Insights from Near-Death Experiences Remind Us of Who We Are and What Unites Us

At the heart of a collective shift in consciousness: Who are we? Why are we here? What are we truly capable of? Nothing shows this more clearly than the incredible phenomena of near-death experiences.

You are a great, mighty and powerful spiritual being with dignity, direction and purpose. — Dannion Brinkley, survivor of an earth shaking near-death experience and major contributor to the field of near-death studies

Since I was a little girl, I’ve been deeply haunted by the death of loved ones. I used to see death as a dark void, a nothingness that swallowed everything. This fear would sometimes cause sleep paralysis and intense anxiety throughout the day.

Yet now, my fears are changing. My journey with PEERS and WantToKnow.info has opened my eyes to something bigger—even beyond the politics and problems we help bring to light. The fascinating stories we've collected in our Inspiration Center of what happens when people face death profoundly expanded my worldview and began to transform my thinking. Instead of letting the fear of death paralyze me, I’m learning to meet it with compassion, curiosity, and wonder.

My personal journey mirrors the larger struggle we face as a society. Fear of the unknown, the unfamiliar, and death shape most of our lives. According to neuroscientist Rick Hanson, the misuse of fear comes from two mistakes in perception: overestimating threats and underestimating resources and possibilities. Mythologist and scholar of anthropology Michael Meade once observed that too much fear can lead to unnecessary panic as well as a paralysis of imagination. What life practices and conscious behavior choices empower us to cultivate courage and creative responses to fear?

At critical junctures, outer trouble and the inner need to grow conspire to set each of us on a path of awakening and initiation. ― Michael Meade

In a world facing significant challenges, our current stories about the world are falling short. Who are we? Why are we here? What are we truly capable of? These questions are at the heart of a collective shift in consciousness. Nothing shows this more clearly than the incredible phenomena of near-death experiences (NDEs).

The incredible phenomena of near-death experiences (NDEs)

Near-death experiences (NDEs) happen when people come close to death or are even declared clinically dead, yet return to life. During these moments, many have vivid and life-changing experiences. Something greater than their ego, personality, and physical body takes over. Common experiences include the entering of different realms or dimensions, time distortion, images of life events, telepathic communication with spiritual beings or deceased family members and ancestors, and many other fascinating experiences that defy our conventional understanding of reality. Researchers report that 55% of individuals who had an out-of-body experience reported that the experience profoundly changed their lives, and 71% described it as providing lasting benefit.

If there is consciousness without brain activity, then consciousness must dwell somewhere beyond the brain. Parapsychologists point to a number of rare but astounding cases. One of the most famous is about a woman who travelled so far outside her body that she was able to spot a shoe on a window ledge in another part of the hospital where she went into cardiac arrest; the shoe was later reportedly found by a nurse.
— "The new science of death: ‘There’s something happening in the brain that makes no sense’," The Guardian

Consider the breathtaking story of Anita Moorjani, who fell into a coma after years of battling cancer. Doctors predicted that she would never wake up again. Yet little did they know, her journey into deeper dimensions was just beginning. Before leaving her body, Moorjani vividly recalled seeing her husband and overhearing doctors discuss her impending death.

Hovering between life and death, she said she was surrounded by people who loved her. Her [deceased] best friend, Soni, was there. So was her father, who had died years earlier from heart failure. There were others there, too. She knew they loved her and cared for her. It was a feeling unlike anything she says she had ever felt. "At first, I did not want to come back. Why would I want to come back into this sick body?" she said. About 30 hours after being hospitalized, Moorjani awoke. Within days, she said, her organs began to function again. Within weeks, doctors could find no evidence of cancer in her body.
— "Stories of life, death and faith: 'To Heaven and Back'," CNN

A recent study reveals that one in five people who survive CPR after cardiac arrest recall vivid experiences of death, even though they appeared unconscious and close to dying. In a study of 710 kidney dialysis patients, researchers discovered that out of 70 who faced life-threatening events, 45 reported having near-death experiences. Researchers now believe one in 20 people will have a near-death experience.

