The belief that there is a life after this one on Earth is widely held and predates recorded history. While cultures like that of the ancient Egyptians believed existence continued in "the Land of the Dead," modern Christian beliefs offer an afterlife in Heaven as a reward or in Hell as a punishment. More recent ideas suggest that life might continue in another dimension or plane of existence—perhaps even on another planet.
Whatever the ideas, it's clear that humans want to believe, and perhaps even need to believe, in life after death.
Proof of Life After Death
There is no definitive proof, of course, that a life after death exists. But there are some compelling anecdotes that suggest there might be: remarkable cases of claimed reincarnation or past-life recall, for instance. There are also countless cases in which the recently deceased are reported to have appeared briefly to family members and friends to tell them that they are well and happy in another world.
Stories of Near Death Experience
The stories related by people who have gone through a "near-death experience," or NDE, are intriguing. It's estimated between 9 and 18 percent of people who come close to dying have a near-death experience.
Although mainstream science suggests that these experiences are the result of certain brain activity under extreme stress or hallucinations brought on by drugs or medication, many believe these experiences are real and should not be dismissed. If they are real, they may hold the only clues we have as to what life in the hereafter might be like.
The Tunnel and the Light
One of the most common experiences at the beginning of an NDE is rising or floating out of one's body, and then floating or flying down a long tunnel toward a bright, white light that many describe as "loving."
Tom Sawyer had a near death experience in 1978 during an accident with his truck. His story is detailed in the book "What Tom Sawyer Learned from Dying." His description is very similar, involving a tunnel and light:
"...this darkness took the shape of a tunnel...It was very vast, as opposed to small and confining, and was anywhere from a thousand feet to a thousand miles wide. I was very comfortable and inquisitive. It was cylindrical. If you took a tornado and stretched it out straight, it would be similar to that..."
A Place of Beauty and Love
Descriptions of the afterlife are often of an unimaginably beautiful land of color, light and music. The place is described by those who have experienced it as one where they felt "totally known, but totally accepted and loved," and that it made them feel safe and happy.
The dimensions of this place are perceived as "timeless and spaceless." Distance is recounted usually as expansive, being "unimaginable" or "endless" and beyond what normal sight can perceive.
Arthur E. Yensen described his distance vision during his NDE in P. M. H. Atwater's book, "Beyond the Light: What Isn't Being Said About Near-Death Experience" in this way:
"The mountains appeared to be about 15 miles away, yet I could see individual flowers growing on their slopes. I estimated my vision to be about one hundred times better than on earth."
The landscape observed during an NDE is usually described as garden-like. Jennine Wolff of Troy, New York, recounted her near-death experience from 1987:
"Suddenly I was aware of being in the most beautiful garden I've ever seen...I heard celestial music clearly and saw vivid colored flowers, like nothing seen on earth, gorgeous greenery and trees."
Also in Atwater's book, Arthur Yensen went on to detail the landscape he witnessed:
"In the background were two beautiful, round-topped mountains, similar to Fujiyama in Japan. The tops were snowcapped, and the slopes were adorned with foliage of indescribable beauty...To the left was a shimmering lake containing a different kind of water—clear, golden, radiant and alluring. It seemed to be alive. The whole landscape was carpeted with grass so vivid, clear and green, that it defies description. To the right was a grove of large, luxuriant trees, composed of the same clear material that seemed to make up everything."
Throughout these recounted experiences, the elements of color and sound are prevalent. Sound is described as "beautiful," "invigorating" and "harmonic." Color is seen as extraordinarily vivid in grass, sky and flowers.
Meeting Loved Ones
For those who have near-death experiences, many find dead friends, family members and even pets waiting eagerly for them and conveying a sense of familiarity and comfort.
Bryce Bond, in Atwater's book "Beyond the Light," described hearing a bark:
"Racing toward me is a dog I once had, a black poodle named Pepe...He jumps into my arms, licking my face...I can smell him, feel him, hear his breathing and sense his great joy at being with me again."
Pam Reynolds, who had an enormous aneurysm at the base of her brain and underwent surgery during which she was clinically dead for an hour, described seeing figures in a light, including her grandmother:
"I don't know if it was reality or projection, but I would know my grandmother, the sound of her, anytime, anywhere. Everyone I saw, looking back on it, fit perfectly into my understanding of what that person looked like at their best during their lives."
Working, Learning and Growing
Apparently, folks don't just lie around on clouds all day in the afterlife. It could be a station where we gain more knowledge for personal growth. The afterlife in these accounts involve learning about one's self, and answering questions like, "Why are we here?" and "What is our purpose?"
Dr. George Ritchie, who's NDE happened when he was 20 years old in an army hospital, described the place he visited as appearing like "a well-planned university."
"Through open doors I glimpsed at enormous rooms filled with complex equipment. In several of the rooms, hooded figures bent over intricate charts and diagrams, or sat at the controls of elaborate consoles flickering with lights...I gazed into rooms lined floor to ceiling with documents on parchment, clay, leather, metal and paper. 'Here,' the thought occurred to me, 'are assembled the important books of the universe'"
The Send-Back
Obviously, all NDErs get sent back to the land of the living, or they wouldn't be around to tell us their stories. The idea that "it is not your time" is very common in near death experiences as explanation for why they returned to life.
Robin Michelle Halberdier's NDE occurred when she was only one to two months old. She was born prematurely with Hyaline Membrane disease, a respiratory distress syndrome, but she was able to recall her experience and began relating it when she learned to talk. She described encountering an indistinct figure surrounded by and emanating light.
"The figure in the light told me through what I now know to be mental telepathy that I must go back, that it was not time for me to come here. I wanted to stay because I felt so full of joy and so peaceful. The voice repeated that it wasn't my time; I had a purpose to fulfill and I could come back after I completed it."
Negative Experiences
Not all NDEs are beautiful and joyful. Sometimes, they can be a nightmare.
Don Brubaker suffered a heart attack and was clinically dead for 45 minutes. He recounted his experience in his book, "Absent from the Body: One Man's Clinical Death, a Journey Through Heaven and Hell."
"I was in hell. There was a low murmuring all around me, as if I were in the midst of a huge group of grumbling people. Before me, suddenly, stood a huge black door. The air began to glow and shimmer with oppressive heat. I watched as the door opened upon a vast, flaming oven. I felt myself drawn like a magnet into the center of the flames—although I was terrified to go in. There were hundreds of others already there, roasting to death, but not dead. Once I was inside, the door slammed shut behind me."
Illusion or reality? Is there a life beyond this one? Unfortunately, there's really only one way to know for certain.
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