Science and the Near-Death
Experience
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The
Spiritual Development Blog describes
the situation best. Ultimately, all
materialistic explanations for NDEs must
fail because they cannot explain the
paranormal components of the phenomena,
such as shared near-death experiences
where multiple people share a near-death
experience, and veridical near-death
experiences where the experiencer
remembers verifiable information that
could not have been perceived with his
normal senses even if he were conscious.
The Spiritual Development Blog has
discussed these types of cases and
provided examples on their website and
elsewhere on their blog. Even claims
that veridical perceptions are due to
ESP do not contradict the conclusion
that near-death experiences represent
out-of-the-body consciousness and
evidence for the afterlife because ESP
is not produced by the brain and ESP
during near-death experiences is best
explained as out-of-the-body
consciousness. However it is interesting
to see how weak the materialists
hypotheses are on their own ground. It
shows that these materialistic
hypotheses are proposed by people who
are incredibly ignorant of near-death
experiences. It says something sad about
the current state of the scientific
profession that scientists would make
such reckless proposals without
investigating the subject they are
discussing.
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Table
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1.
Scientific theories explaining NDEs |
a.
Dying
brain theory |
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PRO:
Because
NDEs have many common core elements,
this shows they are not spiritual
voyages outside of the body, but
are a function of the dying brain.
All brains die in the same way and
this is why all NDEs have essential
core elements which are the same.
They are the result of neurotransmitters
in the brain shutting down which
creates lovely illusions. (Susan
Blackmore)
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CON:
Because
NDEs have many common core elements,
this suggests they are spiritual
voyages outside of the body. Also,
if the dying brain creates NDE illusions,
what is the purpose for doing it?
If our brains are only a high-tech
computer-like lump of tissue which
produces our mind and personality,
why does it bother to create illusions
at the time of death? If everything,
including the mind and personality,
are about to disintegrate, why would
the brain produce a last wonderful
Grand Finale vision? Even if NDE
elements can be reduced to only
a series of brain reactions, this
does not negate the idea of NDEs
being more than a brain thing. Read
this article on
the errors
of the pseudo-skeptics of NDEs.
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b.
Lack of oxygen theory |
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PRO:
Neurologist
Ernst
Rodin
offers cerebral anoxia as a possible
cause of NDEs of the dying brain.
Such anoxia produces a confusing
dream-like state of delusions and
hallucinations.
(Susan
Blackmore)
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CON:
According
to cardiologist
Dr. Michael
Sabom,
the NDE involves a clear awareness
and a more mystical content, and
NDEs have also occurred in people
without anoxia.
Pim van
Lommel
led a study concerning NDEs during
cardiac arrest. In our study all
patients had a cardiac arrest, they
were clinically dead, unconsciousness
that was caused by insufficient
blood supply to the brain, and the
EEG has become flat. In patients
cardiac arrest (ventricular fibrillation)
is sometimes induced for testing
internal defibrillators. In these
patients the EEG becomes usually
flat within 10-15 seconds from the
onset of syncope due to the (reversible)
total loss of function of the brain.
According to the physiologic theory,
all patients in our study should
have had NDE, but only 18% reported
NDE.
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c.
Right temporal
lobe theory |
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PRO:
Neurologist
Dr. Michael
Persinger
argues that instability and activity
in the brain's right temporal
lobe is responsible for religious
experiences of deep meaningfulness,
early memories, and out-of-body
experiences
(see
this
Temporal lobe theory page.)
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CON:
Dr. Melvin
Morse
agrees with the right temporal lobe
showing NDE-like activity, but he
sees it as the mediating bridge
for a spiritual experience, not
reductionistically as nothing but
brain activity (Morse, 1992). Also,
the characteristic emotions resulting
from temporal lobe stimulation are
fear, sadness, and loneliness, not
the calm and love of an NDE. While
scientists may be discovering a
mechanism associated with NDEs,
this does not mean NDEs are strictly
produced by this mechanism. A mechanical
function associated with NDEs does
not negate the idea of NDEs being
more than a mechanical function.
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d.
Cortical disinhibition
theory |
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PRO:
Susan
Blackmore
interprets the tunnel and the light
as an optical illusion created by
the effects of anoxia and drugs,
creating cortical
disinhibition, with the effect
of random light spots radiating
from the center of a dark internal
visual field.
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CON:
Dr. Michael
Sabom
tested and rejected this brain-only
argument. While brain neurology
is obviously a part of NDEs, he
says, it is not a sufficient explanation
because of the verified or veridical
aspects found in some NDEs. This
aspect is suggestive of the possibility
of consciousness existing outside
of the body.
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e.
Hallucination
theory |
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PRO:
The psychiatrist
Dr. Ronald Siegel
interprets NDEs and similar imaginative
visions of the afterlife as hallucinations,
similar to the effects of psychedelic
drugs or anesthesia(see this
Hallucination Theory support page.)
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CON:
Psychologist
John
Gibbs
states, "NDE accounts from
varied times and cultures were found
to be more orderly, logical, defined
and predictable than comparable
accounts from drug or illness-induced
hallucination. Impressive data from
Tart, Moody and Carl Becker also
argue for the objective elements
of an NDE, including returning with
knowledge later verified and third-party
observations of odd death-bed phenomena
(such as luminosity or apparitions).
Peter
Fenwick,
a neuropsychiatrist, notes drug
induced hallucinations taking place
while the subject is conscious.
During an NDE the subject is unconscious.
While in the state of unconsciousness,
the brain cannot create images.
Even if they did, the subject would
not be able to remember them. NDEs
involve clear, lucid memories. Also,
drug induced hallucinations distort
reality while NDEs have been described
as "hyper-reality."
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f.
Depersonalization
theory |
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PRO:
Noyes
and Kletti
theorizes a defense of the nervous
system stalling off mental disorganization
during the death crisis by presenting
an altered passage of time, vivid
and accelerated thoughts, a sense
of detachment, unreality, automatic
movements, and revival of memories
(see
this
Depersonalization
theory page)
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CON:
Dr. Michael
Sabom
argues depersonalization fails to
account for all the elements of
NDEs. Some NDE elements do not fit
into the depersonalization mode,
such as the strong spiritual and
mystical feelings, and the increased
alertness and awareness. Also, the
vast majority of experiencers reject
the idea of their NDE being the
result of depersonalization. To
reduce what was a profound and transforming
experience to nothing more than
a set of neurotransmitters going
on the blink is a bit like seeing
Michelangelo's statue of David
as nothing more than several tons
of marble.
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g.
Memory of birth
theory |
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PRO:
Otto
Rank
proposed birth trauma being behind
all neuroses, for all anxiety-producing
experiences of separation reactivate
the separation from the mother at
birth (Brown, 52-53). This
theory has been modified to explain
the NDE. The cosmologist
Carl Sagan proposed the tunnel
and light are a reliving of the
infant's descent down the birth
canal (Sagan, 353-68)
