Is there life after death?
Do people really have near death experiences? Does consciousness survive after our bodies cease to function?
I remember studying near death experiences in a graduate lecture on brain physiology and neurochemistry. We had a lecture on how neurotransmitters function. The lecturer explained that when the body experiences a trauma, such as being pierced by a bullet or going under the knife in surgery (if anesthesia fails to sedate and there is some consciousness), there is a physical and neurological response whereby the body is flooded with endorphins. He believed it was this "rush" that allowed a person to survive intense physical pain as part of human evolution. It's similar to hearing about a regular person who, in an emergency situation, has a surge of adrenaline allowing him/her to rescue another in a feat of extraordinary strength, like lifting a car. Going back to the idea that endorphin rush allows us to survive sudden physical trauma, this lecturer believed that the painful experience was also stored in areas of the brain devoted to physical and emotional memory, the hippothalamus and the amygdala. In his opinion, it was precisely the endorphin rush that gave the person a hallucinatory vision during the trauma, a sense of dissociation from the reality of pain: floating outside the body, seeing a tunnel, or moving toward the light. Upon resuscitation, the person often has a vivid memory of this "out of body" experience and can relate it to others.
Maybe kids have the answer?
That is one psychologist's view, and perhaps a cynical one, of the potential for near death experiences. But is there other evidence of an afterlife? I found this website that documents research studies being done into the topic. I also read an amazing account of children who report past-life experiences in the first person, called "Life before Life: A Scientific Investigation of Children's Memories of Previous Lives" by Jim Tucker, a child psychiatrist who has done years of empirical and anecdotal research into the topic, often travelling the globe to interview children and families reporting the phenomenon. It's a bit psych-heavy, but check it out if you are interested in the idea that some children, as soon as they develop speech, begin to relate accurate stories about individuals who previously died.
To read about a five-year-old who speaks to his mother from the first-person perspective of his grandfather who died prior to his birth is just bizarre. The grandfather had been stabbed in the line of duty as a police officer and subsequently died, his lung being pierced by the injury. And as I recall, the boy either had birthmarks on his back and chest that matched the grandfather's wounds or he was born with respiratory difficulties. At age 4 or 5, the boy knew nothing of his grandfather's death but one day made a statement to his mother to the effect of, "Mommy, do you remember when you were my little girl and I was your daddy?" He began to show similar habits and behaviors that his grandpa once had.
Some of these young children often identify with deceased individuals that lived hundreds of years earlier, or with people who live in different countries, speaking other languages. They often cried to parents and begged them to reunite them with their original families. When some parents did, the children would recognize their partners, relatives, or children from the previous life and call them by name, sometimes recounting old memories with them. They could recount how they died in detail. One young boy, who identified as a farmer with a wife and child in a previous life, angrily pointed out his murderer when reunited with his "previous" family, though it was originally believed that his death had been an accident. In cultures where beliefs in reincarnation are validated, as in South East Asia, these reunions are more commonly accepted, but it is also happening in Western countries.
I suppose that people's beliefs about the afterlife and reincarnation are heavily influenced by their unique perspectives, experiences, and religious affiliations. What do you believe?
georgie
11 Comments
A friend of mine is performing "prelife-journeys",(I don't know what it's called in English,but some hypnosis involved.)she's certain there is life after death and that people have lived many lives before they became who they are now. She's offered me a "travel" though I haven't, a bit too much of a skeptic lives in me, I guess..
On the other hand I sure would like if there were life after death, it would be nice. Just as long as I can make new mistakes, not repeating the old ones.
I was ticked pink when near the end of the book, the author brings up quantum mechanics and retro-causality as speculative mechanisms to explain the nature and role of consciousness, and discuss how consciousness, reincarnation, and other paranormal events may someday fall within the realm of mainstream science. There are people out there who's pet peeve is when "quantum weirdness" is used to justify strange and unproven theories about the world. I'm not one of them. I do think there are a lot of wacky people and wacky ideas out there, but I also believe there are some burried gems -- and we need to find them.
Oh -- the author, Jim B. Tucker, MD, looks kinda like one of my brothers. Not too much resemblance to me, though. I take more after my mother's side, and I have a lot more hair :-)
I've not yet found the words to describe the events surrounding my dear bothers death 2years ago. They were so remarkable I've been rendered speechless but nonetheless will try and make this incredible experience available for public scrutiny once I've "found my words". He died 18 months after a diagnosis of esophogeal and stomach cancer at the age of 43. We also lost our mother to cancer when she was a mere 35.The impact of what was seen and felt has left me w/ more questions than answers but the quest has been remarkable. Immediately after his death I began to look for people who have had similar experiences. i started w/ my friends and a few clergy and when no answers or understanding / insight were provided there I sought this vast wealth of knowledge - the internet. Not only did i find similar experiences I also found out that it had a name and scores of research is now underway to further understand the "deathbed phenomena".
Eight years prior to the cancer he had heart problems that lead to a heart attack and that brings us to my beliefs.
While he was having this major heartattack and lost life for several minutes he told me this " Sis, Ive never felt such peace and love in my entire life . The tranquility was intense and I longed for more but I was brought back. I was so angry they did that. why couldnt they have left me?"
I for one was glad (in a very selfish way) that he was given back to us for a few years anyway.
His battle w/ cancer was painful to watch.He chose to live/die at home surrounded by his family.He did what I believe many do when faced w/ imminent death, he began to set goals and tried to hang on until those were met. Ie, his son's graduation. Towards the end of his life and only a few days before his death he called me and kept asking when I was coming to see him. I'd promised him Id come again to visit but was having a very difficult time actually doing it. I felt something in his voice and knew instinctively I had to go. On the night I arrived he and I sat and watched a ball game on TV . After the game finished he turned and said to me " well baseball season is over and my sister is here". He died 3 days later.
The events that transpired seemed to be the most natural thing in the world but when trying to explain exactly what happened is yet beyong my grasp. I will endeavour to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and share this experience w/ anyone interested. I will do it in my own time, on my own blog.
I know Id been privy to a very special event and the reasons are simple. I too have the familial cancer gene. Once upon a time my biggest fear was death and w/ all I came to see hear feel during my brothers passing convinced me - there is nothing to fear. As much as I love life - I now know that death is not the end and perhaps it's a beginning. Death is a formation , to what or where is unimportant to me.
*LOL* @ drunken mistakes .
I meant to edit the last line of my post but got involved in something else and forgot! No drink either , no excuses!
"to what or where is unimportant to me". I meant to say , is a mystery to me!
Ok ok I got distraced by a shiny thing *wanders off* *L*
Wow....*L* ....*makes note to haunt Mark *
I've seen the drunken ramblings of others and I must say I am impressed w/ yours, I wouldnt have known had you not said so!
Hey you know AdGuy always gets the last word! ;)