Life After Death

2006-12-03T16:59:00.000-08:00

Deepak Chopra describes life beyond death

Dr-deepak-chopra_210.jpgUNITED STATES. Indian American author Deepak Chopra, whose books – such as Ageless Body, Timeless Mind – invariably become best-sellers, has now focused his attention on the afterlife with his latest volume, Life After Death: the Burden of Proof.

Actually, it is one he has wanted to write for the past 20 years, according to one interview, but he is said to have waited until research and documentation of near-death experiences (NDEs) had provided more information and gained public recognition.

“Whatever it is that occurs at death, I believe it deserves to be called a miracle,” he explains. “The miracle, ironically, is that we don’t die.”

And life’s ultimate purpose, he adds, “is to discover who you are. After death, we see more clearly the goals to be attained.

Chopra sees the soul as a process, not a thing: “It is a continuum. It is a dynamic, constantly evolving bundle of consciousness.”

He concludes: “The human spirit is degraded when we confine ourselves to the span of a lifetime and the enclosure of a physical body. We are mind and spirit first, and that places our home beyond the stars.”

chopra_book_life-after-death_210.jpgLife After Death: the Burden of Proof examines the scientific evidence for survival of death, including NDEs, reincarnation and the Veritas after-death communications experiments using mediumship that are being studied by Prof Gary Schwartz at Arizona University.

In fact, Chopra has been a participant in those experiments and co-authored a paper with Schwartz and Stephen Grenard, of Staten Island University Hospital’s Sleep Laboratory, titled “Evidence of Accuracy and Specificity for Long-Distance Mediumship: the ‘double-deceased’ multi-medium paradigm”.

Double-deceased refers to the use of person one who has died – in these experiments it is author Susy Smith – being requested mentally by Schwartz to bring the other experimenter’s loved ones in the spirit world to three mediums, based in Arizona, California and New York, all of whom have successfully communicated with Smith in the past.

In this way the mediums could receive neither visual or audible clues, since they were long-distant experiments conducted by phone or internet, nor were they told the identities of the sitters or their loved ones. Prof Schwartz acted as a control by also assessing the readings as if they were intended for him.

The final part of the experiment with Chopra involved each medium speaking by phone to him, giving additional information to that already received, but to which he made no verbal responses. Two digital video cameras and an audio recorder were used to capture these sessions.

Interestingly, Chopra decided he wanted to speak normally to each medium for the last 15 minutes of each session – in other words to have a normal reading.

The results for both Chopra and Grenard were impressive, with the mediums scoring an average of 77.3 per cent accuracy across both the pre-contact and silent sitter sessions, compared with only 26.7 per cent for Schwartz’s control score.

Grenard’s experiment, which involved only the double-deceased element (no phone contact) scored 67 per cent accuracy compared with 23 per cent for Schwartz.

2006-11-16T09:05:00.000-08:00

When Professor B.D. Josephson, the Cambridge Nobel Laureate for Physics, followed Sir Oliver Lodge in connecting so-called paranormal phenomena with subatomic physics I was very disturbed to hear that an Oxford University physicist had mentioned the magician James Randi. David Deutsch made the statement that he will only take notice of what Professor Josephson is saying when somebody claims James Randi's offer of $1 million to anybody who can prove that the "paranormal" exists.

What the public has not been told is that this offer is a hoax, it's a trick, the same as everything connected with this magician. I immediately claimed the money when Randi first made the offer. It's only when the money is claimed that the hoax is exposed.

1.

Randi is the judge and jury. He alone decides if he has to part with his money!

2.

He does not recognise the findings of independent scientists!

3.

Any claimant has to satisfy Randi's 12 conditions. They are worded to protect his money.

I had sent Randi the crushing proof that the so-called paranormal exists. Professor John Hasted, from the physics department at London University, carried out experiments with 30 children who had the same gift as Uri Geller - they could bend metal in a paranormal way.

Randi is a fraud, he is taking money under false pretences, setting himself up as an expert on a subject, when in fact he is only a professional wrecker. A wrecker with total freedom of all media outlets and no qualified scientist is ever allowed to balance his arguments in front of millions. For example, an astrophysicist pal of mine - Sam Nicholls MSc - was horrified when he heard that Granada Television had given James Randi a six part TV series to deceive the public with outrageous one-sided propaganda. Sam wrote to Granada Television pointing out to them that Randi was a fraud. Granada flatly refused to allow this qualified scientist to balance Randi's hatchet job on life after death and related subjects. Sam Nicholls did not take this rejection lying down, he actually turned up at the filming of Randi's TV series. Sam stood up in the audience and challenged the appalling propaganda that was being pumped out. This of course was cut from the series.

However, the journalist Garry Bushell of The Sun reported this incident on 8th August 1991. Garry asked why the views of a qualified astrophysicist were silenced? He suggested it's because Randi only dares to take on soft "easy targets". Randi is on record of calling Professor Josephson a "scoundrel". This is the calibre of his argument when he is confronted with a qualified scientist.

Slowly but surely, thanks to the Internet, people all over the world are finding out just how badly they are being deceived by their leaders and teachers. The secular scientific case for survival after death is to be found on the web site of The Campaign for Philosophical Freedom:

2006-11-12T17:44:00.000-08:00

Theodore R's NDE. English expanded version 6/25/06 I remember floating above my body I could see the Dr.'s and nurses in my room. I continued to float away, the farther I went the calmer things felt around me. I remember hearing soft gentle sounds around me but couldn't make out any particular sound or song. Also the further I went I could here voices of people calling to me to continue coming. I felt total love and acceptance from the voices. I started seeing shapes of people but couldn't make out any faces or sexes all were the same.
NDE due to suicide attempt.

902. Joe D's NDE 2708. English expanded version 6/25/06 At first, there was total darkness, the blackest black I had ever seen. So black, in fact, I could not see anything even one inch in front of me. Then, there was a flash of brilliant light, extremely radiant and bright, white, blue and yellow in color. Then, very quickly, I was floating over a vast field of flowers. These flowers seemed to encompass acres and acres of land, and they were extremely beautiful, ranging in various colors, many of which I had never seen before. I seemed to be in spirit form as I hovered over these beautiful beds of flowers, and I was only a few feet above them as I floated over them. I could smell them also and their odor was a wonderful scent.
NDE due to heart attack.

901. Debra J's NDE. English expanded version 6/25/06 THIS IS VERY VIOLENT/GRAPHIC AND COULD BE DISTURBING TO SENSITIVE PEOPLE Next thing I knew, I was standing in front of a council of 13 beings with the One in the middle twice as big as the 6 on either side of him. They were all sitting in chairs, big chairs at a sizeable distance in front of me. I was naked and felt totally revealed and tried to use my hands to cover myself up. The main one in the middle began to speak to me through the mist that was everywhere. I remember opening my mouth but he told me I did not have to talk, to just use my mind. I recall it was hard for me not to open my mouth to speak but I did what he told me. The questions they were asking me were about my life and how I had lived it. I got the feeling they were not pleased with me.
NDE due to vicious criminal attack.

900. Louise's NDE. English expanded version 6/25/06 I COULD HEAR THE NURSE SCREAMING TO THE DOCTOR TO GET HIS ATTENTION THAT I WAS LOSING MY BLOOD PRESSURE RAPIDLY, THE DOCTOR DIDN'T RESPOND TO THE NURSE RIGHT AWAY, AND SHE SCREAMED TWO MORE TIMES TO HIM. FINALLY HE SAID GET THAT BED IN SHOCK POSITION. BY THIS TIME I WAS FLOATING OUT OF MY BODY AND I COULD LOOK DOWN AND SEE MY BODY IN THE BED. THE NURSING STAFF AND DOCTOR WAS STANDING BESIDE THE BED. I REMEMBER BEGGING GOD NOT TO LET ME DIE AS I HAD TOW YOUNG CHILDREN AND I DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE THEM.
NDE due to surgical complication.

899. Peter J's NDE. English expanded version 6/25/06 From Spain Original in Spanish translated to English by Estela. After I reached a wider zone of the tunnel I turned around and saw the light (very small). I continued praying. When I finally could stand up I started to run; I was now near the light and did not see the person that was guiding me at the beginning – there was no one. When I reached the light I was HAPPY, comfortable and then far away I saw the person (that greeted me first) saying good bye; the person was happy and joyful and so was I. The person made me understand that I was to stay there and not to go towards him or towards the darkness.

898. Denise's NDE. English expanded version 6/18/06 I heard one of the fireman ,he said I was gone! I started floating, I could see the fireman trying to save me, I was all bloody . I was above my body watching everything! But I started floating higher, I had never felt so PEACEFUL!!!!! , it is the best PEACE you could ever wish for! I was floating into some clouds, I seen my family and others I didn't know, but somehow I did? there was a bright light, and a lot of people, everybody was standing in the clouds and smiling, I felt peace, The place was so pretty and peaceful. I was floating into a light, But my father, who had passed away when I was 14 years old, He told me it wasn't my time yet and he loved me, but for me to go back!
NDE due to car accident.

897. Margaret B's NDE. English expanded version 6/18/06 The next thing I remember is still being in the doorway of the bathroom watching my husband running back and forth from the bedroom to the living room. I heard everything he said, and saw everything he did. My husband tried giving me CPR until the ambulance came my b/p was 60/40 and they said I was coming back. I never saw my body but I felt the sensation of falling when I re-entered my body and that wonder peace, which I felt was gone.
Muslim NDE from a Heart attack.

896. Peter M's NDE. English expanded version 6/18/06 At any rate, I convinced myself to remain on the table, closed my eyes and experienced a rushing sensation - as if on a roller coaster ride in a dark tunnel. (i.e., wind rushing by my ears, sensation of rapid movement.) Movement stopped and amazing - unable to really describe completely - clear light which reflected no shadows - white light was everywhere that essentially appeared as if muted through gauze but all encompassing. I recall noting that no shadows were cast from this omni-directional light. I saw no beings, nothing other than the all pervasive light. I did, however, feel (know intuitively?) that I was safe, happy, loved - LOVED in a way I'm unable to put into words yet. I was also aware of being allowed to comprehend that it was important for me to "go back."
NDE due to cardiac arrest which occurred this year. Contributor has a doctorate education level and is a prominent executive.

895. Kane D's NDE. English expanded version 6/18/06 I could see 360 degrees around my body in every direct any place at the same time I had instant knowing I thought of my child and I was there at her home with her yet at the same time here in the hospital looking at myself I watched a trail of visitors around the bed panicking
NDE due to brain hemorrhage.

894. Richard S's NDE 2694. English expanded version 6/18/06 It is my recollection that I again began to sink towards the ocean bottom. It was at this time I an had an out of body experience. First, I felt myself witnessing my empty seat in my classroom at school the next day, while my teacher Mrs. Hall was telling the class that Dick would not be coming to school because he had drowned the day before. Next, I recall the sound of beautiful music and noticing the fish around me and seeing a bright light.
NDE due to drowning 64 years prior to submission.

893. Pietro B's NDE. English expanded version 6/18/06 From Peru Original in Italian translated to English by Werner. I felt like having been thrown into space with a perfect vision of moving away from the earth and entering into a very bright light. At the same time I had a clear vision of my life on earth like being in a two dimensional screen; it is very difficult to express this in words. I was conscious of everything and thought about what I was feeling. There was so much happiness and endless peace, which increased while I was about to enter the light. I knew that I was part of the light. I didn’t know why I did so but I knew it and I also knew that we’re all part of it; at the climax of my experience there was something that transcended everything and I knew that entering that light would mean I wouldn’t be able to return. I don’t know why this was the case but I knew it for sure and that’s something I can hardly explain but I’m not looking for an explanation, I accept what I have experienced as such.
NDE from surgery

892. Maria S's NDE. English expanded version 6/18/06 From Spain Original in Spanish translated to English by Rio. I left the car by the roof, floating--which seemed normal to me--and I paused looking at the countryside. It was dusk, the fields were in bloom, the rosemary and thyme and even the rocks were surrounded by an aura of pastel colored light. It had rained a few days before and the earth was wet and renewed. Everything emanated beauty and light and I was enthralled contemplating the earth. Of a sudden the sun, which was a golden color, began growing bigger and bigger and I "felt" that I could return home that way, to my place of origin, to the place I had come from. At the moment I tried to put myself into that enormous ball of light I heard and perceived a voice that said, "NO!" I couldn't continue forward. That voice kept me back. It had power and authority over what happened. It said to me sweetly, "You have to return."
NDE when she was 5 months old from an Emergency Room Nurse

891. Jackie H's NDE. English expanded version 6/6/06 I was playing in my high chair and it tipped over causing me to hit my head on the floor my parents said that I stopped breathing, turned blue and was completely lifeless for about 5 minutes (I don't remember that part) I remember seeing from above, my mother holding me and my father slapped me really hard as they were rushing out the door to take me to the hospital. While I was "out" I remember being surrounded by dancing angels who were taking me into the most beautiful glowing light and I really wanted to go with them. I felt very secure and loved and wanted to feel that way always. When my father slapped me and I came "back" I was extremely unhappy about being taken away from the light.
NDE at age age 2, 52 years ago, from head injury.

890. Louis B's NDE 2684. English expanded version 6/6/06 From Canada Original in French translated to English by Jean Peter. I see myself above my body. I am overcome by a feeling of fullness. It has such an intensity that I don’t manage to describe it. I see myself in the bed, there is a being dressed in white on my right, he is moving air with his robe because my body is hot. As for myself above, I don’t feel anything. I also see around my bed people who came to see me during those two weeks. I hear what they tell me, I can accurately tell what they wore and where they were around my bed. These are facts I could check with them afterwards. I see all this in a state of peace and serenity.

889. Esteban FR's NDE. English expanded version 6/6/06 From Spain Original in Spanish translated to English by Rio. Yes, in that state I discovered that the only important thing is LOVE. From that moment on I love people much more intensely (since the experience I created a charitable institution which is now a foundation) and I also love my self very much, 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 ourselves and others. Our soul is made for LOVE, and from that realization I understand we are happy here when we love and unhappy when we practice "unlove" (hate, rancor, envy, etc.)

888. Miguel's NDE 2667. English expanded version 6/6/06 From Spain Original in Spanish translated to English by Rio. I was as if in the country. Everything was green, the sun shining, like in Spring. The temperature was very agreeable and the surroundings pure (referring to the air), there was no pollution which is why I think the colors were so alive, everything very clear, as if viewing a very sharply focused and clear movie in Technicolor. There were people, children I believe, but I'm not exactly sure. There was a group of people and I was with them, out in nature as if at a picnic. Everything was peaceful, without any kind of problem, only living in that moment. I don't know how long the dream (or whatever it was) lasted. I do know I felt really great, very good. All of a sudden it felt like I was being taken out of the dream, not by anyone in particular, as if I just came too once again. I didn't want to leave, it was a very pleasant dream.

887. Jackie H's NDE. English expanded version 6/3/06 I was playing in my high chair and it tipped over causing me to hit my head on the floor my parents said that I stopped breathing, turned blue and was completely lifeless for about 5 minutes (I don't remember that part) I remember seeing from above, my mother holding me and my father slapped me really hard as they were rushing out the door to take me to the hospital. While I was "out" I remember being surrounded by dancing angels who were taking me into the most beautiful glowing light and I really wanted to go with them. I felt very secure and loved and wanted to feel that way always. When my father slapped me and I came "back" I was extremely unhappy about being taken away from the light.
NDE at age age 2, 52 years ago, from head injury.

886. Jenner A's Near NDE. English expanded version 6/3/06 All I can get out is a whisper, "Ma'am, I'm sorry, I'm dying now."... My vision had started to tunnel, I hadn't started to pass thru it yet when the epi started working. My thoughts are that had I gone any further, then I would have left the body and started "walking" thru the tunnel. Maybe I was just so aware at the beginning that I noticed it with my eyes before my soul separated from my body and started walking. I know this is scientific and you only want what I DID experience, but I will say that had I walked I KNOW I would have saw Him.
Life-threatening event from allergic reaction just a few days prior to submission and came close to having a NDE.

885. Jim W's NDE. English expanded version 6/3/06 I had open heart surgery in June of 1960 but in 1959 in June they gave me a catheterizations. They took me to the upper floor of the hospital. I was put on a flat steel round table and the pain was awful. All at once I was above the building with no pain . I realized that someone was with me. The feeling was just wonderful and I wanted just wanted to stay forever the love to was just great. I was told that I had to go back. I heard the Doctor say, "folks we are losing him. Let's bring him back." I was above the building and daylight was coming up.
NDE at age 16 due to cardiac catheterization 46 years ago.

884. Lennie B's NDE. English expanded version 6/3/06 From Sweden Original in Swedish translated to English by Sara. A totally different world opened up, I saw myself laying on the bed but I myself was on my way towards a light. I turned around and looked at myself, but then kept on walking or rather floating towards this wonderful light. This warmth and this joyful place was lovely. Here there were no stress, no high demands and no evil. It was so full of love that it cannot be described, everything was beauty. A place to be longed for, such a wonderful verdure and warmth. Here there was only joy, everyone were wonderful. No one was superior of one another, there I stood and all I wanted was to climb over.
NDE from a heart attack.

883. Maria C's Possible NDE. English expanded version 6/3/06 From Chile Original in Spanish translated to English by Rio. I still don't know whether it was caused by the anesthesia or if I was truly dying. When I was 16 they operated on both my legs. They put me under general anesthesia . The only thing I remember was seeing colors: rose, yellows, and distant voices as if in conversation. Suddenly I was in the corner of a room and saw a little girl. I don't know if it was me who was being taken by two nurses and put in a bed from where it seemed I was looking at the scene from the ceiling. I saw the girl lying down. Then I woke up and and found that my two legs had been put into plaster casts. My mother told me that I had lost a lot of blood during the operation and they had given me a hemorrhage.
Possible NDE as a child.

882. Bobby's NDE. English expanded version 5/27/06 According to the witness I had been hit, pushed and then thrown about 70 feet down the street before I made heavy contact with the ground. It was the actual speed that the driver was traveling and the exact moment that she swerved to the left that actually caused me to be thrown clear of the car, otherwise the car would have driven over top of me. I am not aware of when I blacked out but I do remember seeing the rooftop of the City Hall that is right in front of the intersection, which is a tall building and the rooftop of the office building that is a fair distance down the street from where I was hit, plus the local Library which is behind a copse of trees that should have been hidden from my view from where I was. I remember after I woke up that I was curious how I had seen these images when I was on the ground.
NDE from being hit by a car as a pedestrian.

881. Hillary H's NDE. English expanded version 5/27/06 Eventually my throat closed over completely and I lost consciousness. I saw all black; I remember going through my life, each important event that ever happened to me, I relived it, from my first birthday to the last birthday I had. I remember saying I am only 17 in my head and trying to tell everyone that I was only 17 and I was too young to die. I felt extremely frightened and scared. Eventually I heard a voice in the blackness it belonged to my deceased grandfather whom I was very close to. He told me not to be scared and that I was going to be fine, and that I was getting a second chance. Suddenly I woke up on the ambulance.
NDE due to allergic reaction. Contributor is 17 years old, and NDE happened within the last year.

880. Missy B's NDE. English expanded version 5/27/06 What I experienced, near death experience was when I first saw a small white fluffy spot in distance as it grew bigger and closer like some “tunnel”, but yet it was white and bright. The feeling during the near death experience is where remarkable and is hard to describe. I only could tell in words, but it is not how it is to be felt while on earth... As Teena was approaching me and started to talk. The funny thing is that she signed to me the whole time. I was in awe because she never knew ASL and she died before I became Deaf at the age of 18 months old due to spinal meningitis. It is amazing that how “they” really do know how to communicate when they never knew any other language while living on the earth.
NDE due to car accident. Remarkable in that she encountered deceased sister who died at age five when contributor was age 1. At age 18 months, contributor became totally deaf. All communication with the deceased sister was in sign language.

879. Kim C's NDE. English expanded version 5/27/06 At that point a unearthly white bright light appeared and although I couldn't hear a voice with ears I "heard" in my head a voice answer my question that I was dead and on my way to heaven but I was not there yet. I felt such peace and love in that moment. Then the "voice" told me that my time on earth wasn't done yet and I needed to go back. I pleaded to stay that I was fine with being dead and that I didn't want to go back now. The voice just said "No, you must go." In that instant I started moving out of this void faster and faster, the light dimming as I rushed through a narrow tunnel and I felt so sad.
NDE due to motorcycle accident.

878. Naomi F's Probable NDE. English expanded version 5/27/06 I felt no fear or surprise. It was as if I didn't care that the body on the table was mine. I looked around the room for 'something' but, I had no idea what I was looking for. It was more of an easy feeling that I needed to go somewhere. Suddenly my deceased father was beside me! He died when I was nine years old but, he looked young and happy. We talked about family and I told him I never to leave me again. He said we would be together again soon and for me not to worry about him. He said I had to return to my body and that everything would be alright.
Probable NDE associated with surgery.

877. Brian H's NDE. English expanded version 5/27/06 I always carried a buck knife and he took it from me. That's all I can remember about the assault. The next thing that happened all of a sudden I was on a beach sitting on a drift log with a little girl that was about 15-16 years old. She was wearing dark blue shorts and a white sleeveless shirt. She was tan, green eyes brown curly hair and a killer smile. I was looking at her, she was looking at me smiling. This was as real as anything you can think of. I could smell the salt air, feel the sun on my skin, wind in my hair. For some reason I knew I was getting the s*** kicked out of me so, I got up from the drift log I was sitting on. I started to walk away form the girl that was sitting next to me thinking that I had to try to find my self because I was getting the s*** kicked out of me. As I walked away the girl yelled out to me, BRIAN! IF YOU LEAVE NOW YOU'RE GOING TO SEE AND FEEL THINGS YOU REALLY DON'T WANT TO SEE AND FEEL!
NDE due to being stabbed several dozen times.

876. Erika FS's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 From Mexico Original in Spanish translated to English by Rio. My first experience happened very fast, but was very significant. What happened was that I fell off a wash basin when I was 6 years old and struck my head on a heater that was inside the bathroom. At the same time, a full water glass that was on a shelf broke between the floor and my head. The only thing I remember is that I saw a pathway of stones and I walked along it with someone who took me by my hand. We went towards a resplendent light. I wasn't afraid at any time. I didn't see the face of the person I was walking with, nevertheless he wore a white tunic and I walked on his left. Suddenly, I heard my mother's voice and turned back and then I woke up.
Child NDE where she was knocked unconscious.

875. Jawad's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 From Saudi Arabia Original in Arabic translated to English by Samir. In short , I was learning how to swim , I tried to do an exercise at the depth of 4 metres , but I was not successful ,and I sank to the bottom of the swimming pool ,I couldn't hold my breath for long time, I started thinking about the death... I surrendered totally and raised my hand stretching out my finger in order to recite the testimony silently in my heart...I saw nothing but a darkness and I felt a strange stillness despite that critical situation....I began to move myself to the surface pressing the bottom with my feet, I made three unsuccessful and consecutive attempts to escape until I was saved by one of the brothers. Stillness....darkness....understanding the true meaning of the death.

874. Grace C's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 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 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. Some where 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 a grand-mother that had passed on just about the time that I had this experience.
NDE at age 15. NDE occurred 61 years ago due to hemorrhage.

873. Denny B's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was immediately there. They helped me across a long white bridge. To my left about halfway across the bridge was a large city made of light. The colors were silver blue, white, and silver. It looked like crystal light. I was getting better as we approached the end of the bridge, and entered into a large white dome at the end of the bridge. I sat there as my two personal or guardian angels communicated with the others seated on the circumference of the interior of the dome. The communication was telepathic. I heard the voices, but did not speak. I knew that they were talking about me. They were deciding if I should be admitted into the city and then into the heavens, or return to earth.
NDE due to coma from complication of diabetes.

872. Graham M's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 Drawn to a joyous white light and up through a layer of personalities with tails like comets. Came into a space where I was tended to by silver, featureless creatures with with thin limbs and conical (inverted) heads. They communicated telepathically and laid me down. I was told I could stay if I wished. I was tempted as I was ecstatic. When I decided against it, I was sucked down a tunnel. the white light stayed in my peripheral vision for 2 hours after the event. Subjective time span for the event 1/2 hour. 'Objective' 7-10 minutes? Was left with a sense of mission re spiritual healing.
NDE due to sudden unconsciousness of unknown cause.

871. Thomas R's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 As this was going on I was floating slightly above them then I just thought about moving up and there I was, hovering just above the light fixture. I remember reading the little identification sticker on the upper side of the lamp fixture but I don't remember what it said. For some reason I thought it was really neat to be able to just float there and read such a dumb thing. I did not see any boundaries or objects around myself, just a sort of gray fog. But it was a friendly gray fog - not frightening at all.
NDE due to accident with head injury.

870. Bruna D's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 My brother dived into the shallow end of the big pool and I realized he was struggling, without thinking I dived in and he grabbed my shoulders and clambered on top of me to get air and in so doing I went under and lost consciousness. I remember leaving my body, watching them resuscitating me, I felt the mans lips on me as he breathed into me, I could hear my dead granny calling me in Italian, I was floating not walking but upright, like those conveyor belts at the airports towards a very bright light. I felt an emotional tugging as I kept looking back and watched them resuscitating me, I watched my brother run and hide in the public toilets behind the middle door. I was very calm, no struggling, I read the label on the back of the lifesavers shirt and remember it distinctly. Then I told my Gran I wanted to go back, there was no disappointment, no turmoil.
Child drowning NDE.

869. Dan's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 Then I remember seeing an image in my head, something told me and imprinted I guess, the know how of what I was seeing, and it was crazy as it is, the universe. Kind of like a giant bluish see threw egg, with millions and billions of light points, different colors, on the out side and inner. All connected by darker blue links, full of different kinds of life, I only saw this for a second or two but knew the “Scientifics” to it, its very hard to explain. The next thing as that I was back in the “tunnel” all different colors now, colors I haven’t see before, maybe not on “OUR” spectrum.
NDE due to allergic reaction at age 16.

868. James B's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was in extreme pain with chest pains when I heard nurse yell at doctor losing blood pressure went into tunnel it was black .moving at high rate of speed. couldn't understand what was going on. all of a sudden I didn't care I felt so peaceful. saw light at end of tunnel and wondered what that was. it was very small. I thought I cant fit thru that hole. that worried me. I finally realized I wasn't in my body. about that time they zapped me with defibrillator.
NDE due to cardiac stint failure.

867. Hanz J's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 ...heart stopped 2 min and they brought me back... picked me up to put me on stretcher and died again for 2 min. switched paramedic. Firefighter broke ribs. brought me back. they didn't move me for 15 min. ( All according to girl that saved me and neighbor and paramedics) Then off to hospital. I regained consciousness in ambulance. While out... very short time. silhouette of women in black. remember black patent leather shoes and either holding black lace or black lace around her waist. couldn't see her but knew it was my grandmother that had died before I was born.
NDE due to allergic reaction.

866. Carmie M's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 There seemed to be no time, just a sort-of sequence of events. I became aware of being in a dark, dark, black (like outer space might be) tunnel. I was traveling fast towards a warm, bright, beautiful light. This light I felt was Jesus. It was anything I could ever need or want. I wanted to get to the light and stay there. I remember feeling annoyed at some stage because someone seemed to be pulling me back (though not in a physical sense), I eventually recognized it as being my family doctor calling my name. I really, really did not want to come to him, I wanted to go to the light. I felt or 'knew' that I was being told to go back. I was very sad to go. I became conscious again...
NDE due to asthma and pneumonia.

865. Roger M's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 All the coldness I was feeling while I lay there bleeding to death was replaced with the warmest feeling I have ever known. Not the heat that could be associated with Hell, but a warmth from within my being. I no longer felt dread or fear or any other emotion I had experienced in a physical realm. I can only describe it as a sense of peace and well being. It's amazing the pressures we feel everyday just by being alive in our mortal bodies. It's only when these pressures are completely lifted from our existence that our souls are able to experience real peace and tranquility. At the same time I felt all these changes occur I also experienced an existence without the burdens of an Earthly body. The senses that replaced sight sound and smell felt like one sense of all inclusive awareness. There was no need for physical interaction as all levels of experience were not felt or spoken, but simply known.
NDE due to fall and serious bleeding.

864. Victor M's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 The record states "respiratory arrest" and that my family had been briefed that my recovery was "unlikely". I became aware that I was in a very unusual place. No sense of body, no sense of pain. There was no sense of a "tunnel" though I felt properly oriented. I certainly felt that I could "go/move" forward toward something. I would not call it a "light" but I certainly understand why others would so describe it. At the very first, I thought this was just the most wonderful experience. There were no normal senses or even a sense of body. For me the immediate lack of post surgical pain was absolutely wonderful. My first words(?) or thoughts were that this is a very strange and wonderful place. I wondered where I was. There was never any fear. My next thought was, "Is there time here?" Then I thought, "Well, I remember just asking that question, so there is at least a "progression of thought" if not actual time.
NDE due to respiratory arrest after surgery.

863. Marsha's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was talking to people in a parked car while standing on a curb-less street. I could see a car coming & realized in "slow motion" that it was going to hit the parked car, I think I said "oh shit" when it hit. The bumper of the parked car caught me behind the knees, flipped me on my back. I bounced on the back of my head until the car stopped, about 3 feet from the railroad tracks. It was a hit & run, the other driver was never found. I was seeing my life in reverse, going back to the womb & then it was like a star-burst, a sensation of being almost in space.
NDE due to being struck by car at age 17.

862. Sherry W's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 We soon reached a point were we stopped. My guide stood next to me. This light was brighter than the sun. A wonderful glowing luminous white light. I stood there with a feeling ,and the best way I can describe it is, the gut feeling you have when you are scared but, knowing you are not. I felt scared without being scared or afraid. I was calm. I knew that if I walked through the light I would have the answers to everything I ever wanted to know. This light was love, life, and serenity I could feel all this. I never heard a word spoken. You could feel what you needed to know, and what was being communicated to you. It was with feelings, not words. I had my choice. Without words I decided ,I had a six month old baby I couldn't leave. I woke up a couple of days later in I.C.U.
NDE due to suicide attempt.

861. Dustin M's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 After battling for 1 & 1/2 days with diarrhea and vomiting, I passed out. While unconscious I stopped breathing and my fiancée could not find a pulse or heartbeat. She administered CPR and revived me. During this time I had either a hallucination or some kind of event where I spoke with a group of deceased family members. They greeted me but quickly told me that it wasn't my time. Shortly afterwards I was pulled backwards away from them as if I was tied to a tether and after a popping sound, like Eustachian tubes clearing, I returned to consciousness.
NDE due to amoebic dysentery and dehydration.

860. Jeanne's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I saw the cutest little house, all lit up and the yard, with a white picked fence was full of people, all welcoming me. They were so glad to see me. I felt my deceased father's presence, but not clear which person he was in the large group...there was so much love and warmth. a wonderful feeling. the best place I'd ever been/seen. and felt so loved. Then when I heard the voice, and answered NO, the scene was gone. Until I said NO, I felt no pain from my 2 broken femurs, broken hip, fractured ribs, arm partially torn off, cuts to face...from being ejected from my pick-up and thrown over 200ft from the impact. Was hit from behind by car traveling over 100mph with no headlights on.
NDE due to auto accident.

859. Greta J's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was swimming in a lake with my brothers when I decided to swim out to a stump and then back to shore. I was not a good swimmer and half way there or back I started going under. I was very frightened and then suddenly a peace came over me. I was floating in what felt like a tunnel or tube going up up toward a light. The interesting thing that I still remember is that the light was so white. I felt so at peace and wanted to go to the light. My brother rescued me. I can not today remember the fear that I must have felt from the drowning experience, but I do remember the intense pleasure from the tunnel experience.
NDE due to near drowning at around age 11.

858. Gary A's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 It was the first time the Hong Kong flu hit. I remember seeing my mother tapping the thermometer, saying 106 degree temperature, this can’t be right and then entering this black void... I was traveling towards an almost globe of light (a bubble) that I knew contained all that was known, it was very intense and attractive, there is nothing more powerful in needing to return back to this, in what I have come to believe is our, before and after life's home, a dimension of energy of all that is, and all that is in are universe. We are all as one, yet as singular as we are in this physical journey, though without the knowledge of everything and the ability of all conceivable and unconceivable conceptual knowledge. In other words, man in all of our knowledge we are not even yet infants in what I sensed from seeing into this light.
NDE due to flu and fever to 106 degrees at age 11.

857. Stephen B's Fear Death Experience. English expanded version 5/13/06 I experienced a life review moments before a car that I was driving smashed into a telephone pole. By luck the driver's side door flipped open and I was thrown out of the car. It seemed at the time that my mind was preparing itself for death. In an instant I saw major milestones in my life from being a baby until the present. I do not remember if I saw a white light at the end of the life review but I remember thinking that I was not prepared to die...too young. From that time on I have always been very aware of how one's life on earth can quickly be gone.
Fear Death Experience involving life review immediately prior to auto accident at age 16.

856. Kristen D's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I saw my nephew who was my age and died tragically. He stayed with me and expressed an interest in needing to let my sister (his mom) and family know he was safe. I also saw my grandparents, and a cousin who passed away. My grandmother was surprised to see me they had been expecting my father (who was dying of cancer). I was taken to an area and left alone. In this area I received an all knowing gift and was told (not in a verbal way) that this is heaven, it does exist and but I needed to go back and spread the news that heaven does exist and that the teachings of Jesus were real. I was to be a messenger of good faith despite all of the destruction that my drug use had caused.
NDE due to coma secondary to endocarditis. Encounter with a deceased nephew in NDE. Remarkably, visit by individual matching description of nephew in ICU during her coma.

855. John G's Probable NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I saw my dear late mother Louise to the left, from above, in stirrups, and knocked out, bleeding profusely. To the right of her , was the doctor, he was bald on the top, with curly ringlets going grey. I knew he didn't want to be there, and was disgusted to have to be there, as he pulled off the gloves, to get ready to go scrub up again to sew my mother up. I also was aware that he was a golfer, and a social climber. I didn't like him on any level. He mildly disgusted me. All the way over, to the right , were two nurses, on the right of the two, was one of Scandinavian American heritage. I didn't really relate to her, but she was a kind , rather passive , and uninteresting person to me. Next to her, was a very large Irish/American nurse. In her arms was the most handsome baby you could imagine....other than he was red and purple, with a dangling umbilical cord. The cord was maybe 10''. As I looked, I realized it was me.
NDE at childbirth (was stillborn). Recalled experience decades later.

854. Celeste Y's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was driving when someone suddenly turned left in front of me and I knew I could not stop my car. I saw that I was going to hit the other car and knew there was going to be a bad accident. Suddenly I was removed from my body and found myself standing on the street corner holding my deceased Grandmother's hand and watching myself in the car as the accident happened. I felt no fear or pain, but I was aware that I was in the car that had just crashed. Suddenly my Grandmother disappeared and I was put back into my body. It was after I was placed back in my body that I felt the actual pain.
NDE due to auto accident.

853. Carol W's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 Twenty minutes out in the ambulance I died, I quit breathing and my heart stopped. The paramedic in back with me was my friend and he freaked and yelled to the driver to stop. Together they started CPA and got my heart going again slowly 10 beats per minute. At that time I shot out of my body like a roaring train straight up not stopping to ponder my body down below. I went to the light via a revolving tornado...inside was dark at first and I went through all the negative (bad) things that I had ever done in my life and was stripped of it. forgiven instantly and continued up toward the light. Negative deeds pulled me down and positive pulled me up. There, on a horizon were shadows that turned to shapes of people, my grandmother and aunt Carrie appeared and I realized how young my Aunt looked.
NDE due to poisoning from zinc at workplace.

852. Ann S's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I saw the wonderful things that would happen with my family, the fun and the excitement of building our lives and home and learning everything I could possibly learn. i also saw the child with the brain tumor and her struggles, and my husband's descent into dementia and a divorce that I had no control over. It has all come to pass, but it's not over yet!
NDE due to complication at time of delivery. View of future life, much of which has occurred. NDE occurred 40 years ago.

851. Anne C's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was rushed to the hospital. Approximately 1 hour later I whispered to my husband to take care of our children. Almost immediately I found myself floating on the ceiling of the room and looking down at my body on the bed. I remember watching my husband run out of the room yelling for help. Then I was floating in what seemed like a tunnel. I could see white light in the distance. As I got closer to the light I experienced a tremendous sense of peace. I don't know whether or not I actually saw friends or family but there was a vague sense that they surrounded me. It was a wonderful feeling and I remember thinking that it would be nice to stay there forever. A voice came to me then, and said it wasn't time for me to stay, and that I needed to "go back".
NDE due to bleeding after delivering a baby.

850. Donna M's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 During the delivery of my youngest child, I saw myself turn a grayish color, my Doctor instructed the nurses give me an injection, they couldn't seem to find a vein that worked. He asked them to put a page over the intercom requesting any Doctors in the hospital to come to the delivery room. Another Doctor arrived. My deceased Father, who passed away the month before, was on the left side and slightly back of my Doctor. My Father was also very concerned, I felt so at peace I wanted to go with him. I had a life review and knew everything in an instance. Then I was told that my children needed me and I should stay here.
NDE due to cardiac arrest during childbirth.

849. David M's NDE 2614. English expanded version 5/13/06 I WAS HAVING A FRONTIER & POSTIER SPINAL FUSION WITH INSTRUMENTATION. WHEN IT HAPPENED I IMMEDIATELY KNEW I WAS DEAD I WENT UP THROUGH THE WALL TO OUTSIDE AND WATCHED A HELICOPTER LAND AND THEY UNLOADED A BABY AND TOOK IT INSIDE AT THAT MOMENT I PANICKED AND THOUGHT OF MY CHILDREN AND I WAS OVERWHELMED WITH GRIEF AND WAS SOBBING AND REPEATING WHO'S GOING TO TAKE CARE OF MY KIDS. THIS WENT ON BRIEFLY AND I HEARD A VOICE I DIDN'T SEE WHO IT WAS BUT HE SAID FEAR NOT FOR I WILL WATCH OVER THEM AND AT THAT INSTANT HE SPOKE I WAS OVERCOME WITH THE GREATEST FEELING I HAVE EVER FELT. IT WAS WARM AND GREAT AND SUCKED ALL FEAR OUT OF ME . THEN I DIDN'T CARE AND WANTED TO GO ON UP THROUGH A LIGHT THAT APPEARED.
NDE due to complication during surgery.

848. LDL's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I tripped and fell hitting my left temple on the sharp corner of a low (about 24" high) table. I was unconscious but heard people standing over me say: "Is he dead? Is he dead?" At that point, I started to move extremely fast, feet first, through a dark tunnel, as I slowly turned counterclockwise. There were red, green, and other darker color lights around the edge of the tunnel. Human faces (faces only) were clearly visible around the inside of the tunnel. They were all looking at me, some were smiling, others seemed somewhat bored... I felt no threat or fear from any of the faces, or from the experience in general. I did not recognize any of the faces.. I begin to move even faster through the tunnel, then, all of a sudden, I was back in my body and awake.
NDE due to head injury.

847. Ron C's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 It was summer in long Island NY at Stone brook beach. My older brother challenged me to swim over to an Island maybe 30ft away. I made it across and was so tired. My brother told me the water was rising and I panicked. I started to swim back and about half way could swim any more went down three times last thing I saw was the life guard on shore. next thing that I knew it was pitch black, no feeling of the body floating and great joy cant explain the joy. I looked up and white light far away but moving towards, it turned slowly pitch black all around me. Finally woke up on the beach with the paramedics. got up ran all the way home.
NDE around age 9 due to drowning.

