriends was staying the night. My parents went out to dinner and I decided that I was a teenager and wanted to try drinking alcohol like my father did. I filled up a tall glass with Gin held my nose and consumed all of it, he equivalent of at least fifteen shots of straight alcohol!

I quickly became disoriented and then fell unconscious. My sister and my friend put me in my bed and when my parents came home and went in to check on me my mother noticed I wouldn't wake up. At this point, they told me they tried to carry me to the car. My father was so mad, he wouldn't help and I was at this point dead-weight. This is the point when I remember lifting out of my body and floating over my body, which was lying in the dining room floor. I was no longer intoxicated; I was completely clear and could see everything at once. I realized that I was dead (or almost dead) and became very upset and began to cry for Jesus to help me.

At this moment, I was aware of a light enveloping me. I was the light and it was me. There was another Being with me. I had cried out for Jesus, but the Being didn't introduce himself or give me its name. It did feel like we knew each other though, like that feeling when you see someone and you know them but can't recall from where. The Being let me know that I was going to die and I must leave this body for good. I remember arguing with the Being explaining that I didn't want to because it was so hard going through the childhood years and I didn't want to have to go through this again. The Being indicated that my body was severely damaged and I couldn't go back. I became very adamant at this point that God was all powerful and could fix the body, and that I should be given a chance to go back in and finish this life I had started. At some point, the decision was made to let me re-enter my body on my faith or will, whatever one may call it.

The next phase was like an evaluation. My past flashed before me, beginning with my birth. I was given a summary of what had happened thus far in my thirteen years. I had a horrible relationship with my father, but that didn't come up in the review. In fact, I don't recall any negativity during my review. The most vivid recollection was the actual moment of birth, which began with bright lights and noises that startled me. It felt like I was watching a movie, yet in it at the same time.

Then I was shown an overview of key points in my life in the future. One of these key experiences was that I would have a child at a very early age and it would be a boy. It was explained to me that from this point forward I would do everything earlier than most, including my older sister. I would marry first, bear children first and generally have more responsibility than my sisters and other friends and family members. I was told that I would soon leave my church and have a short period of rebellion and drug experimentation but this would end fairly soon and I would begin to climb out of it. I was told that I was going to be a writer and that my words would touch many people. I was instructed to write a book on or around the age of forty and that after I had fulfilled my life plans I would eventually die before my two sisters.

All of a sudden, I opened my eyes. I was in a hospital bed in the intensive care unit. The preacher from my church was there praying for me. I actually thought at this point that I had died when I saw him there with my mother who was crying. I gradually woke up and asked what had happened? My mother said I had been in a coma for three days and I had almost died.

I didn't tell anyone about the experience for many years. When I did tell my family, my sisters in particular ridiculed me and didn't believe me. My mother believed me because I was able to describe the scene where I was lying on our dining room floor, when I was completely unconscious and near death at the time.

Although my experience was definitely real, I have come to realize that nothing can be proved or disproved when it comes to this type of thing. Each person forms their own opinion or belief system through direct experience or by reading about others who have had these experiences. Judging by the countless numbers of people who have come forward and told about their NDEs, a pattern emerges that can't be denied. Now deciding what this empirical evidence actually means is a very personal decision left up to each individual.

ADDED COMMENTS:

I would say that my consciousness was different during the experience in that I felt lighter, I could see better, and communication was instantaneous. It's hard to describe, but it definitely didn't involve sound waves or physical sensations. It was a very emotional experience, much more intense than any other event in my life. I knew the chips were down and I could not allow myself to fail by succumbing to an untimely death as a child in this life.
I now understand more clearly the process of life and death. Death is simply a threshold to a never ending procession of life where we learn how to love one another while simultaneously escaping the traps and pitfalls of our fragile physical make up. We are all encouraged to get back up after our falls, then recoup and move forward to a destiny we have co-created. I now understand that we actively participate in our own destiny by the choices we make at every given moment, no matter how minute. We are not simply puppets of clay entertaining the gods.