This is why NDEs are so fascinating and perfect for the current moment. They speak to the soul—to the part of us that believes we are more than just flesh and blood. These experiences carry a sense of realness and authenticity because they are shared by modern-day ordinary people, not passed down as written accounts from hundreds or thousands of years ago. They speak to us as fresh voices from our own culture, startling in their intensity, challenging in how they confront our worldviews and perspectives, and yet hopeful in their alignment with ancient wisdom traditions.
— Coming Home Substack, which delves into near-death experiences (NDEs) and other spiritual phenomena (check out their incredible video channel of first-hand experiences they've documented)

Tom Aufderheide, emergency care physician at the Medical College of Wisconsin, shared a profound experience on his first day as an intern. His supervising resident had left to take a nap, and he was left alone when a patient in cardiac arrest was brought in. From the early morning until the afternoon, he continued to shock the man’s heart while delivering grim updates to the patient’s wife. When the patient’s lunch showed up, he ended up eating his lunch himself. After a long day, the patient eventually stabilized and spent 30 days recovering in the hospital. When the patient was ready to go home, he asked to speak with Tom about what happened when he died. He recounted floating above the room and watching Tom struggle to save his life. He noted the moments when Tom spoke to his wife in ways that weren’t very positive, and that “if that wasn’t bad enough, you ate my lunch.”

Yet what got Aufderheide’s attention the most was when the patient said, “The one thing that I wanted to tell you was that here I was dying in front of you and you were standing there feeling sorry for yourself because your senior resident didn't back you up and left you alone.” Aufderheide couldn’t understand how he was able to read his mind! The patient went on to describe a beautiful life review, reuniting with loved ones who had passed, and speaking with a being of light that ultimately told him he needed to return to life.

The only courage that is demanded of us: to have courage for the most strange, the most singular, and the most inexplicable that we may encounter.”
— Rainer Maria Rilke, Austrian poet and novelist

Dannion Brinkley was a successful businessman and US Marine, who was recruited into an elite squad assigned to assassinate enemy politicians and military leaders. Yet everything changed when a bolt of lightning struck a telephone pole, traveled down the phone line, and slammed into his body—melting the phone he was holding. Brinkley left his body, floated along with the ambulance as it raced to a hospital, and watched from above as doctors declared him dead. Less than an hour later, he awoke in the hospital morgue.

During that time, Brinkley left his body and entered a realm of unconditional love. He encountered a being of light that radiated pure compassion and a powerful presence he had never experienced. He was shown a grueling replay of his entire life, where he witnessed the pain he caused on everyone impacted by his actions—including the lives shattered by his deadly actions as a US Marine. More beings of light showed him visions of war and collective suffering in the future. In his New York Times bestselling book, Saved by the Light, Brinkley revealed a profound message he received from one of the beings:

“The flow of human events can be changed, but first people have to know what they are," said the Being. He communicated to me again their belief that humans were great, powerful, and mighty spiritual Beings. He then told me my purpose on earth. "You are there to create spiritualistic capitalism," he said. "You are to engage this coming system by changing people's thought processes. Show people how to rely on their spiritual selves instead of the government and churches. Religion is fine, but don't let people be entirely controlled by it.

“Humans are mighty spiritual beings. All they need to realize is that love is treating others the way they themselves want to be treated." Then the Being let me know what I was supposed to do back on earth. I was to create centers where people could come to reduce stress in their lives. Through this reduction of stress, said the Being, humans would come to realize, "as we do," that they are higher spiritual beings. They would become less fearful and more loving of their fellow man.

When he returned back into his body, Dannion faced unspeakable pain and suffering. He struggled to make sense of his experiences, which sounded crazy to people around him. Despite being completely paralyzed for days and spending years recovering from a lightning strike, open-heart surgery, and brain surgery, he persevered through unimaginable circumstances. He eventually made a full recovery—both physically and spiritually.

Now, Brinkley brings love and happiness into the world by providing solace to the suffering. His organization, The Twilight Brigade (formerly called Compassion in Action, or CIA), recruits, trains and supports hospice volunteers all across America to ensure that no military veteran has to face death alone. Brinkley has personally spent thousands of hours at the bedside of over 2,000 dying strangers, many of whom were fellow war veterans.

If we can dispel our fear of death, we can dispel our fear of life, our fear of living up to our fullest, most spiritual potential. Key to ending fear, he believes, is training people to help make the transition to death a loving, gentle, and normal experience.
— Dannion Brinkley

Psychology professor Dr. Kenneth Ring engaged with hundreds of people of all ages who came close to physical death. Strikingly, those who had a near-death experience almost totally lost their fear of death. In an interview with The New York Times, Ring reflected, “Death vanishes for them. There's only life. They are so aware of what life is. One man said, ‘I finally knew what it was like to be really alive.’’ They're profoundly appreciative of being alive. They've got a greater sense of self-worth and care more deeply for others and are able to give love more freely.”