(also
see this
Memory
of birth page.)
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CON:
Carl
Becker
asserted that infants descending
the birth canal have their eyes
closed and brains too undeveloped
to allow memories of birth (Becker,
1982). Similarly,
Susan
Blackmore
proved that people born by caesarian
section have the tunnel experience
and OBEs in equal proportion to
those born naturally (Blackmore,
1983). Birth is also often an unpleasant
experience for babies. In contrast,
NDEs are often described as extremely
pleasurable.
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h.
Endorphins theory |
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PRO:
The brain's
naturally produced narcotics, such
as the endorphins, have been offered
by endocrinologist
Daniel
Carr
to explain why, at the very moment
when the body's death would
be expected to bring incredible
pain and terror, the NDE surprises
us with pleasure, calm, and peace.
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CON:
Dr. Melvin
Morse
responds that patients receiving
prescribed narcotics similar to
the endorphins experienced no NDEs
(Morse, 1989).
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i.
Denial of death
theory |
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PRO:
The NDE
is seen by some
Freudians
as a denial of death, a hallucinatory
wish fulfillment defending the ego
from its impending annihilation.
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CON:
A large
number of people who have NDEs are
initially not even aware they have
died. In these cases death is not
even considered or denied (e.g.,
Dr. George
Ritchie,
Rev.
Howard Storm).
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j.
Fear of death
theory |
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PRO:
Severe
anxiety and stress at the time of
death creates a
dissociative
state.
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CON:
Pim van
Lommel
led a study concerning NDEs during
cardiac arrest. Only a very small
percentage of patients said they
had been afraid the last seconds
preceding the cardiac arrest. Also,
the medication given to them made
no difference.
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k.
Darwin's
theory of evolution |
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PRO:
This
theory holds that NDE reports are
a deliberate ploy of humans to help
the human race to adapt better to
the inevitable end of their lives.
This is based on the survival of
the fittest which means that every
species has the primary urge to
struggle to increase its hold on
the planet and guarantee the survival
of its descendants.
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CON:
This theory does not explain why
NDEs are erratic, or why we shunted
down an evolutionary sidetrack for
years by making NDEs something that
people are reluctant to talk about.
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l. Too much
carbon dioxide theory |
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PRO:
Near-death
experiences are tricks of the mind
triggered by an overload of carbon
dioxide in the bloodstream. During
cardiac arrest and resuscitation,
blood gases such as CO2 rise or
fall because of the lack of circulation
and breathing. Patients who experienced
the phenomenon, blood carbon-dioxide
levels were significantly higher
than in those who did not. (Zalika
Klemenc-Ketis of the University
of Maribor in Slovenia)
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CON:
According to
neuropsychiatrist Peter Fenwick
of the Institute of Psychiatry at
Kings College London, "The one difficulty
in arguing that CO2 is the cause
is that in cardiac arrests, everybody
has high CO2 but only 10 percent
have NDEs. What's more, in heart
attack patients, there is no coherent
cerebral activity which could support
consciousness, let alone an experience
with the clarity of an NDE."
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m. Rapid eye movement
(REM) intrusion theory |
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PRO:
Dr. Kevin Nelson of the University
of Kentucky suggests near-death
experiences are akin to dreaming
and they use the same rapid eye
movement (REM) mechanism associated
with sleep. In other words, near-death
experiences are a part of the dream
mechanism and the person having
the experience is in a REM state.
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CON:
Dr. Jeffrey Long from the Near-Death
Experience Research Foundation
(NDERF.org) disagrees with Nelson
on a number of points. First of
all, he states that Nelson's comparison
group - the non-NDErs - is not typical
and many were medical professionals
and colleagues of Nelson. Secondly,
Nelson's research questionnaire
was poorly designed. Thirdly, Nelson
failed to recognize dramatic differences
between NDE and REM intrusion. Hallucinations
stemming from REM intrusion - just
before waking or while falling asleep
- are often "bizarre and unrealistic"
such as seeing objects appear through
cracks in a wall or movement in
a painting on the wall. By contrast,
memories from an NDE are lucid and
rooted in the real world. NDErs
almost uniformly don't say, "Oh,
that must have been a dream." About
75 percent say they were more alert,
more conscious than normal. There's
also a consistency of elements in
NDEs which hallucinations don't
have. Fourthly, 98 percent of NDErs
encounter deceased relatives, as
opposed to dreams where it's common
to encounter living people. NDErs
also encounter deceased relatives
whom they didn't know at the time
were dead. Fifthly, the totality
of evidence shows there's something
going on that's outside the medical
evidence. NDEers almost always say
that it wasn't a hallucination or
dream; it was some different realm,
some different aspect of their existence.
And finally, REM intrusion - whether
sleep paralysis or hallucinations
- tends to be frightening or deeply
unsettling. By contrast, most people
who go through an NDE say the experience
is almost supernaturally calm and
peaceful, even joyful. Not only
anecdotes, but real evidence does
support this. In a 2001 study in
the medical journal The Lancet,
of 62 cardiac attest patients who
reported an NDE, more than half
said the main emotions they experienced
were "positive." Long says these
distinctive, positive emotions are
powerful evidence that an NDE is
not just REM intrusion in disguise.
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n.
Sharp increase of
brain activity after heart stops theory |
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PRO:
Dr Jimo Borjigin of the University
of Michigan suggests that the
dying brain does not shut down as
might be expected, but instead,
becomes much more active during
the dying process than even the
waking state. He bases his findings
on a study involving rats where
it was discovered that in the 30-second
period after the rodent's hearts
stopped beating, there was a sharp
increase in high-frequency brainwaves.
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CON:
In a paper entitled,
"Seeing Dead People Not Known to
Have Died: Peak in Darien Experiences,"
Dr. Bruce Greyson from the
Division of Perceptual Studies at
the University of Virginia argues
that in his collection of 665 NDEs,
138 (21%) included a purported meeting
with a deceased person. People on
their deathbeds see, and often express
surprise at meeting, a recently
deceased person, of whose death
neither they nor anyone around them
had any knowledge. This excludes
the possibility that the vision
was a hallucination related to the
experiencer's expectations. Such
NDEs are termed "Peak
in Darien" cases, after a book
by that name published in 1882 by
Frances Power Cobbe. The title is
taken from a John Keats poem describing
the shock of the Spaniards, who,
after scaling a peak in Darien (in
what is now Panama), expect to see
a continent, but are confronted
instead with another ocean. Bruce
Greyson reports in his paper, published
in the academic journal 'Anthropology
and Humanism', many examples, including
that of Physician K. M. Dale who
related the case of 9-year-old Eddie
Cuomo, whose fever finally broke
after nearly 36 hours of anxious
vigil on the part of his parents
and hospital personnel. As soon
as he opened his eyes, at 3:00 in
the morning, Eddie related that
he had been to heaven, where he
saw his deceased Grandpa Cuomo,
Auntie Rosa, and Uncle Lorenzo.
Then Eddie added that he also saw
his 19-year-old sister Teresa, who
told him he had to go back. His
father became agitated, because
he had spoken with Teresa, who was
attending college in Vermont, just