846. Vernon G's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I remember looking down on my body and saying oh well it's just the shell I was trapped in anyway. but on the concrete ground what was strange is that I was saying no I want to live to take care of my family and I seen that my spirit was only about half way out of my body and I could hear the sound of people gossiping about me and the things that I had done and that I shouldn't have done and I also heard a voice in my head saying that if I got up off the ground I would live in terrible pain for the rest of my life but said that I don't care about that and my spirit was half way out of my body and I started fighting my way to my feet.
NDE due to falling accident.

845. Lori L's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I had only one brief NDE. I was looking at myself, from above, there were no other people around me I saw the blue ventilator tube in my mouth. That's all! I remember briefly waking to see my daughter and boyfriend at my bedside. I couldn't talk because of the tube but I motioned, or so I thought, for a tablet and pen so I could relate my experience. They staff thought I was trying to remove my IV and restrained my arms... I saw my self in my NDE connected machines, and this was real and clear. I also experienced vivid dreams or hallucinations that were clearly not real. There was nothing similar about them.
NDE due to asthma attack.

844. Marci S's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I was underneath a structure that collapsed on top of me. I had no warning, nor did I hear any sound that warned me that I was about to have a ton and a half crash down on me. I found myself out of my body and looking down at my body. I remember the position and place my body was in, yet it was of very little concern to me. I had absolutely no emotional attachments to the body that I had occupied. I remember thinking that the body was too injured for me to go back into. I really didn't even consider that as an option. It was just a matter of fact thing. I was flying through the air, yet I seemed to have complete knowledge of everything going on around me. I completely at home and I had no thoughts of being anywhere but where I was.
NDE due to head injury. Told by deceased father to breathe which may have saved her life.

843. Chuck B's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I began to ponder the discomfort of drowning in the cold water. At first it hurt to swallow the water. In short order it became tolerable and then I began to sink, the waves breaking over my head. As I resigned myself to my fate, I found myself suddenly in this brightly lit tunnel. I remained in a watery environment but, the water was no longer freezing and uncomfortable but, warm and natural. I was gently deposited on the edge of a smooth, cement-like, pool-side-like decking. It was very bright, very warm, tropical but, also very foggy. I could not see beyond a few feet but, I recognized this place as home and knew home was just to the left of me, somewhere beyond the fog. I was aware that being on Earth was a mission, not the end-all reason for being. I was so relieved to be home. I anxiously waited to be contacted and knew my friends/family would soon appear.
NDE due to drowning.

842. Hijo J's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 Rolled over multiple times in an SUV after striking a dirt berm head-on. During rolling, saw a brief vision of my surroundings, but was actually detached from the experience, like I was outside of my body. The scene around me was the rolling of the vehicle, but from my vantage point, I was stationary - somewhat like looking into a dryer in a Laundromat, where everything is spinning around and I am standing still. I could also hear the sounds of the metal and the dirt as the SUV contacted the ground. Hearing was very good, the visual was just everything spinning around, but with me being stationary. I had a great feeling of peace, and "quiet" and no pain whatsoever.
NDE due to auto accident.

841. JoAnn C's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 All I remember is that I felt my spirit leaving my body, I saw people around my body working on it and the nurses and doctors were starting CPR. I also saw a bright light and was drawn to it. As I got closer to the path I was on I was met by a woman that I felt that I knew. She talked to me in telling me that it was not my time to join her. I called her by name, and she was amazed that I knew her. She was my fathers sister, Ann who had passed away for many years. I remember telling her that I wanted to stay because it seem so nice and peaceful and that it didn't hurt anymore. She told me that I needed to stay here with my Mother and Father, for God had a plan for me and that I need to fulfill this plan.
NDE at age 4 due to accident. Was told she would have a daughter later in life that would need her.

840. Montreal Q's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 It was very black, then a light appeared which seemed to be down/up/or along a tunnel. Nest thing I felt higher than I have ever been in life, felt deep state of tranquility, love. MOST MOVING PART IS NEXT: Suddenly my recently deceased father, (9 mths before) appeared and told me "its not my time and I have to go back". I tried to resist but all of a sudden I could see my mother working on me, trying to revive me and bandage my foot. I was looking down on my mother and my lifeless body. I felt very sad for her and then struggled to get back into my body and then I came to in my body, very groggy but conscious.
NDE due to drug (Librium) overdose and bleeding at age 16.

839. Traci P's Fear-Death Experience. English expanded version 5/13/06 The next thing I knew I was standing in what seemed to be a circular room with with MASSIVE movie screens at a complete 360. All time seemed to stop however my life review seemed to take mere seconds. Everything I had ever done, good or bad. Every one I had ever know no matter how important or trivial. All my life experiences played out in a matter of fleeting seconds. In my mind I heard or felt a voice. A Godly voice. A Holy voice. I felt the kindness and was explained to me that judgment of my life was up to me. There would be no retribution. I was responsible for my life as I was for my judgment of my life. I'd been up to that a point a pretty good soul. Never hurt anyone or anything, always trying to help, to be the best person I could be. The review was surprising as it was pleasant. I remember smiling during this review for the most part. It past so quickly but I felt all emotions as I had originally felt them only in light speed. It was almost like watching a movie on fast forward.
Fear-death experience due to car nearly going off a mountain.

838. Tristan Z's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I realize I am looking down on a scene. I see a nurse standing beside someone on a gurney. I have this surreal feeling. I am very calm...lacking any emotion. Everything is very clear and in slow motion. I see my mom, dad and sister standing beside the person on the gurney. I don't immediately recognize them as my family until I ask myself who these people are. I see the people talking but I can't hear them. I wonder to myself who is on the gurney and why my family is there. I hover there watching but I'm not sure for how long. There seems to be no sense of time.
NDE due to suicide attempt (alcohol and “pills”).

837. Freda S's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I saw beams of light and thought, am I dead? thought of and looked for a tunnel that everyone sees. no tunnel, but I walked to the light. seems like I walked for a long time. then I thought I was dreaming but I kept walking towards the light. saw my deceased father with his arms outstretched. my deceased niece was there also. She had been killed in an auto accident a few years earlier. A coworker was sitting down, smiling at me. She died from breast cancer. There was an older woman with her profile turned so I could not see her face. She was dressed in a long black dress with a full white apron. Period clothing from the 1800's. She wore a white bonnet. I walked towards her, wanting to see her face. When I reached out to turn her around, my experience ended. I woke up in neuro icu and remembered my journey.
NDE due to ruptured cerebral aneurysm with subarachnoid bleed. She is a nurse who did not believe in NDE... until this happened.

836. Susan A's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 Colors perfect, things and places seen without flaw, almost undisturbed. Every petal of every flower perfect. No decay of any kind. Tansparency somehow changed and music w/o time. Couldn't explain that one in a million years wouldn't know where to begin... Life review takes place through the feelings and emotions of others in any given moment in time. We experience and feel whatever we created in that moment for them. I am much more sensitive.
NDE due to heart and surgical complications.

835. Ruby L's NDE. English expanded version 5/13/06 I remember I was floating on the ceiling and I could see myself laying on the table at the hospital and the doctor and nurses were working on me. My husband and sister were there and I saw my sister take my hand and say, "she is so cold". She later said she did say that. I can hardly describe in words the feelings I had. I felt so good and I did not want to go back into that body. I felt light and wonderful, like a great weight had been been lifted from me. I seemed to feel something or someone over my left shoulder but didn't turn to see because I was concentrating so much on not returning into my body. It is just impossible to describe the way I felt. It was not a long time before I was back in my body. I had six children at home that I loved very much and my husband I adored, but even so, there was no thought of them. I just wanted to stay out of my body.
NDE associated with complication of childbirth.

834. Alejandro M's NDE. English expanded version 5/10/06 From Mexico, Original in Spanish, translated by Rio into English. She moved as if floating and when she got to where we were, she raised her hand in greeting. She didn't speak. She seemed to express herself mentally, everything arrived in my mind clearly and I only remember her saying: "Little mortal, what are you doing in this place. You have commitments to keep in the worlds of time and space." I didn't know what to say. She was extremely beautiful. She seemed to know everything and this was infused into me. Everyone knew her and seemed to adore her, or rather love her. I was paralyzed, completely paralyzed. I didn't know what to say. She looked at me with much tenderness and taking one of her arms from out of the folds of her clothing which were more like strands of energy, she touched my shoulder and said, "Come. It is the will of the Highest that, for some reason, you have come temporarily to this place. Let's find out why." I asked her, "Who are you and what will happen to me?" To which she replied, "Don't be afraid my son. Some day you will return to this place and you, as millions of other creatures of this and other dominions, will begin a journey to know the person who has given you the gift of having your own personality."
Profound Hispanic child NDE.

833. Mary R's ADC. English expanded version 4/23/06 Eventually I was rolled in for my operation. I do remember the operating room, then that was it. Until, I heard a voice. I heard my grandmothers voice and within a few seconds I saw her standing next to me. I was sitting on the edge of a bed. Here, you should understand that my grandmother had an amputated leg. During our meeting the first thing that struck me was she had both legs. Then I noticed her hair was thicker and blacker than it had been in the last 5 or 6 years. If I had to guess, I would now say she looked like she was in her 40's or possibly 50's. She preceded to tell me that she was great, but her body was dead. She also stressed to me that she had limited time with me so basically "listen up". She stated to me that an "all knowing" entered her when her spirit passed out of the body. And, to help me with grieving she was going to give me as much information as she felt I could understand, in as much time as she was allowed.
Wow! ADC at time grandmother died... while person experiencing the ADC was under anesthesia. Remarkable spiritual wisdom shared by her newly deceased Grandmother.

832. Mary D's Empathic NDE and ADC. English expanded version 4/23/06 Nothing out of the ordinary, but the next weekend, late Friday evening/Saturday morning (12:20am)..I have a vision of her in stars like a rocket ship ascending into the skies. She is surrounded by spirits who tell me I must stay where I am...it is a very beautiful sight ...dark blue with silver and gold shooting stars, grandma is surrounded by them and she is smiling. I wake gasping for breath, and with the vision in my head I know grandma has died. I call my parents and they tell me grandma died last night, I tell them I know. They tell me she died at 12:20am. I tell them what I experienced.
Mystical experience when friend was drowning. ADC that is quite NDE-like when Grandmother died at moment of her death.

831. Kelly K's NDE. English expanded version 4/23/06 It suddenly became easier to breathe. 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 color of tomato soup, but soft and similar to clouds. There was an unearthly golden white light at the end but not very near. I was concerned about my son at home and the son I was having. I knew I was dead but wasn't concerned about that so much. Instantly it was made known to me that they would be alright. 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, or chain link fence, everything in the universe is connected. (Whenever I see pictures of what DNA composition looks like magnified, I think of what the universe looks like). Very colorful and beautiful.
NDE due to complications of childbirth.

830. Arthur W's NDE. English expanded version 4/23/06 I pushed her out of harms way, but was struck myself. I flew over the top of the car and landed on the back of my head. Instantly I was outside my body, hovering above the scene. I was completely alert. I was in a void and surrounded by only darkness, but I could see the scene below me. I was quite aware that I was no longer inside my body. I could see myself laying on the ground and all those I had been with looking on. My wife was standing in the street turned facing the other direction and I realized she was watching the vehicle that had hit me turned around and heading back towards us for a second time.
NDE due to being struck by car.

829. David Se's NDE. English expanded version 4/23/06 I was walking across a parking lot. I looked up and a speeding van hit me and carried me about 75 feet across the parking lot into a muddy lot adjoining the paved one, it was a new strip mall not completely finished. The van continued into the muddy lot until it became stuck, then tried to back up and run over me again. The van could not move after that. I was very fortunate I only received superficial wounds and a broken nose. When the van hit me I was strong enough to grab on to the grill as I went down and was only pulled partially under approx. 70%. The thing I have a problem with it is that I watched the whole thing from the side walk and can remember thanking God that it became stuck and did not take my life. Then I was back under the van and woke up at the local hospital.
NDE when hit by van, but only minor injuries. Apparent loss of consciousness due to accident.

828. Carmen B's NDE. English expanded version 4/23/06 Commonalities with all three events: looking down on body in hospital bed (1 event). Serenity, soft music, sense of great peace, soft colors not of the physical world (indescribable). White/pale yellow soft light, sense of floating trees but not like normal trees, no other entities present. Desire not to return.
Three NDEs, apparently due to heart attacks.

827. Cassie M's NDE. English expanded version 4/23/06 The doctor felt my pulse. I heard him say there is no pulse. I had been sitting straight up on a lot of pillows. I saw myself fall sideways onto the nurse. I must have lost consciousness for a moment, because I then became aware that I was floating at the top of a corner of the hospital room. I felt an amazing feeling of release ('dying' of asthma is not a comfortable feeling) and happiness and peace. A feeling I did not want to leave behind, although somehow I knew I would have to go back. I did not know where I was (or care) and did not understand where 'back' was (or care). I saw a crowd in the room doing some sort of medical procedure.
NDE due to cardiopulmonary arrest from asthma attack.

826. Salomon's NDE. English expanded version 4/23/06 I got very angry, I was angry with myself. I remember telling myself "you killed yourself at last you stupid fool" like dying is a very normal, ordinary thing. While I was watching myself, I saw my friends came in to bathroom. I saw they slap my face, trying to find my vein to administer naloxone. I realized there were lights coming from my dead body. Suddenly I felt very happy, like I was never before. The light, coming from my body started to getting brighter. Slowly the light covered everywhere, I couldn't see anything. There were just this light of perfection and the happy myself. Its hard to tell this, but I was connected to this light some how. We became one perfect being. We didn't talk to each other but I understand what they say and I knew they understand me. I thought we were like god, we were so perfect.
NDE due to accidental overdose of morphine and codeine.

2006-11-12T17:36:00.000-08:00

Finger Prints of a Materialisation

- John Logie Baird -

THE IDEA occurred to me in 1926 that is should be possible to use infra-red or ultra violet rays in place of light, and so be able to send an image in complete darkness. I tried ultra violet rays first; at this time my only assistance was the office boy imported from Hutchinson's soap works. He was ignorant but amiable. The ultra violet rays affected his eyes, and he did not complain, but I got a fright and tried infra-red. I first used electric fires to get these infra-red rays which are practically heat rays. I could not get any result and added more fires and the dummy's head went up in flames. I decided to try another track and use the short infra-red rays. To get these I used ordinary electric bulbs covered with thin ebonite. This cut off all light but allowed the infra-red ray to pass. Wally sat under this without much discomfort and after one or two adjustments I saw him on the screen although he was in total darkness. That was again a thrill, something new and strange, I was actually seeing a person without light.

Hutchinson was shown the wondrous phenomena and great excitement prevailed. Again the members of the Royal Institution were called in to witness the new phenomenon and again the scientists and newspapers were summoned. Sir Oliver Lodge came with his daughter and said it was amazing but very hot. He did not sit long which I thought was a pity, as he was the best subject for television I have ever seen. His white beard and impressive head came through marvelously well.

The newspapers gave this intention, which I called "seeing in the dark" great publicity which had one rather amusing result. At that time I was staying in a small residential hotel and one morning when I came down to breakfast a young lady resident asked me "Is it true, Mr. Baird, that you have an apparatus which can see through brick walls and in the dark?" I said "Yes" and he said "That explains the queer tickling sensation I had last night". That is, of course, a quite exaggerated and wrong view to have of the powers of television as it today but some time in the future it may be possible to do what the young lady dreaded, although if this does happen it will be a very doubtful blessing for everyone concerned.

It was not long before another very peculiar application was suggested. One day a bent up elderly man appeared in the board room. He was a professor and a distinguished entomologist and he had a very strange story to tell. It appeared he had been called in to investigate the activities of a medium called "Marjorie", this was the name the medium was known by, although more strictly speaking it was the name assumed be her controlled spirit. The earthly "Marjorie" was a respectable married lady who in early life had lost her only son in tragic circumstances. This boy "Jack" one morning in a fit of depression had gone into the bathroom and cut his throat, leaving the razor with bloodstained thumb marks on the floor; this razor had been locked away untouched. "Marjorie" was heartbroken and in an effort to speak again to her son joined a spiritualistic circle. Here she was discovered to have astounding mediumistic powers.

In the darkened silenced room of the spiritualistic circle she sank into a trance; in this state her body extruded from its orifices a strange vapour called ectoplasm. This extraordinary substance floated about her like a cloud and was of such a fine and mysterious nature that it could be used by the spirits to build ectoplasmic bodies. It was now that the spirit of Jack her departed son appeared and made his presence felt. Not only did he speak and answer questions, but he used the ectoplasm to materialise his hand and shook hands with the audience, wrote messages and moved objects and did all that a hand floating in space could do. It was at this stage of the proceedings that the professor was called in as an independent scientific observer to test and report on these astounding phenomena.

He approached the whole matter with complete scepticism, and went to work with the careful thoroughness of a highly trained observer. He was however badly handicapped as all manifestations had to take place in a completely dark room, ectoplasm being highly sensitive to light which instantly destroys it, with dreadful results to the medium, profuse bleeding and even death - such was the tale. Nevertheless, the professor persevered, the mystic hand materialised and the professor shook hands with the ectoplasmic manifestation. The hand, he said, felt hard and cold like the skin of a serpent, but of its existence there was no doubt.

Then he was truck with a really brilliant idea, no two thumb prints were alike, why not get Jack's ectoplasmic hand to make a finger print and compare it with the prints on the carefully preserved razor. This extraordinary experiment was carried out, Jack was readily persuaded to press his ectoplasmic hand on a piece of carefully prepared with wax. The prints so produced were compared with those on the razor and they were identical. The professor had heard that I had a device which enabled a person to see in the dark. He wanted to borrow this so that he could watch the whole process of materialisation without destroyed the ectoplasm.

I agreed at once to take part in this and he went off to arrange matters. I never saw him again. He was killed in a motor accident. A spiritualist told me that this was undoubtedly the action of the spirit forces and the result of his effort to pry into sacred secrets.

This was not, however, the end of the matter. Sometime afterwards a caller arrived at the company's office with an invention for me to examine. It was a little electric motor controlled by a tuning fork. He had it with him but had some difficulty in making it run properly. I suggested he should come back when the troubles were overcome. He rose to go and as a parting shot said: "Would you care to have definite and irrefutable evidence of the survival of the personality after death?" I said, "Yes, I would give everything I possessed for such evidence". "Well" he said, "I can give it to you if you do not mind making the journey". I said "I would go to the ends of the earth for such a cause". "There is no need for that" said he, "you only have to go to West Wimbledon".

This was arranged and I duly arrived at the above address given, a small highly respectable villa; here I was welcomed by a party of elderly ladies and gentlemen and given tea. Then the medium arrived, a neurotic nervous looking woman of about 35. We trooped up to the séance room. Here there was arranged a circle of chairs and in the centre of this a small box like a sentry box, draped in black, provided with a chair. The medium was handcuffed to this chair. The audience sat round on the other chairs provided, each person held a hand of each of his neighbours and put a foot on one of his neighbours feet, so that any undetected movement of hand or foot was impossible. Lights were then extinguished. The leader, an impressive elderly gent with dies whiskers, then led the singing of a hymn, "Tis a beauteous belief that spirits round us throng". This was followed by a prayer. Then darkness and silence, broken only by a mysterious steady humming sound, which I learned afterwards came from an electrical tuning fork. The rhythmic sound was found to assist manifestations (also possibly to mask any noise made by the medium).

we waited and waited, the darkness and silence had a most eerie effect, then the old lady next to me squeezed my hand and whispered in an awestruck whisper, "look, it's coming". Sure enough in front of the booth, faint and almost invisible, a wavering purple coloured cloud was forming. It grew denser and then the silence was broken by the irregular tapping of a morse key; the spirit was signalling by tapping in the morse key; the spirit was signalled by tapping in the morse code. The message was directed to me and it came from no less a personage than Thomas Alva Edison. Edison had, it appeared been experimenting with noctovision in his home in the astral plane, and he was convinced that it would in time prove of great use in assisting communication between the living and those who had passed over, but the time was not ripe, and to attempt to use it now would incur grave danger. He was however continuing his research and would communicate with me when the time came to use noctovision. Here his message stopped and Edison left and gave place to another control called Lilly.

Lilly was more domestic in her messages and gave detailed advice to one of the circle upon what to do for he rheumatism and how to handle various family troubles. I remembered that I had a lunch appointment and time was passing, and so I whispered to the leader that I had an engagement and if he would excuse me I would slip out. A horrified whisper replied to me, "If you move you may be struck dead".

I murmured that under the circumstances I would wait, however, the spirits took the hint and a few minutes afterwards heavy groans came from the medium. She was coming out of the trance, and the lights were turned up. The leader hurried into the box with a large glass full of something hot and steaming, and soon the medium was sitting up looking about her in a dazed way. I slipped out, bade a hurried and apologetic good-bye and arrived at the Dieu Donne restaurant nearly an hour late.

My guests, two hearties from Scotland, were still waiting, drinking beer over lunch. I told them where I had been and what I had seen. "It seems all tosh to me", said Mr. B. "I wonder how sensible people can waste time with that nonsense", said Mr. M. "Well", I said, "What about Sir Oliver Lodge, Conan Doyle and other men of similar standing, you can't brush them aside with vulgar noises". "Oh," said Mr. B., "they are people who are perfectly sane except on one point. I once knew a man who was not only sane, but extremely clever, but he was under the delusion that one of his legs was made of glass". "It's not that" said Mr. M.," old Lodge and these other boys wanted to get into the limelight, the press won't give any prominence to their ordinary activities, but they get a good show for spooks, the public will always read about spooks. Of course the whole thing is a lot of damned rot".

I might have agreed with them but I have witnessed some very startling phenomena under circumstances which make trickery out of the question - and also unfortunately publication. I am convinced that discoveries of the far-reaching importance remain waiting along these shadowy and discredited paths.

2006-11-12T17:34:00.000-08:00

The Mediumship of Miss Showers

- Florence Marryat -

SOME TIME before I had the pleasure of meeting Miss Showers, I heard, through friends living in the west of England, of the mysterious and marvellous powers possessed by a young lady of their acquaintance, who was followed by voices in the air, which held conversations with her, and the owners of which were said to have made themselves visible. I listened with curiosity, the more so, as my informants utterly disbelieved in Spiritualism, and thought the phenomena were due to trickery. At the same time I conceived a great desire to see the girl of sixteen, who, for no gain or apparent object of her own, was so clever as to mystify everyone around her; and when she and her mother came to London, I was amongst the first to beg for an introduction, and I shall never forget the experiences I had with her. She was the first private medium through whom my personal friends returned to converge with me; and no one but a Spiritualist can appreciate the blessing of spiritual communications through a source that is above the breath of suspicion. I have already written at length about Miss Showers in "The story of John Powles." She was a child, compared to myself, whose life had hardly commenced when mine was virtually over, and neither she, nor any member of her family, had ever had an opportunity of becoming acquainted with even the names of my former friends. Yet (as I have related) John Powles made Miss Showers his especial mouthpiece, and my daughter "Florence" (then a little child) also appeared through her, though at long intervals, and rather timidly. Her own controls, however, or cabinet spirits (as they call them in America) - i.e., such spirits as are always about the medium, and help the strangers to appear - " Peter," "Florence," "Lenore," and "Sally," were very familiar with me, and afforded me such facilities of testing their medium as do not often fall to the lot of inquirers. Indeed, at one time, they always requested that I should be present at their séance, so that I considered myself to be highly favored. And I may mention here that Miss Showers and I were so much en rapport that her manifestations were always much stronger in my presence. We could not sit next each other at an ordinary tea or supper table, when we had no thought of, or desire to hold a séance, without manifestations occurring in the full light. A hand, that did not belong to either of us, would make itself apparent under the table-cloth between us - a hand with power to grasp ours - or our feet would be squeezed or kicked beneath the table, or fingers would suddenly appear, and whisk the food off our plates. Some of their jests were inconvenient. I have had the whole contents of a tumbler, which I was raising to my lips, emptied over my dress. It was generally known that our powers were sympathetic, and at last "Peter" gave me leave, or, rather, ordered me to sit in the cabinet with "Rosie," whilst the manifestations went on outside. He used to say he didn't care for me any more than if I had been "a spirit myself." One evening "Peter" called me into the cabinet (which was simply a large box cupboard at one end of the dining room) before the séance began, and told me to sit down at the medium's feet and “be a good girl and keep quiet." Miss Showers was in a low chair, and I sat with my arms resting on her lap. She did not become entranced, and we talked the whole time together. Presently, without any warning, two figures stood beside us. I could not have said where they came from. I neither saw them rise from the floor nor descend from the ceiling. There was no beginning to their appearance. In a moment they were simply there - "Peter" and "Florence" (not my child, but Miss Showers' control of the same names).

"Peter" sent "Florence" out to the audience, where we heard her speaking to them and their remarks upon her (there being only a thin curtain hung before the entrance of the cabinet), but he stayed with us himself. We could not see him distinctly in the dim light, but we could distinctly, hear and feel him. He changed our ornaments and ribbons, and pulled the hair-pins out of our hair, and made comments on what was going on outside. After a while "Florence" returned to get more power, and both spirits spoke to and touched us at the same time. During the whole of this séance my arms rested on Miss Showers? And she was awake and talking to me about the spirits.

One evening, at a sitting at Mr. Luxmore's house in Hyde Park Square, the spirit "Florence" had been walking amongst the audience in the lighted front drawing-room for a considerable time - even sitting at the piano and accompanying herself whilst she sung us a song in what she called "the planetary language." She greatly resembled her medium on that occasion, and several persons present remarked that she did so. I suppose the inferred doubt annoyed her, for before she finally left us she asked for a light, and a small oil lamp was brought to her which she placed in my hand, telling me to follow her and look at her medium, which I accordingly did. "Florence" led the way into the back drawing-room, where I found Miss Showers reposing in an arm-chair. The first sight of her terrified me. For the purpose of making any change in her dress as difficult as possible, she wore a high, tight-fitting black velvet frock, fastened at the back, and high Hessian boots, with innumerable buttons. But she now appeared to be shrunk to half her usual size, and the dress hung loosely on her figure. Her arms had disappeared, but putting my hands up the dress sleeves, I found them diminished to the size of those of a little child-the fingers reaching only to where the elbows had been. The same miracle had happened to her feet, which only occupied half her boots. She looked in fact like the mummy of a girl of four or six years old. The spirit told me to feel her face. The forehead was dry, rough, and burning hot, but from the chin water was dropping freely on to the bosom of her dress. "Florence" said to me, "I wanted you to see her, because I know you are brave enough to tell people what you have seen."

There was a marked difference in the personality of the two influences "Florence" and "Lenore," although both at times resembled Miss Showers, and sometimes more than others. "Florence" was taller than her medium, and a very beautiful, Woman. "Lenore" was much shorter and smaller, and not so pretty, but more vivacious and pert. By the invitation of Mrs. Macdougal Gregory, I attended several seances with Miss Showers at her residence in Green Street, when these spirits appeared. "Lenore" was fond of saying that she wouldn't or couldn't come out unless I held her hand, or put my arm round her waist. To tell the truth, I didn't care for the distinction, for this influence was very peculiar in some things, and to me she always appeared 11 uncanny," and to leave an unpleasant feeling behind her. She was seldom completely formed, and would hold up a foot which felt like wet clay, and had no toes to. it, or not the 'proper quantity. On occasions, too, there was a charnel-house smell about her, as if she had been buried a few weeks and dug up again, an odor which I have never smelt from any materialized spirit before or after. One evening at Mrs. Gregory's, when "Lenore" had insisted upon walking round the circle supported by my arm, I nearly fainted from the smell. It resembled nothing but that of a putrid corpse, and when she returned to the cabinet, I was compelled to leave the room and retch from the nausea it had caused me. It was on this occasion that the sitters called "Lenore" so many times back into the circle, that all the power was gone, and she was in danger of melting away before their eyes. Still they entreated her to remain with them a little longer. At last she grew impatient, and complained to me of their unreasonableness. She was then raised from the floor - actually floating just outside the curtain - and she asked me to put my hands up her skirts and convince myself that she was half-dematerialized. I did as she told me, and felt that she had no legs, although she had been walking round the room a few minutes before. I could feel nothing but the trunk of a body, which was completely lifted off the ground. Her voice, too, had grown faint and her face indistinct, and in another moment she had totally disappeared.

One evening at Mrs. Gregory's, after the séance was concluded, "Florence" looked round the curtain and called to me to come inside of it. I did so and found myself in total darkness. I said, "What's the good of my coming here? I can't see anything." "Florence" took me by one hand, and answered, "I will lead you! Don't be afraid." Then some one else grasped my other hand, and "Peter's" voice said, "We've got you safe. We want you to feel the medium." The two figures led me between them to the sofa on which Miss Showers was lying. They passed my hand all over her head and body. I felt, as before, her hands and feet shrunk to half their size, but her heart appeared to have become proportionately increased. When my hand was placed upon it, it was as leaping up and down violently, and felt like a rabbit or some other live animal bounding in her bosom. Her brain was burning as before, but her extremities were icy cold. There was no doubt at all of the abnormal condition into which the medium had been thrown, in order to produce these strong physical manifestations which were borrowed, for the time being, from her life, and could never (so they informed me) put the whole of what they borrowed back again. This seems to account for the invariable deterioration of health and strength that follows physical manifestations in both sexes. These were the grounds alone on which they explained to me the fact that, on several occasions, when the materialized spirit has been violently seized and held apart from the medium, it has been found to have become, or been changed into the medium, and always with injury to the latter-as in the case of Florence Cook being seized by Mr. VoIckman and Sir George Sitwell. Mr. VoIckman concluded because when he seized the spirit "Katie King," he found he was holding Florence Cook, that the latter must have impersonated the former; yet I shall tell you in its proper place how I have sat in the same room with "Katie King," whilst Miss Cook lay in a trance between us. The medium nearly lost her life on the ' occasion alluded to, from the sudden disturbance of 'the mysterious link that bound her to the spirit. I have had it from the lips of the Countess of Caithness, who was one of the sitters, and stayed with Miss Cook till she was better, that she was in convulsions the whole night after, and that it was some time before they believed she would recover. If a medium could simulate a materialized spirit, it is hardly likely that she would (or could) simulate convulsions with a medical man standing by her bedside. "You see," said Miss Showers' "Florence," whilst pointing out to me the decreased size of her medium under trance, "that 'Rosie' is half her usual size and weight. I have borrowed the other half from her, which, combined with contributions from the sitters, goes to make up the body in which I show myself to you. If you seize and hold me tight, you are holding her, i.e., half of her, and you increase the action of the vital half to such a degree that, if the two halves did not reunite, you would kill her. You see that I can detach certain particles from her organism for my own use, and when I dematerialize, I restore these particles to her, and she becomes once more her normal size. You only hurry the reunion by violently detaining me, so as to injure her, But you might drive her mad, or kill her in the attempt, because the particles of brain, or body, might become injured by such a violent collision. If you believe I can take them from her (as you see I do) in order to render my invisible body visible to you, why can't you believe I can make them fly together again on the approach of danger. And granted the one power, I see no difficulty in acknowledging the other."

One day Mrs. Showers invited me to assist at a séance to be given expressly for friends living at a distance. When I reached the house, however, I found the friends were unable to be present, and the meeting was adjourned. Mrs. Showers apologized for the alteration of plan, but I was glad of it. I had often sat with "Rosie" in company with others, and I wanted to sit with her quite alone, or rather to fit with her in a room quite alone, and see what would spontaneously occur, without any solicitation on our parts. We accordingly annexed the drawing-room for our sole use, locked the door, extinguished the lights, and sat down on a sofa side by side, with our arms round each other. The manifestations that followed were not all nice ones. They formed an experience to be passed through once, but not willingly repeated, and I should not relate them here, excepting that they afford so strong a proof that they were produced by a power outside and entirely distinct from our own - a power, which having once called into action, we had no means of repressing. We had sat in the dark for some minutes, without hearing or seeing anything, when I thoughtlessly called out, "Now, Peter, do your worst," and extending my arms, singing, "Come! for my arms are empty." In a moment a large, heavy figure fell with such force into my out stretched arms as to bruise my shoulder - it seemed like a form made of wood or iron, rather than flesh and blood - and the rough treatment that ensued for both of us is almost beyond description. It seemed as if the room were filled with materialized creatures, who were determined to let us know they were not to be trifled with. Our faces and hands were slapped, our hair pulled down, and our clothes nearly torn off our backs. My silk skirt being separate from the bodice was torn off at the waistband, and the trimming ripped from it, and Miss Showers' muslin dress was also much damaged. We were both thoroughly frightened, but no expostulations or entreaties had any effect with our tormentors. At the same time we heard the sound as of a multitude of large birds or bats swooping about the room." The fluttering of wings was incessant, and we could hear them "scrooping" up and down the walls. In the midst of the confusion, "Rosie" was whisked out of my arms (for fright had made us cling tighter than ever together) and planted on the top of a table at some distance from me, at which she was so frightened she began to cry, and I called out, "Powles, where are you? Can't you stop them?" My appeal was heard. Peter's voice exclaimed, "Hullo! here's Powles coming!" and all the noise ceased. We heard the advent of my friend, and in another moment he was smoothing down the ruffled hair and arranging the disordered dresses and telling me to light the gas and not be frightened. As soon as I could I obeyed his directions and found Rosie sitting doubled up in the centre of the table, but the rest of the room and, furniture in its usual condition. "Peter" and his noisy crowd had vanished - so had "Powles," and there was nothing but our torn skirts and untidy appearance to prove that we had not been having an unholy dream. "Peter" is not a wicked spirit - far from it - but he is a very earthly and frivolous one. But when we consider that nine-tenths of the spirits freed from the flesh are both earthly and frivolous (if not worse), I know not what right we have to expect to receive back angels in their stead.

At one time when my sister Blanche (who was very sceptical as to the possibility of the occurrences I related having taken place before me) was staying in my house at Bayswater, I asked Miss Showers if she would give us a séance in my own home, to which she kindly assented. This was an unusual concession on her part, because, in consequence of several accidents and scandals that had occurred from media being forcibly detained (as I have just alluded to), her mother was naturally averse to her sitting anywhere but in their own circle. However, on my promising to invite no strangers, Mrs. Showers herself brought her daughter to my house. We had made no preparation for the séance except by opening part of the folding doors between the dining-room and study, and hanging a curtain over the aperture. But I had carefully locked the door of the study, so that there should be no egress from it excepting through the dining-room, and had placed against the locked door a heavy writing-table laden with books and ornaments to make "assurance doubly sure." We sat first in the drawing-room above, where there was a piano. The lights were extinguished, and Miss Showers sat down to the instrument and played the accompaniment to a very simple melody, "Under the willow she's sleeping." Four voices, sometimes alone and sometimes all together, accompanied her own. One was a baritone, supposed to proceed from "Peter," the second, a soprano, from "Lenore." The third was a rumbling bass, from an influence who called himself "The Vicar of Croydon," and sung in a fat, unctuous, and conceited voice; and the fourth was a cracked and quavering treble, from another spirit called "The Abbess." These were the voices, Mrs. Showers told me, that first followed her daughter about the house in Devonshire, and gained her such an unenviable notoriety there. The four voices were perfectly distinct from one another, and sometimes blended most ludicrously and tripped each other up in a way which made the song a medley-upon which each one would declare it as the fault of the other. "The Vicar of Croydon" always required a great deal of solicitation before he could be induced to exhibit his powers, but having once commenced, it was difficult to make him: leave off again, whereas "The Abbess" was always complaining that they would not allow her to sing the solos. An infant's voice also sung some baby songs in a sweet childish treble, but she was also very shy and seldom was heard, in comparison with the rest. "All ventriloquism!" I hear some reader cry. If so, Miss Showers ought to have made a fortune in exhibiting her talent in public. I have heard the best ventriloquists in the world, but I never heard one who could produce four voices at the same time.

After the musical portion of the séance was over, we descended to the dining-room, where the gas was burning, and the medium passed through it to the secured study, where a mattress was laid upon the floor for her accommodation. "Florence" was the first to appear, tall and beautiful in appearance, and with upraised eyes like a nun. She measured her height against the wall with me, and we found she was the taller of the two by a couple of inches, my height being five feet six, the medium's five feet, and the spirit's five feet eight, an abnormal height for a woman. "Lenore" came next, very short indeed, looking like a child of four or six, but she grew before our eyes, until her head was on a level with mine. She begged us all to observe that she had not got on "Rosie's" petticoat body. She said she had borrowed it on one occasion, and Mrs. Showers had recognized it, and slipped upstairs in the middle of the séance and found it missing from her daughter's chest of drawers, and that she had been so angry in consequence (fearing Rosie's honor might be impeached) that she said if "Lenore" did not promise never to do so again, she should not be allowed to assist at the seances at all. So Miss "Lenore," in rather a pert and defiant mood, begged Mrs. Showers to see that what she wore was her own property, and riot that of the medium. She was succeeded on that occasion by a strange being, totally different from the other two, who called herself "Sally," and said she had been a cook. She was one of those extraordinary influences for whose return to earth one can hardly account; quick, and clever, and amusing as she could be, but with an unrefined wit and manner, and to all appearance, more earthly-minded than ourselves. But do we not often ask the same question with respect to those still existent here below? What were they born for? What good do they do? Why were they ever permitted to come? God, without whose permission nothing happens, alone can answer it.

We had often to tease "Peter" to materialize and show himself, but he invariably refused, or postponed the work to another occasion. His excuse was that the medium being so small, he could not obtain sufficient power from her to make himself appear as a big man, and he didn't like to come, " looking like a girl in a billycock hat." "I came once to Mrs. Showers," he said, “and she declared I was 'Rosie' dressed up, and so I have resolved never to show myself again." At the close of that séance, however, "Peter" asked me to go into the study and see him wake the medium. When I entered it and made my way up to the mattress, I found Miss Showers extended on it in a deep sleep, whilst "Peter," materialized, sat at her feet. He made me sit down next to him and take his hand and feel his features with my own hand. Then he proceeded to rouse "Rosie" by shaking her and calling her by name, holding me by one hand, as he did so. As Miss Showers yawned and woke up from her trance, the hand slipped from mine, and "Peter" evaporated. When she sat up I said to her gently, "I am here! Peter brought me in and was sitting on the mattress by my side till just this moment." "Ha, ha!" laughed his voice close to my car, "and I'm here still, my dears, though you can't see me."

Who can account for such things? I have witnessed them over and over again, yet I am unable, even to this day, to do more than believe and wonder.

2006-11-09T11:00:00.000-08:00

A Long-Term Prospective Study to Investigate the Incidence and Phenomenology of Near-Death Experiences in a Welsh Intensive Therapy Unit, by Penny Sartori, PhD

This is a 5 year prospective Welsh study out of the UK to explore if anoxia, hypercarbia or drug administration could explain the NDE. Key points in the study were:

1. It is apparent that NDEs are not wishful thinking as some experiences did not meet the expectations of the patient and two NDEs were unpleasant. This is consistent with NDERF research findings.

2. Using the NDE group and those who did not die but who experienced an OBE, Dr. Sabam's study was repeated where the two groups were asked to re-enact their resuscitation. The OBErs were very inaccurate and demonstrated misconceptions and errors between the actual procedures performed, as well as equipment used. The NDErs were significantly more accurate.

3. It is likely that the NDE is an under-reported phenomenon. Only two NDEs were spontaneously reported to members of staff. The remaining thirteen NDEs would not have been disclosed had the patients not been interviewed.

4. Most of the population were given painkilling and sedative drugs. The conclusion was that if drugs were the cause of the NDE then a larger percentage of NDEs would be expected. There were cases who reported "similar to NDEs became they became very confused once painkilling drugs had been administered." This statement assumes that because the person did not remember the NDE while impaired by drugs that it the NDE wasn't real. While this finding may show that drugs interfere with the immediate memory of the NDE, this study does not address whether the NDE was remembered after the person was no longer under the influence of drugs.