I began to challenge the belief system we were being taught at my church. It all came to a head one afternoon during a youth group meeting at my church. Our group leader, an older woman in the church, was explaining to several children from the ages of seven years old to teenagers that all the Chinese people were going to hell because they did not know Jesus Christ. I challenged her and said that was not true. She became upset with me and refused to answer my pointed questions. I stumped her by inquiring what happened to all the souls who were born before Jesus then. I then explained to her that I was only a mere human being and I would never send anyone to hell because they didn't happen to live in a region that practiced Christianity. I also told her that I had concluded that God had much more compassion than a kid such as myself, so what she was telling us didn't make any sense. She became infuriated and ordered me to leave the church and go home. I never went back to the church I had attended since I was two years old. Mainly because I understood at the deepest level that what they were teaching the children was far from the truth. Therefore, I left the Southern Baptist church of my youth, never to return. Then I went on an eleven year self-imposed journey into theological and comparative religion studies. After my experience, I understood that there are many paths to the same destination. No one right way, and each is like a facet of a diamond without which a diamond would not be the end result.

RESEARCH

Investigating "Out-of-Body" Experiences of Cardiac Patients who claimed to have seen the resuscitations of their own bodies during cardiac arrest

· An elderly—and blind—woman who suffered a cardiac arrest during her stay in the hospital was unconscious as the resuscitation team tried to revive her.

Later, she told them that she floated out of her body and stood near the window, watching [the resuscitation]. She observed the scene, without any pain whatsoever, as they thumped on her chest and pumped air into her lungs.

During the resuscitation, a pen fell out of her doctor’s pocket and rolled near the same window where her out-of-body spirit was standing and watching. The doctor eventually walked over, picked up the pen, and put it back in his pocket. He then rejoined the frantic effort to save her. They finally succeeded. A few days later, she told her doctor that she had observed the resuscitation team at work during her cardiac arrest. “No,” he soothingly reassured her. “You were probably hallucinating because of the anoxia [lack of oxygen to the brain]. This can happen when the heart stops beating.”

“But I saw your pen roll over to the window,” she replied. Then she described the pen and other details of the resuscitation. The doctor was shocked. His patient had not only been comatose during the resuscitation, but she had also been blind for many years. The cardiologist was still shaken as he confirmed that everything the woman related had indeed taken place and that her descriptions were accurate.

· Before investigating NDEs scientifically, Dr. Michael Sabom, cardiologist, had been convinced that the “near death experience, if properly studied, could be reduced to a simple scientific explanation” not reliant on spiritual or supernatural causes.

At the onset of his first NDE study of hospital patients, Sabom was anxiously awaiting the moment when a patient would claim that he had “seen” what had transpired in his room during his own resuscitation. “Upon such an encounter, I [Sabom] intended to probe meticulously for details that would not ordinarily be known to nonmedical patients.

In essence, I would pit my experience as a trained cardiologist against the professed visual recollection of unconscious lay individuals. . . . [In so doing,] I was convinced that obvious inconsistencies would appear which would reduce these purported visual observations to no more than educated guesses.”

Sabom interviewed 32 such patients. All of their accounts of hospital CPR procedure were accurate, including six particularly detailed recollections. The recollected details in each case were “fairly specific for the actual resuscitation being described and . . . not interchangeable with the clinical circumstances of other near-death crisis events”.

· But, we might object, did Sabom’s patients who accurately described the hospital CPR procedures (see above) do so simply because they remembered them from watching televised medical shows-—rather than actually seeing them during their NDEs? Sabom investigated this possibility by establishing a baseline rate of accuracy attributable to educated guesses. To do this, Sabom interviewed a control group of 25 patients with comparable cardiac-related background and hospital experience but who had not reported an NDE. It should be noted that only 4 among the 25 control group patients had actually been resuscitated from cardiac arrest. These 25 patients were asked what they would expect to see if they were to watch a hospital CPR procedure. The baseline rate of accuracy of these "educated guessers" was low: Many (21) participants made at least one “major error” in their descriptions. However, the accuracy rate of the NDE group reporting their “out-of-body” recollections was overwhelming and not readily attributable to projections from common knowledge.