two nights ago. Later that morning,
Eddie's parents learned that Teresa
had been killed in an automobile
accident just after midnight, and
that college officials had tried
unsuccessfully to reach the Cuomos
at their home. Bruce Greyson relates
many other examples, including cases
in which the deceased person seen
was someone whom the experiencer
had never known. For example, Greyson
reports cardiologist Maurice Rawlings
describing the case of a 48-year-old
man who had a cardiac arrest. In
an NDE he perceived a gorge full
of beautiful colors, where he met
both his stepmother and his biological
mother, who had died when he was
15 months old. His father had remarried
soon after his biological mother's
death, and this person had never
even seen a photo of her. A few
weeks after this episode, his aunt,
having heard about this vision,
brought a picture of his mother
with a number of other people. The
man picked his mother out of the
group, to the astonishment of his
father.
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o.
Consciousness
survives bodily death theory |
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PRO:
There
exists
strong
circumstantial evidence
of consciousness surviving bodily
death. While this evidence does
not constitute conclusive scientific
proof, it does make survival after
bodily death a possibility which
can be upheld in a court of law.
The evidence for survival can be
found in science, philosophy, history,
metaphysics, religion, and anecdotal
testimony. Quantum physics (see
above) makes some scientific theories
of the NDE outmoded while supporting
elements of NDEs. Scientific studies
support the possible validity of
NDEs elements such as being out
of the body, the retention of mental
images during brain death, veridical
experiences of autoscopic events,
the ability to accurately foresee
the future, receiving information
that leads to new scientific discoveries,
people born blind being able to
see, groups of people sharing a
single experience, unbiased children
having similar experiences as adults,
causing experiencers to be drastically
changed and convinced of survival
after death, the evidence supporting
the objectivity of NDEs, and the
affirmation of ancient religious
concepts found around the world.
Some of the skeptical arguments
against the survival theory are
often not valid and the burden of
proof against survival has shifted
to the skeptics. The following is
a list of the evidence supporting
NDEs as the survival of consciousness:
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1. |
Quantum physics makes some
materialistic theories of
the NDE outmoded:
New developments in quantum
physics shows that we cannot
know phenomena apart from
the observer. Arlice Davenport
challenges the hallucination
theory of NDEs as outmoded
because the field theories
of physics now suggest new
paradigm options available
to explain NDEs.
Mark Woodhouse argues
that the traditional materialism/dualism
battle over NDEs may be
solved by Einstein. Since
matter is now seen as a
form of energy, an energy
body alternative to the
material body could explain
the NDE. This is supported
by Melvin Morse who describes
how NDEs are able to realign
the charges in the electromagnetic
field of the human body
so that somehow the brain's
wiring is renewed. He reports
on patients who have NDEs
and who recover from such
diseases as pneumonia, cardiac
arrest, and cancer
(1992, 153-54). Perhaps
the brain is like a kind
of receiver such as a television,
radio, or cell phone. What
is received (i.e., signals,
music, voice) is not produced
by the receiver, but exists
separately as electromagnetic
waves that are processed
by the receiver to make
them visible or audible
to the senses.
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2. |
Quantum physics support
elements found in NDEs:
Similarities can be found
between elements of
NDEs and in quantum field
concepts of non-locality,
universal interconnectedness,
a non-material dimension
without our time-space relationship,
and in the concept of subjectivity.
All events are related and
influence each other instantaneously
and in reciprocity, and
only subjectivity remains.
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3. |
Scientific studies support
the out-of-body aspect of
NDEs:
Pim van Lommel
led a study concerning the
NDEs of research subjects
who had cardiac arrest.
The findings of the study
suggests that research subjects
can experience consciousness,
with self-identity, cognitive
function and memories, including
the possibility of perception
outside their body, during
a flat EEG. Those research
subjects who had NDEs report
that their NDE was a bonafide
preview of the afterlife.
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4. |
Memories and images are
produced and retained by
standstill patients:
See
Dr. Michael Sabom's
groundbreaking
Atlanta study.
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5. |
People see and hear verifiable
events far from their bodies
during an NDE:
See (a) Dr.
Charles Tart's research
subject,
(b)
Pam Reynolds,
(c)
Dr. George Rodonaia,
(d)
Dr. George Ritchie,
and (e)
various
NDE experiencers.
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6. |
Strange aspects to NDEs
cannot be explained by brain
chemistry alone:
If NDEs are merely hallucinations,
why do the vast majority
of experiencers report
being told an identical
and unusual message?
This unusual message is
that they must return because
their time for death hasn't
come, or some variation
of this. Assuming that NDEs
are merely hallucinations,
it is odd that people are
having mass hallucinations
of receiving similar unusual
messages.
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7. |
People born blind are able
to see during an NDE:
See
Vicki
Umipeg's
NDE account.
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8. |
Groups of people can share
the same NDE at the same
time:
NDE
research
Arvin Gibson documented
the account of a group of
firefighters who succumbed
to a forest fire. During
their NDEs they saw each
other outside of their bodies
and had a most interesting
experience. See thee
Group
NDE
web page involving May Eulitt
and Jake.
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9. |
People are able to successfully
foresee future events during
an NDE:
Some
of these events were the
Second World War, Desert
Storm, and the September
11, 2001 terrorist attack.
See the
NDE
and the Future
web page.
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10. |
People are declared dead
and left for dead for several
days during an NDE:
A
Russian scientist was declared
dead and put in the morgue
for three days during which
he had an NDE. See
Dr.
George Rodonaia's
NDE account. Also, visit
Emanuel
Tuwagirairmana's NDE
account.
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11. |
Unbiased children have NDEs
that are similar to adult
NDEs:
See
P.M.H. Atwater's research
on
childhood
NDEs.
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12. |
Scientific
discoveries have been made
from the direct result of
NDEs:
See the list of scientific
discoveries above.
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13.
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NDEs can be viewed to be
archetypal initiatory journeys:
Dr. Ken Ring
stated that NDEs can be
viewed psychologically as
archetypal initiatory journeys
involving a death of one's
old ego and a rebirth of
a new self. An adequate
interpretation must incorporate
the spiritual realm of
kundalini experiences,
the
imaginal realm, and
the
mind at large. As Ring
envisions in an essay in
this book, this paradigm
can deconstruct our traditional
Western worldview. It may
lead to a dramatic next
step in the evolution of
a more ecological and more
compassionate consciousness.
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14. |
People are dramatically
changed as a result from
having an NDE:
The
philosophy of Positivism,
founded by
A. J. Ayer, is the philosophy
that anything not verifiable
by the senses is nonsense.
And since NDEs mark the
end of the senses, the survival
of the senses after death
is nonsense. But this philosophy
is challenged by its founder
A. J. Ayer himself. Later
in life, Ayer had an NDE
where he saw a red light.
His NDE made him a changed
man: "My recent experiences,
have slightly weakened my
conviction that my genuine
death...will be the end
of me, though I continue
to hope that it will be."
(Ayer, 1988 a, b).
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15. |
People are absolutely convinced
they were out of their body
during an NDE:
See
the
Evidence
of NDEs
web page.