5. All but one patient who reported hallucinations had been given a combination of large amounts of sedative and painkilling drugs. The NDEs followed a pattern, yet the "hallucinations were very random, bizarre and related to actual occurrences and the actions of members of staff. On follow-up, those who had reported hallucinations could rationalize that they had been hallucinating, whereas NDErs remained adamant that their experience was real."

6. Cases in which blood was extracted at the time of the NDE / OBE did not support the anoxia or hypercarbia theories.

7. "Further unexplained aspects of the NDE, such as meeting deceased relatives who were not known to be dead at the time of the experience and gaining information in ways other than through the senses, could not be explained by physiological or psychological factors."
The conclusion of the study is that the NDE phenomenon remains "unexplained when considered from the current scientific perspective of consciousness being a by-product of neurological processes. The fact that clear, lucid experiences were reported during a time when the brain was devoid of activity (Aminoff et al., 1988, Clute and Levy 1990, de Vries et al., 1998), does not sit easily with current scientific belief."

2006-11-09T10:58:00.000-08:00

Is the truth out there?

KIM KIMZEY, Staff Writer
Published October 24, 2006
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Patti Starr claims she started talking to dead people when she was just a kid.

Her "very, very strict Baptist" parents were understandably concerned when their 5-year-old told them she could see things they didn't.

"I was told it was my imagination," she said. "After I got older, it was harder and harder to ignore."

Starr, 58, said as an adult, she concluded she was not crazy, nor was she imagining the ghosts she could plainly see and communicate with. She lived in Wellford during the '60s and attended Byrnes High School until she was 16. Her former classmates might remember her as Patsy Russell.

Starr, who now lives in Kentucky, oversees Ghost Chasers International. She has been featured on national television and instructs others on how to hunt ghosts.

Years ago, she hid her ability from others for fear she would be labeled insane -- or worse -- evil.

"Now I can tell people and they say, 'That's cool,' " Starr said.

Starr said years ago she simply depended on "psychic sensibility" to investigate paranormal activity. Today, she verifies hauntings with an arsenal of ghost-hunting equipment, including recorders, camcorders and cameras that capture infrared images.

Thanks to books, films and TV shows about the paranormal, Starr said more and more people are open to the idea of apparitions.

But misconceptions about ghosts abound. Starr said spirits are not the malevolent ghouls of horror films and nightmares. Most are sweet and benign entities worthy of "great respect."

But after years of chasing spirits, Starr has run across a few that were "spiteful and hateful." Some, she said, have even pinched and pushed her.

"It's not evil or demonic. They're just rude," she said.

According to Starr, the afterlife and those in it are a lot like the living. Nice people become nice ghosts and nasty people become nasty ghosts. Teenaged males often remain mischievous in the afterlife, she said. They might make objects move and spook the living just for fun.

So what about folks who say they have had frightening encounters with the dead or had a chill run through their body standing in a certain, perhaps haunted, spot?

Starr explained that people are often feeling the ghost's fear.

How about when your hair stands on end for no good reason? It could be a ghost bumping into your electromagnetic field, explains Starr.

"I hope to let people realize they should have more compassion for these spirits," she said. "Sometimes (ghosts) are frightened. Sometimes they want you to help."

Starr said it usually only takes a simple request or prayer to convince them to go to the "other side."

Starr said the nonliving can also leave the spirit world and return to earth -- perhaps to check up on a loved one who's experiencing difficult times.

Starr begins an investigation or "clearing" by joining hands with other people in a circle and saying a prayer. The herb sage is burned and holy water sprinkled, but it is not like an exorcism, Starr said.

Starr instructs introductory and advanced ghost hunting at Bluegrass Community and Technical College in Lexington, Ky.

While Starr claims to have come into contact with spirits as a child, Beth Berry, a psychic medium who lives in Georgia, said she was 18 when she had her first paranormal encounter.

Berry's clairvoyance was sparked following the death of her brother Brian, who died on Christmas Day in 1997.

Berry, a wife and mother of two, became fascinated with spiritual and psychic phenomena and began reading all the books she could find on the subject.

Now she's a member of American Association of Psychics in Georgia, as well as Florida, Arizona, Texas and California. Berry does readings via telephone for people around the world. But even her husband remains a skeptic.

Berry said most people want to contact a specific loved one who has passed away.

Berry clears her mind before a reading with an hour of meditation. The reading begins with Berry asking "who wants to come through."

Often the people she contacts are dead. Sometimes, though, they are alive, she said.

"If people are afraid, it won't work," Berry said of readings. "Fear pushes it away."

Like Starr, Berry said the dead retain much of their earthly characteristics.

"They still come and check on us," she said. "When you think about them, they are there."

While conversing with the dead is an everyday occurrence for Starr and Berry, Michael Roper has had very limited contact with ghosts.

Roper, a sergeant with the Spartanburg Public Safety Fire Division and former city police officer, claims an apparition that haunts Hub City Grill's basement once tugged on his sleeve, but he has yet to see an apparition.

Nonetheless, Roper is fascinated by ghost stories. It's a fascination that grew out of his love for history and an experience he had at 16.

Roper and his wife, Angela, had heard stories of a haunted church just down the road from his home.

One afternoon, they walked past the inactive church and heard a piano playing inside.

"That kind of sparked my interest," Roper said.

Roper guides historical ghost tours to some of Spartanburg's alleged haunted places, including Converse College and the Dupre house.

"I know a lot of people who have seen things that are paranormal," Roper said. "Mill workers to doctors have seen apparitions or paranormal activity. We all can't be drunk. We all can't be crazy.

"There's definitely something there. Call it purgatory or the afterlife -- call it whatever you want."

Roper researches reports of paranormal activity by first trying to establish that something -- perhaps a murder -- actually occurred at a supposedly haunted spot. Then he verifies ghostly encounters with at least three people who claim to have had similar experiences at different times.

Roper points out that almost everyone has experienced something they couldn't explain, and most cultures have two things in common -- a belief in a deity and spirits.

"The height of ignorance is saying, 'I don't believe in that so it can't exist.' "

2006-11-08T09:55:00.000-08:00

PARALLEL UNIVERSES: CAN THEY EXIST?

Contrary to what you might expect, Sliders is actually based on real science. Indeed, the idea of parallel worlds may seem on the face of it to be pure fantasy, but for many scientists, it is much more than mere science-fiction.

Einstein's theory of relativity predicted the existence of "black holes", a hypothesis which has since been verified. These cosmic phenomena arise from the death of a star, after it collapses in on itself under the force of its own gravity. Inside a black hole, gravity is so intense that even light cannot escape the gravitational field (hence the name black hole).

Albert Einstein and another physicist by the name of Nathan Rosen posited that each black hole would symmetrically on another gravitational well called a white hole (or sometimes also white fountain). The black hole/white hole pair would form a "wormhole", or vortex (the interdimensional passage used by the Sliders, called an Einstein-Rosen Bridge).

Thus, any matter swallowed up by the black hole would be quickly spat out by the white hole, in an unknown location... This could be either a distant point in the universe, in which case the wormhole would act as a shortcut through space and time. Alternatively, it could be a parallel universe, in which case it would act as a bridge between the different dimensions.

Wormhole

The second hypothesis could explain the total absense of antimatter in the universe as we know it. According to the universe's governing principle of symmetry, there must be equal amounts of matter and antimatter. However, we have failed to discover the slightest trace of the latter, although we have succeeded in producing it artificially (at the CERN laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland in 1995, and in other particle accelerators). The existence of parallel universes could explain the lack of antimatter in our world. In parallel dimensions, then, there could be objects similar to the planets and stars we are familiar with in our own, but constructed of antimatter (this is one of the most recent theories, after the principles of dissymetry, and of the annihilation frontier).

According to a poll of 72 leading physicists conducted by the American researcher David Raub in 1995 (published in the French periodical Sciences et Avenir in January 1998), the multiple universe theory is widely accepted:
58% of physicists (including Stephen Hawking) think multiple universes exist
18% (including Roger Penrose) do not accept this theory
13% admit the possibility, but remain unconvinced
and 11 % have no opinion.

Sadly, we are not yet able to cross these bridges, if they exist. In fact, it would require a tremendous amount of energy to open a wormhole artificially, and the gravitational force inside would be so strong that we would be completely crushed.

Thus, Quinn must be a true genius to be able to open an interdimensional vortex so easily and quickly, and without suffering any injury!

Those who believe time travel may be possible rely similarly on the existence of parallel universes, which would allow for the resolution of the "grandfather paradox":

If a man were to go back in time and kill his grandfather as a child, logically speaking he would not be born, since his father before him would not be born. But if he wasn't born, he can't go back and kill his grandfather, therefore his grandfather lives, and the grandson is eventually born, therefore he can kill his grandfather, and so on...

If you consider that wormholes are shortcuts through the space-time continuum, the man could use one to go kill his grandfather. However, he would arrive not in the past of his own universe, but instead in that of a parallel universe, in which his existence does not depend on the continued existence of his grandfather. In killing this version of his grandfather, he would simply be preventing the birth of his double in the parallel universe...

2006-11-08T09:53:00.000-08:00

'Remote viewing led to Saddam's capture'

SaddamCaptured.gifISRAEL. It was a clairvoyant using remote viewing techniques who was responsible for leading US commandos to Saddam Hussein’s hiding place in Iraq three years ago.

That’s the claim made by famous spoon-bender Uri Geller in an interview with a Reuters news agency correspondent in Herzliya, Israel, the day after Hussein was sentenced to death by an Iraqi court for crimes against humanity.

“You remember when they found Saddam Hussein in Iraq? A soldier walked over to a rock, lifted it and then found a trap-door and found him in there,” Geller recalled.

SaddamHussein3.jpg“Well, I know that that soldier walked over to that rock because he got information from a ‘remote viewer’ from the United States.”

Geller, who claims he worked for the Central Intelligence Agency during the Cold War, said his information came from a high-level source involved in American paranormal programmes.

At the time of his capture, US commanders said a source close to Hussein had given him up under interrogation. A US military spokesman in Iraq had no immediate comment on Geller’s claim.

Geller1web.jpgA Brazilian psychic had previously claimed the $25 million bounty offered for Saddam’s capture, saying he had described the hiding place in letters to the US government. Uri Geller is currently in Israel in connection with a reality TV show.

ParanormalReview.com’s editor, Roy Stemman, recently suggested that Geller himself may have been the unidentified remote viewer who was brought in by the Israeli Army to help locate two kidnapped soldiers.

Since research into remote viewing – the ability to use the mind to “see” events that are happening far away – has been financed by the US military in the past, it is likely that there is a grain of truth in Geller’s claim. Indeed, it would be surprising if the US wasn’t experimenting with remote viewing techniques back in 2003, alongside conventional investigation methods, in their hunt for SaddamHussein.

IStephanSchwartz2.jpgn fact, a remote viewing experiment conducted by US parapsychologist Stephan A. Schwartz (left), an internationally acknowledged expert on the subject, illustrates how accurate the technique can be, particular if the results are a consensus view taken from numerous “viewers”.

The experiment, conducted on 3 November 2003, suggested that Saddam Hussein would be found crouching in a subterranean room or cave, beneath an ordinary-looking house on the outskirts of a small village near Tikrit, that is reached by a tunnel. And the former leader, they said, would look like a homeless person, with a ratty salt-and-pepper beard. He would have a gun and some money but would not put up any resistance.

All of these statements, subsequently, were scored as hits. And the drawings showed striking similarities with the diagrams and related evidence presented by the US military when they announced Saddam’s capture (see Schwartz's comparison below).

Four days after the experiment, the Pentagon announced that a special “covert commando force to hunt Saddam Hussein” had been formed. He was captured more than five weeks later, on 16 December.

2006-11-08T09:49:00.000-08:00

The Boy Who Lived Before

[This article by Yvonne Bolouri appeared in the Sun newspaper on 8 September 2006]

LITTLE Cameron Macaulay was a typical six-year-old, always talking about his mum and family. He liked to draw pictures of his home too — a long single-storey, white house standing in a bay. But it sent shivers down his mum’s spine — because Cameron said it was somewhere they had never been, 160 miles away from where they lived. And he said the mother he was talking about was his 'old mum'. Convinced he had lived a previous life Cameron worried his former family would be missing him. The Glasgow lad said they were on the Isle Of Barra.

Mum Norma, 42, said: 'Ever since Cameron could speak he’s come up with tales of a childhood on Barra. He spoke about his former parents, how his dad died, and his brothers and sisters. Eventually we just had to take him there to see what we could find. It was an astonishing experience.'

Cameron’s journey to find his previous life is now the subject of a spooky TV documentary. Norma said: 'His dad and I are no longer together but neither of our families have ever been to the island. At first we just put his stories down to a vivid imagination.' Then life took a more sinister turn as Cameron started to become distressed at being away from his Barra family.

Norma said: 'It was awful and went on for years. When he started nursery his teacher asked to see me and told me all the things Cameron was saying about Barra. He missed his mummy and his brothers and sisters there. He missed playing in rockpools on the beach beside his house. And he complained that in our house there was only one toilet, whereas in Barra, they had three. He used to cry for his mummy. He said she’d be missing him and he wanted to let his family in Barra know he was all right. It was very distressing. He was inconsolable.'

'He wouldn’t stop talking about Barra, where they went, what they did and how he watched the planes landing on the beach from his bedroom window. He even said his dad was called Shane Robertson, who had died because "he didn’t look both ways". I assume he means knocked over by a car but he never says that. One day his nursery teacher told me a film company were looking for people who believed they had lived before. She suggested I contact them about Cameron. My family were horrified. There was a lot of opposition to it. I’m a single parent so it was me and Cameron’s brother Martin, who is only a year older than him, who were being badly affected by this.

'Cameron wouldn’t stop begging me to take him to Barra. It was constant. I contacted the film company and they followed Cameron’s journey to Barra. We had child psychologist Dr Jim Tucker, from Virginia, with us. He specialises in reincarnation and has researched other children like Cameron. When Cameron was told we were going to Barra he was jumping all over the place with excitement.' The family flew from Glasgow last February and landed on Cockleshell Bay an hour later.

Norma said: 'He asked me if his face was shiny, because he was so happy. When we got to the island and did land on a beach, just as Cameron had described, he turned to Martin and me and said, "Now do you believe me?" He got off the plane, threw his arms in the air and yelled "I’m back". He talked about his Barra mum, telling me she had brown hair down to her waist before she’d had it cut. He said I’d like her and she’d like me. He was anxious for us to meet. He also talked about a "big book" he used to read, and God and Jesus. We’re not a religious family but his Barra family were.'

The Macaulays booked into a hotel and began their search for clues to Cameron’s past. Norma said: 'We contacted the Heritage Centre and asked if they’d heard of a Robertson family who lived in a white house overlooking a bay. They hadn’t. Cameron was very disappointed. We drove around the island but he didn’t see the house. Then we realised that if he saw planes land on the beach from his bedroom window, we were driving the wrong way.'

Next the family received a call from their hotel to confirm that a family called Robertson once had a white house on the bay. Norma explains: 'We didn’t tell Cameron anything. We just drove towards where we were told the house was and waited to see what would happen. He recognised it immediately and was overjoyed. But as we walked to the door all the colour drained from Cameron’s face and he became very quiet.'

'I think he thought it would be exactly the same as he remembered it, that his Barra mum would be waiting for him inside. He looked sad. There was no one there. The previous owner had died but a keyholder let us in. There were lots of nooks and crannies and Cameron knew every bit of the house — including the three toilets and the beach view from his bedroom window. In the garden, he took us to the "secret entrance" he’d been talking about for years.'

Researchers also managed to track down one of the Robertson family who had owned the house [Gilly — apparently they were from the mainland but used to holiday there in the summer]. Norma said: 'We visited them at their new address in Stirling, but couldn’t find anything about a Shane Robertson. Cameron was eager to see old family photographs in case he found his dad or himself in any. He’d always talked about a big black car and a black and white dog. The car and the dog were in the photos.'

Since the family returned to their home in Clydebank, Glasgow, Cameron has been much calmer. Norma said: 'Going to Barra was the best thing we could have done. It’s put Cameron’s mind at ease. He no longer talks about Barra with such longing. Now he knows we no longer think he was making things up.'

'We didn’t get all the answers we were looking for — and, apparently, past life memories fade as the person gets older. Cameron has never spoken about dying to me. But he told his pal not to worry about dying, because "you just come back again". When I asked him how he ended up with me, he tells me he "fell through and went into my tummy". And when I ask him what his name was before, he says, "It’s Cameron. It’s still me". I don’t think we’ll ever get all the answers.'

[IL adds: "The Boy Who Lived Before" aired on UK Channel Five on September 18. This interview is a pretty accurate reflection of the documentary's contents. It is fair to say that Jim Tucker did not regard it as 'solved', and the inability to track the existence of a Shane Robertson and his son means that this is not the strongest of cases. Nevertheless it is important, because as far as I am aware it is the first time that a documentary crew has filmed a child subject's first return to the place of their former life as it happened, rather than merely obtaining subsequent interviews.]

2006-11-07T09:01:00.000-08:00

Introduction

Setting up the Problem

___________________________________________

WHY are we here? Has life any purpose or did it all just happen by accident? Are all the so-called "Paranormal" happenings all so much hot air, or have they a true scientific explanation? Is there any substance to the idea that humans have some form of conscious existence after physical death? These are all questions everybody asks. We shall explore them by extending scientific methodology to look for plausible answers. Clearly science does not yet have all the answers. It does not yet offer a satisfactory explanation for gravitation, nor are the explanations for the strange phenomenon of wave-particle duality in any way satisfactory. In the case of paranormal or psychic phenomena no scientific theory appears to exist. Indeed the problem has hardly even been addressed in scientific terms. Could it be that things have been missed which could unify the whole, both that which is sensed and unsensed, to provide a simultaneous explanation for everything? We shall be attempting to find answers to all these questions by treating them as a single holistic problem.

These are not just academic questions, the answers to which would merely satisfy our curiosity. Correct answers could lead to valuable spin-off. In the past new scientific insights have invariably led to new developments. These have materially improved the standards of life. Sadly, they have also increased the destructive potential of wars. All things seem to have negative aspects running counter to their positive values.

In the present age the crying need is for new insights which could help solve the mounting global problem. Owing to the growth of population, depletion of resources and pollution, the projections which have been made point toward a global disaster scenario. No matter how man struggles and turns to ward it off, at the moment a major population crash occurring about the middle of the next century seems the inevitable consequence of present trends. The hope must be therefore to find new insights from new science which can help avert this tragedy. Compared with this need, the exploitation of new discovery to further improve living standards seems trivial and inappropriate if anything of value turns up during our search for answers, then some space will be given to evaluating its potential. But let us return to the main theme, setting up the problem we hope to solve.

If the Universe was an unplanned accident and lifeforms similarly just happened, then there is no ultimate purpose in anything. on this basis some people have said that the life we experience is all there is. We just have to make the most of it whilst it lasts, then we black out into eternal oblivion. On this basis it matters little if the world's life-carrying capacity is ultimately destroyed. The belief that nothing can exist beyond the range of our senses therefore tends to blunt the drive to think in a long-term manner. If therefore this view is held by the majority and happens to be wrong, it could have strong negative consequences. it is important to know, therefore, whether this view is true or false, if only for practical reasons.

Countering this view, however, are the faiths to which all children are exposed. The existence of a Creator of the universe is postulated and all life is claimed to be part of a divine plan most religions also assert the existence of a spiritual side to man. A spirit form living on after death is postulated, or at least some ultimate resurrection followed by eternal survival.

Running counter to this again are the apparent findings of the physical sciences. The established view is in support of an accidental origin. Paul Davies(104) in his The Accidental Universe explains this view very clearly. The universe just happened to be created in a gigantic explosion called the "Big Bang" due to a huge "quantum fluctuation" arising in empty space. As a result all the energy of which the universe consists arose from pure nothingness. In so-called "classical physics", which deals with matter on the directly observable scale, the intangible substance called "energy" is assumed to be indestructible. As Einstein proved, the "mass" from which objects are made is equivalent to a certain, and extremely large amount, of energy. Modern quantum theory deals with the same kind of energy but in microscopic detail.

We are not talking here about the so-called, "energies" or "force-fields" existing around ancient shrines. Nor are we talking about the positive or negative energies which are said to attract or repel people from one another. These can be ascribed to "psychic energies" of an abstract nature. It is not suggested that psychic energies do not exist, indeed later it will be suggested that they perform an essential role in structuring matter. The energy of classical physics, however, is of a totally different nature. It can be defined as "physical energy" and is the building substance of the universe responsible for both matter and the motion of matter. Where the term, energy, is subsequently used without the adjective "psychic", it is the physical kind to which reference is being made. It is the variety, which needs to be supplied, for example, to lift a weight. All forms of physical energy can in principle be interchanged. They can all be expressed in the same units, and the idea of energy lends itself to incorporation in mathematical theories. For example, the number of units of, say, electrical energy needed to boil a kettle of water can be accurately calculated. Yet at a deeper level nobody is ever likely to really know what energy is. At this level it is as abstract as the psychic kind.

Physical energy must not be confused with the so-called energies of the psychic type. It is the latter which are claimed to emanate from hidden watercourses, oil and mineral deposits. These seem detectable because dowsers can exploit them in quite miraculous ways. They have proved time and again to be able to locate the substances for which they are searching. Indeed Uri Geller is so talented in this art that he has become a multi-millionaire by using it to locate crude oil deposits. But this cannot be a real or physical form of energy. It is a psychic energy form. As our quest develops we shall home in on an explanation which shows why psychic energy cannot be measured. We are going to show that it is an abstract kind of energy having no units. It cannot be measured like physical energy and so has to be considered as something entirely different. We shall be taking a close look at this strange psychic energy to uncover exactly what it is and how it works.

There is plentiful evidence that the physical sciences are only addressing a part of nature. It is reasonable to suggest, therefore, that an unsensed part may exist which might be connected with the alternative approach. For example, many people admit to experiencing strange happenings which seem to conflict with all the laws of nature science has uncovered. I have myself experienced such things. Since first-hand experience is the most convincing readers may be prepared to bear with me as I recount a few of these.

My first psychic experience occurred when I was 21 years old, about a fortnight before sitting for my final degree examinations. I had studied at the local Chesterfield Technical College part-time whilst working through an apprenticeship. Simultaneously I had been developing my first invention. It was a new type of engine, a kind of substitute for a gas turbine, whilst the latter was still in its infancy, the year being 1946. The idea had gradually developed with my increasing technical know-how and then, using my father's well- equipped modelling workshop I had just completed the first somewhat crude experimental machine. Then I had to leave it alone with some reluctance. The testing would have to wait until after the exams were over as I dare not let it spoil my chances. Then one day, as I sat in the college library studying, I suddenly experienced an irresistible urge to go to the town reference library about a mile walk away. I had not been near it for years and had no need to go there. But I just had to go, even though time was short and I needed to study on reaching the entrance hall, I noticed an interesting looking journal whose name I had not seen before. It was called "The Oil Engine and Gas Turbine". I opened it in the middle without turning any pages. Immediately a title flashed into my brain, "Pressure Exchanger for a Locomotive Gas Turbine". It was an article written on behalf of the Brown Boveri Co., Switzerland. I thought, "What a good name "Pressure Exchanger" would have made for my engine." As I read the text my face grew longer and longer. The article seemed to be a good description of my own invention. It was even more advanced than mine in some respects.

This was information I needed to be made aware of, despite the disappointment it entailed. What was it that homed me in on this, even to causing me to open the magazine at exactly the right page? All coincidence? Most people would put it down to this but I know I experienced a feeling I could not resist and no physical explanation can account for that.

The same thing happened twice in 1979. I was working with a friend, Eric Marsden, to prepare for a stand won at the second "Energy Show". Ours was entitled "ENERGY FARMS IN OCEANIC GYRES". The idea was to try and obtain support for an expedition for an experiment in the area of the Sargasso Sea. This is the centre of a rotating body of ocean and possesses natural confining properties for floating seaweed. The idea was to cultivate floating seaweed as an energy crop. Some could be just dried and the rest converted to a substitute crude oil on site. Cultivation only required the artificial upwelling of nutrient-rich seawater from the deeps and a careful analysis had shown the energy balances to be very favourable. It would be highly economic because for one thing the ocean itself provided confinement, so avoiding a high cost. Important advantages were a fish harvest obtained as a result of plankton absorbing about half the nutrient supply and a beneficial effect on the global greenhouse problem. Most of the plankton was sunk as excreta as a result of predation in the food web leading to harvestable fish. This caused carbon dioxide to be absorbed from the atmosphere and ultimately trapped on the seabed. It worked out that for every ton of carbon dioxide released by combustion of product oil between 1.4 and 1.8 tons would be absorbed from the atmosphere. So with this system the more energy used by burning product oil, the more the global greenhouse problem would be eased. No other solution could offer such advantages and yet be economically viable, so we thought we stood a good chance of making the impact needed to attract funds. We were very enthusiastic as we thought we were on to something of considerable importance.

We were working flat out to meet the deadline and a large amount of information had to be located and processed so that meaningful predictions could be calculated. On several occasions I was completely stuck, being unable to find what I required. Then suddenly I felt I had to leave everything and visit the library. I went in, walking round shelves at random. Then in an area quite unsuited to my search, or so I thought, there was the information at the very page of a book selected and opened at random! This happened twice during three weeks.

I have had other experiences but will recount only one more. I was alone and eating my evening meal when I suddenly remembered needing to make a telephone call. On return I found my spectacles sitting near my plate right in front of me. At the same instant I had a feeling that my mother (deceased) was saying, "Look what a mess the table is in." It seemed funny because I remembered putting the glasses away in their case only half an hour earlier. So I thought my memory was playing tricks. On opening the case, however, I was amazed to discover the glasses already in place. On inspection I found the second set to be ones I had lost over six months previously. It was as a result of their loss that I had purchased the new set little more than a week earlier. I had been struggling along without reading-glasses for about six months. My friends all laugh at this and offer somewhat insulting so-called "rational explanations". But I know none of these will fit.

My wife Margaret has experienced far stranger things than I have. The first happened during the war in the year 1944. A land-mine fell near the house in London and blew a heavy oak door in on her. She was only 10 years old and so the incident caused her much distress as well as some injury. She kept having nightmares and in one of them an explosion split the house in two down the middle and killed all the family. To give her a chance to recover her mother took her to stay with friends for a few weeks. They lived on a farm in Oxfordshire. On the day her mother was due to come to collect her she failed to turn up. Then the farmer's wife told her there had been an accident. The news was broken gently. Apparently a V2 rocket had fallen directly on to the shelters, killing all the residents Of the entire street. When she saw the house it was split right down the middle, exactly as she had seen it in her dream. Her mother and two brothers were all dead, killed by almost the last V2 rocket to fall on London.

She has also had two "out of body" experiences when close to death's door. I will describe one of these. She was in a hospital bed following an operation and suddenly called the nurse. "I'm sorry but I have just wet the bed, couldn't help it." When the nurse threw back the sheets a spurt of blood shot up to the ceiling from a ruptured operation cut. She passed out through loss of blood. But she regained consciousness of a kind, viewing her unconscious form in the bed from a vantage point near the ceiling! She watched herself on the bed and saw everything which happened before feeling a warm glow bathed in a red light. She also tried to pull back the sheets but her hands seemed to pass through them, making no contact.

Now this is not an uncommon experience. In a television video, "Beyond and Back", a large number of similar cases are studied. They cannot all be fabrications. Why should they be? Peter and Mary Harrison, writers of many books relating to the paranormal, have made a deep study of the subject. They have told me that from their research more than ten percent of all people have been found to have had at least one such experience during their lives. For example, the descriptions given by people who have experienced the event are remarkably similar, regardless of country of birth or religious belief. The prospect of these being true records of things which have really occurred needs to be taken as a plausible alternative to the idea that they are all stuff and nonsense we need to look for possible explanations based on extensions to physics.

Others have reported different phenomena for which no theoretical explanation yet exists. For centuries there have been reports of poltergeists, telepathy, clairvoyance, water divining, temporary materialisations of people once known to have lived and other so-called "paranormal" happenings. Some are no doubt fabrications but my own experiences lead me to discount the suggestion that all are explicable this way. Is the world crazy or is science lacking? Could it be that science has not developed sufficiently?

Not all scientists think in materialistic terms alone. The eminent Cambridge physicist, Professor Brian Josephson(116), published a paper, "Physics and Spirituality: the Next Grand Unification?" in 1989, saying that it ought to be possible to explain the paranormal in terms of quantum physics. He made it clear that science ought not to dismiss the paranormal. Paul Davies (105) in "God and the New Physics" seems to leave the question open. He does not attempt to support the expectations the title suggests. My own impression of this work is that he would like to give scientific support to a creationist view but feels it prudent to pull his punches. Why?

Some parapsychologists also support the creationist view. There are two camps, however, one is purely materialistic and seeks the so-called "rational" explanation. This really means they do not accept any view which reaches beyond the universe we can sense. For example, they say that the "mind" can be explained entirely in terms of functioning of the brain, that no other organ needs to exist to explain the mind. This may be true, but this does not exclude the possibility that the mind may actually exist, built from some other form of interpenetrating matter. In this event the brain would be functioning as an interface system, so that the mind could operate the body. It would be similar to electronic interfaces used to enable different types of computer to exchange information. Unfortunately the establishment camp will not entertain this alternative option and they hold all the aces when it comes to the communication of ideas.

The other parapsychologists, those who take a broader view and are prepared to probe deeper, are consequently rarely heard. They accept that all may not be confined to what we can sense. They look to interpenetrating systems of matter, or, in usual terminology, "parallel universes". The mind is not excluded from residing as a separate entity in one of these or even as a totally separate entity.

Rupert Sheldrake(121) talks about "morphic resonance". He advances a convincing argument showing that the first time anything is achieved, the difficulty of achievement is always very great. The difficulties always become less as the procedure is repeated, even if no apparent communication has taken place. He cites substances whose formation into crystals has at first been found intractable and gives other examples. He concludes that a hidden factor has to be in existence which joins everything together. David Bohm(102) suggests that from quantum theory there must be some underlying unity in the universe.

Do these factors point to some sub-structure of the universe which connects everything to everything else? And if so could this be connected with psychic energy and/or a creationist scenario?

At this stage it is worth looking more closely at the ideas which are currently held by physicists regarding creation of the universe. According to classical physics energy can neither be created nor destroyed. So states the "First Law of Thermodynamics", which has been accepted as an absolute law of nature since the time of Newton. Quantum theory accepts this as true but only on time-scales which are large as compared with those of certain quantum effects. On minute time-scales it is thought that energy can arise from nothing as if borrowed temporarily from nothingness. It is a debt needing to be repaid an instant later. Hence a so-called "virtual energy" can exist temporarily as a quantum fluctuation arising from nothing.

According to "Big Bang" theory a huge quantum fluctuation arose by accident. The bigger the fluctuation, the shorter the time it can exist. However, another effect arose in this brief period. The space containing this spontaneous surge of energy developed a "negative pressure" and from this assumption it can be shown that all the energy needed to make both matter and its motion could have been scraped up from nothingness. A huge repulsive force arose together with this negative pressure, like greatly amplified gravitation with the direction of force reversed. A violent expansion resulted as the matter of the universe arose, each particle flying outward from the centre at speeds close to that of light. It does not matter if this seems incomprehensible. It is simply a brief summary of current thinking as described more fully by Tryon(123). Established theory maintains that this strange happening occurred during a short period called the, inflationary phase", after which no more energy was created. Most of it was in the form of light but a relatively tiny proportion existed as a mixture of hydrogen and helium gas. These gases were the primordial substance of the embryo universe. Then the whole universe continued to expand against the now universally attractive force of gravitation, like a growing balloon. Matter appeared as a rapidly expanding cloud of gas gradually slowing, eventually to a possible stop. In the meantime gravitational instabilities caused the gas to clump into local clouds the size of galaxies. Then smaller-scale instabilities, arising within these proto-galaxies produced the first generation of stars.

The larger a star, the shorter its life. Some huge stars ended theirs at an early time by exploding as supernovas to spread their contents over vast volumes of space. This was an essential first stage for the creation of Earth-like planets because only during such explosions could the heavier elements, such as iron and those needed to form rocks, be produced. They had to be created from lighter elements by nuclear fusion and only supernovas could generate the extreme pressures and temperatures required.

This enabled a second generation of stars to condense from the primordial clouds of hydrogen and helium with a little of the extras mixed in. During the initial phases a huge disc of rotating gas would form. The centre part would then form the star and this would begin to generate energy by nuclear fusion and radiate it as light and heat as soon as its density became sufficiently high. The rest of the disc would form into orbiting planets. Giant gas planets formed at great distances, but inside their orbits a few solid planets formed, consisting mainly of the extras.

Some of these planets were just the right distance from a star to create temperatures suitable for the evolution of life. They also had just the right mass for retaining an atmosphere. Many other conditions had to be just right by pure accident. Then further accidents resulted in the life-forms we observe, following the evolutionary process described by Charles Darwin.

This seems to be an acceptable description of the way the universe arose in broad outline. What appear to have been accidents could, however, be equally attributed to deliberate intention. We shall explore this possible alternative.

It may seem strange to lump matter and motion together but Einstein(I10) derived his famous equation, E = mc2 at the beginning of this century, showing that energy "E" was equivalent to mass "m" multiplied by the square of the speed of light "c". Matter can therefore be considered as made from either mass or energy, since the two are equivalent.

In earlier times the amount of matter of which an object consisted was represented by its "mass". This could be determined, for example, by the act of weighing the object. Einstein's revelation still allows this but in addition permits the result to be expressed in the units of energy. Classical Newtonian mechanics, or physics, call it whichever seems best, already showed that energy is required to accelerate an object to a higher speed. Some of the energy contained, for example in a fuel, needs to be converted by an engine into the "kinetic" energy of motion of a car as its speed is increased from a state of rest. So energy exists in the fuel as "chemical" energy. Indeed energy can exist in many different forms, inclusive of heat, electrical and magnetic kinds. And all these forms can in principle be converted from one to another. It is even possible to convert matter into energy and back again. Consequently matter is said to consist of "mass-energy". All these forms can co-exist in an object and can be added together to yield a "total energy". For example, the total energy of a moving car would consist of both its mass and kinetic energy. The chemical energy of fuel in its tank could only be released by combustion with oxygen and so is a complication which is best not considered here. All such forms of physical energy can be treated as interchangeable because they can all be measured in the same units. When at rest, an object can therefore be imagined to consist of "rest energy" alone.

These are forms of physical energy, however, they could also be thought of as "real" energy because it is possible to measure the quantities involved in physical units. Indeed any form of physical energy can be measured in units known as the "joule". This can tell us how many units of energy are needed to boil a kettle of water and the same units can be used to tell us the amount to expend in lifting a weight. Indeed all chemical processes and all electrical or mechanical forms can be determined in a very precise way by measuring them in the common unit of the joule. Yet at a deep level it is impossible to imagine the true nature of physical energy.

The astute reader may have already spotted a contradiction. No matter how all the energy was scraped up from nothingness in the Big Bang, overall everything appeared from nothing. This was a massive violation of the first law of thermodynamics, one of the two most basic conservation laws of this discipline. It simply states, "Energy can be neither created nor destroyed". Yet after the inflationary period it is asserted that this law is obeyed exactly at all times and forever. It will be necessary to resolve this contradiction within our new theory.

Physicists ignore psychic energies entirely. They do not officially admit to their existence, though some ','ill express their doubts on this matter in private. It has not yet seemed to fit into their domain. we will be looking into this, however, and we are going to find that it seems to have impinged already. As a consequence the reader will be asked to judge whether or not the facts have so far been misinterpreted. Have theoreticians been thrown on to a false trail in consequence? If physical and psychic forms of energy coexist, then in some way the universe must depend on both, not just on the one most easily measured. If both forms are used together to structure the universe, then does this mean that existence has an ultimate purpose?

The established view of physicists gives a clear "No" to this question, because in their view psychic energy does not exist. They therefore support the view that all that "is" arose by happy accident. But are they correct? Popularisations of science, like those of Paul Davies(104 to 108), show that the odds against a universe arising with all its properties and laws of physics arranged such that life-forms could develop, are astronomically large. The figure one part in ten to the power forty, which means a one with forty noughts after it, is quoted for not just one property but for each of a whole array of properties as the chance of creating a universe like ours, capable of supporting life. Then this is multiplied by itself as each new property is considered. For example, with four such properties the chances against become one in ten to the power 160. Would you be prepared to back a horse if its chances of winning were one with one hundred and sixty noughts after it against? Yet this is precisely what cosmologists are doing when they look for a purely accidental explanation for the origin of the universe together with forms of life! A purely accidental origin seems unlikely, to say the least.

Why is science still treading a path which its own predictions show to be a very unlikely option? Should it not at the same time evaluate other alternatives? It should be an axiom of good science that all possible alternative solutions to any problem be explored simultaneously until any one meets an insurmountable barrier. This is prudent, because until a solution is established beyond any shadow of doubt it is impossible to know that the selected favourite was the right one to back. If the wrong choice has been made initially, then science can be thrown badly off course. It could become stuck on a false trail, struggling forever.

Yet what happens in practice is that in any one quest a single "establishment" line always develops. Assessors responsible for the selection of material for publication toe the selected line. Then other ideas are ruthlessly rejected. Even when the established option has clearly failed after decades of futile searching, it is impossible to communicate alternatives. This happens even when an alternative offers a complete solution. It happens especially if an alternative offers a complete solution, because it is then perceived as an even bigger threat to the established approach!

This scenario has been repeated with depressing regularity throughout the history of science. It is being repeated again in the search for a viable solution to the problem of quantum gravitation. Here the established line is to try and match quantum theory to Einstein's theory of relativity. He first produced a version called "Special Relativity". This considered objects moving at speeds comparable with that of light and free from the influence of gravity. Later he extended the theory to his, "General Relativity", which provided an explanation for gravitation by his extraordinary concept of "curved space-time". No force is needed to cause matter to fall according to this idea. Instead objects take the easiest route; they follow "geodesics" which can look curved to people like us but will actually be straight when observed from the vantage point of curved space-time.

Essentially relativity is a physics of the large scale: it describes the motion of stars and planets for example. Quantum theory on the other hand attempts to explain effects on the very small scale: the sub-atomic range of size.

Quantum theory has a totally different basis from relativity. In quantum theory energy comes only in discrete chunks and requires forces pressing against objects to cause them to accelerate.

But even such eminent theoreticians as Stephen Hawking state that these two theories are now known to be incompatible. Yet they expect a solution will be found before the turn of the century by writing quantum theory in ever-increasing numbers of dimensions to make it fit relativity. The higher dimensions postulated have greatly increased curvatures of their space. So it is considered that the strange geometries involved can account for the other forces of nature in a manner similar to that of Einstein's geodesics in curved spacetime.

Yet after more than fifty years of effort by several generations of theoreticians they still think they need another ten years! Is it not therefore prudent to look at an alternative? This will start without Einstein's assumptions or any of his predictions. It will start out quantum-based and yet build upon the physics which Newton developed.

Einstein himself would have supported the simultaneous development of alternative theories. According to a private communication from an American scientist, George Meek, Einstein said on his seventieth birthday:

"Now you think that I am looking at my life's work with calm satisfaction. But, on closer look, it is quite different. There is not a single concept of which I am convinced that it will stand firm and I am not sure if I was on the right track after all."