Neurosurgeon Dr. Eben Alexander was skeptical about near-death experiences until he fell into a deep coma for seven days due to a rare bacterial meningitis caused by E. coli, which had invaded his cerebrospinal fluid and was damaging his brain. During this time, he journeyed into a “brain-free consciousness.” He realized that “death is not the end of consciousness but rather a chapter in a vast, and incalculably positive, journey.” A female being was with him, who spoke to him without words. He reflects: “The message had three parts, and if I had to translate them into earthly language, I'd say they ran something like this: You are loved and cherished, dearly, forever. You have nothing to fear. There is nothing you can do wrong.”

The famous Swiss psychologist Carl Jung had his own extraordinary experience. At age 70, he slipped on ice and broke his foot. During his hospital stay, a heart attack left him unresponsive for days. What followed was a profound near-death experience, years before the concept was widely recognized. Jung described his phenomenal experiences in his memoir, Memories, Dreams, Reflections:

It seemed to me that I was high up in space. Far below I saw the globe of the Earth, bathed in a gloriously blue light. . . . My field of vision did not include the whole Earth, but its global shape was plainly distinguishable, and its outlines shone with a silvery gleam through that wonderful blue light. I knew that I was on the point of departing from the earth . . .

Later I discovered how high in space one would have to be to have so extensive a view—approximately a thousand miles! The sight of the Earth from this height was the most glorious thing I had ever seen.

Something new entered my field of vision. A short distance away I saw in space a tremendous dark block of stone, like a meteorite. It was floating in space, and I myself was floating in space . . . an entrance led into a small antechamber. To the right of the entrance, a black Hindu sat silently in lotus posture upon a stone bench. He wore a white gown, and I knew that he expected me.

As I approached the steps leading up to the entrance into the rock, a strange thing happened: I had the feeling that everything was being sloughed away; everything I aimed at or wished for or thought, the whole phantasmagoria of earthly existence, fell away or was stripped from me—an extremely painful process. Nevertheless something remained; it was as if I now carried along with me everything I had ever experienced or done, everything that had happened around me. I might also say: it was with me, and I was it.

I consisted of all that, so to speak. I am this bundle of what has been and what has been accomplished. This experience gave me a feeling of extreme poverty, but at the same time of great fullness. There was no longer anything I wanted or desired . . . I had everything that I was, and that was everything.

Integrating the Wisdom of NDEs Into Our Everyday Lives

As traditional touchstones of meaning like faith, family, and friendship have fallen by the wayside in recent decades, people are increasingly finding their meaning and identity in political issues. Yet when we’re drowning in crisis after crisis, and social polarization has us feeling more divided and lonely than ever, it’s clear that politics alone can’t satisfy our deeper human needs.

Kirk Schneider, a leading psychologist in existential-humanistic therapy, speaks of an “awe-based consciousness” to heal our anxious and polarized minds. He defines awe as the humility and wonder or sense of adventure toward living— where we “stay present to our smallness and our fragility, as well as our greatness, our boldness, our capacity to discover new ways of living.”

Near-death experiences point to a consciousness that we all share, which transcends political, religious, and ideological divides. Quantum physicist and consciousness researcher Dr. Amit Goswami observed that if this same consciousness works through all of us, then we're all in a sense a part of the same larger being, and it is complete ignorance to be violent to each other.

Those who’ve had transformative near-death experiences are our teachers. They often return forever changed. Many have found a renewed faith in something higher that governs life, a restored sense of goodness in themselves and others, and a deeper understanding of what truly matters in life.

I choose to embrace the unknown with an open heart. The possibilities about who we are and where we come from truly amaze me. The fear of death that once cast a shadow over my life is now giving way to awe and wonder. Whatever might be happening in the world, we can seek meaning beyond our immediate fears and challenges.

We need a larger story—one that connects us on a fundamental level. Soon, we’ll be launching the PEERS Awe and Wonder Library, where we explore the depths of human consciousness, spirituality, the meaning of life, and the mysterious nature of reality. Stay tuned!

With faith in a transforming world,
Amber Yang for PEERS and WantToKnow.info

Related Inspiring Resources

• Our news archive on near-death experiences and our Near-Death Experiences Information Center offer a wealth of fascinating insights and stories.

• Explore the beautiful work of Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen, who spent decades counseling hundreds of end-of-life people and those dealing with cancer. Her countless discoveries in this work have led her to view life as a powerful mystery, abundant with qualities and capacities that we cannot measure with our minds. We’ve highlighted what we see as the most inspiration examples of her life work and the insights she has gained about the deeper meaning of life through her experiences with her patients.

• Check out the PEERS Inspiration Music playlist: conscious, powerful lyrics about awakening to human suffering, opening up to love and joy, engaging in personal growth, and making the world a better place.