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16. |
NDEs can be considered an
objective experience:
The
philosopher
Carl Becker examined
four ways in which NDEs
may be considered objective:
examined four ways in which
NDEs may be considered objective:
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17.
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Other paranormal phenomena
supports NDEs to be experiences
of the survival of consciousness
including:
(a)
Deathbed visions,
(b)
Quantum physics,
(c)
Dream research,
(d)
Out-of-body research,
(e)
After-death communications
research,
(f )
Reincarnation research,
(g)
Hypnosis,
(h)
Synchronicity,
(i )
Remote viewing,
and
(j )
Consciousness research.
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18.
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NDEs have been happening
for thousands of years and
are not a modern phenomenon:
See the NDE accounts associated
with (a)
Plato,
(b) the
Apostle Paul,
and (c) the
Tibetan Book of the Dead.
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19.
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Skeptical arguments against
the survival theory of NDEs
are often not valid:
Sociologist
Dr. Allan Kellehear
states that some scientific
theories are often presented
as the most logical, factual,
objective, credible, and
progressive possibilities,
as opposed to the allegedly
subjective, superstitious,
abnormal, or dysfunctional
views of mystics. The rhetorical
opinions of some NDE theories
are presented as if they
were scientific (Kellehear,
1996, 120).
Many skeptical arguments
against the survival theory
are actually
arguments from pseudo-skeptics
who often think they have
no burden of proof. Such
arguments often based on
scientism with assumptions
that survival is impossible
even though survival has
not been ruled out. Faulty
conclusions are often made
such as, "Because NDEs
have a brain chemical connection
then survival is impossible."
Pseudo-skeptical arguments
are sometimes made that
do not consider the entire
body of circumstantial evidence
supporting the possibility
of survival or do not consider
the possibility of new paradigms.
Such pseudo-skeptical claims
are often made without any
scientific evidence.
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20. |
Memories
of near-death experiences
are more real than reality:
Researchers at the
Coma Science Group,
directed by
Steven Laureys, and
the
University of Liege's Cognitive
Psychology Research,
headed by
Professor Serge Bredart
and
Hedwige Dehon, have
demonstrated that the physiological
mechanisms triggered during
NDE lead to a more vivid
perception not only of imagined
events in the history of
an individual but also of
real events which have taken
place in their lives! These
surprising results - obtained
using an original method
which now requires further
investigation - are published
in
PLOS ONE. The researchers
looked into the memories
of NDE with the hypothesis
that if the memories of
NDE were pure products of
the imagination, their phenomenological
characteristics (e.g., sensorial,
self referential, emotional,
etc. details) should be
closer to those of imagined
memories. Conversely, if
the NDE are experienced
in a way similar to that
of reality, their characteristics
would be closer to the memories
of real events. Their results
were surprising. From the
perspective being studied,
not only were the NDEs not
similar to the memories
of imagined events, but
the phenomenological characteristics
inherent to the memories
of real events (e.g. memories
of sensorial details) are
even more numerous in the
memories of NDE than in
the memories of real events.
|
|
|
21.
|
The burden of proof has
shifted to skeptics of the
survival theory of NDEs:
All neurological theories
that conclude NDEs to be
only a brain-thing, must
show how the core elements
of the NDE occur subjectively
because of specific neurological
events triggered by the
approach of death. These
core elements include: the
out-of-body state,
paranormal knowledge,
the
tunnel, the golden
light, the voice or
presence, the appearance
of
deceased relatives,
and
beautiful vistas. Perhaps
the final word should go
to
Nancy Evans Bush, a
NDEr with the
International Association
for Near-Death Studies,
who said: "There is
no human experience of any
description that can't
simply be reduced to a biological
process, but that in no
way offsets the meaning
those experiences have for
us-whether it's falling
in love, or grieving, or
having a baby."
|
|
|
22. |
A
significant amount of support
suggestive of consciousness
surviving bodily death exists.
Although this has not been
proven conclusively using
the scientific method,
the open-minded skeptic
include this significant
amount of evidence as well
as taken into consideration
the testimonies of millions
of people who have had both
objective and subjective
NDEs and OBEs constituting
very strong circumstantial
evidence.
Here are some Wikipedia
articles dealing with this
subject as well:
[1]
[2]
[3]
[4]
[5]
[6]
[7]
[8]
[9]
[10]
[11]
[12]
[13]
[14]
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18]
[19]
[20] and
[21]. |
|
CON: The
survival of consciousness after
death has never been proven conclusively
using the scientific method.
|
|
Return to Top
|
2.
Near-death studies research conclusions |
|
Read
current articles of NDE research supporting
the survival of consciousness from the body.
|
Dr. Raymond Moody:
Common NDE aspects:
|
|
Dr. Kenneth Ring:
Research findings:
|
|
P.M.H. Atwater:
The content of the NDE involves an otherworldly
awareness that can be brief and consist
of only one or two elements, or can be more
involved, even lengthy, and consist of multiple
elements. Common elements include:
|
|
Dr. Melvin Morse:
The brain's connection to a higher power
can be validated by indisputable scientific
facts such as:
|
|
Dr. Jeffrey and
Jody Long: of
302 near-death experiences:
|
a. |
29% saw the
Being of Light as a familiar
being. |
|
Of
the percentage who saw familiar
beings: |
|
I. |
25.9%
saw blood relatives. |
II. |
22.9%
saw religious figures. |
III. |
25.8%
saw the
Being of Light as an
unfamiliar being. |
|
b. |
Of
the 166 people who saw beings: |
|
I. |
53%
saw familiar beings. |
II. |
47%
saw unfamiliar beings. |
|
|
Dr. Jeffrey Long, in his book, "Evidence
of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death
Experiences," documented a study he
conducted - the largest scientific study
of NDEs ever - based on his research of
over 1,300 NDEs shared with NDERF.org. Using
his treasure trove of data, Dr. Long explains
how NDEs cannot be explained by brain chemistry
alone, how medical evidence fails to explain
them away and why there is only one plausible
explanation - that people have survived
death and traveled to another dimension.
Dr. Long makes his case using nine lines
of evidence and they are:
|
a. |
Crystal-Clear
Consciousness. The
level of conscious alertness
during NDEs is usually greater
than that experienced in
everyday life - even though
NDEs generally occur when
a person is unconscious
or clinically dead. This
high level of consciousness
while physically unconscious
is medically unexplained.
Additionally, the elements
in NDEs generally follow
the same consistent and
logical order in all age
groups and around the world,
which refutes the possibility
that NDEs have any relation
to dreams or hallucinations.
|
b. |
Realistic
Out-of-Body Experiences
(OBEs): OBEs are
one of the most common elements
of NDEs. Events witnessed
and heard by NDErs while
in an out-of-body state
are almost always realistic.
When the NDEr or others
later seek to verify what
was witnessed or heard during
the NDE, their OBE observations
are almost always confirmed
as completely accurate.
Even if the OBE observations
include events occurring
far away from the physical
body, and far from any possible
sensory awareness of the
NDEr, the OBE observations
are still almost always
confirmed as completely
accurate. This fact alone
rules out the possibility
that NDEs are related to
any known brain functioning
or sensory awareness. This
also refutes the possibility
that NDEs are unrealistic
fragments of memory from
the brain.
|
c. |
Heightened
Senses. Heightened
senses have been reported
by most who have NDEs. Supernormal
vision has occurred even
in those with significantly
impaired vision. This is
medically unexplainable.
|
d. |
Consciousness
During Anesthesia.
Many NDEs occur while the
NDEr is under general anesthesia
- at a time when any conscious
experience should be impossible.
While some skeptics claim
these NDEs may be the result
of too little anesthesia,