Einstein was a wonderful person with immense imagination and showed concern about the way scientific discoveries were put to use. If he thought he had inadvertently thrown science on to a false trail he would be most upset. If time had been available he would have done everything possible to rectify the situation.

As will be shown, gravitation has a major influence in our search for a viable solution to the meaning for existence. Those features which affect the main theme are summarised in the non-technical part of this book. But gravitation is so important a component that an entire technical section is devoted to presentation of the new solution. In this way it is hoped that confidence in the approach will be communicated. This is a simplified version so written that only "A" level school mathematics is required for its comprehension. The first chapter (T.S.1) is a written version of the lecture presented to a packed audience at the University of Leeds on 18th January 1990.

The lay reader will be able to judge the issue by comparing a summary of the two approaches. It is sufficient to study only the inputs and outputs. These are the initial assumptions and the results of checks with experimental observation, taking into account any unsolved problems or internal contradictions which arise. A list of assumptions is given in CHAPTER T.S.1 of the TECHNICAL SUPPLEMENT. TABLE T11 is included at the end of CHAPTER 11 and lists the results of attempts to match Einstein's general relativity to quantum theory. The same table shows how the new extended Newtonian physics, which starts out quantum-based, satisfies the checks just as well as general relativity, yet is totally free from internal contradiction and all the other difficulties which confound the established approach. It also relates the magnitude of the gravitational force to that of electromagnetism, which neither quantum theory nor general relativity have been able to achieve.

The established scientific approach regarding the origin of the universe is based on accidental formation followed by the accidental arrival of all life-forms including ourselves. This is despite the slender chances which are freely admitted. Yet as will be shown, theories which provide plausible solutions to the dilemmas of gravitation and wave-particle duality lead to different conclusions. Is it therefore just possible that establishment science could be wrong in some key areas?

But this science has already taught us many useful things. It has taught us to beware of illusions. Our senses often deceive. The ancients saw the dome of the sky studded with points of light they called stars. The Earth was taken to be flat, forming the base of the sky dome. Then both the moon and the Sun scudded across the surface of this dome every day. Somehow, they speculated, something dragged them back under the Earth so that they could reappear in the correct places to begin the next day. Then their astronomers noticed some wandering stars which moved independently of the majority which were fixed. Finally they conceived of a universe centred on the Earth with the sky rotating around it as a hollow sphere studded with stars. Then mathematicians found rules to predict the motion of the Sun and Moon and all the wanderers - the planets, of course. This was the elaborate Ptolemaic system, very clever in its way with its "wheels within wheels" to describe the apparent cycloidal motions of the planets. This theory was made ever more complicated and ungainly as it attempted to explain more and more new observations. Eventually it became impossibly unweildy. Is history repeating itself?

The model simply assumed that everything was exactly what it seemed to be, a childlike interpretation which made no allowance for the limitations of our senses. People did not appreciate that our eyes can only assess distances up to a quite limited range. Beyond that all objects appear the same distance away. Hence the Sun, the moon and all the stars appear exactly the same distance from us. This distance corresponds with the apparent radius of the sky-dome. To compound the problems the nature of gravitation was not appreciated. The Earth could not be round, even though the horizon of the sea seemed to suggest such a shape, because you would fall off on the other side. The ancients did not realise that the force of gravitation meant being pulled toward the centre of the Earth. "Down" means on a radial line drawn toward the centre of the Earth and so is not parallel to directions measured at other places. These two factors together caused completely false interpretations to arise. Similar misinterpretations can still happen in our time. We must beware of them.

Later Copernicus simplified the system by suggesting that the Sun, not the Earth, formed the centre about which the universe revolved. Suddenly all the complexity fell away! He was careful not to publish his ideas until he lay on his deathbed, however, in those days ridicule was not the greatest danger faced by the seeker for the truth.

The trouble was that primitive interpretations had been incorporated into the Christian doctrines. The latter were based on faith alone. Once inserted, any progress in understanding which suggested flaws existed appeared as a threat. Faith could not survive if part of the doctrine needed revision. The collapse of a part could undermine confidence in the rest.

Then when Galileo produced a telescope which proved that moons could revolve around Jupiter, just like a model of the solar system described by Copernicus, the fat was truly in the fire. The solution was to refuse to look in the telescope. True, Galileo managed to get an astronomer into his observatory. But that was the nearest he came to viewing. His reason?

"I do not need to look in the telescope because I know the planets do not exist. If they existed they would be visible to the naked eye, because if they are not visible they can be of no use. Therefore they cannot exist."

We laugh at this now. What many of us do not appreciate is that exactly the same techniques are still used to discredit truths which appear as threats to the establishment!

As is well known, Galileo was forced to recant by the notorious Inquisition. The progress of science was delayed but it was not halted. It grew estranged from religious doctrine and in the end establishment theology was the loser. For centuries the advance of science emphasised materialistic solutions to the puzzles of nature. It seemed to leave no room for religious interpretations and the authority of the Church gradually eroded away. Today fewer than two and a half percent of the people in Britain regularly attend church. Its doctrines seem too implausible. They seem absurd when set against the proven knowledge of science. The result is that most people, if not atheists, are agnostics, careful not to probe or think too much about these matters. Yet as this book unfolds it will become evident that the two basic religious concepts cannot be destroyed by science. These are the idea of an intelligence which structures matter and the idea that people can have consciousness separate from their bodies - their souls.

Because the Church refused to adapt, a wedge of antipathy was driven between science and theology. Science is now constrained by its own momentum to avoid supporting any "creationist" view of the universe. it is professional suicide to suggest in any scientific paper that the universe might have arisen at the will of a super-intelligence. Hence, even though many scientists secretly hold the view that this is more likely than an accidental origin, they dare not admit to holding such opinion in public.

However, everything arose either by accident or as a planned creative act. There are two options and it is therefore in the interests of good science that both options be explored with equal rigour until one of them meets up against an insurmountable barrier. The symptoms arising when such a barrier is met manifest themselves by a plethora of fanciful notions as every straw is clutched. Some very fanciful ideas have been appearing for some time as the accidental option of the established route is pursued. The physicists view of the universe has again become hopelessly complex and implausible. Worse, it contains a number of internal contradictions and even one is inadmissible. it is worth reading an article by Abbot(101) in order to arrive at some judgement of this issue. Is it not time, therefore, to look at the alternative option?

Perhaps things have been missed which could extend science so as to encompass a wider range of nature's secrets. Then with luck some of the conflicts in present theory may be resolved, so providing a new simplified framework to explain the universe we shall explore this suggestion as the book unfolds.

1.2 Keeping an Open Mind

For those having a technical background some parts of the new theory may seem absurd or ridiculous at first sight. It is particularly important that one very plausible reason for this response be considered. This is because the mind is prone to respond in such a way to new ideas. If history is followed it will be observed that whenever any basically new concept has been introduced it has been met with ridicule and abuse. This has often delayed acceptance of the truth. Yet, years later, people are amazed when they look back and recall the almost universal initial response. From the later vantage-point the initial response always seems unbelievably stupid.

Why does this happen? The answer is that one of the hardest things to do is to maintain an open mind. This is because almost everybody thinks they have one. When did you last meet a person who claimed to have a closed mind? In fact there are quite a lot of open-minded folk but they are nearly all under the age of twenty-one. After about this age, when the subconscious mind judges that all the concepts needed to see life through have been absorbed, it clams tight shut. But a major defence strategy of the subconscious is to deceive its owner that it is always open. No wonder nobody ever claims to have a closed mind!

I read an interesting article written by a doctor when I was about 22 years old. Unfortunately I kept no record of the reference but the substance of the article made a big impression. So I have always retained it very clearly. He said that a part of the brain, which I think he called the hypothalamus, acted as a filter to remove unacceptable material. Incoming new concepts delivered via the senses were first routed to this part of the brain for checking. They were compared with existing concepts stored away in the memory to see if the new ones were compatible with them. If not, then they were rejected. The point is that incompatibility was equated with the new concepts being wrong.

Now in any branch of science some concepts are always bound to be false, otherwise there would be no need for progress. One has therefore always to be on the lookout for new concepts which could be better than the old they are attempting to replace. But this is easier said than done.

The mind rejection mechanism acts rapidly, so rapidly that the logic centres are bypassed. Instead the emotional centres are activated. Then the immediate response to an incoming idea which has been classed as incompatible is rejection. This happens before it can be analysed. The rejection mechanism activates the emotional responses of hostility and absurdity. A desire to pour ridicule on the new is experienced. There is, however, no justifiable reason at all at this stage to classify the new as false.

The way to keep an open mind, therefore, is to recognise the symptoms of the closed mind. it is necessary to make a deliberate effort to keep an open mind. It will not stay open by itself. One needs to recognise this without being ashamed to admit the fact. Then a strategy can be adopted to counter the difficulty. My own strategy seems to work for me and so I will now try to explain how I deal with the problem.

As soon as I experience the feelings mentioned, a symbol "MBM" flashes in bright red letters in my mind. It means "Mental Blockage Mechanism". It is a warning I have trained myself to experience. Then instead of following my instincts I can then look at the issue in a rational way without discarding it out of hand. Very often I find ideas, even those of my own which I would normally have rejected become acceptable because I cannot find a logical flaw.

This is one aspect but there is also another. Most people make all-or-nothing decisions when faced with a new choice. This is necessary in a business environment when a practical decision needs to be made, but there is no need to do this when assessing new ideas. It is particularly necessary to avoid making a choice when the available information is inadequate. My method is to visualise a 0 to 100 scale. Then a subjective rating is given. A zero rating means total disbelief with rejection and 100 total acceptance. Rarely can the terminal values be allocated because these are only allowed when absolute proof is available. on this basis, for example, nobody could give a zero rating to the possible existence of the "soul", because it is impossible to prove it does not exist. Therefore if a low rating of only say 10 is given, the matter is kept in mind and not rejected. Then as more information comes in to improve the certainty rating in either direction, the rating can be modified. Ultimately complete rejection or acceptance can become justifiable.

It would help if children were taught at school to assess this way. Then when they become adults, many of the barriers still delaying progress will at least be made easier to surmount. For similar reasons it is important to avoid the implantation of false concepts at an impressionable age.

With these thoughts in mind we can now turn to our main quest, the search for a satisfactory extension to physics, able to provide a framework capable of integrating physical and psychic forms of energy. The extension needs to be capable of admitting and explaining all known data of the so-called paranormal kind. At the same time a solution to the vexing question of explaining gravitation in terms of quantum theory is to be sought. This will need to satisfy all experimental checks just as well as does Einstein's theory of general relativity but at the same time it must be free of its difficulties and fit in with the Paranormal section. It must also be consistent with quantum explanations of the other three forces of nature, namely the strong nuclear force which holds the nuclei of atoms together, the weak force responsible for the radioactive decay of heavy nuclei and the force of electromagnetism. In a short book only certain data can be selected from the vast amount available, but the result needs to be compatible with any other which can be used.

Data from the experiments of physicists relating to the universe which we sense is to be mixed with so-called paranormal inputs. The data from astronomical observations and the laboratory regarding the strange nature of light and matter, of the dynamics of energy, the mechanism of electric charge and gravitation, are to be mixed with data concerning psychic energies or forces.

No attention will be paid to the existing taboos which have been the unfortunate legacy of history. We shall cut across interdisciplinary boundaries to relate factors normally thought of as separate issues. Factors which are put in separate boxes in the conventional treatment. But everything is connected to everything else. If things are treated separately for convenience, then the connecting links between boxes must not be ignored, since to do so can lead to false conclusions.

At this stage the complexity of the problem we have set ourselves may seem overwhelming. We have asked many imponderable questions and have as yet sought no answers. In fact things are not so difficult as they may appear at first sight to be. It is necessary, however, to try and keep all the elements of the problem at the back of the mind, whilst seeking to comprehend each in turn. Surprisingly, when this is done one problem seems to help out the others in a cross-fertilizing manner.

The problem of wave-particle duality is one of the two key factors, as will be shown. This will link the physical to the psychic forms of energy. The other key factor is quantum gravitation. It will lead us to new insights regarding the physical kinds of energy. These two factors are inextricably linked and together will lead to exciting new horizons. They will lead to the deduction of a computer-like grid structure permeating the entire universe which organises matter and the motion of matter. They will support the idea of a Creator, which not only started the universe on its course but needs to be there all the time to maintain its structure.

The new concepts of gravitation will be explained. To support them a technical supplement is provided. In this a new range of experiments is described. It is my hope that this book will trigger in some fresh and active mind the enthusiasm by which some of these experiments will be tried out. One of them seems especially exciting. It shows that an entirely new and totally non-polluting source of energy might just be waiting in the wings.

Ronald D. Pearson BSc (Hons)

2006-11-07T08:59:00.000-08:00

1.THE HISTORY OF UFT

Whyte and Baranski were working with Einstein on the UFT. Whyte mentions in his literature that Modern Physics of Quantum Mechanics and Relativity theories is based on Boscovich's theory.

Whyte was a theorist not too proficient in maths. Baranski was an all-rounder - experimentalist, mathematician and theorist; a sort of "Faraday" type of Genius (i.e. Genius of the highest calibre).

Einstein agreed to the UFT that Baranski developed. Einstein then died. Baranski died young and was forgotten. This so far is in the Physics History Literature; but is being ignored/suppressed.

Baranski was naive and got involved working on experiments for people, it would have been better not to have worked for.

Now, the missing link in Darwin's theory of how does life start is answered by Baranski.

Boscovich's theory does not answer that question; it is a unified theory dealing with particles, but does not explain how some particles can be alive and others not. (This is as far as I know, not all of Boscovich’s work has been translated from Latin into English; hence not all has been read by me.)

Whyte dealt with the issue by what he called the Unitary Principle - basically it is how the particles form themselves into certain patterns that replicate themselves that gives life. When particles form themselves into a well-ordered structure such as crystal, then they are pretty much inert and no longer self-replicating; apart from merely continuing the process of crystallisation. (The Unitary Principle has gone by a lot of different names by other Researchers such as being called Life Force. Often it is interpreted in the Religious point-of-view as the work of a Higher Intelligence – i.e. God, while in the Ancient Astronaut Hypothesis this Intelligence might sometimes be interpreted as an extremely advanced alien.)

So under Whyte's theory- Boscovich's theory gets extended to what can be called the Unitary Field Theory.

Baranski wrote a book on this which does not deal with the maths, and is very difficult to get hold of. He also did the experiment that showed how life began on Earth - radiation from the Sun acts as a catalysis, causing atomic particles to engage in pattern forming that we call life. As a result he showed that the conditions for Life are common throughout the Universe.

He was working in the early stages of the Apollo Moon mission; his task was to find out how to protect the astronauts from space radiation once they had left the Earth's protective field.

Unfortunately not all of Baranski’s work seems accessible to the public.

Dr James Watson has increased microscopic imaging and been able to view particles on the Planck scale; where structures on the large scale are repeating themselves on the small scale; reality is fractal. He also finds that on that scale there are mini-wormholes as per what John Wheeler says, and as per string theory - one is looking at higher dimensions when one looks at that small scale; energy comes in from a higher dimension through these mini-wormholes, and that means it is free energy as far as our "perceived universe" is concerned.

My interest with all of this: I checked the mathematics of Modern Physics and came up with a very simple theory; I checked back in history and the theory was first proposed by an 18th century Catholic priest Father Roger Boscovich. I then looked into what happened to this theory, and began digging up the Forgotten/ Suppressed Past. I suspect that others have to a certain extent come up with the same type of theory; but the first person to propose the theory as far as I am aware was Father Boscovich; and these "others" try to say that their theory is "new"--- ignoring the past history of who was FIRST with the proposal for the Unified Field Theory, and ignoring how that theory was built upon by Einstein and his associates.
THE MAIN THREAD OF UFT IS:
Boscovich ->Faraday ->Maxwell->Einstein->LL Whyte -> Baranski-> Watson
However many other scientists are involved for instance David Bohm was working on the ideas of LL Whyte, Thomas Bearden was working on the ideas of Maxwell, and Tesla’s theory is related to this because his education was Boscovichian.

web site: http://www.faculty.fairfield.edu/jmac/sj/scientists/boscovich.htm
says: “Two hundred years ago February 13, 1787 the Croatian Jesuit mathematician Roger Boscovich,S.J. died. He developed the first coherent description of atomic theory in his work Theoria Philosophiae Naturalis , which is one of the great attempts to understand the structure of the universe in a single idea.”
I say: Boscovich’s theory is the start to Unified Field Theory.

What is not widely known is that the leading physicists of the 20th Cent. were working from Boscovich's theory; because Boscovich's theory was the Foundation of 20th Cent. Atomic Physics.
The information for all of this is hidden away in obscure places.

Boscovich was a Catholic priest-cum- scientist, and there are still lots of priest-scientists around doing their own scientific researches "outside" of the mainstream of the science community.

One of these priest-cum-scientist says Boscovich is the founder of 20th Cent. atomic physics:

Peter Henricis priest, PhD Professor of Philosophy says in his article: The Theory of Knowledge of Ruder Boskovic in his time:

"Boskovic (aka Boscovich) made real atom physics possible and therefore he is rightly regarded as its actual forerunner or founder."

One of the scientists working on UFT was Whyte, this is was mentioned at site dealing with Whyte’s diaries; which unfortunately has now removed that information (philosphere.com site); it did say :

“Lancelot Law Whyte was not appreciated in Great Britain but was celebrated in the US. He fought in the First World War, and was a brilliant mathematical physicist employed in industry, investment banker and scientific consultant on financing new inventions, chairman and managing director of Power Jets, Ltd. which developed the Whittle jet engine, as well as serving as Director of Statistical Enquiries in the Ministry of Supplies. But his main interest was as a philosopher of science and as a postulator of human inquiry and development. …
Whyte appeared to know all of the authors here who were within his generation. He gave a keynote memorial address for the Institute of General Semantics in honor of Korzybski, and corresponded with Bois. Bohm knew and admired him and carried on the work of expressing the unified theory in physics after Whyte died.”

What is to note is that they mention David Bohm was working from Whyte's ideas. And site:

http://www.fdavidpeat.com/bibliography/books/infinite.htm

says of David Bohm:
“This is the first biography of David Bohm, brilliant physicist, explorer of consciousness, student of Oppenheimer, friend of Einstein, and enemy to the House Un-American Activities Committee. As both his friend and fellow physicist, no one is better positioned than F. David Feat to tell the story of this extraordinary scientist, one of the most original thinkers of the second half of the twentieth century, a man who made influential contributions to physics, philosophy, consciousness, psychology, language, and education.”
One of the things to note is that David Bohm is mentioned as an ‘enemy’ --- Bohm became unpopular with quite a few people; and it seems to be this among other reasons why there is prejudice against UFT from an Academia that would prefer to Block all of this information on UFT by simply not talking about all the scientists that have been working on it.

There has been a great number of scientists working on UFT, and Academia responds by ostracizing them whenever possible.
All of the scientific issues raised by this theoretical development touch upon issues such as the paranormal and ETs that Academia wishes to be in a state of denial about.
I have now been in contact with various people that have been working on these theoretical ideas either directly or indirectly; and was amazed to be informed that Scientific Academia had made a deal a long time ago with the Religious Priesthood that “they” have an agreed censorship between them. This agreed censorship seems to be another reason why UFT is not allowed to be talked about too much; because it would impinge upon religious beliefs.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. INFORMATION ON THE WEB

Dr Douglass White has become interested in the Unified Field Theory; he sees the connection with his work, and has placed a lot of information on his web site:

http://dpedtech.com

On this web site there is now -

Douglass White’s book Observer Physics which is an extremely impressive book that connects many diverse areas of maths and physics.

A Rough copy of Baranski’s book on UFT.

Books by Lancelot Law Whyte dealing with UFT.

James Watson’s Amazing book dealing with his experimental work that validates UFT and is due to revolutionise your beliefs about the Nature of the Universe.

Plus a great deal more.

When I contacted Hal Puthoff, he told me that he had read Boscovich’s theory and was very impressed by it. Hal Puthoff has dealt with ideas such as Zero Point Energy which is really just essnetially extraction of energy from the Unified Field.

For information on Hal Puthoff see for instance:

www.parapsych.org/members/h_puthoff.html

When I contacted Jack Sarfatti he told me he was quite capable of working out UFT for himself, and wondered if Boscovich was a time traveller. I have some information on this issue that I hope to add to this site at a later date. Sarfatti among other things deals with the Star Trek type physics of warped field space; this is of course part of UFT see for instance:

www.stardrive.org/title.shtml

I have looked at the work of Ron Pearson and found that he has been trying to extend Newtonian theory; this was basically what Boscovich was doing. Pearson however chooses to pursue his work without looking at the historical records of what others have done before in extending Newtonian theory, and connects this to trying to explain paranormal phenomena; see for instance:

www.cfpf.org.uk/

Jon Bjerknes accuses Einstein of plagiarist in his book Albert Einstein the Incorrigible Plagiarist, because Einstein does not provide any references in his science papers that revolutionised 20th Cent. physics. What Bjerknes seems to fail to realise is that Einstein did not have the same restrictions in his era that modern science papers make, so he was allowed not to provide references. He was in a different era and allowed different freedoms. However the historical record of where the ideas that Einstein was working on came from Einstein’s co-worker on UFT, namely Lancelot Law Whyte, and that is mainly Boscovich, whom Bjerknes has suspected of as being very important.

Bertrand Russell at the time of when Einstein became famous (i.e. 1919) was one of the few people that at the time was able to understand Einstein’s Relativity Theories, and Russell was working on the UFT. I provide now an article by Russell explaining how Newton’s ideas are connected to Leibniz’s ideas through Boscovich’s theory; hence in other words Boscovich’s theory extends Newton’s theory (as already stated):

Information from A critical exposition of the philosophy of Leibniz, Bertrand Russell

My Comments

The points that Bertrand Russell raises are:

1. Leibniz had troubles completing his theory of dynamics.

2. Boscovich’s theory is the completed theory of Leibnizian dynamics.

3. Boscovich’s theory is a continuation of Newton’s theory.

It is better to look at Boscovich than Leibniz because Leibniz had problems.

The three three great types of dynamical theory that Russell gives are:

1. There is the doctrine of hard extended atoms, for which the theory of impact is the appropriate weapon.

2. The doctrine of the plenum, of an all-pervading fluid.

3. The doctrine of unextended centres of force, with action at a distance, for which Newton supplied the required Mathematics.

Russell says that Boscovich’s theory is type 3.

Now, I say that Boscovich’s theory is more than just that.

Boscovich’s theory is about regions of influence around particles which Faraday called field. This field acts like a substance, hence it is the all-pervading fluid of type 2 theory. Now this field acts in both a repulsive and attractive thing depending upon conditions, particularly when two particles become too close together they are repelled by this field, hence the particles are acting like they are extended and are thus type 1 theory.

i.e. Boscovich’s theory covers all three types of dynamic theory.

Finally we have from Leibniz: “There is no last little body, and I conceive that a particle of matter, however small, is like a whole world, full of an infinity of still smaller creatures.” ---- i.e. nature is what we would now call fractal -- because patterns keep repeating themselves on smaller and smaller scales.
For a more detailed analysis of what Bertrand Russell says see further down.

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

3. WHY THE SUPPRESSION

The Simple answer to the question of “Why the Suppression of this Unified Field Theory and its Historical development” seems to be that MOST people are just not mentally able to handle the theory and the issues that it raises, and are then acting in denial.

Instead of meeting the facts of issues straight on, when people are unhappy with those facts “they” tend to react by trying to pretend the facts do not exist. (The facts of the existence of this THEORY exist in the scientific records, but few bother to actually look in the records, and then act by pretending the records do not exist.) This behaviour of the Human species is extremely strange, but seems very common place; this type of Conspiracy of Silence happens a great deal.

Thus the Conspiracy is --- a Conspiracy of Silence by the Mainstream to deal with this THEORY. And the Cover-Up is merely people saying the Conspiracy does not exist.

It is as simple as that SILENCE, and DENIAL.

The Human species has been engaged in numerous wars because of political, religious and other beliefs.

Despite some people wanting Physics to be divorced from these beliefs, it has been unable to do so; and has become part of the Warfare that goes on between peoples of differing beliefs.

The Rough outline of this Conflict is thus as follows:

Physics has been embroiled in Religious, Political and Philosophic arguments that it has been unable to escape from and thus confuse the Scientific issues. Different people have wanted scientific beliefs to justify their other beliefs, and this has made Physics a Battleground for ideologies that it has been unable to escape from.

It is my Contention that the Proper approach to Physics is from the Philosophy of Pythagoreanism. There are other philosophies and one could form different versions of Physics from interpreting through different philosophies. But I want to outline Physics as from a Pythagorean interpretation, hence a Pythagorean Physics.

Once faced with the results of an experiment we are stuck with having to interpret the data from a point-of-view; this point-of-view is a philosophy. The correct interpretation is Pythagorean. What has happened is different people have attempted interpretation through different philosophies creating what is Modern Physics based upon a mess of different points-of-view that are not necessarily always logically consistent.

Pythagoras was a legendary figure, whether he historically existed is difficult to say, and the type of philosophy he had can be traced back to possible other legendary sources. He had followers called Pythagoreans, who definitely existed.

Ancient people combined philosophy, religion and science all into their point-of-view; so Pythagoreanism was a mix of religious belief and scientific belief. I want to only emphasis the Pythagorean point-of-view towards Science, and exclude the religious things.

Plato took up many ideas of the Pythagoreans. One of the important ideas was that the Earth was a planet that moved. A “planet” in those days meant a star that wandered. Aristotle was a pupil of Plato, and went against many of the ideas of his teacher Plato.

One of the divisions that happened was between Plato and Aristotle. Plato’s point-of-view was seen as mystical, and Aristotle’s point-of-view was often seen as more practical being based upon observations, hence being scientific.

This was the first of many examples of defining things incorrectly. Plato’s mysticism was true science (when one excludes religious issues) and Aristotle’s point-of-view was not science.

In the case of the Earth’s motion there was no observations readily available to Aristotle and many of Aristotle’s later followers that the Earth moved, so erroneously they thought the Earth did not move. (Of course - later evidence of Earth motion came from Galileo+co) The Pythagorean belief of Earth motion was hence not readily based on observations, but rather on philosophic interpretation of what science should be like. This immediately clashes with some modern people’s point-of-view that science is Empirical; there are parts of science from the Pythagorean approach to science which is non-Empirical.

The three main Revolutions in Science are supposed to be Copernican, Einsteinian and Quantum.

In the Copernican Revolution it was a Pythagorean approach to science that latched onto the idea of the Earth’s motion. This was in conflict with the Aristotelian point-of-view that was being endorsed by the Christian Church.

Some of those in Christianity interpreted the Bible in such a way that it was telling them that the Earth did not move. There were other issues. But essentially the science issues that Galileo was raising was coming into conflict with some people’s religious beliefs. Eventually Galileo went before the Inquistion and had to recant his religious heresies inspired by his scientific point-of-view.

The idea that the Earth moved was banned by the Catholic Church. However, this did not stop intellectuals investigating this idea, and so the Catholic Church was finding itself in an increasingly embarrassing situation of opposing an idea that had a lot of evidence for it.

Eventually the Catholic Church backed down on its Ban of the idea of the Earth’s motion through the main influence of Father Boscovich. A meeting was held in the Catholic Church which decided to lift the Ban, and this allowed Newton’s theory to be taught in Catholic countries.

At the same time that the Church had a problem with the idea that the Earth moved, it had a similarly problem with the Atomic theory. The Atomic theory goes back to Ancient times, in the usual way that it is presented it is particles moving around at random. The religious problem with this idea is that the atoms are moving around without intelligent control; an intelligent control that would deem to be God. So, saying that atoms moved at random instead of being organised by a higher intelligence, amounted to denying the existence of the higher intelligence known as God; this was atheism.

Christianity had tried to Ban the Pagan idea of Atoms. However, with the Ban being lifted on the idea that the Earth moved, the Ban on the Atomic idea was also lifted. The Atomic theory that was allowed was that presented by Boscovich. Others before him had tried presenting Atomic theories, but Boscovich’s was the first that Christianity allowed free from charges of heresy.

The basic idea of Boscovich’s theory was that point-particles had a sphere of influence around them that influenced other point-particles; this sphere of influence was later called “field”; hence it was a field Theory, and Boscovich deemed there was only one field, hence it is what we would call unified field. i.e. Boscovich’s Atomic theory is the unified field theory.

Boscovich also dealt with higher dimensions, non-Euclidean geometry, relativity and many other issues. These Physics issues were ahead of how far the mathematicians had got. i.e. it was Physics theory ahead of the mathematics it needed.
A large number of scientists up to the start of the 20th Century were working on Boscovich’s theory.

The Copernican Revolution had led to Boscovich’s theory; the Copernican idea of the Earth moving first being Banned and then the Ban cancelled had given us the Science of Boscovich.

The relativity issues had not been fully decided, there was Newton’s theory that was not able to answer those issues, and there was Boscovich’s theory which was acting like the next step from Newton’s theory and dealing with the relativity issues.

Einstein became famous for the relativity issues in the 20th Century. He wrote his famous relativity paper of 1905, and in 1919 famously had a prediction confirmed from his relativity theory applied to gravity. This was deemed a Revolution in Physics from Newton’s theory.

However, Einstein was still working within Boscovich’s theory.

Shortly after 1919 there was another Revolution in Physics of the Quantum Revolution.

This was really a reinterpretation of Physics from another Philosophic point-of-view from the classical point-of-view, and was called the Copenhagen Interpretation.

Einstein was opposed to this new philosophic point-of-view and stayed within the classical point-of-view, namely that of Boscovich’s theory. Although he was open minded enough to try other things.

Since the 1920s other philosophic interpretations of Quantum Physics have been proposed. Some of these different points-of-view are dealing with things from Boscovich’s point-of-view; so that Boscovich’s version of quantum physics is partially reconstructed.

The Atomic theory was associated with atheism. Karl Marx studied Atomic theory, and the atheism he followed he created his Political Philosophy of Communism. Similarly Nietszche based his Atheist philosophy from Atomic Theory.

This was Conflict in Politics between Communists and non-Communists. Part of that conflict led to Hitler’s Nazism. And there were other political conflicts.

Science could not escape people following non-scientific beliefs from interpreting science.

Einstein was involved with Communism. A lot of Atomic scientists in the Manhattan Project were communists. Eventually America in the Cold War era did not like the communists living among them.

Karl Popper decided to reinterpret the Philosophic basis of science. He was well aware of Boscovich’s theory. He was also well aware that parts of Boscovich’s theory had not been experimentally tested. He then formed his idea of dividing things into Physics and Metaphysics. The Physics part had been experimentally tested, and the Metaphysics had not been tested; so he placed Boscovich’s theory into Metaphysics.

NOTE: Before Popper’s reclassification, Boscovich’s theory was within Physics.

Popper was forming Physics from a different philosophic approach to the philosophy that had formed Boscovich’s theory from the Copernican Revolution.

I shall repeat there have been of course many philosophic points-of-view. So, Popper’s philosophy is merely one of many. But approaching Physics from his philosophy is creating a break with the philosophy that led to the Copernican Revolution; and as earlier stated I think that philosophy was the correct one.

Hence Popper muddies the philosophic issues around physics.

He is not alone, next comes Kuhn and his philosophic belief that Revolution is a natural part of Physics. In his scheme of things the Copernican Revolution, the Einstein Revolution and the Quantum Revolution are all natural parts of scientific progress and the expectation is of yet more revolutions. This is contrary to my point-of-view as stated I believe the philosophy of the Copernican Revolution is the correct one; the subsequent changes in the philosophic interpretation of physics are thus all to me merely wandering away from the correct philosophy.

As physics progresses what we get is more and more different philosophic interpretations and greater diversity of opinion, and an amnesia that Physics as from the Copernican Revolution is based upon Pythagorean Commitment which led to the unified field theory of Boscovich.

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

4. BERTRAND RUSSELL ON BOSCOVICH’S THEORY

Bertrand Russell says:

“There are, speaking broadly, three great types of dynamical theory. There is the doctrine of hard extended atoms, for which the theory of impact is the appropriate weapon. There is the doctrine of the plenum, of an all-pervading fluid, for which the modern doctrine of the ether— the theory of Electricity, in fact— has at last partially forged the necessary weapons. And finally, there is the doctrine of unextended centres of force, with action at a distance, for which Newton supplied the required Mathematics. Leibniz failed to grasp these alternatives, and thus, from his love of a middle position, fell between, not two, but three stools. His view of impact as the fundamental phenomenon of Dynamics should have led him to the theory of extended atoms, supported by Gassendi, and, in his own day, by Huygens. His belief in the plenum and the fluid ether should have led him to the second theory, and to the investigation of fluid motion. His relational theory of space, and his whole doctrine of monads, should have led him, as it led Boscovich, Kant1 and Lotze, to the theory of unextended centres of force. The failure to choose between these alternatives made his Dynamics a mass of confusions. The true Leibnizian Dynamics is not his own, but that of Boscovich2. This theory is a simple development of the Newtonian Dynamics, in which all matter consists of material points, and all action is action at a distance. These material points are unextended like the monads, to which Boscovich appeals as analogous3; and in order to preserve their mutual independence, it is only necessary to regard the attraction or repulsion as due to the perception of one monad by the other, which, as a matter of fact, Leibniz actually does. Why, then, was this theory not that of Leibniz ?

“There was, I think, to begin with, in later life, a personal reason. Leibniz had quarrelled with Newton concerning the Calculus, and he did not choose to admit that Newton had anything to teach him4. He therefore rejected gravitation as an ultimate account of things, giving as his reason that action at a distance is impossible. But this personal reason can only have operated after the publication of the Principia in 1687, by which date Leibniz had constructed both his philosophy and his Dynamics. It becomes necessary, therefore, to search for more objective reasons.

“Leibniz rejected atoms, the vacuum, and action at a distance.

“His grounds for these three rejections must be now examined.

“(1) Against extended atoms he had, I think, fairly valid grounds. These are best set forth in his correspondence with Huygens, who maintained atoms. (See G. M. II. pp. 136, 145, 155—7). In the first place, the extended atom is composed of parts, since extension is repetition; it cannot, therefore, afford a metaphysical solution of the composition of matter. Moreover, if the laws of motion are to be preserved, the atom must be perfectly elastic, which is impossible since it must also be perfectly hard, and can contain no " subtle fluid." Again there is a breach of the law of continuity in assuming infinite hardness and absolute indivisibility to emerge suddenly when a certain stage is reached in division. And primitive rigidity is, in any case, a quality wholly without reason, and therefore inadmissible. In short, infrangible atoms would be a perpetual miracle. These arguments have been urged many times since, and are, one may suppose, on the whole valid.

“(2) With regard to the vacuum, Leibniz relied mainly on the argument from what he called metaphysical perfection. He admitted that a vacuum is conceivable (N. E. 157; G. V. 140), but held that, wherever there is room, God might have placed matter without harm to anything else. Since, generally, the more existence the better, God would not have neglected the opportunity for creation, and therefore there is matter everywhere (D. 240, 253; G. VII. 356, 378). This principle of metaphysical perfection will be discussed later; for the present I confine myself to less theological arguments. A very weak argument, which Leibniz sometimes permits himself, is, that there could be no sufficient reason for determining the proportion of vacuum to filled space, and therefore there can be no vacuum at all (D. 253; G. II. 475; VII. 378). The only argument which attempts to be precise is one which is fatally unsound. If space be an attribute, Leibniz says, of what can empty space be an attribute (D. 248; G. VII. 372) ? But space, for him, is a relation, not an attribute; his whole argument against the view that space is composed of points depends, as we shall see in Chapter IX., upon the fundamental relation of distance. He has, in fact, no valid arguments whatever against a vacuum. He seems to regard a belief in it as necessarily associated with a belief in extended atoms—" atoms and the void " are always spoken of together. In fact, when action at a distance is rejected, the two are necessarily connected; since unextended atoms must act at a distance, if there is to be any dynamical action at all5.

“(3) This brings me to Leibniz's grounds against action at a distance. I cannot discover, on this point, anything beyond vulgar prejudice. Both on this and on the previous point, his immediate followers, under the influence of Newton, abandoned the views of their master, which seem to have been mainly due to a lingering Cartesian prejudice. The spatial and temporal contiguity of cause and effect are apparently placed on a level. " A man will have an equal right to say that anything is the result of anything, if that which is absent in space or time can, without intermediary, operate here and now" (D. 115; G. IV. 507). With regard to time, though a difficulty arises from continuity, the maxim may be allowed; but with regard to space, it is precluded, as a metaphysical axiom, by the denial of transeunt action. For since nothing really acts on anything else, there seems no possible metaphysical reason why, in monads which mirror the whole universe, the perception of what is distant should not be a cause, just as much as the perception of what is near. There seems, therefore, in Leibniz's system, no metaphysical ground for the maxim; and in his time (which was that of Newton), there was certainly no dynamical ground. The denial of action at a distance must, therefore, be classed as a mere prejudice, and one, moreover, which had a most pernicious effect upon the relation of Leibniz's Dynamics to his Metaphysics.”

2006-11-07T07:56:00.000-08:00

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Our mind traverses through the hyperspace into the realm of parallel universe of multidimensional time all the time
India Daily Technology Team
Aug. 15, 2005

All of us are in touch with our own presence in the hyperspace. Our subconscious minds communicate constantly with ourselves in the parallel universes that float in the hyperspace. Our dreams are influenced by our communication to the hyperspace.

Scientists now realize that parallel universes with multidimensional time floats in the endless ocean of hyperspace. In those universes with multidimensional time, we exist in multidimensional forms. In other words we strive in parallel in many parallel universes at the same time. Our actual entity is defined by our presence in the hyperspace as well as in different parallel universes at the same time.

Scientists are busy studying the process by which our minds find an opening to the hyperspace into our parallel existence in multidimensional time.

Our three dimensional physical universe and the five dimensional hyperspace are linked by small windows (fermions), but also by larger windows that can be created or exist here and there (Black Holes, Neutron Stars, etc.). The stability of our universe depends on the size of these windows. If we created a window, so huge that the whole 3-D universe could pass through it, our universe would be destroyed and would be absorbed completely by the much larger hyperspace. Fortunately, in our universe, there are not many of such large windows. In fact, the major part of hyperspace windows is as small as elementary particles. Only here and there are larger windows like Blackholes or other similar phenomena.

Through these small holes (fermions), electromagnetic waves generated by our mind can travel. The communicating waves travel to our own entities in the parallel universes. Our real entity is actually based in the hyperspace. Our multidimensional forms actually exist in parallel in many universes. All our entities communicate all the time. The small openings (fermions) in the physical 3_D universe allow the communication.

What happens when we sleep is that our subconscious mind takes over and we start communicating with ourselves. It is similar to a branch office communicating to the headquarters or other branch offices far away. Even when we are not sleeping, we communicate in our subconscious mind to the hyperspace to ourselves all the time.

2006-11-07T07:53:00.000-08:00

Physics meets paranormal – finding nearest openings to seven parallel Universes – near death experiences
India Daily Technology Team
May 28, 2005

The ultimate bending space and time results in finding the opening to the nearest parallel space and time. According to advanced researchers in Physics, there are seven parallel Universes. These Universes are so different in their perception that with conventional physics we can never find where they are and how they are. However, the concept of accelerating to speed much higher than light and take us to these parallels Universes through an opening in our vicinity. You do not have to travel a thousand light years into a black hole to go there; that is just one of the ways to approach the parallel Universes. But our mind and spirit has the psychic power that can make us travel through the nearest opening into the parallel Universes. Those who have experienced near death experiences move into these parallel Universes through the tunnel with a while light at the end of the tunnel. All of those who had near death experience report similar happenings.