· One patient did make apparent errors in describing the operation of a defibrillating meter, but then Sabom, to his astonishment, discovered that that description given by the patient matched an older model that was “still in common use in 1973, at the time of [the patient’s cardiac arrest”.

Dr. MC’s NDE in 1999

Bill and I left our children in the capable hands of our nanny and flew from our wonderful Wyoming winter to the delightful Chilean summer.

We spent a delightful week, kayaking on the rivers and playing in the whitewater of southern Chile. Bill and I were already proficient kayakers, but we continued to work on our Eskimo rolls, our boating skills in pushy and steep water, and we paddled a number of both scenic and challenging rapids.

During our last trip down the river, I nervously approached a dangerous waterfall. As soon as I crested the top of the waterfall, I saw nothing but trouble and knew I was going to have a problem. A big problem. There was a tremendous volume of water flowing through this channel, causing the water at the bottom to be chaotic and violent. I saw a large hydraulic formed by the churning waves and saw no exit. I took a very deep breath and dropped down the waterfall and into what would become a great adventure.

Despite the volume and power of the falling water, my boat prevented any hope of making a clean exit. As my boat rocketed down, the front dove under a previously pinned boat. I was upright in my boat, but the water was flowing over the top of me. My boat and I were essentially buried under both falling water and the other boat. The force of the water was so great that I felt like a rag doll. My body was forced onto the front deck of my boat, with my arms helplessly being pulled downriver.

When I first realized that I was pinned in the waterfall, I did not panic and I did not struggle, but I desperately tried to get out of my boat by using some standard techniques. I repeatedly and forcefully tried to reach the grab loop of my spray skirt, but the power of the water forcing my arms downstream was too great and my attempts were laughable. I tried to push against the foot braces. I tried to jiggle the boat. I thought about my family and desperately tried to raise my head out of the water in search of air. I quickly realized that I was not in control of my future. God had saved me more than once in the past, so I reached toward God and asked for His divine intervention. I did not demand rescue. I knew that He loved me and had a plan for me. I asked only that His will be done.

I was soon overcome with an absolute feeling of calm, peace, and of the very physical sensation of being held in someone’s arms---as a short review of my life passed in front of me. I was shown events in my life, in the context of their unseen ripple effects. It is easy for us to see the impact our words or actions may have on our immediate surroundings, but to see the impact of events or words dozens of times removed was profoundly powerful. Through this experience, I was able to clearly see that every action, every decision, and every human interaction impacts the bigger world in far more significant ways than we could ever be capable of appreciating.

Although I felt God was present and holding me, I was still entirely conscious of my predicament and my surroundings. I was able to feel the current pushing and pulling my body and feel the pressure of the water. I could not see anything or hear anything but I was acutely aware of everything that was happening around and within me. I was comfortable, calm, and marveled at God’s presence.

The current was strong and slowly pulled off my helmet and lifejacket before trying to claim my body. While still in the boat, I was seated with my legs stretched out in front of me under the front deck of the boat. I was bent forward at my waist, and my body and arms were lying on top of the front deck, pressed down by the force of the water. I was facing downstream and, as the current worked to pull my body from the boat, my body was forced to bend around the front edge of the cockpit. This was not a problem for my hips, which normally bend in that direction, but my knees were forced to fold back upon themselves in order to free my body.

