Beyond Death

Many people who have had a NDE come back with memories of the "Other Side". There have been many volumns written about Near Death Experiences. These books contain descriptions of many individual perceptions of existence on the Other Side. One constant that seems to be common to many Near Death Experiences is the person's belief that it is their choice whether to return to life or not. Many people remember thinking, "I don't have to go back".

Many accounts also detail how life changes, (sometimes drastically), for the survivor after the NDE. The reasons given for the changes are always looking back at the NDE and what was experienced during the close call. Also, NDE's recorded years ago seem to be very different from what is currently being recorded. Current NDE's seem to be much more elaborate. This may be due to increased knowledge concerning the reality that there is life after death. These experiences seem to vary according to each individual's personal spiritual beliefs. A Christian might find themselves in heaven talking to Jesus or angels, a Buddhist may experience speaking with the Buddha, a Native American may spend time with their ancestors. Anyone might speak with dead loved ones.

The spiritual messages and advice received during these experiences are usually considered responsible for the changes in the person. This would make sense if the change in the survivor was always beneficial. This is not the case. Many times the results are destructive, and may include alcoholism, drugs, broken families, etc.

Other survivors believe that the reason they are different is due to a "step-in". This is the theory that while the soul of the person who temporarily died was absent from their body, anouther soul - an entirely different entity - "stepped into" the vacant body. We believe that this is a valid, though infrequent, event. Though we believe that the possibility of a step-in is a rare occurance, the same idea we present applies to them as well. It would still be a new birth, thus a new astrological chart.

There is anouther concept that can occur. This involves the raising of Kundalini. The force of Kundalini is an energy that, in Far Eastern mysticism, resides at the base of the spine. When it is activated this energy rises up the spine. During childbirth this energy may possibly be stirred, causing an out-of-body experience for the mother. This phenomenon definitely needs more serious study.

Many people believe that any or all of these experiences are, or can be, completely factual. An opposing number believe that the visual and auditory experiences are simply hallucinations induced by decreased oxygen to the brain and other effects of the process of dying on the body.

All of these experiences and their attendent theories are not our basic concern. We include them in order to present a broader information base about NDEs and what they may involve. Nor do we speculate about what may be found on the other side of death's gate. The Other Side is already a subject of intensive investigation by many people.

While we are yet living we believe that it is important to truly live life as it is unfolding. The experience of stepping over the threshold of death - experiencing whatever you experienced there - and then returning to life was a wondrous event. Treasure your experience and learn from it. You were given anouther chance at life. You are not over There anymore. Many of us believe we decided to return to life, rather than stay dead. So let's discover who we are and what we are. Don't short-change your gift of life by becoming too occupied with your NDE or by becoming too involved with probing the realities of the Other Side.

We need to be happy with our decision to return.

Reincarnation

Assuming that reincarnation is real, it was only a short time ago that any one of us was on the Other Side while we waited for our next incarnation. Because of our obvious fascination with life we will more than likely be returning to play the Game of Life all over again untill we tire of it and we step off of what the East Indians call the Wheel of Samsar. In the meantime - we need to live each life as fully and completely as we can. To do otherwise is to waste our gift of life.

A Parable

A Zen Buddhist parable tells of a Master and his desciple who were eating together. The desciple questioned his Master at great length about the nature of death and reincarnation and of what would be found in the afterlife. At last, when he was finished with his lengthy question, he looked expectantly to his Master for the answer. The Master simply said, "Your supper is getting cold".

The message of this parable tells us that life is beautiful and that we should live in the moment. Death is inevitable. The afterlife will always be there waiting for us. But enjoy your supper while it's still warm.