How to explain it with physics? Our spirit or soul is a source of electromagnetic energy that can infinitively amplify if needed. Inner satisfaction of a soul results in elevation of this energy. It is also true that we move into these parallel Universes using intense electromagnetic flux with the help of dark energy. We just do not know how to do that. The problem is that if we try to do it using physical means we encounter a situation that is infinitely impossible to achieve. But accelerating through a black hole or applying dark energy in a suitable manner in the immediate vicinity theoretically can take us to the parallel Universe. But a much better way is to traverse to the parallel Universe through our inbuilt psychic power.

When our spirit is allowed freedom through death or through transcendental meditation, the unleashed electromagnetic flux crates the miracle – it finds an immediate opening to the parallel Universe in the close vicinity.

Religious prophets in various religions as well as those who have experienced near death experience the parallel Universes. Most of them report part of oneness and tranquility. They also report of completeness of knowledge.

It is true that we are slowly finding that electromagnetic fields and the change of that runs this Universe. The other parallel Universes may not work the same way. That is the reason what is energy or spirit in this Universe is part of tranquility and eternity in another Universe.

This has now been verified by Transcendentalist Kurt Kawohl from the USA. When he had a near-death experience in 1956 at age fifteen his soul traveled into a higher-level parallel universe. What happens to us after death has now been made clear. Kurt twice repeated this experiment in 2001 when he placed his body in stasis and used his psychic power via transcendental meditation to again access this parallel universe where spiritual life thrives. Some researchers believe that parallel universes exist in our immediate vicinity.

2006-11-07T07:51:00.000-08:00

Entering the Parallel Universe from our current physical Universe – science ready to over come the barrier but no one knows how to come back
India Daily Technology Team
Jun. 21, 2005

Black holes connect the realm of parallel Universes with out three plus time physical universes. The intense electromagnetic force fields manifesting as the super gravity sucking in the surrounding provides the environment or the gateway to parallel Universes till out technology is not capable of creating the intense electromagnetic force fields.

Scientists are now planning to send a probe into a black hole to get a glimpse of the spatial Universe from the physical universe. As the probe enters the black hole, it will be initially stretched and compressed in a cyclic fashion. Highly elastic materials and technology that can survive this type of cyclical stress cycles are used. A camera from the physical Universe side will make it look like the probe has soon frozen in time. But the probe actually will be sucked towards the center of the black hole with increasing momentum and force. At that point, the probe will lose its three dimensional entity as it approached the door to the spatial structures in the parallel Universe. In the parallel Universe the probe’s spatial image in higher dimensions will survive while the black hole will hold the physical structure of the 3d probe frozen in time.

Scientists are investigating models for moving from our physical universe to the higher dimensional parallel Universe. According to researchers, it seems a one-way door as of now. The problem is no one knows how to find the gate back to our physical Universe.

One clue of course can be from studying the extraterrestrials. They are so advanced that they have mastered the path to and from the higher dimensional parallel universe. Their existence is primarily in the higher dimensional parallel Universe. Any advanced civilization will move their whole existence into parallel Universe since there is no question of physical hazards and cyclic destruction and reconstruction phenomenon.

Once we master the path to and from parallel Universe, we will reach the stage of immortality where the our physical existence can be preserved in the Physical Universe and we can exist primarily in the parallel Universe.

2006-11-07T07:49:00.000-08:00

Infinite numbers of parallel universes – a definite from Quatum Physics
Media Release
Jul. 21, 2006

Scientists are now convinced that there are infinite numbers of parallel universes, larger and smaller than our cosmos. The definite conclusion comes from recent extensions of Quantum Physics. These Universes coexist like bubbles on the surface of the ocean in a Quantum Vacuum called Hyperspace. There are many Hyperspaces. The universes, the hyperspace, the entities with these universes have a life cycle. The life cycle has three phases controlled by the space, time and energy singularities. The life cycle consists of creation, maintenance and destruction for the cycle to start again.

According to Dr. Michiu Kaku, Professor of Physics at the City University of NY, “The word quantum applies to the infinitesimally small world of quarks and neutrinos, while cosmology signifies the almost limitless expanse of outer space. However, Hawking and others now believe that the ultimate questions of cosmology can be answered only by quantum theory. Hawking takes quantum cosmology to its ultimate conclusion, allowing the existence of infinite numbers of parallel universes. …. Think, for example, of a large collection of soap bubbles, suspended in the air. Normally each soap bubble is like a universe unto itself, except that periodically it bumps into another bubble, forming a larger one, or splits into two smaller bubbles. The difference is that each soap bubble is now an entire ten-dimensional universe. Since space and time can exist only on each bubble, there is no such thing as space and time between the bubbles. Each universe has its own self-contained ‘time.’ It is meaningless to say that time passes at the same rate in all these universes.”

2006-11-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

Some information for skeptics and so called realists

We had our questions and doubts too when we began researching ITC (instrumental transcommunication)—Rolf in 1986 and Mark in 1991. Eager to find out whether those contacts were genuine, I (Rolf Ehrhardt) made my own experiments. Despite many early doubts and after many considerations, I can say since years I am convinced that it is possible to get in contact with entities in beyond using technical devices. Of course one can produce results that are false, just as there exists false gold. But the existence of fool's gold does not diminish the existence of true gold.

The richest gold nuggets of the Twentieth Century were the ITC contacts reported by members of INIT—the International Network for Instrumental Transcommunication. That is especially true of the ITC contacts received by INIT members Maggy and Jules Harsch-Fischbach of Luxembourg, from 1995 to 1998—a period during which all INIT members from different countries worked together enthusiastically in trust and harmony, resulting in close collaboration with a dedicated spirit team and a group of seven ethereal beings. These spirit colleagues told us through ITC contacts on many occasions that the harmony, integrity and mutual trust among all members made the miraculous contacts possible. As a founder and principle member of INIT, I (Mark Macy) am confident of the integrity of all INIT members and of the legitimacy of all contacts reported by them during that time. I know that those contacts are genuine, mind-boggling though they are.

The harmony and trust within our INIT group was broken in 1998 by members who began to doubt the legitimacy of some of our more elaborate contacts. At that time, the contacts began to diminish. As the doubts erupted into terrible conflicts leading to the break-up of our group into two separate associations, and to the further deterioration of human relations within both of those groups, the contacts dried up to a trickle. That is what happened to the genuine miracles enjoyed by INIT. Today I reflect back on our experience in INIT as a small taste of a Golden age of ITC that will unfold in our world in the future. Whether it comes in our lifetime depends upon whether a resonance based on love and trust can be established--first within the ITC community, then spilling into the larger world. Our spirit friends are eager to see the Golden age of ITC dawn in our world; of that I'm certain. Whether it comes in our lifetime depends on us. Since the year 2000, I have not been in close collaboration with members and former members of INIT, and so I can no longer vouch for their research of the last few years. Even though there are small networks of researchers today sharing their results and interests with each other, I believe that the deep level of harmony and trust necessary for true ITC miracles has not yet been restored.

The founding of worlditc.org is an effort to restore harmony in ITC research, as well as to offer humanity a look at the miracles of ITC. Our intention is to offer people information which they can use to convince themselves of the reality of technical spirit communication, and for those interested to embark on the adventure of ITC experiments. From our website you can see there are many experimenters around the world that are in contact with beyond using different methods and achieving different types of contacts as voices, images, and text, via radio, telephone, computer, television, and other devices.

We invite you to use our information as a step toward enjoying your own adventure. You might say, as we did: "It's unbelievable that this exists!" And then, later, your mind will open to new considerations…as ours did.

We are glad to support you in your adventure.

Mark Macy and Rolf-D. Ehrhardt

2006-11-06T14:02:00.000-08:00

The NDE and Mental Telepathy

Kevin Williams' research conclusions

Examples of Mental Telepathy in NDEs

As I gazed at the Being of Light I felt as though he was touching me. From that contact I felt a love and joy that could only be compared to the nonjudgmental compassion that a grandfather has for a grandchild. "Who you are is the difference that God makes," said the Being. "And that difference is love." There were no actual words spoken, but this thought was communicated to me through some form of telepathy. Again I was allowed a period of reflection. How much love had I given people? How much love had I taken from them? From the review I had just had, I could see that for every good event in my life, there were twenty bad ones to weigh against it. If guilt were fat, I would have weighed five hundred pounds. As the Being of Light moved away, I felt the burden of this guilt being removed. I had felt the pain and anguish of reflection, but from that I had gained the knowledge that I could use to correct my life. I could hear the Being's message in my head, again as if through telepathy: "Humans are powerful spiritual beings meant to create good on the earth. This good isn't usually accomplished in bold actions, but in singular acts of kindness between people. It's the little things that count, because they are more spontaneous and show who you truly are." (Dannion Brinkley)

The guides told me I was in the threshold of death. I wondered if the persons who were dying and leaving their bodies in that moment, knew where they were. The guides that accompanied me were kind, tactful and VERY COMPLIANT, but impenetrable when certain questions were asked, and when they did, they answered with only a smile. The communication was by telepathy and they knew instantly what I was thinking, but their answers were essential, concise and certain. (Diego Valencia)

I was sometimes met by a being of pure light, not a human form, but pure point of light, who communicated with me mind to mind, via some form of telepathy. (Alan McDougall)

I asked the light, "What is going on here? Please, light, clarify yourself for me. I really want to know the reality of the situation." I cannot really say the exact words, because it was sort of telepathy. The light responded. The information transferred to me was that your beliefs shape the kind of feedback you are getting before the light. If you were a Buddhist or Catholic or Fundamentalist, you get a feedback loop of your own stuff. You have a chance to look at it and examine it, but most people do not. (Mellen-Thomas Benedict)

The farther up I went, the brighter the Light became. Two cherubs appeared, one on either side of me, and we slowly drifted to the corner of the ceiling. We communicated through mental telepathy, which is faster and more efficient than mere words. They told me they were Escort Angels and had come to take me Home. (Donna Gatti)

While out of his body, George Rodonaia saw a baby being cared for by nurses in the hospital. He stated, "l could talk to the baby. It was amazing. I could not talk to the parents - my friends - but I could talk to the little boy who had just been born. I asked him what was wrong. No words were exchanged, but I asked him maybe through telepathy what was wrong. He told me that his arm hurt. And when he told me that, I was able to see that the bone was twisted and broken. The baby had a greenstick fracture, a break in the bone in his arm probably cause by having been twisted during childbirth." When George returned to his body and was revived, he told the parents about how he talked to their baby and discovered that he had a broken arm. The parents took the child to a doctor and x-rayed the arm. They discovered that George's diagnosis was correct. (Dr. George Rodonaia)

There may be earthbound spirits of low vibrations, whom we may regard as devils because they annoy us through mental telepathy. These demons tune in on us through our low vibrations of hate, fear and greed. They can be tuned out with unselfish love, or if necessary be chased away by the stronger spirit of Jesus Christ. (Arthur Yensen)

One woman went through a black tunnel and entered a black void of absolute nothingness. She discovered that the darkness existed in every direction. She sensed an entity in the darkness with her and she asked it, "What happened?" Through telepathy, the entity replied, "You're dead." The entities reply was as if it enjoyed telling her this. As soon as she realized this, a clear white bright light brought her into a huge, wonderful, stadium or amphitheater where love and music emanated from it. (P. A.)

I was aware of the presence of five beings who silently busied themselves within the sacred chamber. Attired in hooded robes that were reminiscent of those worn by trappist monks, my attention was drawn to the one who stood behind the podium. In answer to the mild surprise I felt upon discovering I was not alone, he began utilizing telepathy byway of an introduction. He indicated that within the Spiritual Hierarchy, the Beings who presided over the Library of Light were known as The Council of Five. I was informed that an unprecedented Call had been sent to all sectors of Life. I was told the Leaders of Light were to convene from everywhere and every when within the Chambers of the Library. I was instructed that what once had been was to be no more, because that which is known as "darkness" was to cease and LIGHT would prevail in ALL the worlds of Creation. Looking toward the limited number of pews, I felt there needed to be lot more seating capacity if they intended to pull this caper off. In response, The Council Member began telepathically communicating the name of just one of those who would attend. Immediately a portal opened (sorta, like a holograph that was so intense it felt as if I was in both places at the same time) and I became immersed in the image of immense galaxies that spiraled in space and, comprising millions upon millions of stars and solar systems, teamed with Life and Light. The name of the spiritual leader of this galaxy was inexplicably long and as each word was pronounced I'd see an associated pictographic accomplishment ... and the accomplishments embodied a character whose caliber was Creator Level. As His name continued to unfold, I witnessed the depth of His achievements and realized the unimaginable scope of His evolvement. Further, I came to learn their were Others like Him who were sovereign in their own limitless galaxies and they were the ONES who would be gathering in the Library of Light. They are the Heavenly Hosts of the Legions of Light. (Mr. M)

The love and respect I had for this being was unlike anyone I had ever known. Then he spoke to me. Not with the mouth, but through telepathy, and I understood everything clearly. (Elizabeth)

There were such feelings of warmth and love coming from the light that it made me feel good. Now it was right before me and instantly began communicating with me. Instantaneously it emanated to me, thought-pattern to thought-pattern. And to describe it I coined the phrase: superluminal telepathic communication: a telepathic thought-pattern to thought-pattern rapport that functioned as fast as or conceivable faster than the speed of light. It was pure communication that was complete in every respect. I will do a bit of role-playing here because the communication was not in words. The light emanated to me, "Tom, you have to be where you are and in the condition that you are. Before you is the light. You have the opportunity to ask any series of questions. Any question that you can conceive of will be absolutely, unequivocally answered. If it's a series of questions about something that you would require some kind of knowledgeable background to intelligently formulate your questions, you will instantly have that background." In other words, as I thought of and formulated a desire or a question, it would already have been recognized, acknowledged, and therefore answered. And the dialogue that took place, took place in no time. It didn't require a fifteen-minute duration in time; it simply happened. One of the questions which I did ask was, "What about the Jesus stuff?" Now that was not a singular question; it's hard for me to describe so you can understand the way it is. "What about the Jesus stuff?" is like saying, "Okay, all kidding aside, was Jesus of Nazareth real, was he a live person? A historical truth? Was he the son of God? Is he divine? Is he at the right hand of the Father? What about the Jesus stuff?" I can break off here and tell you that was basically answered in the affirmative. At one point I felt as if I were a speck of light on Jesus' shoulder, and I was able to experience full knowledge of all of his incarnations from the beginning of time. (Thomas Sawyer)

He emerged into a place of bright and diffused light where he saw a person of indeterminate sex who called out to him without speaking. In typical out-of-body and near-death fashion, the communication seemed to be telepathic, as the being informed him that: "This is a glimpse of where you've been, where you're going, where you are all the time." Put into the terms of yoga psychology: "You are That" and "That" is our true nature. Despite the deep insights he had already experienced, it was too much for Larry to fully comprehend. The person seemed to recognize this in giving him this message: "You don't have to go any further - Having seen this is enough for now." (Larry Hagman)

Communication in the spiritual world is telepathic. Your thoughts are answered as rapidly as your mind can send and receive them. When you die, everything you have said, thought, or done will be known by all. There are no secrets in the afterlife. Spirits with evil thoughts avoid the light because they are too ashamed to have their life revealed. Spirits with like thoughts are drawn to each other in the afterlife. (Sandra Rogers)

A man stood with authority at the gate. He had black, tight curls and his face seemed somehow familiar. "You weren't expected," he said. His lips did not move. Our conversation was entirely telepathic. "Well, I'm here now," I replied, a little surprised that my lips did not need to move either. (Robert Coleman)

In the mid-1970s, Ralph Duncan was dying of leukemia. While he was hospitalized, he had a NDE during which he encountered a luminous being whom he took to be Jesus. Ralph observed that he did not look anything like the traditional images of him. Jesus' eyes were "shooting fire" and he communicated a telepathic message: "That's enough, it's dead, it's gone." Ralph understood this to mean that he no longer have leukemia. Through his eyes "shooting fire" and saying "That's enough," Ralph understood this to mean in effect, "I've zapped you with enough voltage for this to cure you." Ralph said this is what Jesus meant when he said, "It's dead, it's gone." (Dr. Ken Ring)

I must add here that this "communication" I sense with this "presence" during death is not in the sense of material auditory speech, but rather different, almost as if it is from mind to mind, or telepathic, if you prefer. (Jack Ward)

Howard's light being friends told him more about the new world to come. According to them, God wished to usher in the kingdom within the next two hundred years. In order to do so, God had rescinded some of the free will given to creatures, in favor of more divine control over human events. This new world order, according to Howard, will resemble some near-death descriptions of heaven. People will live in such peace and harmony and love that communication will be telepathic, travel instantaneous and the need for clothing and shelter eliminated. (Rev. Howard Storm)

There was other entities out there. I can sense them, but I never saw them. I never saw squat. I didn't see anything. I just sensed all this. And when I say "speak", I am sure it was more of a telepathic thing than it was moving the mouth. (Paul Carr)

The next thing I recall I was in the presence of this massive spirit. I can't say the actual size because there was no way to gauge our sizes. I was ever so gently floating up and down in a waving motion. It seemed ever so gently, it was almost like a calming motion. I say a massive spirit because as I was facing this spirit, it enveloped my whole vision. It was a bright glowing yellowish light, which closely resembles the radiants of the sun, but it was a soft light. It was not blinding in any way. It wasn't blinding because I didn't have my physical eyes (nor body). I was having a conversation with this spirit in a telepathic sense. I can't recall the conversation because in the spiritual form, the type of downloading of knowledge and insight I received is like a energetic strengthening of my spirit. It's difficult to explain this but I hope you can understand. My spirit is the one that received the knowledge and insight, not my physical brain. The knowledge is stored in my spirit, not in my physical memory. Do you know what I mean? (Bruce Budden)

A luminous figure — a true psychopomp — will appear to guide the individual in his journey. This figure represents what I call the archetype of the cosmic shaman. For in this role he is not merely a guide in the passive sense of escort but is, rather, a man (or woman) of knowledge. He is a being who appears to know all about the life of the individual undergoing this experience — and all about the realm into which the individual has entered. And while in this realm, the NDEr will receive — instantaneously and telepathically — the answers to all of his questions from this being, this cosmic shaman. Knowledge will simply flood into his soul as the mysteries of life and death are finally and fully illuminated. (Dr. Ken Ring)

2006-11-06T13:59:00.000-08:00

The NDE and Knowledge

Kevin Williams' research conclusions

Biologists tell us that humans are the only animals born without any instinctual knowledge, born completely ignorant, and born completely dependant upon others for survival. Until something changes in the evolutionary progress of humanity, this will have to remain a fact of life.

The following information is a brief summary of all the insights concerning knowledge from the near-death accounts profiled on this website.

Birth is choosing to fall sleep and crossing through a veil of consciousness that causes us to forget the knowledge of where we came from and who we really are. This knowledge can only be remembered only at a much deeper level of consciousness. But trying to remember this knowledge is like trying to remember a dream during your deepest period of REM sleep.

In the spirit world, all the knowledge that exists is already known to us. After death, we awaken, regain our forgotten knowledge and once again become our true selves.
Categories of Knowledge From the Afterlife
There are five categories of forgetting and regaining our knowledge of our true selves:
(1) Forgetting pre-birth memories

(2) Forgetting near-death experiences memories

(3) Living with forgotten memories

(4) Remembering afterlife memories

(5) Remembering past-life memories

The following excerpts from near-death accounts reveal more on the subject of forgotten and remembered knowledge.

Forgetting Pre-Birth Memories

We had to take a vow not to remember anything. Then it had to pass through a gray misty-looking curtain. The reason is for us to learn more effectively and faster. The most important reason for us coming to earth is to either learn or teach. Most times both. All the bad things we go through here is either for our own learning or someone else's. (Darlene Holman)

David Goines' NDE: Humans have a mental and spirit body. Before going through the veil, we chose our own physical body. We must forget these memories because in order to experience a physical life, we must experience the physical things, be physically challenged, make choices of free will, and make mistakes so that we can 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. We promised God that upon accepting the opportunity, challenges and responsibility of a physical life, we would make the most of this opportunity for ourselves and God, return to God with the knowledge and experience gained so that God will be enhanced by our experience.

The reason we need to experience a separation of our total reality when we took on a physical body is because in order for us to appreciate, benefit, and learn all we can from our physical life, we must re-discover what we knew before - in physical ways.

Through our physical life we must discover how to return to God. 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, we earn our right of safe passage back to God; and in doing so, we honor God. It is God's love that sends us on the journey and it is our love for God that will allow us to return to God's loving arms. (David Goines)

Forgetting NDE Knowledge

An experiencer can return with some of the knowledge of the things they have learned during their NDE, but the rest of the knowledge is veiled. (Cecil)

Immediately after a NDE, some of the experience may be remembered. A feeling like that of a shaft of light coming down through the top of the head making it tender may be felt before the memories are forgotten. (Joni Maggi)

Arrangements may be made for when, where and how the experiencer will return to the world and what lessons would enrich them or be acquired anew. Some lessons learned during the NDE have to be forgotten. For example, it is not good for the soul to know when the time of their death will be because the experiencer would focus on only that, especially as the time neared. (Karen Schaeffer)

An experiencer can only take as much knowledge as needed to sustain them. They are given knowledge along the way as they finish out the rest of their life. (Sandra Rogers)

Living With Forgotten Knowledge

We have a built-in barrier protecting us from the direct impact of our souls' past life experiences, especially those memories that are harmful or so unpleasant as to ruin any chance of correcting those mistakes in the present life. This should be kept in mind when attempting to discover our souls' past lives. Some of the memories are hidden for a very good reason. Bringing them to the surface by force could prove disastrous, crushing the outer person under a burden that even his or her own soul would not have sanctioned. The past does need to be investigated and awakened, but the persons involved in these investigations (hypnotists, guides, and even the subjects) must not assume they know what's best. The inner soul must be allowed to reveal its secrets in a manner that suits its purposes and timing. (Edgar Cayce)

We have forgotten that we are children of the most high God; that our spiritual side, our souls, needs to return to have total fellowship with God. To do this we have to come to ourselves and realize that in this human realm of existence, our human, selfish side has led us down the road of materialism and of living only for ourselves, which caused us to turn away from God and our divine destiny and forget who we are. It caused our spiritual death. (Dr. George Ritchie)

In order to become one with God, work must be done to remember or find the truth. The truth is this: our true self is a spirit and our spirit is one with God. (Sandra Rogers)

By coming here without our eyes fully open, we are forced to follow the whisperings of our spirits -- those quiet truthful impressions that spring from the subconscious. As we follow them, we begin to hear also the whisperings of God. (Betty Eadie)

We have all forgotten that we were the one original being. So we live out our lives in the illusion of separateness. Our aim is for all of us to come together again, to merge back into the original being and become the One we truly are beneath the surface. The way to do this was love. Love is simply the name of the natural force which, like gravity, tends to pull everything back together. As human beings, the way we experience this force is through love. As fragmented creatures, our job is to love each other and become one again. (Joseph Kerrick)

Souls getting ready for embarkation to earth are like battle-hardened veterans girding themselves for combat. This is the last chance for souls to enjoy the omniscience of knowing just who they are before they must adapt to a new body. (Dr. Michael Newton)

The reason we don't remember the lives we lived before is both simple and complex. The simple answer is, "Because we have not lived before." This is because our current conscious mind, personality, and body are new; they have not been alive before. Nor have they reincarnated in the true sense of the word. However, our souls have been alive before - this is the distinction - and they have reincarnated. The memories are those of our souls' - not our own conscious memories. (Edgar Cayce)

When we trust in God, he guides and directs us to further knowledge as we need it. Growth is a process, and when we take time to internalize and understand what we believe, we are more richly blessed; our beliefs radiate in our countenances for all to see. (Betty Eadie)

During a NDE, a person can remember and feel different times and events as if they were happening right now. In life, death is merely the other side of a threshold over which we can not normally see. So, too, in death, life and the land of the living were on the other side of a very thin veil. (Lynnclaire Dennis)

The knowledge of what has always been, remains in us ... When we follow our hearts, when we are in tune and balanced, and when we listen to the still inner voice within ... we "know." (Betty Eadie)

Edgar Cayce: Karma is memory coming into consciousness again. What occurred in the past can be recalled and have an effect on the present. The recollection may not surface to the conscious level; the personality may have no awareness of the memory, in fact. Yet, it exists at the deeper, soul level.

After death, as a soul draws closer to Universal Mind of God it becomes aware that some of its memories are not compatible, and since its ultimate purpose for being is companionship with same, the soul will seek out opportunities to resolve these incompatible memories.

We must meet every bit of our karma. However, there is a way that it can be modified, softened, even ameliorated. If a soul, knowing another soul has wronged it, forgives that soul and holds no lingering resentment perhaps has even forgotten the wrong in the depths of its forgiveness and understanding then it begins to take hold of the power of forgiveness. The more it forgives, the more it perceives and understands forgiveness. Then, when it approaches the Universal Mind and realizes it possesses memories that are incompatible with It, forgiveness is much more viable, removing the barrier of separation.

Humans have became so encapsulated in the physical that we began to identify ourselves more with our bodies than with our consciousness. We began to think of ourselves as physical entities rather than free, living consciousness. We began to think we were only physical beings and our heavenly origins began to be forgotten. The physical body is so substantial, so captivating that it is difficult to hold on to the more delicate reality of spirit-thoughts, pure point of consciousness in a Universal Mind. (Edgar Cayce)

Remembering Afterlife Knowledge

During a NDE, a person may remember spirit and other dimensions of life which they knew as a child but had forgotten in order to fit into society. Then, they may realize that life means falling asleep and forgetting who we are. (Josiane Antonette)

All that happens in life is for a purpose, and that purpose is already known to our eternal self. (Beverly Brodsky)

During a NDE, our consciousness expands while we absorb more knowledge. During the return trip, the whole process is reversed and even more knowledge can be given. (Mellen-Thomas Benedict)

At death, it can feel as if we have been living behind a curtain our whole life. Then, all of a sudden, this veil of illusion is lifted and the floodlights shine on us. Then we learn the reality that everything is really veiled spirit. (Daniel Rosenblit)

a NDE can feel like going to a large gathering of relatives at Christmas but not being quite able to remember their names or who they are married to or how they are connected to you. The experiencer knows that they are with family. It can feel like they are closer than anyone the experiencer had ever known. (Rev. Howard Storm)

During a NDE, a person may notice the landscape gradually becoming familiar. They may feel as if they had been there before. They may remember that heaven is our real home. They may remember that on earth, we are visitors and a homesick stranger. (Arthur Yensen)

We may remember the life with God - a spirit life seems to extend to the beginning of the universe. (Angie Fenimore)

The farther forward a person is propelled through the tunnel, the more knowledge can be received. The mind can feel like a sponge, growing and expanding in size with each addition. This knowledge may come in single words and in whole idea blocks. Everything can be understood as it is being soaked up or absorbed. The mind expands and absorbs as each new piece of information comes in. It is receiving knowledge that was already known but forgotten or mislaid, as if it were waiting to be picked up on the way by. (Virginia Rivers)

I had complete love and acceptance for everything. I saw my own gentleness, tenderness, harmlessness. I simply was perfect and loving. I said to him, '"Of course!" I felt I was connecting with knowledge that I had known before. I wondered how on earth had I 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 that 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 did I forget that. (Jayne Smith)

The light gave me knowledge, though I heard no words. We did not communicate in English or in any other language. This was discourse clearer and easier than the clumsy medium of language. It was something like understanding math or music - nonverbal knowledge, but knowledge no less profound. I was learning the answers to the eternal questions of life - questions so old we laugh them off as clichés. "Why are we here?" To learn. "What's the purpose of our life?" To love. I felt as if I was re-remembering things I had once known but somehow forgotten, and it seemed incredible that I had not figured out these things before now. (Kimberly Clark Sharp)

I was in the company of an innumerable amount of others who were just like me. It was as though they were family ... that I didn't know or I had forgotten. They knew all about me and were there to celebrate, comfort, ease and move me ahead. There was no sense of recognition but I knew they were there to help. (Grace Bubulka)

In heaven, we have the opportunity to assess our progress as a soul, to evaluate pros and cons and outcomes, to remember all truths including that of our real identity. (Dr. PMH Atwater)

Other thoughts were conveyed and I remember thinking, "Wow, now I get it. Everything about our existence finally makes sense." ... He kept saying, "All is known. You have simply forgotten." I didn't feel like I knew anything; yet, there was a place in me that knew everything. (Laurelynn Martin)

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 a 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. (John Star)

Floodgates of knowledge opened, and truth poured into me without end or constraint. Its source was the light and truth all around me, and it was clarified, or explained at my level, by my grandmother. She gave me knowledge about God, life, the creation of the world, and even the reaches of eternity. The truths were comprehensive and complete and rushed upon me in such enormous volume that I thought my head would explode. It was coming too fast. I wanted to be able to absorb it, to remember it all, but it was too much. "I can't take this!" I said. "Stop!" (RaNelle Wallace)

Emanuel Swedenborg: Once people are in the spirit world, it is very obvious what kind of people they were intrinsically in the world. In the spirit world, they are acting on the basis of what really belongs to them. If they were inwardly involved in something good in the world, they then behave rationally and wisely - more wisely, in fact, than they did in the world, because they are released from their ties with a body and therefore from the things that darken and, so to speak, cloud things over.

On the other hand, if they were involved in something evil in the world, they then behave senselessly and crazily - more crazily, in fact, than they did in the world, because they are in freedom and are not repressed. When they lived in the world, they were sane in outward matters because they were using them to fabricate a rational person. So once these outward matters are taken away from them, their madness is unveiled.

All people who have lived in the world involved in what is good, and who have acted out of conscience (those who have acknowledged something divine and loved divine truths, especially those who have applied them to their lives) - it seems to all such people, when they are brought into the spirit world, as though they have been roused from sleep and come awake, or have come from darkness into light. (Emanuel Swedenborg)

2006-11-06T13:57:00.000-08:00

The NDE and Orbs

Kevin Williams' research conclusions

Many near-death accounts describe encounters with orbs. An "orb" is defined in the dictionary as: "a sphere, a spherical body, a globe." NDE orbs are often spherical representations of souls. They have been described in many various ways.

The following is a list of descriptions of the orbs described in near-death accounts profiled on this website:

Red and yellow; beach-ball sized of lavender-purple light; tiny balls of light, glowing with light and color and bouncing like bubbles in a glass of carbonated water; five balls of light with different hues such as shades of rose petals, bluish hue, pinkish, and deeper shades of red and orange; millions of them joining with creatures on planets like bees flitting from flower to flower; a shimmering, luminescent, crystal globe; millions of spheres of light flying about and entering and leaving a great being-ness at the center; a giant sphere of light which Jesus and angels transformed into; a globe of infinite dimensions whose center is full of light, the purest of God's creations; and a bright, warm, loving orb of understanding.

The Soul as an Orb

In the outstanding book by Robert Grant about mystical experiences, near-death experiences, and the Edgar Cayce material, Universe of Worlds, he documents the testimony of a woman named Jan Manette who had a very interesting mystical experience concerning the September 11th terrorist attack.

Jan was two weeks into her new job as a Pentagon consultant and was late for work on that fateful morning of September 11th. For some strange reason she didn't hear her alarm clock go off which made her late and in a panic. She was under stress because of her new job and on top of that now she was late which made her even more stressed. Being late for anything is her biggest pet peeve and she always prides herself as being a person who is always punctual. But being late that morning also made her very perplexed because she always hears the alarm go off and usually woke up before it went off.

As she was fighting the Washington DC traffic, she became relieved when she finally saw the Pentagon building. But she immediately became afraid when she saw something hovering over the building that also brought her a feeling of dread over her. She saw what looked like a huge, black, oval mass or cloudlike thing on top of the Pentagon building. She knew that it wasn't a cloud or smoke because of its shape. It was oval, symmetrical and perfectly still and looking at it made her feel awful because, more than anything, it appeared to be evil. Stranger still, above this black oval mass was a brilliant oval white mass which made the whole thing look a little like the Chinese yin-yang symbol. What Jan saw before the plane crashed into the Pentagon was "the most powerful, unexplainable thing I've ever seen."

Within a minute of seeing this evil black mass over the Pentagon, she saw the plane that was filled with innocent people and being flown by some terrorists heading straight for the Pentagon. She said that it was like seeing something totally incomprehensible. Before the plane crashed, she felt as if everything went into slow motion, literally, as though she was watching a movie in slow motion. The plane was still some distance from the Pentagon when all at once she saw these round sphere-like orbs of light rising up out of the plane. Dozens of them came out of the plane, and then it seemed as if hundreds of them rose out of the roof of the Pentagon. Everything was in slow motion except those round lights. Then they zoomed upward in a sort of spiral motion - all of them together - upward through that awful blackness and then they disappeared into the whiteness.

In a flash of instantaneous knowing, she was divinely reassured that those orbs of light were the souls of those who were about to die in the terrorist crash. She said she knew that their souls were removed from their bodies before the actual crash into the Pentagon.

Jan talked with other witnesses to the terrorist attack and no one seems to have seen what she witnessed. Nevertheless, Jan believes there was a spiritual reason for her having this experience. Had she not slept in that morning she would probably be dead. That day was the beginning of her spiritual life. Although she was glad she wasn't killed, dealing with the profound survivor's guilt and post-traumatic stress of witnessing the plane crash, sent her into bouts of depression. Yet the thing that brought her peace about it was seeing the souls of the victims leave for heaven before the plane crashed. She believes that despite the fact that God is unable to stop the terrible things that people do to each others, God is present at the darkest times of traumatic situations. She now knows that God takes care of the souls involved behind the scenes.

Perhaps Jan survived and witnessed what she did so that this message might be told - although we grieve over the loss of our loved ones who died like this, we can be assured that God provides a safe passage for their souls before the horror. Although what she witnessed didn't take the horror away, it awakened her to a new understanding that, to the soul, death does not exist. She had seen it with her own eyes.

[Webmaster's note: In my opinion, the black oval shape Jan saw the orbs fly through is most likely the tunnel seen during near-death experiences. Seeing souls as orbs of light during a NDE has been documented many times.]

NDE Testimony Involving Orbs

There are a number of references to orbs in the near-death experiences that are profiled on this website. Here they are:

My first OBE was when I was about 20 years old and was in a cabin on a oil rig 100 miles off the coast of Scotland. I was aware of a spinning orb of red and yellow. I left my body and entered the orb. I watched myself struggling to call out to my mate. He was on the bottom bunk. I returned to my body and told no one of the experience for fear of ridicule. (Chris Taylor)

Louis Famoso's NDE with orbs:

Structures and landscapes sprung from everywhere all in a crystalline state, all inhabited by these lesser light beings - some winged, most not - some fully formed, others not - yet even others appeared only as glowing orbs of light and color, bouncing as would bubbles in a glass of carbonated water ...

Just then I saw five orbs of light. They seemed to be playing, swirling round and about the being and myself. They had appeared from the outlying landscape and I noticed they were all the same size and shape but of different hues as subtle as shades of rose petals, save one which had a bluish hue. Two of the pinkish ones seemed exactly alike, the other two were yet deeper in shades of red and orange. Before I could ask, IT spoke and said, "They, like all here are of you, who are of me, but these will come to you and you will care for them more. They will fly apart but come together at the time of the Gathering ...

I watched as millions of orbs systematically entered the many planets before me. They appeared as bees flitting from flower to flower, pollinating each, one after another. Michael took me closer and I could now see that so many of these planets had life on them. The orbs were joining with the creatures of these planets. Not every creature was the same on every planet but they all had some commonalities, a head, a body, extremities and the light beings would animate them for a time ...

I was now before the light being of gold again. Those five orbs were still darting about. I wanted to stay and explore this realm with all the other light beings but I was told I could not. (Louis Famoso)

Edgar Cayce felt himself to be a bubble traveling through water to arrive at the place where he always got the information ... In another instance, he went up and up through a very large column, passing by all the horrible things without coming in contact personally with them, and came out where there was the Hall of Records. (Edgar Cayce)

We saw that the sparkling lights were tiny, transparent bubbles that drifted in the air and sparkled on the grass. We realized that each tiny sparkle was a soul. (May Eulitt)

Ned Dougherty's NDE with orbs:

All attention seemed to be directed to the celestial field around me, and a shimmering, luminescent sphere enveloped me, making me feel as if I had stepped into a crystal globe. Although I was aware that the crystalline sphere was suspended on the celestial field in view of all the spiritual beings in attendance, I found myself in a different celestial realm. Somehow the spiritual beings were still observing me inside this crystal sphere. I realized why the hush of silence had fallen over the crowd: My life review was about to begin in public, it seemed. I was aware that I was about to review every event, thought, emotion, and experience of my life. I became aware that the purpose of the review was for me to evaluate my life in terms of my intended mission as a human, to review my life in a manner that permitted me to focus on the areas that provided the most important experiences in terms of my spiritual growth and development.

Although I was alone in the crystalline sphere, I was aware that I was in the presence of God and watched over by the many spiritual beings in the amphitheater who were encouraging me with their love and support. Nothing about my life was a secret to God, nor to the spiritual beings, yet I did not perceive that I was being judged. I realized that all who were part of God's spiritual creation had fallen from God and had made mistakes in their own journeys. There was no one among the assemblage of spiritual beings who was about to cast the first stone at me. (Ned Dougherty)

We started going faster and faster, out of the darkness. Embraced by the light, feeling wonderful and crying, I saw off in the distance something that looked like the picture of a galaxy, except that it was larger and there were more stars than I had seen on earth. There was a great center of brilliance. In the center there was an enormously bright concentration. Outside the center countless millions of spheres of light were flying about entering and leaving what was a great being-ness at the center. It was off in the distance. (Rev. Howard Storm)

Jesus, the angels and platform, disintegrated into a giant sphere of light once Carter no longer needed their shape or form to put him at ease. As the sphere grew it absorbed him, infused him with the ecstasy of unconditional love. (Carter Mills)

While I was talking to her, a light appeared. It appeared as a circular shape and then came down as a long oval. (Sarah Powell)
Photo of Linda Stewart with orb. The orb is magnified on the right.

