Chapter 15 Message – 361 Can Near-Death-Experience lead to Enlightenment? Near-Death-Experiences, NDEs, can be highly spiritual experiences, but they are not enlightenment experiences. You do not have to die or nearly die to become enlightened! On the other hand, when you become enlightened. You die in a different sense since you lose your past identity. Many people have such powerful NDEs, which are so different and shocking to their logical minds that they go through a cognitive shift. This leads to a transformation in the way they think and act. Most NDEs follow a pattern. These people who have experienced they say that they float away from the body. They see themselves dying. If in an operating theatre, they see and hear what the doctors and nurses do and say. They see what they normally cannot from their position on the bed. Typically, they go through a dark space at the end of which they see light. The light is comforting. They experience no fear, just peace. Especially if they are medically trained, some see the gradual cessation of their body-mind functions. They may seek help if they are able to, but not out of any fear. They are happy to move towards whatever there is at the end of the dark tunnel. Depending on cultural and religious beliefs, they may see figures that seem to beckon them. Finally, they are told to go back. Or they are sent back. They feel themselves back in the body and they wake up. People lose their fear of death when they have NDE. Whatever they experienced gives them the faith that there is something more to life than mere material benefits. Many start believing in rebirth and reincarnation. The awareness develops that one is not bound by this body and mind and that we are all interconnected beyond body and mind. People develop more tolerance and pay more attention to relationships. They develop a greater belief in a superior being, a God. In our life Bliss program, we take participants through the meditations that replicate the death experience. Without have to go through an uncontrolled NDE, one can shed the fear of death through these meditations under safe and controlled conditions. Participants also go through identity dissolution experiences. They learn that there is more to life than possessions and acquisitions. They discover who they are and what they need to do in this life. Enlightenment is your natural state. You become enlightened when you understand who you truly are. In that sense, a NDE can direct a person towards the realization of one’s Self and therefore, enlightenment. -Excerpt from the book Bhagavad Gita’ demystified by Mahavatar Paramahamsa Sri Nithyananda Swami.
Posted on: Thu, 31 Jul 2014 16:51:41 +0000
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