It sounds rather morbid when described, but, being a spine surgeon, I was completely aware as my knee bones broke and my ligaments tore. I tried to analyze the sensations and consider which structures were likely involved. I seemed to feel no pain, but wondered if I was actually screaming without knowing it. I did a quick self-assessment and decided that I really wasn’t feeling any pain. I felt curiously blissful. This is quite a remarkable statement, considering I had always been terrified of drowning. While my body was being slowly sucked out of the boat, I felt as though my soul was slowly peeling itself away from my body. I finally felt my body release from the boat and begin to tumble with the current. That was the last physical sensation I had with regard to my body.

At the moment my body was released and began to tumble, I felt a “pop.” It felt as if I had finally shaken off my heavy outer layer, freeing my soul. As I rose up and out of the river, twenty souls (human spirits sent by God), greeted me with the most overwhelming joy I have ever experienced and could ever imagine. While I could not identify each spiritual being by name, I knew each of them well, knew they were from God, and knew that I had known them for an eternity!

I was a part of them, and I knew they were sent to guide me across the divide of time and dimension that separates our world from God’s. They appeared as formed shapes, but not with the absolute and distinct edges of the formed physical bodies we have on earth. Their edges were blurred, as each spiritual being was dazzling and radiant. Their presence engulfed all of my senses, as though I could see, hear, feel, smell, and taste them all at once. Their brilliance was both blinding and invigorating. We did not speak, using our mouths, but easily communicated in a very pure form. We simultaneously communicated our thoughts and emotions, and understood each other perfectly, even though we did not use language.

My arrival was joyously celebrated and a feeling of absolute love was palpable as these spiritual beings and I hugged, danced, and greeted each other. The intensity, depth, and purity of these feelings and sensations were far greater than I could ever describe. It was as though I was experiencing an explosion of love and joy in their absolute, unadulterated essence.

My companions and I began to glide along a path, and I knew that I was going home. We were all very excited. My companions could barely contain their unbridled enthusiasm and were eager to announce my return, celebrating it with all the inhabitants of heaven. As I was drinking in the beauty and rejoicing with my companions, I glimpsed back at the scene on the river bank. My body looked like the shell of a comfortable old friend, and I felt warm compassion and gratitude for its use. I looked at our friends trying to save me, and they seemed so terribly sad and vulnerable. I heard them call to me and beg me to take a breath. I loved them and did not want them to be sad, so I asked my heavenly companions to wait while I returned to my body, lay down, and took a breath. I then left my body and resumed my journey home. We were traveling down a path that led to a great and brilliant hall, larger and more beautiful than anything I can conceive of seeing on earth.

I felt my soul being pulled toward the entry and, as I approached, I physically absorbed its utterly unconditional, absolute love that emanated from the hall. There was one notable obstacle to my reunion: my earthly friends kept begging me to come back and take a breath; I felt compelled to return to my body and take repeated breaths before returning to my journey. This became tiresome, and I grew quite irritated with their repeated calling. I knew they didn’t understand what was happening, but I was annoyed that they wouldn’t let me go.

We arrived at the entrance to the hall, and suddenly, it was decided that it was not my time to enter the hall; I had not completed my journey on earth, had more work to do, and must return to my body. I protested, but was given several reasons for my return. We shared our sorrow as they returned me to the river bank. I sat down in my body and gave these heavenly beings, these people who had come to guide, protect, and cheer for me, one last, longing glance before I lay down and was reunited with my body.

Brian M’s NDE---a trucker dies from a heart attack

INTENSIVE CARE UNIT NURSE EMILY BISHOP: “IT JUST IT GIVES YOU THE CHILLS. A PATIENT ON THE BRINK OF DEATH. HE HAD NO HEART RATE, HE HAD NO BLOOD PRESSURE, HE HAD NO PULSE. I MEAN THINK ABOUT THAT LIKE---LIKE SOMETHING SCRIPTED IN HOLLYWOOD.

HE WAS DOWN FOR CLOSE TO 45 MINUTES, DURING WHICH TIME HE CLAIMS HE TRAVELED BEYOND THIS WORLD AND BACK.”