This is a digital photo taken of near-death experiencer Linda Stewart. Linda's perceptual reach expanded after having a near-death experience, a decade ago, to entities beyond the physical plane. The original intent of the photo was to show Linda pointing out new cactus flowers. We were not very surprised when we saw the orbs since spirits usually show up rather easily around Linda. The close-up of the largest orb (above) clearly shows the variation of energy in the orb. There was no rain in the shot, therefore the orb is not a raindrop refraction suspended in the air. (courtesy of Raul daSilva, rdsetc@att.net)

When the Father spoke, each of his words exploded into a complex of meanings, like fireworks, tiny balls of light that erupted into a billion bits of information, filling me with streams of vivid truth and pure understanding. (Angie Fenimore)

I felt at that time that I might be dying. Not much later, my hands and feet were gone altogether and my midsection was getting sparse. The feeling was very peaceful. More peaceful than I had ever known. I seemed to be shrinking to a ball shape centered near my throat. Would I lose consciousness as the ball of active nerves shrank past the boundaries of my cranial cavity. As I pondered the idea, I fell through the surface of the operating table ... Still closer and brighter the light came. I strained to detect its surface but could not. It was about the size of a beach ball, with no discernible surface ... The one who had been doing my life review was no longer a ball of light but now a hooded and robed figure. (Hal)

There was a sudden whoosh, and I saw a large glowing red ball approaching me, almost like the light on the front of a train. In that instant, as the red ball rushed toward me, I knew terror like never before. As it approached, I realized that it was really a large, eerie red eye. It stopped when it got close to me, and then began traveling alongside me through the tunnel. I could hardly stand to look at it, its gaze was so piercing. It felt like it was looking right into my mind, into my very soul. The eye - suddenly I realized that I was seeing the hospital room through the red eye. It was absurd to me that I hadn't realized this before - and yet I could hardly process my thoughts. It was all too bizarre. Panic started building in my mind as it began to dawn on me where I was, suspended in this dank tube. As the red eye glowered at me, the thoughts began to arrange themselves, coalescing slowly. Suddenly, the idea was undeniable. (Don Brubaker)

Then, just like that (clapping her hands), I became a ball of light or energy in the midst of this crowd that was circling a body. I became massively aware, unlike any awareness I had had during physical existence. I was not really aware of myself. I was aware of everyone around me. I was aware of my mother and my neighbors, and my friends and the firemen and what they were thinking and what they were feeling and what they were hoping and what they were praying. This was such a pummeling input of emotion and information that I was all at once overwhelmed and confused, and rather disoriented. I tried to communicate this to them over and over again and I realized that I had no mouth. I had no body. They could not hear what I was saying to them. I would have to leave them in the same hands I had left myself in the process of dying. With that I turned away, just sort of like a ball, just turned away. (Reinee Pasarow)

To go a little further with this, most adult experiencers describe God as a powerful, almost blinding sphere of light, that is ecstasy itself. Young children do not use such terms, saying instead that God is like a loving father or grandfather. (Dr. PMH Atwater)

The human being, created in God's image, is composed of a body, the outer shell of which originated in clay, and spiritual breath, which can communicate with God and which is located at the center of the body. This is the microcosmic reflection of the Islamic macrocosm, which is viewed as a globe of infinite dimensions whose center is full of light, the purest of God's creations. Its outer shell is made of clay, which represents darkness. The human soul (nafs) resides within the human being somewhere between these two opposite principles - light and darkness - and is a mixture of the two, unique to each individual, while the spirit that resides at the center (being of godlike nature) is the same for everybody. (Muslim NDEs)

One near-death experiencer, Linda Stewart, is profiled on the website Coast to Coast AM with George Noory. Linda's friend sent her story concerning orbs to the website. Linda's story is described in the words and interpretation of her friend. The photo shows Linda pointing out new cactus flowers. When the photo was developed, five orbs of different sizes can be found in the photo surrounding Linda.

The NDE/UFO/Orb Connection

Orbs can also be found in the UFO and UFO/NDE phenomena. The following are some of accounts involving this phenomenon.

The near-death account of Brian Krebs involving orbs and extraterrestial aliens:

My memories of it were of seeing my body below me. I remember seeing a bright, warm, loving orb above me ... I was there with this orb of glowing love and understanding. It didn't seem foreign to me. It was not frightening. It was totally assuring and there was no feeling of anything but my awe and the love and knowledge and wisdom that this orb projected. In size, it would be not like looking at the sun, but looking at the earth when you are on it. It was immense and total, and its power was love ... I then went to twelve beings of greater knowledge. They were in front of me and stood in a row. They were not human. They had no feelings of anything like judgment or authority, but seemed strong in themselves. They seemed taller than me and they wore silver white robes. They had white skin, large heads and large eyes. I do not remember them having mouths. Above them was a spirit. It was like a star as we see one from earth, but in size it appeared the same size as the heads of the beings. (Brian Krebs)

The NDE/UFO experience of Betty Andreasson:

Three more elders stepped into the circle, and they all began chanting "Oh." Three more beams of light appeared, forming a perfect hexagram. A larger circle of light formed around the heads of the elders. Then this light-ring moved upwards, shrank to the same size as the ring in the center, and floated down and interconnected with it, forming a revolving spherical object which finally condensed into a beach ball-sized orb of lavender-purple light. This was then taken and placed in a four-pronged stand which had obviously been designed specifically to hold such spheres.

The term elders is Betty's name for these beings. When on an earlier occasion she had asked them who they were, they had answered that they are "the ambassadors of Oh, masters of rings, cycles, and orbs." Now, after witnessing the creation of this magical orb, Betty asked an elder: 'Who is Oh?' He replied that Oh is "the internal, external, eternal presence."

The next thing that happened, to Betty's extreme startlement, was that the elders induced an out-of-body experience in her. This is similar to what happened in her experience at age 13, before she entered the great door and saw the "One." Now, on the mother-ship, as soon as she emerged in her subtle body, one of the elders handed her the orb of purple light, and another led her through a portal made of rippling waves of energy.

On the other side of the portal, Betty and the elder seemed to be on earth, in a woods at night. Some hobos were sleeping on the ground. One of them awakened and approached the two visitors; he glowed with light. The elder wore little rings of light on his fingers. He allowed the hobo to take some of them, and they turned into a single tiny ball of light, which the man kept. Meanwhile, the larger orb in Betty's hands changed color momentarily, evidently in resonance with the transaction. Every once in awhile, Betty's attention was drawn into the ball: "Oh," she said, "it's just so beautiful! Something in it keeps on moving ...

Now the elder touched Betty's shoulder. There was a little explosion of white light, and then they were in a different place: a hospital room, where a very old man lay in a bed, with a nurse keeping vigil beside him. And there was more: two small entities which seemed to be made of darkness where tugging at the man, as if trying to pull his soul out of his body - this was Betty's impression. But there was also present a light-being; this was a type of entity Betty had encountered before in her experiences - it had no visible human features, but appeared as a bodily form made of white light. This being was also tugging at the dying man; it was clearly a battle for his soul between these opposing entities. The elder resolved the conflict: he threw two tiny balls of light at the black entities, and they flew away.

The elder and Betty next transported to a woods again, where a small saucer and two of the grays awaited them. They went on board, and evidently flew up into the sky. Betty asked where they were going now, and the elder replied that they were going to see the One.

Betty had to give the purple orb to one of the grays; she was very reluctant and sorrowful to give it up. The craft came to a stop, and they emerged into a place filled with bright light. Above them was the great door, which was the source of the light. The elder touched one of the grays on the shoulder and spoke to him, and he came along with the elder and Betty as they walked toward the light. Their walk turned into a run, as they moved swiftly into the pure radiance. Betty was overwhelmed with the ecstasy of the One, which she re-experienced on the hypnotist's couch, and the several people in attendance were all profoundly moved by the visible effects of her transformation.

Betty, the elder, and the gray all turned into light-beings as they went into the One. Each was a different hue: the elder's light-body was pure white, the gray alien's was light blue, and Betty's was golden.

Betty said: "Oh, there is such love ... Oh, there is such peace ... I'm just engulfed in light and blending into that light. Oh! ... Oh, this is everything, everything, everything ... I cannot explain the wonder and beauty and love and peace."

And then came a heartbroken cry as Betty realized that she would have to leave this beatific state of Oneness: "Oh, I'm going to have to go back. I have to go back for others so that they too will see, will understand and know ..." And Betty, the elder, and the gray emerged back out of the light, turning back into their normal forms in the process.

The elder gave three of the tiny balls of light to Betty; then she was escorted into the saucer and taken home by the grays. She found her physical body sitting up on the side of her bed next to her sleeping husband, and re-entered it. The experience had ended. (Betty Andreasson)

In the late 1990's, several crop circle enthusiasts and cereologists (those who study crop circles) captured on videotape the creation of crop circles as described in the above text. What they had observed and recorded showed two balls of light, each approximately the size of a grapefruit, appearing above a field of crops, usually at night, moving very rapidly in circular patterns, causing the crops to lay over and forming complete designs in the course of 6 - 12 seconds. Then, these balls of light quickly vanished in the sky. This has been recorded repeatedly. Some of the video footage has been lab-tested in the US and UK, verified as authentic and unmolested, and can be viewed on video copies available commercially. (Phillip Mitchell)

According to the website Crop Circles 2002, UFO orbs are described this way:

Orbs are electromagnetic energy fields - circular as most things move in circles/cycles - in our 3D EM reality. There is a growing interest in orbs and aliens - in some cases the same entity! ... Orbs can be entities - such as spirits or ghosts or other extraterrestrial life forms - reduced to electromagnetic frequencies. There are electromagnetic orbs created by the grid itself. They are seen when authentic crop circles are formed, usually accompanied by tones, as all things in our EM (electromagnetic) reality are created by sound, light, and color - and the grid - EM energies - from crop circles.

2006-11-06T09:05:00.000-08:00

Metasubjective cognition beyond the brain: Subjective awareness and the location of concepts of consciousness

by Titus Rivas

Abstract

Consciousness has irreducible qualitative and subjective aspects that cannot be represented in a physical, purely quantitative system. This implies that an exhaustive conceptual ‘metasubjective’ representation (i.e. a representation of the defining properties of conscious experiences) in the brain as an exclusively physical system is impossible. Similarly, individual memories of conscious experiences must contain information about qualitative and subjective aspects as well, since concepts of consciousness ultimately derive from such information abstracted from episodic memories. Therefore, the stored bases from which such individual memories of conscious experiences are reconstructed must also contain elements that cannot be represented in the brain.

Both metasubjective concepts and bases of our individual memories of subjective experiences can only be stored in a personal non-physical memory linked to consciousness. There must be a personal mind or psyche that embraces consciousness, metasubjective concepts and bases of episodical memories of one’s subjective experiences. (See JNLRMI, II, 3. http://www.emergentmind.org/interview.htm)

1. Introduction

Conscious experiences are often characterised as qualia, i.e. as entities that are irreducibly qualitative and subjective (Beloff, 1962; Popper & Eccles, 1977; Rivas, 2003a). This is relevant for the status of consciousness within the philosophy of mind. In a completely physical universe, consciousness could only exist if our definition of physicality embraced qualitative and subjective dimensions. This is a major problem, as being physical is usually understood as being non-qualitative and non-subjective. In fact, this classical definition goes back to the notions of so-called primary and secondary properties, based on the doctrines of the Greek atomists such as Demokritus and Leucippus and developed by Galileo, Descartes, Boyle, and Locke (1961). Some (so-called “primary”) mathematically measurable properties of the physical world such as size, shape, number and momentum are intrinsical to that world, and other (so-called “secondary”) apparently non-mathematical aspects, such as redness or sweetness, only exist in our subjective perception of it.

The main reason for this basic distinction is that the phenomenal or subjective, qualitative way a physical object is perceived cannot be an inherent physical property of that object itself. For example, although both a congenitally blind person and a person with normal eyesight may in principle have access to the same quantitative information generated by a camera, their understanding of what can be seen subjectively is radically different. In other words, subjectively seeing an object implies more than having physical visual information about that object (Nagel, 1979; Jackendoff, 1987). There is an irreducible conscious visual mode which allows us to have subjective visual experiences, e.g. of what an object’s spatial dimensions and colour look like for a conscious subject. These experiences are not part of the object’s properties themselves but exclusively of our conscious vision.

Not all philosophers accept the validity of the distinction between primary and secondary properties. For instance, Berkeley (1998) claims that all perceived properties exclusively belong to the mind. Improbable as it may seem, this idealistic ontological view is not incoherent (Rivas, 2003a). However, it is incompatible with postulating a real physical world that exists independently of our perception, which is one of the basic assumptions of this paper.

Then, there are also scholars who believe that any type of distinction between appearance and reality is baseless. Anything we perceive would really exist in the world outside. This view makes it impossible to distinguish between illusions or hallucinations and realistic impressions of the physical realm.

In contrast, it is almost generally accepted that our subjective normal perception of the physical world is created on the basis of non-subjective neurological processing of physical stimuli. In other words, we do not perceive the physical world outside directly or immediately, but we consciously experience the outcome of neurological perceptual processes, which in turn exclusively use mathematical properties of physical patterns that reach the brain through our senses and nervous pathways. Even if the physical world had non-mathematical characteristics, in normal perception we would never be able to perceive them directly as our sensory perception is always mediated by the nervous system.

All this has had important consequences for our understanding of matter (the “stuff” the physical world is assumed to be made of) and consciousness. It has led to the three main fundamental positions within the philosophy of mind:

- “Both the physical world and the realm of consciousness are real and cannot be reduced to one another” or dualism. (In this literal sense, certain types of emergentism may also be regarded as forms of dualism.)

- “Only the physical world is irreducibly real” or materialism.

- “Only consciousness is irreducibly real” or idealism.

2. The reality of consciousness

Some scholars, such as Dennett (1995), claim that what we understand by a conscious mind is really an abstraction of complex neurological processing in our brain. In other words, there would be no irreducibly real conscious experiences. Others (Rosenthal, 1994) claim that consciousness is really nothing more than the way we experience the brain from the inside. The brain as an objective physical system has no qualitative, subjective dimensions, which thereby would only appear to be objectively real by our ‘first-person perspective’.

In other words, all of these theorists reduce consciousness to a kind of illusion with no ultimate reality or they simply deny the existence of an irreducible consciousness altogether, even in the sense of an irreducibly subjective illusion. All of them concur in their view that consciousness is not a real part of the ‘objective’ world.

Many scholars will not accept the ‘scientific’ reduction of their personal consciousness to something that is ultimately non-conscious or merely illusory. This explains the appeal of a position that does acknowledge the reality of consciousness as more than an illusion even though it also claims that consciousness has no impact on reality or ‘efficacy’ (Jackendoff, 1987; Chalmers, 1996, 2002), a position commonly known as epiphenomenalism.

However, this position contains a fatal inner contradiction. If conscious experiences do not have any causal impact upon memory, we cannot possibly have formed a concept of consciousness on the basis of those conscious experiences (Rivas & Van Dongen, 2001, 2003; Rivas, 2003b). In other words, we could not have any valid reason to believe that we are conscious beings, whereas this belief is a prerequisite of the very position of epiphenomenalism.

Therefore, if we acknowledge the reality of consciousness, we also have to accept that our conscious experiences have a real impact on the world. In fact, this is also an important argument against the theory that consciousness only exists as an illusion -or identity theory-, since, accordingly, conscious experiences would not be part of the real world and therefore they would not be able to exercise any real influence either (Rivas & Van Dongen, 2003).

In sum, I think that starting from a criterion of coherence, we can only choose between a full-blown acceptance of the reality of conscious experiences and their impact on the world and a total denial of the reality of consciousness (and its causal efficacy). This is only problematic for those who believe that the world simply must be primarily or even exclusively physical in nature, which is really a matter of convention rather than logic.

Some have tried to redefine the physical world so that it may embrace consciousness. A new definition would have to allow for a real consciousness with an equally real impact on the world. As we have seen, the important problem with this approach is that the distinction between mathematical and non-mathematical properties cannot be regarded as arbitrary, as it is a precondition for the distinction between the qualitative, subjective way we perceive a physical object and the object’s reality separate from our phenomenal perception of it. A real physical world with real (rather than just apparent) inherent qualitative and subjective properties would not be a completely physical world anymore as commonly understood (Rivas, 2003a). As mentioned above, one of the main premises of this paper is that there is an irreducible physical reality.

3.1. Concepts of consciousness and the brain

Anyone who acknowledges the reality of consciousness implicitly accepts that our concepts of conscious experiences cannot be empty. They must refer to the diverse qualitative and subjective events we undergo as conscious subjects. Now we may ask in what medium these concepts of consciousness or metasubjective concepts are stored. Presupposing the basic (dualist) assumption of the physical reality of the central nervous system, are metasubjective concepts part of a conceptual memory located in the brain?

Let me first explain the term metasubjective as it is used in this paper. The word simply means ‘about subjective experiences’ or ‘about consciousness’. So there is no link here with other meanings such as ‘transcendent’ or ‘belonging to a social or cultural context larger than one’s own personal experience’. My use of the term is related to the word ‘metacognition’. A possible synonym could be ‘metaphenomenal’.

However, the word ‘phenomenal memory’ is not a good equivalent, as it implies that a memory is subjective rather than metasubjective (i.e. about consciousness). For instance a memory of a physical equation may temporarily be ‘phenomenal’ (consciously recalled), but it is not metasubjective (about consciousness).

To complicate things a bit, I am aware that in the literature of the philosophy of mind the term phenomenal concept is sometimes used to denote what I call here ‘metasubjective concepts’ (Carruthers, 2004). The term can be found in discussions about the irreducible qualities of consciousness or in debates about physicalism.

As said, I object to the use of the word ‘phenomenal’ in this sense, as taken literally it seems to suggest that metasubjective concepts would always have to be experienced ‘phenomenally’ (i.e. subjectively), just as ‘phenomenal’ experiences are conscious experiences.

3.2. Storage of metasubjective concepts

In any possible physical memory, concepts are necessarily stored as physical, quantitative patterns. The question therefore becomes whether concepts of consciousness can be stored as physical, quantitative patterns.

Adequate, sufficient storage of any concept in a conceptual memory must be such that its activation permits cognitive access to its main conceptual dimensions. For example, if we store a concept of bats as flying mammals that use echolocation, all of these three aspects (flying, mammals, echolocation) must be included in the concept as it is stored.

Our scientific concepts of physical entities can only contain information about physical (so-called primary) properties. This should not be a problem for any physical system of conceptual representation; as such a system is in principle capable of representing any type of physical entity.

The same cannot be said about metasubjective concepts, i.e. concepts of consciousness that also contain representations of non-mathematical properties. In fact, such qualitative and subjective properties (including for example intentionality (Searle, 1983, 1997)) are essential to our understanding of consciousness (Jackendoff, 1987). If we did not have access to these defining conceptual dimensions of our concepts of consciousness, it would be completely impossible to think about consciousness and its manifestations as such.

Can we imagine a physical system that contains exhaustive representations of the defining qualitative and subjective dimensions of consciousness?

Note that we’re not talking here about the presence of consciousness itself in the brain as a physical system, but about the location of exhaustive concepts of consciousness.

To rephrase our question once more: Can exhaustive metasubjective concepts be physical? The answer obviously depends on whether we accept that consciousness possesses non-quantitative aspects or not. As we have already seen above, if we do not, consciousness itself may in principle be regarded as a physical phenomenon. If we do, the non-quantitative aspects of consciousness cannot be exhaustively represented quantitatively. If we could give an exhaustive quantitative description of consciousness, there simply would not be any irreducible non-quantitative aspects to it. This means that if we accept that consciousness has other than purely quantitative aspects, it is impossible to conceive of an exhaustive physical representation of concepts of consciousness in the brain or anywhere else. An exhaustive representation of metasubjective concepts can in principle only be realised in a non-physical medium (Rivas, 1999).

4. Possible objections

Let us take a look at possible objections to my line of reasoning.

Some of these objections were expressed by real opponents, whereas others are only hypothetical.

4.1. Do concepts of consciousness have to be exhaustive?

Some may want to escape from my conclusion by acknowledging that metasubjective concepts cannot be exhaustively represented in the brain, while asserting that we do not need an exhaustive, defining concept of consciousness to be able to use it. We might reconstruct what we mean by diverse metasubjective terms from our immediate subjective experience of the types of consciousness they refer to.

However, we can never conceptually distinguish between the diverse types of consciousness we experience if we have not already formed the concepts beforehand. In other words, we cannot understand what a term refers to if there is no defining conceptual representation in our memory linked to that term. We need exhaustive concepts of consciousness, since otherwise we could not use metasubjective terms in a distinctive way.

4.2. Innate concepts of consciousness

Another escape route that might be proposed is that metasubjective concepts are not formed on the basis of consciousness. Instead, they would be innate elements belonging to the blueprint of the human brain. Thus, the brain does not need to abstract information about consciousness but it already possesses all the relevant metasubjective concepts as part of its basic tools.

However, this does not solve the problem either, as any innate concept of consciousness located in the brain would still have to be completely quantitative and therefore lacking several necessary dimensions.

4.3. Quantifiable dimensions of consciousness

Some might object to my analysis, pointing at the fact that consciousness can indeed often be quantified. For example, subjects in psychological tests are able to rate the intensity of a conscious feeling in quantitative terms.

However, my claim is not that conscious experiences possess no quantifiable dimensions whatsoever, but only that they possess non-quantitative, qualitative and subjective aspects as well.

4.4. Metasubjective concepts and other concepts

Another objection that some might want to raise against my argumentation would be that all concepts as we subjectively experience them can only exist in consciousness. This is not specific for metasubjective concepts. So if we believe that non-metasubjective concepts -for example of specific types of physical objects- can be stored in a physical system, but only experienced subjectively through consciousness, what would be the relevant difference between metasubjective and other concepts?

However, my point is not that metasubjective concepts are different from other concepts because they would have to be experienced subjectively. My point concerns the content of metasubjective concepts. Contrary to other concepts, this content has to include information about the non-physical aspects of consciousness, i.e. information that cannot be represented in a purely quantitative manner. In this crucial respect, metasubjective concepts are very different from other concepts.

4.5. An interactionist alternative to the storage of metasubjective concepts?

A rather sophisticated objection to my analysis runs as follows. There can be no metasubjective information in the brain, but perhaps specific types of consciousness automatically cause specific neuronal changes through some type of psychokinesis. Such changes would not involve information about the specific types of consciousness, but via natural laws of brain-mind interaction the changed cerebral patterns would ‘conjure up’ memories of subjective experiences whenever they’re activated. The laws of interaction would be similar to the ones governing normal perception in which physical patterns lead to conscious impressions. Metasubjective concepts would in turn be directly abstracted from the subjective experiences recalled.

However, the supposed analogy with normal perception is false, because in normal perception the physical patterns certainly do provide specific information about the objects in question reflected in consciousness. Whereas in the supposed case of memory there would be no informational relation to the subjective experiences (as such) recalled. In this respect, the relation would be causal but not informational, as the non-quantitative information about the subjective experiences would not be stored in the hypothetical physical patterns. The information contained in such patterns could exclusively represent the non-subjective, quantitative aspects of the subjective experiences. The subjective, qualitative aspects of the subjective experiences would be solely recollected in consciousness by activation of the hypothetical physical patterns, rather than being represented in the patterns themselves.

By the way, if the supposed physical patterns would merely repeat the (perceptual) physical pattern that caused the conscious experience to be recalled, the hypothetical process would not constitute real memory anymore, as we could not really remember the conscious experience as such. Real memory of a subjective experience presupposes some direct causal relation between the experience (itself) and its recollection, which is absent if the supposed physical memory representation is not caused by the conscious experience but only by its physical precursor. As the subjective experience cannot be represented physically, its non-physical aspects might at best cause a non-informational pattern in the brain.

Secondly, and this is a conclusive argument against the alternative hypothesis, metasubjective concepts must be based on non-quantitative information about subjective experiences, rather than on hypothetical markers in the brain which themselves contain no non-physical information. Information that would only be present in the individual conscious memories of subjective experiences cannot be used for abstraction. As soon as the individual conscious memory of one subjective experience would be replaced by the individual conscious memory of another subjective experience, the information contained in the first conscious memory would immediately be lost. Thus, information from one conscious memory could never be compared with information from another conscious memory, and therefore no metasubjective concept based on such a comparison could ever arise.

The possibility of a mere ‘working memory’ dealing with metasubjective cognition would not count as an alternative for non-physical memory, as such a hypothetical working memory would itself have to be non-physical in order to handle metasubjective concepts!

4.6. Understanding the nature of metasubjective conceptual memory

Some philosophers who read my manuscript complained that if the conceptual representation of consciousness stored in memory is not physical, we could not possibly imagine what metasubjective conceptual memory would ‘look like’. We cannot make any physical model of it, or simulate its representation in a computer. Also, we cannot understand exactly how a non-physical memory should interact with the brain as a physical system. These thinkers hold that we should not postulate any theoretical entities unless we fully grasp their precise nature and interaction with the rest of the world.

However, in the physical sciences some entities are postulated because their existence seems necessary from a theoretical point of view. There is no reason why this should be fundamentally different in the philosophy of mind or theoretical psychology. If the existence of a non-physical metasubjective conceptual memory logically follows from our analysis, we ought not avoid postulating it, even if we do not understand its exact nature or functioning.

4.7. Mathematics is part of the mind

Responding to the manuscript of this essay, Dr. Karl Pribram has stressed that mathematics is part of the mind rather than of the physical world. However, it is not my intention to reduce mathematics to anything physical. Within ontology and the (physical) sciences, the physical world is generally described in mathematical terms, but this does not mean that the mathematical should be regarded as physical. Perceptual subjective experiences usually have quantitative aspects and we even derive the quantitative properties of physical objects from our subjective experiences of them. Thus, the idealist claim that even the apparent primary properties of matter only exist in the mind is rationally tenable.

In other words, there is an important asymmetry in the relation between matter and mathematical properties: anything physical possesses mathematical properties, but not everything with mathematical properties is physical.

5. Memories of conscious experiences

My analysis also applies to the building blocks of our episodical memories of individual conscious experiences. Our metasubjective concepts are based on our conscious experiences that are somehow stored in episodical memory. This can only work, if during the process of storage, information about qualitative and subjective aspects of those conscious experiences is not left out. As we have already seen, qualitative and subjective aspects cannot be exhaustively represented in physical memory.

Note that I am not claiming that individual memories are always retrieved as complete and unchanging entities. I acknowledge that to a large extent individual memories seem to be continuously reconstructed and that they may change over time. However, what I am claiming is that the ingredients from which individual memories of conscious experiences are recreated must necessarily include representations of the specifically qualitative and subjective dimensions of those experiences.

This is not a mere repetition of my claim that concepts about consciousness must be stored in a non-physical memory. I also claim that metasubjective concepts are abstracted from episodical memories of conscious experiences, and that the building blocks from which those episodical memories are reconstructed must already contain information about the non-quantitative aspects of such experiences. We must be able to recognize the qualitative and subjective aspects of consciousness from our (reconstructed) memories of subjective experiences. Without such recognition, these aspects cannot make any sense to us. For example, without memories of conscious olfactory experiences, we would be unable to form any adequate idea of what it generally means to smell something subjectively.

Glenberg (1997) believes that the classical, sharp distinction between episodic and ‘semantic’ or conceptual memory as two distinct and separate memory systems is untenable. Episodic and semantic memories would all belong to the same system. Be this as it may, metasubjective concepts clearly relate to episodic memories of subjective experiences.

6. Non-physical memory and the psyche

Another question is how the non-physical memory in which conceptual and episodical metasubjective memories must be stored, relates to consciousness. It seems obvious that we only recall our own subjective experiences. This means that there must be a personal psychical or mental memory intimately related to consciousness.

I see this analytical conclusion as a firm basis for a rehabilitation of the psyche or personal non-physical mind, which has to include consciousness, but also metasubjective conceptual memories and building blocks of metasubjective episodical memories (Rivas, 2003a, 2005; Bergson, 1908; Bozzano, 1994; Gauld, 1982; Wade, 1996).

This also has an interesting consequence for fundamental theories about telepathy. F.B. Dilley (1990) has tried to conceptualise telepathy as a form of psychically ‘reading’ another person’s brain, i.e. a subtype of clairvoyance of the physical world. However, this is inconceivable if telepathy involves metasubjective memories or cognition. In that case, telepathy must consist of a direct interaction between two or more psyches (Rivas, 1990).

7. The brain and metasubjective cognition

Many contemporary psychologists believe that psychological theory should always be “neurologically implementable”, which means that their constructs should ultimately correspond to physical events in the brain and accord with its neurological laws.

My analysis shows that this basic assumption must be wrong. Conceptual memories and bases of episodical memories of subjective experiences cannot possibly be exhaustively implemented in the brain as a physical system, and yet their role in cognition is clearly very important. This means that a large part of psychological theory can never be translated into neurological terms. Psychology cannot be reduced to neurology (Rivas, 2003a). All of our metasubjective cognitive processes must be psychogenic and primarily ruled by specific psychological mechanisms.

As the brain can contain no exhaustive concept of consciousness, it can literally have no idea of what it means to be conscious. Therefore, the brain cannot possibly be the primary source of metasubjective cognition. The brain will often follow the mind, i.e. neurology will often follow psychology.

All of this must not only hold for human psychology, but equally for the psychology of individual animals of all other species that possess subjective experiences (Rivas, 2003c).

Regardless of the exact role of the brain in memory processes, it cannot be the location where metasubjective memories are stored. Also, as conceptual and episodical memories about conscious experiences are not located in the brain, brain death certainly does not automatically imply destruction of these memories (Rivas, 1999a, 2000, 2003d; Van Lommel et al., 2001; Parnia et al., 2001; Stevenson, 1987, 1997; Rawat & Rivas, 2005). Storage of metasubjective memory outside the brain during physical life implies that memories can be preserved without a specific physical pattern or ‘substrate’ to account for this.

Also, as processes of metasubjective cognition are psychogenic it is a priori conceivable that a psyche continues to function cognitively after brain activity has ceased.

Although the brain may -by some kind of natural laws of interaction- facilitate or obstruct storage and retrieval of metasubjective concepts and bases of the reconstruction of individual metasubjective memories in the mind (Rivas, 1999b), such storage and retrieval cannot be embodied in the brain itself. Thus, despite popular materialist doctrine on this issue (Augustine, 1997; Braude, 2003), no amount of somatogenic impairment of our metasubjective memories can ever make them physical or ultimately dependent on our brains.

2006-11-06T09:02:00.000-08:00

The NDE and the Life Review

Kevin Williams' research conclusions

Kimberly Clark Sharp once shared an interesting near-death account of the life review of a woman who saw an event in her life as a child. The lesson the woman learned from her life review is that our actions which seem unimportant can be more important than we can imagine on the other side. When the woman was a little girl, she saw a tiny flower growing almost impossibly out of a crack in the sidewalk. She bent down and cupped the flower and gave it her full unconditional love and attention. When the girl became a woman and had a NDE, during her life review she discovered that it was this incident with the flower that was the most important event of her entire life. The reason was because it was the moment where she expressed her love in a greater, purer, and unconditional manner.

This example of a life review by Kimberly Clark Sharp is one of my favorite examples because it shows in a dramatic way a principle that appears in many life reviews. The principle is that the actions we think are unimportant may turn out to be the most important act we have ever done in our life. Unconditional and spontaneous acts of love are the greatest acts we can perform - even if it is directed at a tiny flower. (Kevin Williams)

Comments From Researchers About the Life Review

The Being of Light presents the dying with a panoramic review of everything they have ever done. That is, they relive every act they have ever done to other people and come away feeling that love is the most important thing in life. (Dr. Raymond Moody)

A life review, seeing and re-experiencing major and trivial events of one's life, sometimes from the perspective of the other people involved, and coming to some conclusion about the adequacy of that life and what changes are needed. (IANDS faq)

One of the common aspects found in NDEs is the life review. It can be described in terms that are similar to seeing a movie, in segments, or a reliving. (Dr. PMH Atwater)

There is evidence that a type of judgment occurs at the time of death. This judgment involves a review of a person's life and results in their placement in the spirit world. Sometime after the judgment the person is assigned (in many cases this assignment is self-imposed) to a specific place or level in the other world - a place where his or her spirit feels most at ease. (Dr. Craig Lundahl)

The Purpose For the Life Review

There are many reasons for the life review and all of them are very important. The life review has been described by many to be the single most enlightening experience they have ever had. Here are some of the purposes of the life review according to experiencers profiled on this website:
(a)

The life review is for educating us about life and death.

(b)

The life review is for educating us about ourselves: why we are the way we are; what were our motives behind our actions; how did our lives impact others; how we could have done better; and what we can do to correct aspects to ourselves which are not compatible with life on the Other Side. We learn these things in order to become a better person.

(c)

The life review is for evaluating our soul development for the purpose of attaining soul growth.

(d)

The life review is for evaluating our progress in completing our mission.

(e)

The life review is for evaluating our lives to determine our next step toward our progression in the light.
Life Review Mechanics

The method of reviewing your life has been described in many different ways. Why there are different methods for this process is anyone's guess. The theory I have about everything that happens after death is that we either get what we want, get what we expect, get what we need, or some combination of this. The important thing is that life review experiences have more in common than they have differences. Life reviews have been described as:
(a)

Viewing a movie of your entire life.

(b)

Viewing a movie of important segments of your life.

(c)

Viewing a video of knowledge concerning your entire life.

(d)

Viewing a panoramic view of your entire life.

(e)

Viewing a vivid, three-dimensional color display of your entire life.

(f )

Viewing hundreds of television screens with each screen showing a home movie of one event in your life.

(g)

Viewing a three-dimensional hologram of your life in full color, sound, and scent.

(h)

Viewing scenes of your life in little bursts.

(i )

Viewing scenes of your life flitting from scene to scene.

(j )

Viewing scenes of your life at a tremendous speed.

(k)

Viewing scenes of your life in fast-forward.

(l )

Viewing scenes of your life in a way that can be slowed down or paused in order to focus on a particular detail of your life.

(m)

Reliving your entire life with scenes of your life projected around you.

(n)

A feeling like a dam has burst in your mind and every memory has flowed out.

(o)

A religious figure or higher being initiating the review.

(p) Having the review occur when getting in close proximity to the Being of Light.

(q)

A higher being reading from a Book of Life (for Christian experiencers).

(r )

A higher being reading from the Akashic Records (for Hindu experiencers).

(s)

Standing before a Council of Elders who are seated at a table.

(t )

Having the review take place in a domed room with square screens up and down the walls and on the ceiling.

(u)

Having the review take place in a amphitheater the size of a sports stadium filled with light beings who will observe your review.
Characteristics of the Life Review

The life review is an amazing experience that has many interesting characteristic - not all of which are found in every life review. The following is a list of some of those characteristics.
(a)

Instantly becoming everyone you came in contact with in your entire life (feeling their emotions, thinking their thoughts, living their experiences, learning their motives behind their actions).

(b)

Reliving every detail of every second of your life, every emotion, and every thought simultaneously.

(c)

Re-living the way you dealt with others and how others dealt with you.

(d) Viewing a few special deeds in your life.

(e)

Replaying a part of your life review to focus on a particular event for instruction.

(f ) Viewing past lives and/or your future.

(g) Feeling a strong sense of responsibility.

(h)

Feeling a sense of judgment or self-judgment (often these feelings transform from judgment to self-judgment).

(i )

The review is a fact-finding process rather than a fault-finding process.

(j ) Your motives for everything will be as visible as your actions.

(k)

The negative events you expected to see did not show up because you had a change of heart.
The Being of Light in the Life Review

During the life review, while in the presence of the Being of Light, it is impossible to lie to yourself or to others or to the Light. In the Light, there is no place for secrets to hide. But it is not God who judges us after we die. In the presence of the Being of Light, some people may judge or condemn or punish themselves. There is no judgment except the judgment we might level at ourselves and even this we shouldn't do. God's standard is pure love and our lives will be compared to this standard in the light of God. Pure love is serving God and others without having self-centered motives for doing so. The life review is the perfect experience for the Being of Light to reveal to people how they have measured up to this standard and their mission in life. The following is a list of characteristics of the Being of Light during life reviews. Sometimes the Being of Light is accompanied with other light beings and for this reason the so-called "Being of Light" will be referred to as "they".
(a) They can fill you with a love that is beyond description.

(b)

They can eliminate any negativity you may feel from viewing your life review.

(c) They may ask questions concerning your life and how you felt about it.

(d) They may rejoice when love is displayed in your life.

(e)

The entire heavenly hosts may thank you in unison for your deeds done out of love. The entire heavenly hosts may thank you in unison for your deeds done out of love.

(f )

They may applaud you and let you know that God approved of your acts of unselfishness and caring.

(g) They may suffer and/or feel sorrow for you about something you did.

(h)

They can pause the review for awhile if you are upset to strengthen you with love.

(i ) They witness everything you did in secret.

(j )

They take into consideration various aspects about your life when it comes to evaluating your life; such as, how you were raised, what you were taught, the pain inflicted upon you, and the opportunities missed or not received.

Questions and Responses From the Being of Light

The Being of Light asks the experiencer a question or a series of questions to elicit a response that is then projected in the three-dimensional form of the life review. Sometimes this Being and/or other light beings respond to the experiencer's life review. The following is a list of some of those questions and responses.
(a) Any question they ask will be answered during your review.

(b) They ask questions to elicit a response from you.

(c) They already know the answers to the questions they ask you.

(d) "What have you done with your life?"

(e) "How much did you love during his life?"

(f ) "Did you love others as you are being loved now? Totally? Unconditionally?"

(g) "How much love did you give others?"

(h) "How much love did you receive from others?"

(i ) "What did you do with the precious gift of life?"

(j ) "Why did you choose the particular parents you have?"

(k)

Responding to an event in your life, whether good or bad, by saying: "You are doing wonderfully."

(l ) "We are here to support you."

(m) "Continue to do good work, and we will help you."

(n) "You are part of us, and we are part of you."

(o) "We stand ready to come to your aid when you need us, and you will."

(p) "Call us. Beckon us. We will flock to you when the time comes!"
Insights Concerning Our Deeds Which Are Reviewed

The life review reveals that God is concerned about deeds - not creeds. This fact becomes crystal clear during a person's life review. Many experiencers have expressed the astounding realization that life on earth is a gigantic "test" for which our deeds will be graded during our life review. Here is a list of insights concerning our deeds in relation to our life review.
(a)

Deeds which we might consider to be unimportant may turn out to be more important than we can possibly imagine on the Other Side.

(b)

Deeds which we might consider to be important may turn out to be insignificant on the Other Side.

(c)

Deeds which we might consider to be "very good" may not be considered as such on the Other Side if the deeds were done solely for self.

(d)

Deeds which we may have given "no second thought about" might amaze us when we learn how much they meant to God and the Other Side.

(e)

Deeds which are considered most valuable on the Other Side are those which express love in a greater, purer and unconditional manner.

(f )

Deeds which are considered to be "greatest" on the Other Side are usually those which are not done with great fanfare, but are small acts of kindness toward others.

(g)

Deeds which are considered "greatest" on the Other Side are often the little things we do out of kindness and love because they are more spontaneous and reveal our true motive behind the deeds. Such deeds demonstrate in a better way who we really are.

(h)

Deeds can carry repercussions which affect many lives and many lifetimes.

(i )

There are no "wrong" deeds. There are only deeds which either do or do not enhance positive spiritual growth.

(j )

We are very powerful spirit beings. Even our "little" deeds can have a powerful affect on others even though we are completely unaware of it.

(k)

All of our deeds have an affect on the evolution of our soul and the evolution of the souls of those around us.

(l )

The choices we make in life matters deeply.

(m)

We receive what we give out.

(n)

It is practically impossible to forgive others if we cannot forgive ourselves.

(o)

Howard Storm was given the following insights after his life review when he was afraid of returning to earth life because he feared he would make the same mistakes again:

Mistakes are an acceptable part of being human. We are here to make all the mistakes we want because it is through our mistakes that we learn. As long as we try to do what we know to be right, we will be on the right path. If we make a mistake, we should fully recognize it as a mistake, then put it behind us and simply try not to make the same mistake again. The important thing is to try our best, keep our standards of goodness and truth, and not compromise them to win people's approval. God loves us just the way we are, mistakes and all. When we make a mistake, we should ask for forgiveness. After that, it would be an insult if we don't accept that we are forgiven. We shouldn't continue going around with a sense of guilt, and we should try not to repeat our mistakes. We should learn from our mistakes. God wants us to do what we want to do. That means making choices - and there isn't necessarily any right choice. There are a spectrum of possibilities, and we should make the best choice from those possibilities. If we do that, we will receive help from the Other Side. (Rev. Howard Storm)
Insights of Love From Life Reviews

The overwhelming consensus among experiencers is that love is supreme. Love is where we came from. Love is where we will return. Love is what life is all about because love is God. Life on earth is like being in school - our lessons in life are mostly about love. Thus, during the life review experiencers are often given profound insights about love which they are allowed to bring back to share with the rest of us. Here are some of those insights:
(a)

A simple smile has the power to start a chain reaction of love that can spread throughout the entire world and alter the course of history.