this ignores the fact that
some NDEs result from anesthesia
overdose. Additionally,
descriptions of a NDEs differ
greatly from those people
who experiences "anesthetic
awareness." The content
of NDEs occurring under
general anesthesia is essentially
indistinguishable from NDEs
that do not occur under
general anesthesia. This
is more strong evidence
that NDEs occur independent
from the functioning of
the material brain.
|
e. |
Perfect
Playback. Life reviews
in NDEs include real events
which previously occurred
in the lives of the NDEr
- even if the events were
forgotten or happened before
they were old enough to
remember.
|
f. |
Family
Reunions. During
an NDE, the experiencer
may encounter people who
are virtually always deceased
and are usually relatives
of the NDEr. Sometimes they
include relatives who died
before the NDEr was even
born. If NDEs are merely
the product of memory fragments,
they would almost certainly
include far more living
people, including those
with whom they had more
recently interacted.
|
g. |
Children’s
Experiences. The
NDEs of children, including
very young children who
are too young to have developed
concepts of death, religion,
or NDEs, are essentially
identical to those of older
children and adults. This
refutes the possibility
that the content of NDEs
is produced by preexisting
beliefs or cultural conditioning.
|
h. |
Worldwide
Consistency. NDEs
appear remarkably consistent
around the world, and across
many different religions
and cultures. NDEs from
non-Western countries are
incredibly similar to those
occurring in people in Western
countries.
|
i. |
Aftereffects.
It is common for people
to experience major life
changes after having NDEs.
These aftereffects are often
powerful, lasting, life-enhancing,
and the changes generally
follow a consistent pattern.
NDErs themselves are practically
universal in their belief
that their experience of
the afterlife was real.
|
|
|
Dr. Michael Sabom:
The Atlanta study concluded:
|
|
Pim van Lommel:
The Dutch study
on NDEs involved:
|
a.
|
The
replication of the veridical
perception phenomenon reported by
Dr. Michael Sabom. |
b. |
Lommel described a patient who was
able to
describe verifiable events from
a vantage point far away from his
body. |
|
Dr. Barbara Rommer:
Less-than-positive NDEs can be classified
into four types:
|
|
Dr. Karl Jansen:
Ketamine research findings:
|
|
Dr. Peter Fenwick:
On the difference between hallucinations
and NDEs, Fenwick states in Tom Harpur's
documentary
Life After Death that drug-induced hallucinations
are not the same as NDEs:
|
"The
difficulty with those theories is
that when you create these wonderful
states by taking drugs, you're
conscious. In the NDE, you are unconscious.
One of the things we know about
brain function in unconsciousness,
is that you cannot create images
and if you do, you cannot remember
them ... [During an NDE] the brain
isn't functioning. It's
not there. It's destroyed. It's
abnormal. But, yet, it can produce
these very clear experiences ...
An unconscious state is when the
brain ceases to function. For example,
if you faint, you fall to the floor,
you don't know what's happening
and the brain isn't working.
The memory systems are particularly
sensitive to unconsciousness. So,
you won't remember anything.
But, yet, after one of these [NDE]
experiences, you come out with clear,
lucid memories ... This is a real
puzzle for science. I have not yet
seen any good scientific explanation
which can explain that fact."
(Dr.
Peter Fenwick)
|
|
Dr. Ian Stevenson:
Stevenson's ground-breaking reincarnation
research concluded that birthmarks and congenital
deformities have one to five characteristics
in common:
|
|
Kevin Williams,
B.Sc.:
These are statistics of common elements
found in 50 NDEs profiled on this website:
|
|
Return to Top
|
3.
Events which can trigger an OBE or NDE |
|
|
Return to Top
|
4.
Scientific discoveries are coming from another
dimension |
|
a. |
"Many of our important
inventions were first
created in the spiritual
universe by spirit prodigies.
Then individuals on
earth receive the inspiration
to create these inventions
here." (Betty
Eadie)
|
b. |
"Spirituality and science
are one and the same." (Lynnclaire
Dennis)
|
c. |
"Science and technology
are gifts from God bestowed
through inspiration. People
on earth have literally
been led to these discoveries,
many of which later became
perverted by humanity to
use for its own destruction."
(Rev.
Howard Storm)
|
d. |
"The mushroom cloud of the
atomic bomb is one of the
holiest archetypes created
by human beings. It, more
than any religion or philosophy
on earth, brought humanity
together all of a sudden,
to a new level of consciousness.
The power behind the atom
is the power of God - the
Force that holds all things
together." (Mellen-Thomas
Benedict)
|
e. |
Visit
the
Skeptic's Corner for
specific discoveries learned
from near-death experiences.
|
|
|
Return to Top
|
5.
Television-like technology exists in the
afterlife |
|
a. |
"Then
I was instantly zapped to
a domed room with square
screens up and down the
walls, on the ceiling -
hundreds of television screens.
On each screen was a home
movie of one event in my
life." (Jeanie
Dicus)
|
b. |
"In a sacred room, we see
our lives flash before us
on a "scanning machine."
This device is a domed screen
where our lives are placed
out in three-dimensional
holographic form." (Sylvia
Browne)
|
c. |
"It
was a lot like looking at
a hologram, but full color
3D with sound and scent."
(Hal)
|
d. |
"He
is told it resembles a movie
theater which allows souls
to see themselves in the
future, playing different
roles in various settings."
(Dr.
Michael Newton)
|
e. |
"In
response they used a machine
to show her a scene from
earlier in her life." (Betty
Andreason)
|
f. |
"With
that I saw frames appear
like screens on a television
set." (Lou
Famoso)
|
g. |
"The
box opened to reveal what
appeared to be a tiny television
picture of a world event
that was yet to happen."
(Dannion
Brinkley)
|
h. |
"He
told me what I had to do
in life and had me go to
the other side of the room
and look down into something
like a television set so
I could see my future."
(Clara)
|
i. |
"Next
we went to a place she called
the lookout. It appeared
to be only an overhang on
a high cliff, but the view
was intensely magnified.
I could look into the world
I had left behind as though
peering into a monitor,
if I chose to do so. No
one spent a lot of time
here, Maggi said, but some
occasionally stopped by
to check on what was going
on in the earthly realm."
(Jan
Price)
|
|
|
Return to Top
|
6.
Computer-like technology exists in the afterlife |
|
a. |
Albert Einstein was observed
operating a Heavenly Computer:
"Next we materialized in
a computer room ... Some
of [the people there] I
knew by name, others by
reputation; and all had
time for me, to teach me
if ever I need help understanding.
One of them was Albert Einstein,
whom I had always admired
greatly but distantly, and
this great man took time
away from his duties to
encourage me. He asked me
if I would care to operate
the computer, which was
very complex and beautiful
and designed to guide the
path of destinies. I was
flattered, but felt incompetent
and unsure of myself in
the presence of such greatness.
I told him I would like
to try, but I was afraid
of making a mistake. He
laughed greatly, and reassured
me, saying that error was
not possible in this place.
Encouraged, I seemed instinctively
to know how to operate this
unusual machine, and waved
my hand in a pattern over
the large keyboard, rather
like playing a piano without
touching the keys. I knew
instantly the task had been
performed perfectly, and
it had somehow been of great
benefit to someone. I was
suffused with the joy of
a job well done. I would
gladly spend eternity here
at this rewarding work if
only for the tremendous
feeling of well-being I
had experienced as a result.
Through open doors I glimpsed
enormous rooms filled with
complex equipment. In several
of the rooms hooded figures
bent over intricate charts
and diagrams, or sat at
the controls of elaborate
consoles flickering with
lights ... Years later,
when I picked up the December
1952 issue of Life magazine
and saw some of the instruments
in the second U.S. atomic
submarine engine, I had
the strange feeling of deja
vu until I recalled seeing
the very same instrument
in one of these labs." (Dr.
George Ritchie)
|
b. |
Betty
Eadie saw a large machine,
similar to a computer,
but much more elaborate
and powerful. Betty realized
that all important things
on earth are first created
in spirit. (Betty
Eadie)
|
|
|
Return to
Top |
|
|
|
Books
on |
Science
and NDEs |