HIS WIFE: “BRIAN WAS TELLING ME THAT HE LOVED ME AND THAT HE'D SEEN THE LIGHT AND THAT HE HAD SEEN MY MOM AND MY DAD---AND I LOST IT AT THAT POINT IN TIME, BECAUSE I HAD JUST LOST MY MOM!”

THE WEEK AFTER BURYING HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW, BRIAN M RETURNED TO WORK, DELIVERING METAL BY TRUCK.

BRIAN: “I WAS FEELING FINE, AND THEN WHEN I UNDID THE TARP AND PULLED THE TARP OFF ME, I STARTED GETTING A TIGHTNESS IN MY CHEST; PROBABLY THE COLD AIR OR ASTHMA. UNTIL THE INTENSE PAIN STARTED.”

HE TOLD 911, “ I THINK I'M HAVING A HEART ATTACK!” BRIAN WAS INDEED HAVING A MASSIVE HEART ATTACK. HIS MAIN ARTERY WAS ENTIRELY BLOCKED; KNOWN AS THE WIDOWMAKER

BOROUGH FIREFIGHTERS AND PARAMEDICS: “HE WAS IN OBVIOUS DISTRESS WHEN WE FOUND HIM. WE PUT THE HOSPITAL ON ALERT. WE WERE REAL AGGRESSIVE WITH OUR PROTOCOLS AND GOT HIM TO THE HOSPITAL AS SOON AS WE COULD”.

DOCTORS: “WE RUSHED BRIAN INTO SURGERY AT UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL MEDICAL CENTER TO OPEN UP THE CARDIAC VESSELS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. THE BLOCKAGE WAS CLEARED AND BLOOD FLOW RESTORED TO HIS HEART. WE TOLD HIM THAT HE DID GOOD BY GETTING HERE AS SOON AS HE DID. NOT ONLY DID BRIAN SURVIVE THE HEART ATTACK AND EMERGENCY SURGERY, BUT HE ALSO WAS SOON UP AND TALKING.”

NURSE EMILY BISHOP: “HE WAS DOING FINE---UNTIL HE SUDDENLY WASN'T! THE MONITOR ALARM BEGAN TO SOUND, SO I RAN INTO FIND THAT BRIAN WAS EXPERIENCING A FATAL ARRHYTHMIA CALLED VENTRICULAR FIBRILLATION; BASICALLY, HIS HEART IS JUST KIND OF LIKE QUIVERING, AND IT'S NOT ABLE TO PUMP. IT'S NOT DOING ANYTHING! EMILY CALLED CODE BLUE---CPR CPR CPR, STRONG, HARD, FAST CPR BY NURSES AND DOCTORS; ALSO PUSHING A WHOLE BUNCH OF MEDICATIONS TO RESTART HIS HEART.

BUT, AS THIS HUSBAND AND FATHER OF THREE WAS SLIPPING AWAY, THE ONLY THING HE REMEMBERS IS STARTING TO SEE A LIGHT AND STARTING TO WALK TOWARDS THE LIGHT.

WHILE THE ICU TEAM TRIED TO REVIVE BRIAN, HE CLAIMS HE WAS WALKING ALONG A HEAVENLY PATH LINED WITH FLOWERS, AND THEN STOPPED BY A FAMILIAR FACE. “SHE WAS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING! WHEN I SEEN HER, IT WAS LIKE THE DAY I FIRST MET HER, AND SHE LOOKED SO HAPPY.” HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW, KAY, WHO HAD JUST PASSED AWAY, GRABBED AHOLD OF MY ARM AND TOLD ME “IT'S NOT YOUR TIME; YOU DON'T NEED TO BE HERE! YOU’VE GOT THINGS TO DO! GO HOME!” AND AFTER WHAT FELT LIKE MINUTES, HER HUSBAND JACK (ALSO DECEASED) WAS WAVING AT ME TOO, GIVING ME A SMILE. AND SHE JUST TOLD ME TO GO BACK.

