It's just the kind of day to leave myself behind
We have all heard stories of people surviving a near death experience. He or She was pronounced dead only to come back to life. And each time, he or she came back with stories of his or her experience on the other side. Here is a link to one particular story about a near death experience that I found to be amazing and inspiring. It's long, but worth the read.
http://www.mellen-thomas.com/NDE_story.htm
What is your personal take on near death experiences? Are they real? Have you had one? Do you know of someone who has? Is it just a chemical reaction? Does it give you hope? I'd be honored if you would take the time to share your views with me.
posted by punky @ 9:03 AM
6 Comments
6 Comments:
I don't know what I believe as far as near-death goes. Of course, being an atheist tends to color you away from believing in them.
I've had some near-death experiences myself - but only because I was literally NEAR death myself. If I'd been two foot to the left, or 6 inches taller, etc etc. While they all left profoundly grateful to be alive, I don't think it necessarily gave me hope.
Sorry that this wasn't as uplifting an answer as you were probably hoping for, Punkster!
When I was in high school I met a man who'd had a near death experience 40 years before. His description was pretty standard. His conviction of its truth was unshakeable.
He narrowly avoided being killed in a car accident. And when he came around (post light and angels and gathering loved ones telling him it wasn't time yet), he realized that he was going to marry the worried woman who was bending over him. Even though he'd never seen her before that moment. He also changed from being rather a wild child to being a fairly model citizen as a result of the experience. (He was in his early 20's at the time of the accident.)
What I remember about that afternoon, besides his reading my palm and the story of his wife's recent pioneer burial, was the goodness he radiated, and the calmness. Serenity, really. He'd experienced a great deal, but he was at peace with everything that had come from his life.
I'd love a little of that peace, but I'm not actually willing to almost die for it.
I know that the "voices" many schizophrenics hear are really more like static that their brains struggle to make sense of, because that's what our brains do, try to make sense of things. And that could be part of the near death experience, a brain working to comprehend static and odd mixed signals. As to whether that's the actual explanation for the near death experience, I couldn't possibly say. I have no idea.
On the other hand, I'm not in any hurry to find out.
I googled the fellow I met and lo and behold, here's more information on him: http://www.near-death.com/experiences/reincarnation06.html
Well, I'm a skeptic, so all I can say is:
1) Interesting dream
2) What a parasitic way to try to make a living. I disbelieve anyone who claims to have special insight into the unknowable, on general principles, also alien abductees. Also, I hate the impression these people leave of "cancer comes from your attitude" stuff, but then I've known some terrific kids who died of leukemia and the like.
Fortunately, I've never been close enough to my own demise to check out NDE personally...
Jamester
Oh yeah, I almost forgot, I love the shining light they always surround themselves with in their portraits...
Booger!
/end rant
Jamester
When I was in college, I voluntarily attended a lecture about near-death experiences. The speaker was someone who had studied the phenomenon for years. He was fascinating, talking about how similar the experiences are across different cultures and religions in every arc of the globe. His research and his speech were very convincing that the phenomenon is very common and very real.
Still, where was the closer proof? Not that I didn't believe him, but there's a level of realization that's sometimes lacking when a topic is so far removed from your own world. It's one thing to hear someone talk about near-death experiences. However, not only had I not had a similar experience, but I'd never known of anyone who had.
Then during the closing Q&A session, someone asked the lecturer how many people who come to hear him speak have had their own near-death experiences. He said he didn't know, because he never asks. "But," he said, "seeing as you've brought it up, let's have a voluntary show of hands. Who here has had a documented near-death experience?"
Over half the audience -- about 150 people sitting all around me -- raised their hands.
Then I knew that it was quite real.
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