|
The Mereon Matrix:
Everything Connected
Through (K)nothing
(Hardcover
edition)
|
Also available in:
eText edition |
by Lynnclaire Dennis,
Jytte McNair, and Louis
Kauffman
|
The Mereon Matrix is
a 900+ page academic
textbook about a new
mathematical discovery
found in the NDE of
Lynnclaire Dennis.
This unique geometrical
"Pattern" she saw in
the Light led her begin
an investigation to
understand what she
knew was an important
scientific discovery
given to her to help
humanity solve some
of its most critical
problems. The importance
of this discovery -
a "Pattern of patterns"
- is underscored by
the fact that The Mereon
Matrix was published
by Elsevier, the world's
leading provider of
science and health information.
Each chapter of this
book is self-contained
and explained relative
to the Mereon Matrix's
functional process and
provides references
to scientific findings
congruent with or expanded
by the Mereon Matrix.
This book offers a new
way of systems modeling
which has been and can
be applied across a
multitude of sciences.
|
|
|
|
|
|

|
God at the Speed of Light: The
Melding of Science and Spirituality
|
by Dr. T. Lee Baumann |
Could it be that light and God
are one in the same? Physician
Lee Baumann makes a case for
exactly that. From many sources,
Dr. Baumann has synthesized
a compelling picture of what
may be the true nature of our
universe at all levels - physical,
mental, and spiritual.
|
|
|