BUT AT THE HOSPITAL, TIME WAS RUNNING OUT FOR BRIAN---OR SO EVERYONE THOUGHT. “WE SHOCKED HIM FOUR TIMES AND ON THE FOURTH TIME IT STILL DIDN'T WORK---AND THEN OUT OF NOWHERE, HE GOT HIS PULSE BACK! A NORMAL HEARTBEAT AFTER NEARLY 45 MINUTES!

NURSE BISHOP: IT'S PRETTY AWESOME TO SEE---EVEN MORE WHEN YOU KNOW THAT HIS BRAIN HAD NO OXYGEN FOR MAYBE 45 MINUTES; SO THE FACT THAT HE IS UP WALKING, TALKING, LAUGHING, IS EVERYTHING!

BRIAN’S WIFE: I MEAN, THAT'S AMAZING---AS IS BRIAN'S MEMORY OF THE WHITE LIGHT; AND I JUST TOTALLY BROKE DOWN AND WENT AND SAT DOWN BECAUSE I TOTALLY LOST IT WHEN HE TOLD ME THAT; BUT BRIAN SAYS THERE'S NO REASON TO FEEL SAD; THE EXPERIENCE HAS CHANGED HIS ENTIRE OUTLOOK ON LIFE AND DEATH.

BRIAN: THERE IS AN AFTERLIFE AND AND PEOPLE NEED TO BELIEVE IN IT BIG TIME. I’M ETERNALLY GRATEFUL TO THE MEDICAL STAFF AND MY MOTHER-IN-LAW FOR THIS SECOND CHANCE. I NEED TO BE HERE A LOT LONGER; I GOT THREE WONDERFUL DAUGHTERS AND A WIFE, AND IN THE END, THAT'S ALL THAT REALLY MATTERS---LOVE, VERY MUCH LOVE!

A SIGNIFICANT BOOK, BY A RADIATION ONCOLOGIST, SUMMARIZES 9 LINES OF EVIDENCE FOR THE REALITY OF THE AFTERLIFE. Long, Jeffrey; Perry, Paul. Evidence of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death Experiences. HarperCollins.

Nine lines of evidence for the existence of an afterlife have been presented in this book. This evidence would be extraordinary even if NDErs were fully awake and alert at the time of their experiences. But they’re not. People who have near- death experiences are generally clinically dead at the time of their experience. To review, these are the nine lines of evidence:

1. The level of consciousness and alertness during near- death experiences is usually greater than that experienced during everyday life, even though NDEs generally occur while a person is unconscious or clinically dead. The elements in NDEs generally follow a consistent and logical order.

2. What NDErs see and hear in the out-of-body state during their near-death experiences is generally realistic and often verified later by the NDEr or others as real.

3. Normal or supernormal vision occurs in near-death experiences among those with significantly impaired vision or even legal blindness. Several NDErs who were blind from birth have reported highly visual near-death experiences.

4. Typical near-death experiences occur under general anesthesia and/or during cardiac arrest at a time when conscious experience should be impossible.

5. Life reviews which occur during near-death experiences include real events that took place in the NDErs’ lives, even if the events were forgotten.

6. When NDErs encounter beings they knew from their earthly life, they are virtually always deceased, usually deceased relatives.

7. The near-death experiences of children, including very young children, are strikingly similar to those of older children and adults.

8. Near-death experiences are remarkably consistent around the world. NDEs from non-Western countries appear similar to typical Western NDEs.

9. It is common for NDErs to experience changes in their lives as aftereffects following NDEs. Aftereffects are often powerful and lasting, and the changes follow a consistent pattern.

Any one of these nine lines of evidence individually is significant evidence for the reality of near-death experiences and the afterlife. The combination of these nine lines of evidence is so convincing that I believe it is reasonable to accept the existence of an afterlife. I certainly do.