(b) Who you are is the love that you share; and that love is God.

(c)

The simple secret to improving humanity is this: know that the love you give to others is equal to the love you will have when you die.

(d) Pure love is God's measuring stick that is used to measure all of our actions.

(e) Love is the message we receive from our life review.

(f )

Loving others unconditionally as we love yourself is the most important thing we do in life.

(g)

We must love ourselves unconditionally before we are able to love others in the same way.

(h) Loving others is really the only thing that matters in life and love is joy.
Insights Learned From Life Reviews

Love is the most important aspect of life on the Other Side. Love is also the most important aspect of earth life although there seems to be so little of it here compared to the Other Side. Along with insights of love, life reviews offer insights on virtually an unlimited amount of knowledge. Here are some of them:
(a)

Life is like a "gigantic test" which we will grade ourselves on during our life review.

(b)

Life reviews teach us who we really are. We are powerful spiritual beings.

(c)

Life reviews can show us how and why we were the way we were in life.

(d)

Everything about you and your life will make more sense after a life review.

(e)

From our earthly perspective, it seems like we are living behind a "curtain of secrecy" where we can do things without anyone knowing about it. But in reality, we are "on display" for the Other Side throughout our entire lives. All of our actions which are done "in secret" are known on the Other Side. At death, this illusionary "curtain" is lifted and "the floodlights" shine on us.

(f )

Life is very important because how we have lived our life largely determines how far we can go into the light.

(g)

Some of the opportunities we are given in life are orchestrated by Higher Powers.

(h)

The more we learn in life, the more the doors of opportunity will be opened to us later.

(i )

There really are no mistakes in life because all of our experiences are ways for us to learn and grow.

(j)

We need negative experiences as well as positive experiences in life in order to learn.

(k )

Every negative experience allows us to obtain a greater understanding about ourselves so that we can make better choices.

(l ) Before we can know joy, we must know sorrow.

(m)

God's overriding desire is to purify us no matter how much suffering it takes to achieve it.

(n)

We come to earth to make mistakes and have a human experience.

(o)

Life is a golden opportunity to live a spiritual life in a world of darkness.

(p)

All events in our lives are significant. Even those events which we may consider to be insignificant can bring us great enlightenment.

(q)

We already know everything that we will learn from our life review. We have just forgotten it.

(r)

After having a life review, an experiencer may feel accountable for everything they do for the rest of their life.

(s )

We should learn to understand ourselves from the perspective of many lifetimes of evolution and soul growth. It may take many lifetimes for the negative karmic debts we owe others to be dissolved.

(t)

Our life will be wonderful if we choose to always have a positive affect on others.

Examples of Life Reviews

Carter Mills saw himself when he was a child and killed a mother bird with a sling shot. At the time, he was so proud of that shot; but during his life review, he felt the pain that the mother bird's babies went through when they starved to death. (Carter Mills)

Reinee Pasarow described how the most positive thing she did was to give special attention to a not so lovable boy at a summer camp so that he would know he was loved. During the review, she said this act of kindness was more important from her viewpoint of expanded awareness than if she had been president of the United States or the queen of England. (Reinee Pasarow -- Watch her video online: http://lightafterlife.com)

After his review, Hal felt there is something missing. Because of this, the Being of Light takes him to a heavenly library where he was allowed to learn more about his life. He was shown a document that appeared to be about the size of a business card and described his entire life. Because the Being of Light did not want to interfere with Hal's free will, he was not allowed to see all of it. (Hal)

Sherry Gideon was shown her future as if in a movie. She was told that she was a healer sent to earth to pave the way for others to live. She will also open healing centers for women and children. She was also shown a future event where she would help a man who helped her during the difficult times of her life. She was shown why we are all here in the world. It is to have a human experience. She was told that if it was religion, we would all be hoping the religion we chose was the right one. She was told that we are not here to kill each other, but help each other rise to a higher level of love. (Sherry Gideon)

Grace re-experienced an event in her life when she was a child in class. Her teacher had set three special cards on a table which were to be awarded for a spelling bee they were to have. When everyone left for recess, Grace stole one of the cards. Later, she felt sick with guilt and put the card back when no one was there. Grace's re-experience of this event made her remember everything about that situation. What really impressed her was her awareness at that time of how very wrong that action was. Although she made amends for it then, she felt her teacher's dismay at having the card missing. Grace realized that other children saw only two cards on the desk for the spelling bee, not three. What she realized perfectly was that her actions carried repercussions that effect many others. (Grace Bubulka)

When Ned Dougherty's life review began, he was overwhelmed by the process and the feelings of love directed at him from the audience. As events of his life were displayed, the audience would cheer for him and convey their love for him. They were saying things such as, "You are doing wonderfully. We are here to support you. Continue to do good work, and we will help you. You are part of us, and we are part of you. We stand ready to come to your aid when you need us, and you will. Call us. Beckon us. We will flock to you when the time comes!" Ned became confused by all the attention. There wasn't anything wonderful about the way he had conducted his life. He wondered how he can be doing wonderfully when he tried to murder someone that very night. Ned was then spiritually rescued from the negative thoughts he was having. He was told that he mustn't think such negative thoughts there. He was told that only positive thoughts will be heard there. Nobody can hear his negative thoughts. He must be positive to perform his mission. (Ned Dougherty)

RaNelle Wallace was shown how a friend of hers was given to her from God to guide and help her. But RaNelle saw instead how her own mistakes and uncaring attitude ultimately mislead her friend and propelled her into new mistakes and grief. Next, RaNelle saw another episode in her life when she was asked by a church leader to visit a particular woman to check up on her occasionally to see if she needed help. Because the woman was filled with such negativity and bitterness, RaNelle never went to see her. She didn't think she could handle her attitude. Now, she saw that the opportunity to help her had been orchestrated by Higher Powers and that she was just the person the woman needed at the time. Now, RaNelle felt the woman's sadness and disappointment because she did not complete this mission. It was a responsibility that would have been a benefit to RaNelle as well. (RaNelle Wallace)

Dr. Dianne Morrissey's life review experience:

As her life review continued, she was shown two very special deeds she had performed in her life. As these scenes were displayed before her, every emotion she had originally felt returned in full force. She also felt as if God and the angels were honoring her for performing these deeds. Love and joy surrounded and ran through her. She felt as though she was being hugged by God.

The first deed she witnessed was when she helped a woman pushing her stalled automobile. Afterward, Dianne left in a hurry because she was afraid of getting a ticket. In Dianne's haste, she didn't give the woman a chance to thank her. While reviewing this scene, Dianne was filled with indescribable feelings of love, which seemed to be directed at her from the angels.

The second deed she witnessed was a scene she'd forgotten about. She saw herself as a teenager working in a convalescent hospital. She helped feed an elderly woman when no one else wanted to do so. She had grown fond of the old woman despite the old woman's unsavory behavior. When this deed was displayed in her life review, she felt as if every loving spirit in God's kingdom was thanking her in unison. She was amazed that such an act could have meant so much to God - and to her. She felt humbled and very honored. She communicated with the light beings telepathically. As she viewed the scenes of her life, she felt as if she were absorbing many books all at once with perfect clarity. (Dr. Dianne Morrissey)

Thomas Sawyer's life review insights:

"I wish that I could tell you how it really felt and what the life review is like, but I'll never be able to do it accurately. I'm hoping to give you just a slight inkling of what is available to each and every one of you. Will you be totally devastated by the crap you've brought into other people's lives? Or will you be equally enlightened and uplifted by the love and joy that you have shared in other people's lives? Well, guess what? It pretty much averages itself out. You will be responsible for yourself, judging and reliving what you have done to everything and everybody in very far-reaching ways. Very small, seemingly inconsequential things such as the day when I, nine years old, walked through Seneca Park and loved the appearance of a tree. In my life review I could experience a bit of what the tree experienced in my loving it, two little photons of love and adoration. It was somewhat like the leaves acknowledging my presence. Can a tree experience that? Yes, it can. Don't go kicking trees anymore! You do have that effect on plants. You do have an effect on animals. You do have an effect on the universe. And in your life review you'll be the universe and experience yourself in what you call your lifetime and how it affects the universe. In your life review you'll be yourself absolutely, in every aspect of time, in every event, in the over-all scheme of things in your lifetime. Your life. The little bugs on your eyelids that some of you don't even know exist. That's an interrelationship, you with yourself and these little entities that are living and surviving on your eyelids. When you waved a loving goodbye to a good friend the other day, did you affect the clouds up above? Did you actually affect them? Does a butterfly's wings in China affect the weather here? You better believe it does? You can learn all of that in a life review! As this takes place, you have total knowledge. You have the ability to be a psychologist, a psychiatrist, a psychoanalyst, and much more. You are your own spiritual teacher, maybe for the first and only time in your life. You are simultaneously the student and the teacher in a relationship. My life review was part of this experience also. It was absolutely, positively, everything basically from the first breath of life right through the accident. It was everything. During this life review I experienced what I can only describe as "in the eyes of Jesus Christ." Meaning, I watched and observed this entire event as if I were in the eyes of Jesus Christ. Which means unconditionally." (Thomas Sawyer)

Rev. Howard Storm's life review experience:

Howard's whole life review was a lesson during which they were trying to teach him. During some events, they slowed the review down to zoom in on it. All of the things that he worked to achieve, the recognition that he had worked for in elementary school, in high school, in college, and in his career, meant nothing in this setting. Howard could feel the light beings' feelings of sorrow and suffering, or joy, as his life's review unfolded. They didn't judge him, but he could feel judgment. He could sense all those things they were indifferent to. For example, they didn't consider his high school shot-put record. They just didn't feel anything towards it, nor towards other things which he had taken so much pride in. What they responded to was how he had interacted with other people. His entire review would have been emotionally destructive if it hadn't been for the love he felt from the light beings. Anytime he got upset during his life review, they would turn it off for awhile and just love him with a tangible love that can be felt through his entire being. Because his life review would keep tearing him down, he would feel their love every time. Despite all this, seeing his selfishness and hypocrisy made him nauseated. But through it all was their love. When his life review was finally over, they asked Howard if he had any questions. Sometimes they would replay the part of his life review in order to answer his questions. (Rev. Howard Storm)

Dannion Brinkley's life review insights:

"When you have a panoramic life review, you literally relive your life, in 360 degrees panorama. You see everything that's ever happened. You even see how many leaves were on the tree when you were six years old playing in the dirt in the front yard. You literally re-live it. Next you watch your life from a second person's point of view. In this life we're taught to be sympathetic toward others. But from the second person's point of view, you'll feel empathy, not sympathy. After that, you literally will become every person that you've ever encountered. You will feel what it feels like to be that person and you will feel the direct results of your interaction between you and that person. You know the story of the Book of Judgment? Guess what? When you have your panoramic life review, you are the judger ... You do the judging. If you doubt me, believe this: you are the toughest judge you will ever have." (Dannion Brinkley)

Laurelynn Martin's life review experience:

During her life review, she relived an event when she was five years old and teased another girl to the point of tears. Laurelynn then felt exactly what the other girl was feeling. Laurelynn realized how the girl needed love, nurturing and forgiveness. Laurelynn then felt a love for this child that was so deep and tender, it was like the love between a mother and child. She realized that by hurting another person, she was only hurting myself. It was an experience oneness with everyone.

Another event she relived was similar to the previous one. As a child she made fun of a scrawny, malnourished asthmatic kid who eventually died from a cerebral aneurysm. The kid once wrote a love letter to her which she rejected. In her life review, she experienced his pain of being rejected. At the same time, she felt a tremendous amount of love for this boy and herself. Her life review connected her with him in a way that went beyond the physical. It was a connection that was felt at the level of the soul. She saw how the boy had a vibrant, bright light burning inside of him. She felt the strength of his spirit and vitality. It was an inconceivable moment especially knowing how much he physically suffered when he was alive. (Laurelynn Martin)

David Oakford's life review experience:

His life review began by witnessing the initial circumstances that occurred before being born that resulted in him being the person he was. The spirit beings asked David how and why he picked these particular parents. David didn't know where it came from but he told them what they wanted to know. They agreed with him. David picked his parents to help them on their path as well as to achieve his own learning.

David re-experienced his own birth and how he left heaven to become a helpless infant. He experienced his parent's love and their anger. He saw all the good and bad episodes of his life. He felt all of his emotions and the emotions of others he had hurt as well as loved. From all of this he learned that it matters deeply what choices we make on earth.

When his life review was over, the spirit beings in the room asked him questions concerning what he saw and how he felt about his life up to then. He knew that he had to provide an honest assessment and that it was impossible to lie. He hesitated when they asked him whether he affected others more positively than negatively. He thought about lying. Instead he told them that he could have done a better job, but he was not finished with his mission. Because of this, David told them he wanted to back and finish his mission. They spirit beings agreed. (David Oakford)

Christian Andréason's life review experience:

I saw four translucent screens appear (and form a kind of gigantic box around me). It was through this method that I was shown my life review. (Or rather I should say my LIVES IN REVIEW!) Without ever having to turn my head, I saw my past, my present, my future and there was even a screen that displayed a tremendous amount of scientific data, numbers and universal codes. I saw the beginning of my known existence as a Soul and saw that I had existed Spiritually long before this incarnation -- where I am now a male human known as Christian Andréason! In Heaven, I undeniably saw that I had lived an innumerable amount of lives. Yet, what I saw went way beyond our comprehension of what we think reincarnation is. So, 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. (Christian Andréason)

Betty Eadie's life review experience:

I was led to a room, which was exquisitely built and appointed. I entered and saw a group of men seated around the long side of a kidney-shaped table. I was led to stand in front of them within the indented portion of the table. One thing struck me almost immediately; there were twelve men here - men - but no women.

The men radiated love for me, and I felt instantly at peace with them. They leaned together to consult with each other. Then one of them spoke to me. He said that I had died prematurely and must return to earth. I felt them saying it was important that I return to earth, that I had a mission to fulfill, but I resisted it in my heart. This was my home, and I felt that nothing they could say would ever convince me to leave it. The men conferred again and asked me if I wanted to review my life. The request felt almost like a command. I hesitated; no one wants their mortal past to be reviewed in this place of purity and love. They told me that it was important for me to see it, so I agreed. A light appeared to one side, and I felt the Savior's love beside me.

I stepped to my left to watch the review. It occurred in the place where I had been standing. My life appeared before me in the form of what we might consider extremely well defined holograms, but at tremendous speed. I was astonished that I could understand so much information at such a speed. My comprehension included much more than what I remember happening during each event of my life. I not only re-experienced my own emotions at each moment, but also what others around me had felt. I experienced their thoughts and feelings about me. There were times when things became clear to me in a new way. 'Yes,' I would say to myself. 'Oh, yes. Now I see. Well, who would have guessed? But, of course, it makes sense.' Then I saw the disappointment that I had caused others, and I cringed as their feelings of disappointment filled me, compounded by my own guilt. I understood all the suffering I had caused, and I felt it. I began to tremble. I saw how much grief my bad temper had cased, and I suffered this grief. I saw my selfishness, and my heart cried for relief. How had I been so uncaring?

Then in the midst of my pain, I felt the love of the council come over me. They watched my life with understanding and mercy. Everything about me was taken into consideration, how I was raised, the things I had been taught, the pain give me by others, the opportunities I had received or not received. And I realized that the council was not judging me. I was judging myself. Their love and mercy were absolute. Their respect for me could never be lessened. I was especially grateful for their love as the next phase of my review passed before me.

I was shown the ripple effect, as they described it. I saw how I had often wronged people and how they had often turned to others and committed a similar wrong. This chain continued from victim to victim, like a circle of dominoes, until it came back to the start - to me, the offender. The ripples went out, and they came back. I had offended far more people than I knew, and my pain multiplied and became unbearable.

The Savior stepped toward me, full of concern and love. His spirit gave me strength, and he said that I was judging myself too critically.

"You're being too harsh on yourself," he said.

Then he showed me the reversed side of the ripple effect. I saw myself perform an act of kindness, just a simple act of unselfishness, and I saw the ripples go out again. The friend I had been kind to was kind in turn to one of her friends, and the chain repeated itself. I saw love and happiness increase in others' lives because of that one simple act on my part. I saw their happiness grow and affect their lives in positive ways, some significantly. My pain was replaced with joy. I felt the love they felt, and I felt their joy, and this from one simple act of kindness. A powerful thought hit me, and I repeated it over and over in my mind:

Love is really the only thing that matters. Love is joy!

I recalled the scripture that said, "I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10), and my soul was filled with this abundant joy.

It all seemed so simple. If we're kind, we'll have joy. And the question suddenly came out of me: "Why didn't I know this before?"

Jesus or one of the men responded, and the answer was ingrained in me. It sank into the deepest part of my soul, changing my outlook on trials and opposition forever: "You needed the negative as well as the positive experiences on earth. Before you can feel joy, you must know sorrow."

All of my experiences now took on new meaning. I realized that no real mistakes had been made in my life. Each experience was a tool for me to grow by. Every unhappy experience had allowed me to obtain greater understanding about myself, until I learned to avoid those experiences.

So the review quickly changed from a negative experience to a very positive one. My perspective of myself was changed, and I saw my sins and shortcomings in a multi-dimensional light. Yes, they were grievous to me and others, but they were tools for me to learn by, to correct my thinking and behavior. I understood that forgiven sins are blotted out. It is as if they are overlaid by new understanding, by a new direction in life.

My review was over, and the men sat in stillness, radiating their absolute love for me. The Savior was there in his light, smiling, pleased with my progress. The men then conferred again and turned back to me.

"You have not completed your mission on earth," they said. "You must go back. But, we will not compel you; the choice is yours."

Without hesitation, I said, "No, no. I can't go back. I belong here. This is my home." I stood firm, knowing that nothing could ever make me choose to leave."

One of the men spoke, also firmly. "Your work is not complete. It is best that you return."

I was not going back. I had learned as a child how to win a fight, and now I employed all those skills. I threw myself down and began crying.

"I won't go back," I wailed, "and nobody is going to make me! I'm staying right here where I belong. I'm through with earth!"

Jesus stood not far from me, off to my right, still glowing in his brilliant light. He came forward now, and I felt his concern. But mixed with his concern was a sense of amusement. He still delighted in me, understanding my moods, and I sensed his empathy for my desire to stay. I arose, and he said to the council, "Let us show her what her mission involves."

Then turning back to me he said: "Your mission will be made known to you so that you might make a clearer decision. But after this, you must decide. If you return to your life on earth, your mission and much of what you have been shown will be removed from your memory."

Reluctantly I agreed and was shown my mission.

Afterward, I knew that I had to come back. Although I would hate to leave that glorious world of light and love for one of hardship and uncertainty, the necessity of my mission compelled me to return. (Betty Eadie)

Biblical Support For the Life Review

NDEs often involve seeing your entire life reviewed after death - every thought, word and deed.

But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned. (Matt. 12:36-37)

There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs. (Luke 12:2-3)

During the life review, there is no judgment from God.

Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son. (John 5:22)

As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words, that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. (John 12:47-48)

The only judgment that exists is self-judgment. After death, we enter the light of God where all is made known. Having your true inner self revealed (realizing that you are a part of God) can be hell for those who have been motivated mostly by negative forces in life. Having your true inner self revealed can be heaven for those who have been motivated mostly by positive forces in life. Everyone's true inner nature is a part of God. Those who enter the afterlife realize their true inner nature. Those who lived a life against their inner self will find difficulties. This is self-realization and self-judgment.

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God. (John 3:19-21)

The verse above describes people dwelling in the dark to escape from having the light of God reveal their inner divine nature and life of ignorance, both of which are exposed to everyone in the heavenly realms.

Near-death experiencers have affirmed that so-called evil is, in reality, ignorance (darkness). In the Bible, light is always a reference to God and knowledge of God. Those people who lived a life of darkness (ignorance) will find an incompatibility with their true nature (divinity). This self-realization can truly be a hell for such people. This realization is self-realization and self-judgment. Below are verses that suggest self-judgment.

Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. (1 Cor. 4:5)

Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. (1 John 3:18-20)

If our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God and receive from him anything we ask. (1 John 3:21-22)

The verse below describes how God's light can shine in the darkness of our hearts even before we die.

For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. (2 Cor. 4:6)

One particular passage of scripture can be interpreted to be the self-judgment that we, as angels, undergo.

Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know we will judge angels? (1 Cor. 6:2-3)

The term angels is sometimes used in the Bible to apply to humans. Here are some of them:

See that you do not look down on one of these little ones (children). For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. (Matt. 18:10)

Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door. When she recognized Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, "Peter is at the door!" "You're out of your mind," they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, "It must be his angel." (Acts 12:13-15)

At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. (Matt. 22:30)

Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. (Heb. 13:2)

2006-11-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

4Cell EVP Demonstration

by Tom and Lisa Butler
(Based on a Summer 2005 AA-EVP NewsJournal article)

he AA-EVP has been looking for an effective way to use EVP as a research tool for studying etheric to physical influences. Part of the problem is finding a way to make the recording of the phenomenal voices more reliable. There has also been a problem with experimenter ability, which varies considerably amongst people willing to participate in experiments. The Association is a teaching/learning organization and our preference is for people to focus on personal growth, rather than to enter into organized activity that might cause undue demands on performance. This is not a competition.

One initiative to increase our understanding that has proven to be very effective is the 4Cell EVP Demonstration, which is being conducted by AA-EVP members and tracked in the Idea Exchange. The 4Cell project is designed to function as a testbed in which new ideas can be tried and the limits of EVP can be explored. As 4Cell matures with more cells and more experiments on record, we anticipate being able to provide solid scientific evidence of the existence of EVP, and the fact that EVP is proof of personal survival. Further, we expect this proof to be in a form that the scientific community will be able to accept, and therefore, feel obliged to repeat the experiments.

The 4Cell EVP Demonstration protocol is is explained here. We are available to assist researchers in setting up Cells to meet their research goals.

Each cell consists of four people:

1. A Requester who thinks of a request to be given to cooperating etheric communicators. A request may be a question, such as, "Who was my favorite teacher," or a request for action, such as, "Please tell the Receiver what I am wearing now." The request should be specifically of interest to the Requester. The request can be directed at a research question, such as, "What happens after the moment of physical death?" The Requester tells the Sender the request but not the answer or expected response.

2. A Sender who is given the request and then conveys it to his or her etheric communicators, asking that they send the requested information to the Receiver. This may be accomplished in any way the Sender feels will work. Part of the objective here is to allow the participant to invent a way that "seems" right. Since so much of this in intuitive, personal initiative may be more effective than constraining rules. If there is doubt as to how to proceed, we advise that the Sender meditates or contemplates the question. The idea is to send the message psychically, but to also send it verbally and maybe even in writing. All are effective techniques for EVP. The Sender then notifies the Receiver that a request has been "sent."

3. A Receiver who conducts an EVP session asking to record the response to the request. Since the energy required for trans-etheric communication is limited, the Receiver should be the only one conducting an EVP session for any particular cycle, and should only know that a request has been made. If the Receiver finds EVP in the resulting recording, the messages are sent to the Scribe.

4. A Scribe who accepts the EVP, if any, from the Receiver and makes a first determination as to what is said in the utterance, if possible. The Scribe then asks the Questioner for the request and posts the two on a private email sharing group so that the other three members of the Cell are able to listen to the EVP and determine which might be a fit for the request. The results of this collaboration, along with a standardized report of the proceedings, is then posted on the Idea Exchange for peer review.

5. Other members of the AA-EVP are then asked to consider the offered EVP, if any, by functioning as a listening panel.

Cell members have been asked to rotate positions, but we are finding that it is more important that the cell have some degree of recording success than it is to rotate positions, so we are now asking that each Cell has at least one experienced experimenter with some level of confidence that at least some utterance will be recorded. The Cells were also asked to record on a regular, weekly basis, but now we see that there are too many normal living interruptions, and it is better that the group try to record when possible, perhaps on a monthly schedule.

Since Cell members are usually scattered around the country, it is impossible to physically supervise the experimental cycles, so many experiments by many different Cells over may months should provide dependable "proof" of the concept, even though individual results should be judged on a case by case basis.

In the event that one of the four members is temporarily not able to participate, the function of Receiver and Scribe can be combined. But separation between the Questioner and the Sender is required to address the possibility that the Questioner is asking something that is emotionally charged. This also separates the expected response from the send/receive process. The reason we are asking the Scribe to independently decide whether or not the request has been correctly responded to is to see if he or she is able to arrive at that conclusion without "group think" unconsciously guided by the Questioner.

The protocol does not require a specific type of question or method for obtaining the EVP, except for the controls of who knows what, when, who attempts to record the EVP and who makes the first interpretation of the results. The reason for this is that the group dynamics are as much an interest to us as are the resulting EVP. One of the predictions is that a cooperating group will have better results than one that experiences internal conflict. The concept is that the rapport of mutual cooperation builds the kind of etheric/physical energy necessary for etheric to physical influences. Another term for this is "Contact Field."

We did not know how well the Cells would do when we began the project. The first two Cell reports made it clear that the communicating entities were happy to participate and that they could do all that we asked. Let us first give you a summary of the results received by the Cells as of July 2005 and then we will discuss the implications of those results and what we see for the future.

4Cell 1 – Voices: Andrea Carr, Siobhan McBride, Karen Mossey and Sue Mousseau (James Jones replaced Sue in experiment four and then the group dissolved):

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Experiment 1 question: “Does it take more of your energy to manifest a Class A EVP, and if so, please indicate your answer as ‘More energy’ or ‘No difference.’” Class B answer: “No difference.”
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Experiment 2 question: “From what level in the Afterlife are you communicating with us?” Class B answer: “Level six.”
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Experiment 3 question: “What can we, as receivers on the physical level, do to help facilitate communication from you, the transmitters in the spiritual?” Class B+ answer: “Just open up the portal.”
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Experiment 4 question: “What is the purpose of our communication with the other side? What is it we're supposed to be doing in order to help them?” There was no appropriate response recorded.
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Experiment 5 question: “Can anyone (any dead former human being) on the other side be involved in EVP messaging to us?” Class C answer: Four distinct utterances in same file, the second being “Perhaps.”
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Experiment 6 question: “Is there a reason that some spirits do not come through for us? Why would that be?” Class B answer: “Stop moving” and “That’s right.” Class B- answer: “Yes … people.”

4Cell 2 –Infinite: Mary Jo Gran, Rheta Conley, Shelly Morrison and Vicki Talbott:

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Experiment 1 question: “Can you tell me the name of Jim Robinson’s make believe sister?” Correct answer: “Sissy Sally.” Class B answer: “Sally’s the name.” (Other appropriate answers were also recorded.)
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Experiment 2 question: “Who is the artist and what is the name of the painting hanging at the end of the entrance hallway in Vicki and Pete’s home?” Correct Answer: “Marc Chagall” and “The Lovers.” Class B answer: “Who painted it? … Chagall did.”
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Experiment 3 question: “What Did Keith’s Grandpa Hallmark give him, and also, it has been lost can they tell us where it is?” Correct Answer: “Cue stick.” Class C answer: “A cue” and “Christy know right where it is.
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Experiment 4 question: “What are the names of Jim’s Montessori School Teachers?” Correct Answer: “Vivian” and “Rosmund.” Class B answer: “Vivian.” Class C answer in same file: “Rosmund.”
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Experiment 5 question: “What is the most common sign that those in Spirit do to let us know you are near us or that you have been around?” Class C answer: Not clear.
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Experiment 6 question: “What was the name of the tavern where I (Vicki) met my husband?” Correct answer: “The Waterfront.” Class B answer: “Has a view of the bay.”
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Experiment 7 question: “…I would like to hear from my deceased pet, “Toby. … I am hoping that there will be some barking on the tape.” A Class B- EVP saying, “Tob … y” was recorded, as well as a very convincing Class A dog bark.

4Cell 3 –White Noise: Michael Hester, Cheryl Hoes, Bill and Hedi Ambruster and Eric Cole:

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Experiment 1 question: “What is my mother-in-law’s maiden name?” The correct answer, “Downing” was recorded but the relevance of the response was not realized until well after the report was submitted, and subsequently, the EVP was discarded.
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Experiment 2 question: “What is the sex of Cheryl Jones’ baby?” There were no EVP recorded.

4Cell 4 –Delta: Erland Babcock, Bryan Kaplan, Richard Shenk and Harry Flagle:

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Experiment 1 question: “Assuming there is no time in your world and that you have vibratory frequency…How can you have a frequency without reference to time?” Class B answer: “Be technical.” (We could not make out the additional utterances.)
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Experiment 2 question: “How would you describe your world?” Class C+ answer: “Take good care of you.”
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Experiment 3 question: “How do you affect the objects in my world?” Class C answer: “It’s hard to see your message.”

A successful experiment is one in which an EVP has been recorded that either specifically answers the question or responds in a way that an answer can be reasonably construed from the EVP. For instance, in Cell Voices experiment 2, “Level six” Even though we do not know if that is a correct answer, it is appropriate.

Of the eighteen experiments conducted thus far, eleven or 61% have been successful. The etheric communicators have had a very large number of possible answers from which to choose. For instance, in Cell Infinity’s experiment 4, asking for Jim's Montessori School Teachers, the expected answer was given as “Vivian” and “Rosmund” How many first names are there in the western culture? There must be thousands. The odds of a person guessing the correct name must be about the same as winning the California Lottery. What are the odds of selecting the right name twice in the same EVP?

Guessing eleven appropriate answers out of eighteen attempts must be similar in difficulty to winning the California Lottery eleven out of eighteen tries. The results of the experiments would be astounding just because of how much the answers have exceeded what would be expected for guessing. Since we know that the communicators are intelligent, aware people, the gratifying part is not beating the odds, but how cooperative they have been.

We wish to thank all of the Cell members for their continued participation in the experiment. We especially thank Shelly Morrison and Vicki Talbott for moderating the Idea Exchange forum and for helping everyone get through the complicated protocol. And yes, a hearty thanks to their etheric partners who have been so willing to help us learn.

A powerful research tool

The 4Cell EVP Demonstration protocol has demonstrated that the etheric communicators are very interested in assisting us in our research. In fact, it seemed clear that some of the Cells improved each cycle, as Cell members on both sides of the veil became more adept at communication. We are convinced that any researcher can easily form one or more experimental Cells to conduct experiments to study the nature of reality and/or to discover information, such as the location of missing people.

If you are such a researcher, please contact the AA-EVP and we will attempt to assist you any way we are able.

2006-11-06T08:55:00.000-08:00

SCIENCE CONFIRMS SURVIVAL
by J.J. Snyder

(This article has been copied by the author's permission from the Campaign for Philosophical Freedom web site sponsored by Michael Roll www.cfpf.org.uk/index.html)

A group of British scientists, including two astrophysicists, a thermodynamicist, and other professional researchers, are conducting experiments and solving complex equations that they believe furnish conclusive and irrefutable proof of human survival of bodily death.

Michael Roll, a rationalist and freethinker who heads The Campaign for Philosophical Freedom, is unofficial spokesman for the group. He has recently revealed information that could drastically alter humankind's entire belief system regarding continuation of consciousness beyond the grave. Roll, of Bristol, England, a former businessman, is a long-time explorer of paranormal phenomena. He and his colleagues' series of discoveries, involving mathematical equations and physical experiments, when taken together, furnish empirical evidence that makes an extremely strong case for continuing after-death survival of the human psyche.

The group has come to regard that continuation as the functioning of a natural, universal law, the study of which is strictly a branch of chemistry, physics, and mathematics, rather than an article of religious faith.

This scientific approach to a subject which heretofore has been discussed mainly as a function of theology is stirring lively debate, not only in Britain, but worldwide. The assertion that immortality is conferred on humankind through natural law alone, rather than by an all-powerful, monotheistic God, is awakening interest and triggering penetrating questions from the general public, including churchgoers, as they become more fully informed about prospects for continuing existence beyond the transition known as "death."

The researchers' premise is that certain recent mathematical discoveries, combined with results of in-depth exploration of physics and quantum mechanics, now furnish verification for many previous well-documented scientific experiments dealing with what has been previously known as "psychic phenomena." These experiments were, and are being, conducted by various researchers from the late nineteenth century down to the present day, and all have a common thread. Each features repeated appearances by, and communication with, entities from the next level of existence who have experienced the event known as death, and yet maintain consciousness, remain articulate, and sometimes become visible on this physical level. At times these visitors from etheric realms can be touched, felt, and even held tightly by incarnate humans. Fully authenticated and documented visits to living family members, friends, and researchers have long proven the reality of these manifestations, but their cause and origin has remained inexplicable in the context of heretofore known laws of physics. However, many of the questions relating to these phenomena have been answered by the British researchers, and ongoing exploration continues.

Discarnate entities sometimes appear through materialization mediums - those specially endowed individuals who are able to furnish a psychic link between the two planes. At other times, usually when influenced by extremely strong emotions on either, or both, the etheric or physical level, materializations occur spontaneously. Other mediums, while not always able to effect materializations, are still able to relay communications between the two levels of existence.

Much of the evidence provided by certain mediums has been subjected to close, even hostile, scientific scrutiny, and found to be true and valid. Recently, there have been many reports of discarnate communication occurring by electronic means - telephone calls, tape recordings, fax messages, and even long discourses on computer screens. Etheric entities identify themselves, answer questions put to them by experimenters, and furnish information on conditions in the dimensions where they now exist. Extensive research into electronic communication with afterworld beings is being conducted on both sides of the Atlantic. In the USA, the American Association of Electronic Voice Phenomena and the Continuing Life Research organizations are in the forefront of these investigations.

Simply put, the British investigative group's contention is that these appearances of and contacts with "deceased" persons are manifestations of natural physical laws, the validity of which has been proven by recent and startling discoveries in mathematics and quantum physics. These are fields of study directly related to the structure and behavior of electrons, protons, neutrons, and other sub-atomic particles. Roll asserts that these new discoveries now fully vindicate the findings of early investigators of psychic phenomena such as Sir William Crookes, Sir Oliver Lodge, John Logie Baird, Arthur Findlay, Dr. Glen Hamilton, and many other prestigious scientific truth-seekers. After years of research, each of these experimenters declared unequivocally that life continues, endures, and advances on the next levels of existence.

Baird, a television pioneer, and inventor of the infrared camera, contacted the "deceased" Thomas A. Edison through a medium, and a discussion of the infrared camera followed. Later, Baird made the following statement: "I have witnessed some very startling phenomena under circumstances which make trickery out of the question...I am convinced that discoveries of far-reaching importance remain waiting along these shadowy and discredited paths."

Fittingly, efforts in Britain are now underway to embark on a project to employ an infrared camera that will scientifically measure and record phenomena produced during experiments, including the videotaping of recently deceased persons. Many early investigators were given a very rough time by fellow scientists and the media. This holds especially true for Crookes. In 1874, he published the results of his four years of experiments dealing with a wide variety of unexplained phenomena. The report described many well-documented appearances, in the presence of Florence Cook, a materialization medium, of a spirit entity by the name of Katie King. Immediately upon publication of these findings, he became the target of infuriated detractors. After Crookes' death in 1919, his enemies even went so far as to accuse him of being sexually obsessed with Cook, and collaborating with her in faking evidence of psychic phenomena. These cowardly attacks were directed at one of the most distinguished scientists of the nineteenth century, a Fellow of the Royal Society, later it's President, and the discoverer of the chemical element Thallium.

Although Crookes had become convinced of the reality of etheric communications long before beginning work with the medium (he began his research by investigating the numerous psychic phenomena associated with D. D. Hume), these unfounded and unproven allegations, many of them outright lies, have persisted into our own time. They have muddied the waters of paranormal investigation, and discouraged other scientists from following in Crookes' footsteps.

This is in spite of the reams of documentation of the many paranormal occurrences, including numerous appearances of the aforementioned discarnate entity, which occurred throughout Crookes' investigation. Conclusive photographs are part of the record, and the authenticity of the phenomena has been verified by a number of independent witnesses. Some of these witnesses were themselves brilliant and esteemed scientists of the era, one of note being Cromwell F. Varley, an early researcher into ionization phenomena, and supervisor of the initial laying of the Atlantic Cable.

Another investigator, Dr. Glen Hamilton, MD, of Winnipeg, Canada, a member of the Canadian Parliament and long-time psychic researcher, carried out later experiments which closely paralleled Crookes', and achieved comparable results. His research sessions were also marked by manifestations of, and communication with discarnate entities. All of these occurred under closely-controlled, replicable, conditions, including a battery of fifteen flash cameras which photographed the apparitions from all angles simultaneously. Scientific observers who were present at these experiments included four other doctors, two lawyers, and two engineers. All of these witnesses stated unequivocally that "time after time, we saw dead persons materialize." In well over a century, there has never been an explanation put forth for these hundreds of scientifically validated manifestations and communications being anything other than what the experimenters claimed them to be, that is, paranormal, or "psychic" phenomena.

Roll balks at the term "psychic," however, preferring instead to talk of "sub-atomic" phenomena. This he perceives as beginning with the separation of the human mind from its bodily shell, a natural and universal function that takes place at the end of physical life.

The mind, retaining all of the memories, emotions, and intellect that it possessed on the material plane, then moves on to its next level of existence. This event occurs without regard for an individual's religious belief and/or good behavior, or lack of the same, during his or her physical existence.

The term "sub-atomic" refers to the many particles that compose the atom. There are over two hundred of these so far discovered, in addition to the generally well known electrons, protons, and neutrons. An electron is part of a family known as leptons. Its companion protons and neutrons are constructed of a similar sub-atomic group known as quarks. It has been postulated by a number of physicists that another sub-atomic particle, the neutrino, may account for ninety percent of the previously "missing" matter in the universe.

All of these particles possess properties and exhibit behavior which remains inexplicable in the context of conventional physics, and there are strong indications that they may furnish an explanation for the numerous phenomena which are characteristic of the so-called "etheric body." According to the group's premise, both the human body and its etheric personality, the essence of human consciousness that endures after the physical ceases to operate, are composed of various sub-atomic particles. When the etheric portion detaches from the physical, in the event known as "death," it remains energized by these same particles, which, in their new state, are now able to impart to it powers and abilities unknown, and even unimaginable, in our material world. Under certain conditions, discarnate entities manifesting on the material plane can appear and disappear at will, speak, respond, and even be grasped and held by those present at controlled experiments.

In Roll's view, there is nothing "supernatural" or "paranormal" about these appearances, which he sees as merely proving the ongoing existence of human consciousness and personality beyond the end of physical life. He blames certain religious denominations and national political leaders, pandering to their own interests by keeping the masses in ignorance, for this information on sub-atomic phenomena as it impacts upon survival not being more widely circulated and available to the general public. To aid Roll's efforts in disseminating this evidence, an impressive array of scientists, physicists, and university professors have lent him support and made public their own research findings, all of which bear out the validity of his assertions.

The late Professor Abdus Salam was a Nobel Laureate and Director of the International Centre for Theoretical Physics, who was awarded an honorary knighthood. After reviewing the results of investigations by the savants, he gave Roll numerous monetary contributions from his own pocket, as well as a sizable grant from the Foundation, to help him spread the word of these exciting discoveries that verify the truth of ongoing life beyond the physical level.

R. D. Pearson, BSc, another of Roll's scientific collabarators, is a former university lecturer and engineer whose specialty is thermodynamics and fluid mechanics. He has written a book, "Intelligence Behind The Universe," along with a companion booklet, "Colossus," and an accompanying appendix of mathematical proof. These purport to explain the cosmic force that drives the phenomenom of continuing life, and mathematically back up the experiments of Crookes and Hamilton. Put quite simply, Pearson sees post-mortem survival of the human psyche as one of many functions of a multi-dimensional, multi-universal, sub-atomic grid matrix, on which all forms of life exist, and which sustains the etheric, as well as the physical consciousness of all living organisms. In this model, physical materializations of so-called "dead" persons, and even deceased animals, are but the temporary merging of two different frequencies, or wave-lengths, from two discrete levels of the grid, somewhat similar to when more than one radio broadcast is picked up on the same dial setting.