|
The Holographic Universe
|
by Michael Talbot |
Beginning with physicist David
Bohm and neurophysiologist Karl
Pribram, both of whom independently
arrived at holographic theories
explaining the nature of the
universe, Talbot explains in
clear terms this theory and
applies it to both science and
and the paranormal.
|
|
|
|

|
The Self-Aware Universe
|
by Dr. Amit Goswami, Maggie Goswami,
Richard Reed
|
The scientific case for a self-aware
universe. Consciousness, not matter,
is the ground of all existence.
Consciousness created the physical
world. There is no objective reality
independent of consciousness. The
so-called mind-body schism is illusionary.
|
|
|

|
The Non-Local Universe: The New
Physics and Matters of the Mind
|
by Dr. Robert Nadeau, Menas Kafatos
|
Classical physics rules out "spooky
action at a distance" (i.e.,
a billiard ball cannot move unless
something contacts it.). But the
new physics permits "non-local"
action (i.e., do certain things
to a photon and another photon can
be affected at faster than light
speed). Hence, all of physical reality
is a single quantum system and reality.
|
|
|

|
The Holotropic Mind: The Three Levels
of Human Consciousness and How They
Shape Our Lives
|
by Dr. Stanislav
Grof, Hal Zina Bennett
|
Observations of "non-ordinary"
states of consciousness support
the theory that the mind is essentially "holotropic"
(i.e., like a hologram wherein the
whole can be reconstructed from
a tiny part). Thus, our infinite
transpersonal consciousness can
transcend not only the time-space
continuum but even visit other dimensions
and parallel universes.
|
|
|

|
From Science to God: A Physicist's
Journey into the Mystery of Consciousness
|
by Dr. Peter Russell |
Russell, well known for his work
on the physiology of meditation,
describes his personal struggle
to bring science and spirit together.
By describing the more mysterious
discoveries of contemporary physics
as a source of spiritual inspiration,
the scientific study of consciousness
can yield an insight into consciousness
that religions call "God".
|
|
|

|
The Conscious Mind: In Search of
a Fundamental Theory
|
by Dr. David J. Chalmers |
What is consciousness? How do physical
processes in the brain give rise
to the self-aware mind and to feelings
as profoundly varied as love or
hate, aesthetic pleasure or spiritual
yearning? Now, in The Conscious
Mind, philosopher David J. Chalmers
offers a cogent analysis of this
heated debate as he unveils a major
new theory of consciousness, one
that rejects the prevailing reductionist
trend of science, while offering
provocative insights into the relationship
between mind and brain.
|
|
|

|
Mindsight: Near-Death and Out-of-Body
Experiences in the Blind
|
by Dr. Kenneth Ring |
This book investigates the astonishing
claim that blind persons, including
those blind from birth, can actually
"see" during near-death or out-of-body
episodes. The authors present their
findings in scrupulous detail, investigating
case histories of blind persons
who have actually reported visual
experiences under these conditions.
|
|
|

|
Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology
for the 21st Century
|
by Drs. Edward Kelly, Emily Kelly,
Bruce Greyson, et al |
Current mainstream opinion in psychology,
neuroscience, and philosophy of
mind holds that all aspects of human
mind and consciousness are generated
by physical processes occurring
in brains. Views of this sort have
dominated recent scholarly publication.
The present volume, however, demonstrates
empirically that this reductive
materialism is not only incomplete
but false. The authors systematically
marshal evidence for a variety of
psychological phenomena that are
extremely difficult, and in some
cases clearly impossible, to account
for in conventional physicalist
terms.
|
|
|

|
Science and the Akashic Field: An
Integral Theory of Everything
|
by Dr. Ervin Laszlo |
In Science and the Akashic Field,
philosopher and scientist Ervin
Laszlo conveys the essential element
of this information field in language
that is accessible and clear. From
the world of science he confirms
our deepest intuitions of the oneness
of creation in the Integral Theory
of Everything. We discover that,
as philosopher William James stated,
"We are like islands in the sea,
separate on the surface but connected
in the deep."
|
|
|

|
Lessons from the Light: What We
Can Learn from the Near-death Experience
|
by Dr. Kenneth Ring and Evelyn Elsaesser
Valarino |
While providing many accounts of
NDEs from men, women, and children
of all ages and backgrounds, Lessons
from the Light is much more than
just an inspiring collection of
NDEs. In Lessons near-death expert
Kenneth Ring extracts the pure gold
of the NDE and with a beautiful
balance of sound research and human
insight reveals the practical wisdom
held within these experiences.
|
|
|

|
Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness
are the Keys to Understanding the
True Nature of the Universe
|
by Dr. Robert Lanza and Bob Berman |
Biocentrism takes the reader on
a seemingly improbable but ultimately
inescapable journey through a foreign
universe - our own - from the viewpoints
of an acclaimed biologist and a
leading astronomer. Switching perspective
from physics to biology unlocks
the cages in which Western science
has unwittingly managed to confine
itself. Biocentrism will shatter
the reader’s ideas of life - time
and space, and even death. At the
same time it will release us from
the dull worldview of life being
merely the activity of an admixture
of carbon and a few other elements;
it suggests the exhilarating possibility
that life is fundamentally immortal.
|
|
|

|
The 4 Percent Universe: Dark Matter,
Dark Energy, and the Race to Discover
the Rest of Reality
|
by Dr. Richard Panek |
In recent years, a handful of scientists
has been racing to explain a disturbing
aspect of our universe: only 4 percent
of it consists of the matter that
makes up you, me, and every star
and planet. The rest is completely
unknown. Richard Panek tells the
dramatic story of how scientists
reached this cosmos-shattering conclusion.
In vivid detail, he narrates the
quest to find the “dark” matter
and an even more bizarre substance
called dark energy that make up
96 percent of the universe.
|
|
|
|

|
Science and the Near-Death Experience:
How Consciousness Survives Death
|
by Chris Carter |
The author is an Oxford scholar
who uses evidence from scientific
studies, quantum mechanics, and
consciousness research, to reveal
how consciousness does not depend
on the brain. Examines ancient and
modern NDEs providing evidence of
the survival of consciousness after
death while debunking the materialistic
arguments raised by skeptics.
|
|
|

|
Experiences Near Death: Beyond Medicine
and Religion
|
by Dr. Allan Kellehear |
Kellehear presents a revolutionary
new approach to the field of near-death
studies, one that examines these
episodes as they relate to the specific
cultures from which they arise,
helping us to understand what these
visions are as a cultural and psychological
response and why they occur. Kellehear
compares NDEs from all over the
world - India, China, Guam, America,
Australia, and New Zealand - revealing
not only the similarities among
them, but also the pertinent differences
that can tell us much about the
way people from different cultures
view their world.
|
|
|

|
Light and Death: One Doctor's Fascinating
Account of Near-Death Experiences
|
by Dr. Michael Sabom |
Begun in 1994, The Atlanta Study
is the first comprehensive investigation
of its kind into NDEs. The study
presents life-and-death dramas played
out in operating rooms and hospital
beds - and simultaneous events unseen
by medical personnel but reported
with astonishing clarity and conviction
by nearly 50 individuals who returned
from death's door. Now the founder
of The Atlanta Study, Dr. Michael
Sabom reveals their impact on the
people who have experienced them.
|
|
|

|
The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences:
Thirty Years of Investigation
|
by Drs. Jan Holden, Bruce Greyson,
Debbie James |
Experts from around the world share
the history and current state of
NDE knowledge. They explore controversies
in the field, offer stories from
their research, and express their
hopes for the future of investigation
into this fascinating phenomenon.
|
|
|
|