Pearson furnishes full mathematical proof for his postulations, which may one day be looked upon as the key that finally unlocked the door to universal awareness of the reality of discarnate existence. One of the roadblocks to scientific acceptance of this "grid theory" (which is considerably more complex than the above simplified outline) has been the existence of Einstein's Theory of Relativity, parts of which seemed to negate Pearson's hypothesis. However, Doctor Louis Essen, a Fellow of the Royal Society, and inventor of the atomic clock, informed Pearson that he has found significant errors in Einstein's calculations.

This recent discovery by Doctor Essen is in accord with a statement made by Einstein himself on his seventieth birthday: "There is not a single concept of which I am convinced that it will stand firm, and I am not sure if I was on the right track after all." Over the past several years, other physicists and cosmologists worldwide have also come to the general agreement that "Einstein's laws contain some flaws." As a result of this consensus, they are examining certain discrepancies that have been found in Einstein's work, and are formulating other premises to account for specific occurrences in quantum physics that cannot be explained by his theories.

Pearson is confident that his "grid theory" corrects some of the discrepant data in Einstein's works, and that it will withstand close examination and criticism by fellow physicists and cosmologists. In his book, he calls for seven experimental checks to be made which he is certain will return positive results and affirm his conclusions. Pearson has made several trips to Russia to present his theories. After extensive investigation and review, they were fully accepted by the physicists and scientists of that country, and Russian physics textbooks are in the process of being revised to reflect his new and exciting discoveries in sub-atomic physics. One of the strongest points in their favor is the fact that they have been shown not to conflict with the proven realities of quantum mechanics, as do many of Einstein's theories.

Sam Nicholls, MSc, an astrophysics graduate of Leeds University, and a fellow researcher into sub-atomic phenomena, concurs with Pearson's findings. He has further postulated that so-called "deceased" entities, although composed of slightly different atomic components, exist in, and share the same space with, incarnate persons. He states: "Like the physical universe, their world would likewise be composed of sub-atomic particles, but these may be in much closer vibrational harmony with the all-pervading "grid" than their physical counterparts."

In one context of observation, this grid itself could be seen as the Creator-Sustainer of All Things for a number of parallel but separate universes. This premise does not, however, negate the possibility of an even higher, ultimate, Intelligence behind the grid.

Another British astrophysicist and sub-atomic researcher, Michael Scott, BSc, a graduate of Edinburgh University, cites Niels Bohr's "Copenhagen Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics" as seeming to actually require the existence of consciousness as a non-material extension to space-time. Scott makes the point that sub-atomic physics, as explored by he and other researchers worldwide, no longer views the building blocks of the universe as discrete particles of solid substance, but rather as vague, wavelike structures whose existence borders on the ethereal. Scott further states that: "The advancement of quantum physics has produced a description of reality which allows the existence of parallel universes. Composed of real substance, they would not interact directly with matter from our universe."

Professor Fred Alan Wolfe, although not a member of the British group, seems to concur with their findings in his book "Mind and the New Physics". In it he states that "as fantastic as it may sound, the 'new physics' called quantum mechanics posits that there exists, side by side with this world, another world, a parallel universe, a duplicate copy that is somehow slightly different and yet the same. And not just two parallel worlds, but three, four, and even more...! In each of these universes, you, I, and all the others who live, have lived, will live, and will have ever lived, are alive."

These radical concepts of quantum physics and the ephemeral state of perceived reality as it impacts human existence beyond physical life have spurred attacks on the researchers from many quarters. These include certain members of the clergy, spiritualists, other scientists, and professional "skeptics." Roll, as spokesman for the group, has drawn the wrath of religionists and spiritualists by his denial that belief in a supreme being is a necessary condition for next-world survival. His assertion that religious faith, or lack of it, is irrelevant in the context of continuing afterlife has placed him in direct conflict with the established churches, especially certain Christian denominations, and some of his fiercest foes are to be found in this camp.

It seems particularly ironic that Christian sects are in the forefront of opposition to the sharing of these findings. The reported teachings of Jesus, whose doctrines are the foundation of their beliefs, are all based on the existence of another life beyond the present. Many thinking persons feel that these new discoveries in sub-atomic physics give credence to all those who, since the advent of human consciousness, have taught survival of death, and in addition, eliminate the necessity of belief through faith alone. This point is made by Pearson when he states, "People need to be made aware that their religious faiths have a base strongly supportable by modern physics. There is no longer any reason to think of science and religion as basically incompatible." Roll expected strong opposition from the churches, but sees it as paradoxical that certain British spiritualist organizations have also joined in denouncing his views. The very core of spiritualism has always been a belief in the reality of contact with departed entities, and many survivalists of the past, especially the great historian and researcher Arthur Findlay, have made important and lasting contributions to research dealing with these contacts. Roll's charges, which are backed by correspondence of record with several Spiritualist groups, are that their present day members have abandoned the rationalist philosophy of Findlay and other pioneers. They have instead tended to side with organized religion in asserting that belief in a monotheistic "God" is a vital part of the spiritualist creed. To refute the concept that faith in a supreme being is necessary for afterlife salvation from eternal punishment, Roll states unequivocally that life continues on in the next dimension without divine intervention or retribution, regardless of one's religious beliefs or lack thereof. In addition to the findings of his colleagues, he bases this statement on personal communications with discarnate entities with whom he has spoken, and even held and embraced, including a "deceased" member of his immediate family.

From information received through these contacts, he describes the afterworld as having many of the same conditions that are found on this physical plane. One significant difference seems to be that the environment experienced by each person is wholly dependent upon that individual's behavior while incarnate. Punishment for wrongdoing, if any, is meted out to oneself by oneself, after undergoing a review of the past physical life. There are infinite and varying levels of existence, and advancement to higher planes is within the reach of every inhabitant of those realms. Roll outlines his philosophy in a quote from his booklet "The Physicists' and Rationalists' Case for Survival After the Death of Our Physical Bodies:" "Dying is as natural as being born; we all pass into the next world whether we like it or not. There is no special place reserved for Christians or members of any other sect. There are no social strata or racial barriers. We all graduate to the level we have earned by the development of our characters."

Conspicuously missing from this scenario is that favorite authority figure of religious fundamentalists, the "Big Daddy God," a stern judge who summarily sentences some souls to eternal fire as punishment for alleged "sins", while raising others to eternal glory as a reward for belief in "Him." Mention of this deity is found nowhere in the numerous accounts by discarnate entities of life in their world. The Creator of the Universe, whoever or whatever he/she or it may be, seems to be a much more loving and compassionate being than literal interpreters of the Bible can conceive of. Opposition from certain establishment scientists to this view of after-death survival as a natural function of sub-atomic processes has also been strong. In spite of Lord Kelvin's statement that "Science is bound by the everlasting law of honour to face fearlessly every problem which can fairly be presented to it," some scientists have refused to even look at Pearson's data, or review the hypotheses of the other researchers.

Adrian Berry, Science Correspondent of the "Daily Telegraph," has framed this attitude perfectly by stating in print that "few subjects more infuriate scientists than claims of paranormal phenomena, because, if confirmed, the whole fabric of science would be threatened." Although obviously not Berry's intention, these words make a crucial point for the embattled researchers.

Roll's response to Berry is that "nothing can threaten true science, which in essence is the unceasing search for knowledge, and that observed and verifiable facts call for an explanation of their cause, no matter how uncomfortable the eventual solution may be for it's discoverers." He equates such reluctance to explore new vistas with past suppression of uncomfortable ideas and discoveries, as when the brilliant researcher Giordano Bruno was murdered by the Catholic Church for daring to assert that "There are many suns, with many planets circling them. The priests and so-called "scientists" of Galileo's day refused to look through his telescope, because of fear that what they might observe would overturn their cherished and antiquated beliefs.

Even the ubiquitous James "The Amazing" Randi, erstwhile magician and member of the "Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal," (although he has been forced to resign from this organization due to legal problems stemming from character defamation suits brought against him) has taken it upon himself to attack the premise of scientific verification of continuing post-mortem existence. His nose was figuratively bloodied during an encounter with Sam Nicholls, however, when the astrophysicist, as a member of the audience of a television show, stood up and publicly challenged Randi's assertions. The magician quickly ordered the cameras of Granada Television Studio switched off before they could record Nicholls' words.

Since there is no separation of church and state in Britain, religious opposition there has, until very recently, made it difficult for Roll to air his findings and those of his colleagues. As an example of this church-state integration, the law demands that an "act of Christian worship" be performed daily in every school throughout the land!

Also, British laws have not always favored Roll's attempts to disseminate his views in the media. One example of this mental harassment is an incident which would be unimaginable in the USA. Because of a clause in the Broadcasting Act, the host of a radio show on which Roll appeared and championed the existence of subatomic phenomena as a natural law, while denying it's divine origin, was threatened with being reported to the IBA, (the British counterpart of the Federal Communications Commission) if Roll ever again appeared on his show. The courageous broadcaster was not intimidated, and his publicizing of the threat resulted in increased demand by listeners for more information on the subject, which led to Roll ultimately being invited back on the air without fear of sanctions. These and other restrictions have worked as deterrents to the free dissemination of information on sub-atomic phenomena, but the situation is rapidly changing.

Lately, likely due to public pressure, Roll has been allowed to air his views more freely, and has been appearing on a series of radio broadcasts, where he was able to reveal the far-reaching discoveries of his colleagues with a minimum of restrictions. He also gives numerous lectures throughout the UK and in Europe, and recently formed the Campaign for Philosophical Freedom to further disseminate the truth about ongoing life in etheric realms. As word of these exciting and factual affirmations of heretofore only hoped-for afterlife existence spreads, the public is showing its strong interest in life after death by ever-increasing attendance at lectures and programs given by Roll and his associates. They are demanding more information, as well as the lowering of all remaining barriers to free and open discussion of the matter. In future years, it is likely that the present times will be looked back upon as the dawning of a new Renaissance in humankind's perception of both the physical and non-physical worlds alike.

A quote from Arthur Schopenhauer describes the current situation in the study of sub-atomic physics as it relates to ongoing life now being at the second stage, and nearing the third: "Any unexplained phenomenon passes through three stages before the reality of it is accepted. During the first stage it is considered laughable. During the second stage, it is adamantly opposed. Finally, during the third stage, it is accepted as self-evident."

2006-11-06T08:48:00.000-08:00

Winter 2003 AA-EVP NewsJournal
From Our Viewpoint--Survival

By Tom and Lisa Butler

World events are very unpredictable these days. If we think about it, this is often the case, as we never really know what tomorrow will bring. One thing that is of great comfort to most of the members of the AA-EVP is the knowledge that we don’t die. Now we are finding that more people are joining the ranks of the AA-EVP who share our belief in survival. Some of these people, you may be surprised to know, are respected scientists.

In the last couple of years we have seen an increase of the public interest in mediums and survival, due in a large part to the success of TV programs like that of John Edward and James Van Praagh. These mediums bring in messages that are very evidential and millions more people today are learning about survival through their television sets then were just two years ago.

Dr. Gary Schwartz, at the Human Energy Systems Laboratory in Tucson

The International Association for Near-Death Studies held their Fourth Esalen conference on Survival of Bodily Death, in May of 2002. Researchers from the fields of psychiatry, anthropology, psychology and physics concluded that three areas of research provided strong evidence for survival. Near Death Experiences (NDE) was at the top of the list. Reasons sited were, accurate observations of medical operating procedures made by clinically dead patients, reported encounters with deceased persons even though the experiencer did not know the person was dead and accurate reports by blind experiencers. Reincarnation was cited as a strong proof for survival based on examples, such as children accurately recounting previous lives and birthmarks corresponding to lethal wounds experienced in a previous lifetime. Mediumship was also noted as strong proof of survival because of the veridical messages often delivered by mediums.

Dr. Sam Parnia is one of two doctors from Southampton General Hospital in England who has been studying NDEs. The work is very significant in that it shows that a group of people who were clinically dead had well-structured, lucid thought processes with reasoning and memory formation, even though their brains were shown not to be functioning. Parnia was quoted as saying, “The possibility is certainly there to suggest that consciousness, or the soul, keeps thinking and reasoning even if a person‘s heart has stopped, he is not breathing and his brain activity is nil”

Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands was published in volume number 358 of The Lancet. The Lancet is one of the world’s most respected medical journals and publication of this article caused quite an uproar in the medical community. The article cites a study by Dr. Pim van Lommel and colleagues of Rijnstate Hospital in Arnhem. The results showed that medical factors could not account for the occurrence of NDEs. Although all patients had been clinically dead, most did not have an NDE. The researchers noted that, “If purely physiological factors had caused the NDE, most of our patients should have had this experience.” The paper states that induced NDE experiences are not identical to spontaneous NDE experiences. It questions, “How can clear consciousness outside one’s body be experienced at the moment that the brain no longer functions during a period of clinical death with flat EEG?”

A National Science Foundation report based on interviews with 1,574 people across the country found widespread and increasing belief in what it terms, “pseudoscience.” It also cited several other polls with similar conclusions. Among those was a Gallup survey last year that showed belief in ghosts, haunted houses, witches and the ability to communicate with the dead, all increased by double-digit percentage points in the past decade alone. Belief in ghosts and haunted houses is now around 40 percent, and communicating with the dead is nearing 30 percent. Eight of 13 such phenomena included in the Gallup report showed significant increases and only the belief in devil possession declined. The Science Foundation survey showed that sixty-percent of the people surveyed believed that some people possess psychic powers or ESP.

Those of us who are doing research in EVP and ITC, not only have the advantage of knowing that consciousness survives but we also get to hear and see our loved ones. For instance, in our last Video ITC experiment, we asked for the first time to have a relative appear. We called on Tom’s father and asked him to appear in the middle of a frame. Amazing enough, he came through in the center of the frame as requested. Interestingly, his pose is the same as that in a picture Tom keeps at his desk. When we saw the paranormal picture we immediately grabbed the picture off Tom’s desk for the comparison. As you can see in the accompanying picture, the nose is distorted and enlarged. Also, from the nose down the face is mostly lost in the noise that is created with the Video ITC method. However, you should be able to make out the similarity of the eyebrows, high temple, distinctive widow’s peak and nose.

Tom and Lisa

2006-11-05T19:22:00.000-08:00

We all should be open-minded skeptics and for psychic phenomena indicative of life after death, only accept the theory that there is survival of consciousness after physical death when theories along normal lines and/or ESP fail to account for all of the evidence.

∙ There is no doubt that in a relatively short period of time, science has made great strides in understanding the physical world. Because of this, many people believe that if presently there is not a scientific explanation for something, it is not a question of if it will be explained by science but a matter of when. Applying this to the various paranormal phenomena, these people believe science will either have a complete explanation in the future or it is just a deception of some sort. Generally speaking, there is strong evidence for some of the psychic phenomena but not to the point where it can be accepted as fact.

The extreme skeptics of the paranormal have a tendency to refute the least credible of paranormal examples; they seldom try to take on the best evidence and if they do they do not give very credible alternative explanations. To do the former, is easy, the latter, near impossible. They also unfairly (and unscientifically I might add) tend to group all of the paranormal together and reject it all. For instance, mediums communicating with the dead could be true but this has no relation with astrology being true or not - the two are independent of one another but this gets lost on some of the extreme skeptics in their overall outlook.

In fact, with the paranormal as it relates to life after death, there clearly are many cases of both deliberate deception (as we would expect due to the nature of the subject) and where there are alternative explanations. But these are not the cases we need to be scrutinizing to determine if they constitute evidence for life after death - although this is unfortunately what some skeptics do to present their conclusions against the paranormal. The cases that have no other plausible conventional explanation are the ones that need to be held to the test.

∙ Some people will believe paranormal activity at face value with even the weakest of evidence. On the other hand, there are skeptics who are very closed-minded and biased and will not even allow for the possibility, no matter how convincing the evidence. A good example showing the mindset of a certain group of ultra-skeptical individuals who refuse to accept any paranormal explanation is the following quote from an August 27, 2001 article in the online magazine Salon.com interview with Michael Shermer editor-in-chief of Skeptic Magazine (the publication in the United Kingdom which has ultra-skeptical academics as its contributors, etc.):

"If we asked, what would it take for me to believe in ESP? Would it take a single experiment? How about 10 statistically significant experiments in which the guy picked the right playing card? That still wouldn't quite do it because there's no way to understand how this could possibly happen in the brain. We understand how neurons and brain centers work but we don't know how something would transmit through space out of your skull into somebody else's skull. So those guys need to come up with some mechanism to explain it."

So even if the best explanation is a paranormal one, ultra-skeptics will not accept it because they do not understand the underlying mechanism for it.

∙ Most psychic occurrences are spontaneous and therefore hard to test under laboratory conditions. Ultra-skeptical scientists start with the assumption that something which contravenes the laws of science (as they are currently understood), cannot occur. They are not open to the possibility of non-material mechanisms explaining the data. Their lack of belief is a form of belief in itself.

In science, a new scientific statement is only accepted if it either agrees with established scientific laws or replaces rival statements with superior evidence and theory. Psychic phenomena clearly don't fit the first and haven't succeeded so far in the second. Not to make excuses for it, but due to it's nature, what is needed is a new framework to examine the claims for the various psychic phenomena rather than the existing limiting experimental science we have. Of course, ultra-skeptical scientists would rather not do anything that might accommodate anything to do with the paranormal and would therefore reject any such suggestions.

The logic of scientific inquiry must always allow for the possibility that the existing scientific laws are incomplete or even wrong.

Science is what we always need to use as the basis to start with, and if it fails to explain the phenomena, only then should we go outside of mainstream science and look at the possibility of paranormal explanations.

∙ William James was interested in the possibility of psychic phenomena. He believed it is sufficient to find one indisputable example of psychic occurrence to demonstrate that violations of natural law as we understand it is possible. He summed it up with the well known quotation from his book: "In order to disprove the law that all crows are black, it is enough to find one white crow." Thus, psychic researchers are always trying to find a "white crow".

Near Death Experience

Medical and psychological explanations for the near death experience (NDE) have been given but they are speculative and fall short of explaining the entire phenomenon.

∙ The temporal lobe in the brain is the area where NDE's are experienced. If one doesn't believe we have a soul, then you are stuck trying to explain why we have an area of our brain which allows us to experience an NDE. Some will say it is there from an evolutionary standpoint to ease a person through the dying process. But this cannot be so because there is no survival advantage to thinking that you are leaving your body at the point of death. Possibly it is an advantage to people witnessing the death since the dying person will not appear to be struggling, although just prior to experiencing the NDE, the person is for visible practical purposes, already dead. Still this is not a trait that could be passed on in any preferential way.

® In fact the NDE is actually against evolutionary survival - it is a state which is highly pleasurable (in most cases) from which one would not necessarily want to escape from. If there were no NDE for the dying person, then they would fight death as much as possible instead of succumbing to it. And in fighting it, would be more likely to survive.

∙ In the NDE going through a dark tunnel may be explained by the cut-off of blood to the occipital lobes at the back of the brain. Entering a world of darkness makes sense for a dying brain to which sensory input has been stopped. But what explains the brilliant light and emotions filled with such bliss after the darkness? Hardly what you would expect a dying brain to produce.

It could be possible that God may have made our brains so that they allow us to experience the NDE so that we can make a smoother transition from this life to the next.

One explanation given by scientists is that the NDE is a universal recall of the birth experience - travel down the birth canal (dark tunnel) and ending up in bright light at the moment of delivery. The problems with this theory are patients born of caesarian section are reported to have this NDE and the bright light upon entering the world is hardly a wonderful experience (that's why the baby cries so much). Also, a babies eyes are closed during birth and it is not known what the baby experiences. And why would humans undergo a repeat of the experience when dying?

∙ The explanation of particular chemicals being in the brain at death as being the reason for the positive NDE doesn't explain why some people experience a hellish (or negative) NDE (10-15% of cases). If the NDE were 'hard-wired' into our brains, we would expect them all (except for the odd anomaly) to be of the same type.

When traits of the NDE are induced in people in experiments (note: all aspects of the NDE have never been induced collectively to the best of my knowledge), the resulting experiences are not well remembered. The actual NDE is of great clarity and vividly recalled well into the future which is the opposite of what one would expect if it were just a dying or impaired brain.

There is commonly a spiritual transformation in the person who has experienced the NDE which has not been explained in any other way nor repeated in laboratory experiments. This profound transformation simply cannot be replicated in a drug-induced state and this suggests it is likely more than just brain chemistry at work.

∙ The explanation that the NDE is caused by carbon dioxide overload or oxygen starvation, even if it were possible, is inadequate because many NDE's occur without either of these conditions present.

∙ There has not been a plausible alternative explanation for the out of body experience (OBE) that often occurs with NDE's. This is probably the single most convincing component of the NDE to suggest the NDE is exactly what people who experience it claim it to be - a round trip to the 'other side'.

A sensation that one is leaving or has left ones body has been replicated in laboratory conditions without such actually taking place (without undergoing a NDE). However, having an OBE and obtaining information otherwise not attainable (eg. from another room) has not been replicated under laboratory inducement. And there is no reason to believe it can be without it actually taking place as a real OBE.

With OBE's, some do occur when the person is not near death. Persons have reported leaving their bodies and going to some other place (sometimes distant) that is out of range of their normal senses and observed and later reported on events (such as a conversation between two people) that they could not have learned about by normal means. In a small number of cases, the person experiencing the OBE may be 'seen' by another person at the place where the experiencer had claimed they had been (these cases are referred to as "reciprocal").

Even better evidence for life after death is the veridical NDE in which the person undergoing it acquires information not known to them prior that could not have been obtained by normal means and is later verified to be correct. The experiencer may see events at some other location (for example, another room in the hospital they are in). Or the person might meet a deceased loved one who communicates information unknown previously to the person undergoing the NDE which is later verified to be correct. For example, after coming back the report that a brother met them on the other side who they never knew about. Afterwards, upon further investigation, they find out such a person did exist but died very young and they were never told about them.

Entities (ghosts, poltergeists, spirits, angels, etc.)

∙ Entities are reported in all cultures and parts of the world and have been throughout the ages independently of the knowledge that they have been observed elsewhere. This makes their existence, that much more probable.

∙ They could be just mortal life forms that exist on a different physical plane. Or they could be apparitions (when physical conditions such as temperature, humidity, wind, etc. are just right, the entity 'appears' because the physical factors produce it). It is possible, as hypothesized by some, that a magnetic field in the rock or stone at the haunting site could act much like videotape does in saving and replaying a previous history there. Though ghosts do seem to be connected to an individual who previously died in the same physical location. Also, sensing smell and touch as well as sight and sound from entities is very strong evidence that these are not just apparitions. And they do appear differently in space and form under varying conditions.

Some ghost sightings can be explained away as being hallucinations. However, many cannot. For example, where there has been more than one person seeing the ghost at the same time or when someone else reports a similar or exactly the same sighting at a later time (especially when they have no prior knowledge of the previous sighting so there is no expectation that one will experience such and therefore they are not simply hallucinating what someone else has already seen). The same applies to paranormal activity in general.

∙ There could be a 5th dimension (beyond the 3 dimensions of space and 1 of time; note that string theory predicts 10 or 11 dimensions depending on the version) or other dimensions that could contain the spirit world. Entities may be able to travel back and forth from the other side (or this other dimension). They may not be trapped here as is often assumed about ghosts and only 'visit' us in order to convey a message(s) - the major theme possibly being that there is a continuation of the spirit after physical death.

∙ If we could somehow physically measure the presence of entities, that would be evidence for their existence in this world. Though one could argue that since they are not part of this world this would not be possible. They may have an energy field unknown to physics as we currently understand it and which is similar to or the same as would be for a soul. Because we haven't yet discovered it or understand it, doesn't mean it doesn't exist. This energy form could be analogous to say electromagnetic radiation.

∙ Though it is a very remote possibility, time travel, has not yet been dismissed as being theoretically impossible by physicists. Thus, it has been suggested that ghosts could be time travellers from the future (and probably not from earth) who have travelled back in time. Of course this is very far fetched and the fact ghosts 'haunt' places often for centuries and mischief by poltergeists would not make sense either.

∙ Poltergeist activity may be the result of psychokinesis. This is the influencing of matter by the mind(s) of people in the environment (this is done unconsciously). The paranormal activity results from the minds of the people moving objects, etc. without knowing they are. Though very unlikely, it is still an alternate explanation to that of an entity known as a poltergeist being responsible.

∙ There are many cases of people reporting to have seen a life like apparition of a relative or friend at the time the person is dying or just died in cases where the living person does not receive news of the death (or even have any prior knowledge the person is in poor health or danger) until sometime after the sighting. This is known as a crisis apparition. This appears to be more common when the two persons (the one seeing the apparition and the just deceased) are physically far apart (eg. on different continents) - as if it is more imperative to let the loved one know that they have passed on otherwise they may not find out until too much time has elapsed.

∙ People have reported contact with angels who have come to guide them.

∙ Exorcisms have 'removed' ghosts, poltergeists, and evil spirits. The latter most commonly from inside living peoples bodies. This suggests that these entities exist.

∙ The following table summarizes some of the senses that are affected and changes in the environment in the presence of entities. What we need to ask is (1) Have more than one of these been observed simultaneously? and (2) Has the sensing or activity been repeated with variations (eg. in type of sound, location, etc.)? If the answers are yes, then this would probably be sufficient evidence for the existence of entities which are not merely apparitions.
SENSE/ACTIVITY POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATION COMMENTS

Sight Apparition

Not likely explanation since not static; appears under different conditions. Most often (almost always when can be validated historically) like that of a deceased person connected to the location
Smell None? Typically of a short duration unlike normal smells which linger
Sound Apparition Not likely explanation since not always the same in type, intensity, duration, or location
Poltergeist Activity Some life form or type of energy (but not that of a deceased person or animal) not known to us Alternative explanation cannot be ruled out. Psychokinesis also a possibility
Touch See Poltergeist Activity Alternative explanation cannot be ruled out
Temperature Drop " " " Alternative explanation cannot be ruled out
Orb Activity " " " Alternative explanation cannot be ruled out

Exorcism is usually effective against all of the above and psychic mediums seem to validate the existence of the spirit of a deceased person connected to that location. This person is typically confirmed through the historical record. The alternate explanations would be that the medium is providing this additional information (including the spirits name commonly) by either (1) engaging in fraud by obtaining this information beforehand, (2) 'picking up' thoughts or memories or tapping into a 'pool of consciousness' for the universe if such a thing exists, or (3) external manipulation by alien beings or demons. The explanation that ghosts are the spirits of deceased persons might be the only plausible one. Especially considering the fact that more than one (or even all) of the above senses affected have been known to occur simultaneously.

Most likely, some ghost sightings are apparitions or hallucinations or even fraud; some may be the result of some type of natural phenomena; and some may indeed be the spirits of people who once lived there and occasionally return/still reside there.

Reincarnation

An excellent thorough overview (about 14 pages) of this subject is given on Victor Zammit's website (Link: http://www.victorzammit.com/book/chapter24.html). I am currently working on my own study of reincarnation and will have my comments on this site up in the near future. Until then I recommend the above link. However, I do have some of my own thoughts on reincarnation as follows:

∙ Telepathy would not seem a plausible explanation for recall of past lives because the people recalling them do not have any extraordinary powers that are otherwise known about (ie. have not demonstrated such in any other ways). Reincarnation is a much better explanation than telepathy since the past lives are remembered as actually being lived through the eyes of the person remembering them. Another telepathic way in which a person could get this information is by 'picking up' memories after the person from who the memories originate had died by way of these memories still 'floating around' to be picked up by someone. But unless young children are somehow better able to 'pick up' these memories, it wouldn't account for the fact that young children are more likely to have past life memories. It should be expected that all age groups are equally as likely to have them.

If reincarnation is what it appears to be, then the fact that the ability to recall past lives declines with age could be accounted for. The youngest children who can communicate verbally are the ones who are most likely to have this ability. This is because the brain shuts down the door on past lives as we grow older. A spiritual explanation for having these memories might be that they ease the transition into this new life and to instill in one that the life ahead of you to live has a purpose.

If it exists, super ESP (the passing of large amounts of information from one person to another) could account for past life memories but not for skills which have to be acquired through practice such as the speaking of a new language (actually, more accurately, language requires both the obtaining of new information and practice to develop the skill of speaking the language). Thus, it is highly unlikely that xenoglossy (in cases suggestive of reincarnation, speaking in a language without having learned it by normal means) could be accounted for by super ESP.

∙ Fraud could be perpetuated on the part of the investigator in these cases - but to do this would typically require the collusion of the subject and their family and many witnesses. This would be quite a feat to pull off with several cases.

∙ Possession by a spirit as an explanation would still be indirect evidence for life after death. Possession or manipulation by aliens is also a very remote possibility.

∙ Though extremely unlikely, a combination of these alternative explanations is also possible - two or more explanations other than reincarnation accounting for the observations.

∙ Child prodigies like Mozart, who was composing music by the age of 5, are hard to explain from conventional wisdom. How could someone develop such a talent so quickly? Possibly, they have brought this 'developed' talent with them from a previous life?

∙ If we assume homosexual preference is roughly 1 in 25 or 30 of the general population, then this is probably too prevalent to be considered a genetic defect. Neither would this be a genetic trait passed on to subsequent generations because of its very nature, it reduces offspring produced. It is not probable that homosexuality is a learned behaviour as it has always had a stigma attached to it throughout cultures. Therefore, we may be only left with 'instinct' as the explanation for it by default. It may be possible that a homosexual person in the present life was of the opposite gender in the previous life and somehow did not make the adaption to the gender of their body in the current life within the necessary window.

∙ If we humans do have souls, would it not be only fair and just that animals do also? With reincarnation being true, then this would likely automatically follow. This makes better logical sense than does only humans possessing souls.

In fact, higher life forms did not appear right away on earth possibly because there weren't souls progressed enough to occupy them at the time. These souls might have had to start from 'scratch' and life on earth advanced along with the souls. Thus, man only appeared recently. The Creator may have chosen not to create what we might call perfect souls and instead had them improve through their own free will. It might even be that such perfect souls cannot be created for some reason we do not know.

∙ If there is life somewhere else in the universe and it is more advanced than us, it could be possible that this alien life could be 'higher up' than us in the reincarnation ladder. For some of us, this may even be our next incarnation.

∙ Typically, identical twins have quite similar but still different personalities though they are identical genetically. The scientific explanation for the personality differences is that these can be accounted for by environmental factors starting with their different positions in the womb. But often there is little difference in environmental factors and even Siamese twins, who for practical purposes have no differences in environmental influence and social experiences (other than position in the womb in case it might be a significant factor which seems quite unlikely), can often possess quite different personality traits. Possibly, the differing underlying personalities of each of the souls may account for the variations?

∙ An argument against reincarnation is that the population explosion over the past century or so would not have had a sufficient number of souls for the number of people born in that time unless they were created as needed from 'scratch' which would not make sense from a reincarnation standpoint because that would mean these 'brand new' souls would be less advanced ones than the average and therefore we would have seen a large deterioration in the 'quality' of human beings which we cannot say has been observed. The actual fact is that the best estimates show more humans have died than are now living. However, if many of these souls have been born into human form several times previously on earth, there could be a 'shortage' of the necessary souls to accommodate the population explosion. But what is more likely is that even if no new souls were to be created, there is a 'pool' of souls somewhere in the afterlife which is much greater than needed to supply human bodies on earth and these souls could allow for unlimited population growth on earth. Also, souls may incarnate from this pool to other worlds as well as earth so it could be possible souls on earth may have had previous incarnations in other worlds unknown to us (and vice versa). Finally, possibly some souls may have advanced to taking human form from that of prior animal ones as taught by some religions.

∙ Unlike for reincarnation, evidence for lives lived between lives is very limited. Michael Newton is one of the few people who claims to have collected such evidence from patients while they are in an extreme hypnotic state. He has also had subjects who report lives lived on other planets while under this same state. His first book on the subject was "Journey of Souls" and the subsequent follow up book is "Destiny of Souls".

Communications with the Dead

Psychic mediums like John Edward (TV show "Crossing Over" which is no longer on the air) and James Van Praagh (TV show "Beyond" which is no longer on the air) claim to receive messages for people from the departed souls of their deceased relatives and friends. There are 7 possible explanations other than actual communication with deceased souls as follows:

(1) Cold reading. The medium is only giving messages of a little better quality than most people could with some practice. The medium asks leading questions, gives only general information applicable to most people, and other 'trickery' to give the appearance that information is being passed on. If you have watched one of these shows closely, then you would have to conclude this is not the sole method of deceit (if such is taking place) because the quality of correct information that is communicated is too specific.

(2) Warm (eg. information obtained prior by internet search) or Hot (eg. questioning people who know information about the person to be read beforehand) reading. The medium (or resources at his disposal such as staff researchers or investigators) collects information about the person to be read beforehand.

An example of this might be that if show tickets are mailed out, then the show could readily find out information on the audience participants since they know their addresses along with the name of at least one person who will be attending associated with it. However, hot readings are much less likely and harder to obtain for general audience participants than for pre-booked or celebrity readings.

This cannot be the sole explanation because specific information that is only known to the person being read is often given during readings. Also, if hot readings are common practice it is easy to be found out in the process eventually and reported to the media; the fact this has not happened suggests it is unlikely that is is being used to any large extent. (1) and/or (2) is what most skeptics who do not wish to give any credence to any psychic phenomena whatsoever choose to believe as their explanation.

(3) The mediums could be in collusion with the people they are reading. If this were the case, then over the years thousands of people have been given 'successful' readings by some well known mediums. Because so many people would be involved over a long period of time, then we would expect that someone would have 'blown the whistle' by now if this were in fact happening. In addition, this would also mean that people like Larry King and Montel Williams (talk show hosts who regularly bring on mediums to do these type of readings) would have to be 'in on it' - considering how little they would stand to gain and how much they have to lose, we could say this would be very unlikely.

Nevertheless, we cannot rule out that it could possibly explain some (not as well known) mediums but not all mediums and their readings.

(4) Mind reading. Mediums are reading the minds or 'picking up' the thoughts of the people who they are 'connecting' with their loved ones. If this were the case, the medium would most likely just be reading what is on the person's mind at the time but this is not often the case. In addition, the medium relays information which the person could not and does not know at the time and later finds out to be true.

A possible test to see if mediums are reading minds is to have them read subjects who do not speak any language the medium knows or understands. This would not completely rule out mind reading since it might even be possible that mediums can read pure thoughts which transcend any language.

We can effectively rule out mind reading as the sole explanation because of the research done by Dr. Gary Schwartz (presented in his book "The Afterlife Experiments"). He tested mediums and found them to give information about the subjects being read not known to the subjects and later found to be true.

(5) Demons. The mediums may unknowingly be communicating with demons or evil spirits who for whatever reason(s) are posing as the departed souls.

(6) Aliens. A very far-fetched possibility is that the whole process is being manipulated by alien beings who may or may not have created us.

(7) Pool of consciousness. Another highly improbable, but worth considering, possibility is that mediums are somehow 'tapping into' the collective pool of consciousness that may exist in the universe (or even just picking up thoughts 'floating' around connected to the person being read). Of course, the afterlife could also be part of this pool and therefore exists anyway even if the medium is reading into this pool and not directly connecting with the dead.

® If mediums are tapping into such a pool, then they would be consciously engaging in deceit since the information would be coming to them in a different form than what they are leading us to believe (thoughts instead of messages in the form of conversation). If the mediums are just tapping into this pool, then they would somehow need to sort out what information needs to be extracted (which deceased person's life). A reason they may not be doing this is that the departed souls give us information in readings that is from both before and after their passing. This would only make sense if there is a survival of consciousness; otherwise by what mechanism would thoughts associated with a person when they were alive be combined with that since their death?

If the mediums are able to both engage in mind reading or finding out information about the person being read beforehand (warm/hot reading), and then tap into this pool of consciousness, they might fool us.

From my observations of Mr. Edwards and Mr. Van Praagh's TV shows, and also psychic medium Sylvia Browne when she appears on talk shows such as Montel Williams, two or more of (2), (4), and (6) (warm/hot reading, mind reading, and tapping into a pool of consciousness) have to be occurring for a reading to give an explanation other than what the mediums are claiming to be happening. Of course a better test for Mr. Edwards and Mr. Van Praagh is when they appear as guests on "Larry King Live" (as they regularly do) where they do readings for viewers who phone in. Here they are not in a position to find out information about the people to be read beforehand (these people call in to the show just prior to its airing and/or while it is live). Nor is there editing of it as it is a live show (unlike with their own shows where the final production for broadcast will likely only show the best readings and edit out or not show at all the less successful ones). I have not viewed and analyzed a sufficient number of such appearances on Larry King to draw conclusions, although I cannot definitively rule out mind reading by itself from those appearances.

If these mediums can accurately tell people about specific events the departed souls say will happen to them in the future (as they sometimes communicate in readings), then we could rationally rule out all alternate explanations (and their combinations) and accept what these mediums tell us as true (though ruling out alien manipulation is not completely possible).

® Dr. Gary Schwartz, a professor of psychology at the University of Arizona, has conducted a series of experiments on communications with the dead (published in the Journal of the Society for Psychical Research) and is the subject of a book by him ("The Afterlife Experiments"). He concludes that mediums are in fact communicating with departed souls and plans on conducting further experiments in the future.

Of course there are many other mediums who either do not possess this gift to the same degree (probably only a handful do in North America) or not at all. And some we can be reasonably sure are being fraudulent. But we should be careful not to group the best mediums with the mediocre ones or scam artists.

The ultra-skeptics will argue that there is no evidence to support communication with the dead and all information received can be accounted for by (1), (2), and (3). The ultra-skeptics are atheists (though some will claim to be agnostic) and follow a very orthodox approach to science who instead of saying the evidence is not strong enough to support the claims the mediums are making, just dismiss it all as fraud. This is despite the fact they have not been able to make the case for fraud. Alternative explanations such as telepathy are not even considered since these people are too close-minded to even contemplate telepathy might possibly exist. It is good to be a skeptic (I consider myself one) and all should be encouraged to engage in healthy skepticism but to be so stubborn and narrow-minded so that you dismiss anything which does not fit your particular view of the world as simply being fraud is ignorant and self-defeating.

Other

There is no adequate scientific explanation for the vast array of psychic phenomena. It has not been quantified by science, but demands some sort of explanation. Orthodox science would have to make vast changes to it in order to accommodate paranormal evidence into existing scientific theories (and possibly later, scientific laws) - thus it demands such a high degree of authentication of any of the paranormal before it will 'throw out' existing science. Therefore, psychic phenomena which has a spiritual realm to it cannot be refuted just because it does not fit science's limited scope. As far as life after death is concerned, only one case of the various types of life after death suggestive paranormal phenomena has to be true in order for there to be life after death. Some additional psychic phenomena not already discussed are presented below.

∙ Electronic voice phenomena (to be elaborated on further soon).

∙ ESP and remote viewing (clairvoyance) have been tested and shown to have some evidence for them, although not strong enough to be considered proof for their existence.

∙ People having premonitions of bad events prior to their occurrence and as a result are often able to avoid a negative outcome.

∙ Also, the brain may be a 'reducing valve'. Something that eliminates from a souls consciousness all that serves no purpose in the present life. Thus when the brain dies, the reducing valve is removed and ones mind experiences a much greater level of consciousness. This would account for dying people remembering their whole just completed life in an instant with great detail, clarity, and understanding.