I have been reading about near-death experiences for over thirty years. I have found them fascinating from the first encounter. While not obsessively looking for such stories, I have avidly read them when encountering them. And I have listened to a few first-hand accounts  from experiencers of such phenomena.

Thus, when this book was recommended to me, I was interested, but also a bit blase. Yeah, yeah, another near-death account. But this book is different. It grabbed me in a way that most other accounts have not.

The book: Dying to be Me: my journey from cancer, to near death, to true healing. Written by Anita Moorjani, published by Hay House, 2012.

Certainly one of the aspects of this story which appealed to me was the fact that Anita is not a Christian!! While raised Hindu, she does not profess any one particular religion today. And her story does not “fit” into any one religious tradition. She was born of Hindu parents in Singapore, grew up in Hong Kong from the age of two, raised by a Chinese, Buddhist nanny, and attended Catholic school. As a child attempting to deal with the confusing messages of these conflicting traditions, her mother reassured her. “My mother pulled me close and said, ‘Don’t be scared, Beta. No one really knows the truth–not even Sister Mary. Religion is just a path for finding truth: Religion is not truth. It is just a path. And different people follow different paths.'” (p 18)

While her near-death experience was profound, one of the most intense I have ever read, it is what she learned from this experience, what she brought back with her, that is really the core of the story. She was very happily married, in her twenties, when she was diagnosed with cancer. After several years of battling this disease, using many modalities, she was on the verge of death. And, of course, died. While in the astral realm she was given a choice to come back to earth or to remain in heaven. She encountered her father and her best friend, both of whom had died in the previous few years. She experienced the absolutely peaceful and wonderful unconditional love which pervades that dimension. She also fully understood that she had much work yet to do in her incarnation as Anita. So she chose to return to her disease-ravaged body.

The ends to which her body had deteriorated while under attack by the cancer were extreme. So when she returned with the assurance that she would be completely healed of the cancer her case attracted world-wide attention among the medical community. This was the opening of an opportunity for her to reach many, many people with her story of what life is like on the other side.

Anita is so completely non-defensive and unassuming that her story is very easy to accept. She has no hidden agenda. She simply wants people to know and understand what death and the afterlife is all about. She wants people to hear what she learned from the Divine while clinically dead. Here is a rather lengthy quote illustrating this:

Since my NDE, I’ve learned that strongly held ideologies actually work against me. Needing to operate out of concrete beliefs limits my experiences because it keeps me within the realm of only what I know–and my knowledge is limited. And if I restrict myself to only what I’m able to conceive, I’m holding back my potential and what I allow into my life. However, if I can accept that my understanding is incomplete, and if I’m able to be comfortable with uncertainty, this opens me up to the realm of infinite possibilites.

 

I’ve found that subsequent to my NDE, I’m  at my strongest when I’m able to let go, when I suspend my beliefs as well as disbeliefs, and leave myself open to all possibilities. That also seems to be when I’m able to experience the most internal clarity and synchronicities. My sense is that the very act of needing certainty is a hindrance to experiencing greater levels of awareness. In contrast, the process of letting go and releasing all attachment to any belief or outcome is cathartic and healing. The dichotomy is that for true healing to occur, I must let go of the need to be healed and just enjoy and trust in the ride that is life. (p 137f)

This is only a small sampling of what you will get when you read this story. And read it you must! The entire book is filled with wisdom from on high, coming through the words of Anita Moorjani. (I have had several friends say they have heard Anita interviewed on radio and TV. If you ever get a chance to hear her, or see her in person, definitely take the opportunity. I understand some of her previous interviews are available on line. A quick search ought to bring these up.) Certainly go out and obtain her book. I wasn’t even half-way through my library-loaned book when my wife and I decided to buy our own copy. It really is a great story, filled with gentle wisdom.

Christopher Hayes is a commentator on MSNBC. He is articulate, thoughtful, and thought-provoking; I enjoy listening to him. Thus, when it was announced on TV that he had written a book, I sought it out. It did not “grab” me as I had expected it to, but it is worth reading.

The basic premise is that when the U.S. was established, it was in response to the aristocracy ruling Europe at the time. Rulers came to power based not on their own credentials but as a result of their birth family. In the U.S. a democracy was established seeking to redress the wrongs resulting from aristocracy. The result was what has come to be labelled a “meritocracy”. In a meritocracy, people are put into positions of power and responsibility based on their merits. The most qualified, best equipped people are the ones chosen to rule. Supposedly!

Meritocracy seems to work best at the beginning. But once people are in positions of power the human tendency is to attempt to solidify that position. The people in power generally seek to strengthen their hold on power, and begin to make decisions which will determine who will succeed them. Over time, meritocracy becomes once again a system of rule by the elites.

Hayes goes to some lengths outlining how this happened at his high school. He attended one of the top high schools in the nation, located in New York City. To get in, students must attain certain grades on exams. What has happened over the years is that an industry has grown up which prepares students for these exams. These preparatory programs cost huge dollars, and so the student population over time becomes very elite. Sure, anyone can apply to take the exams, but those with the best (and usually the most expensive) training are the ones who score the highest, and are enrolled. What began as an equality of opportunity, where bright kids from public schools across all socio-economic sectors could get in, ended up being quite the reverse.

Hayes uses this school as an example of what is happening, and what has happened, in the U.S. And that very system has a built-in failure. The elites now in power in the U.S. due to their wealth and family connections are bound to fall. The system itself cannot continue the way it is; it will implode. “The Iron Law of Meritocracy means that over time, the inequality that such a system celebrates and prizes will lead to its dissolution.” (p 222)

What America needs to do, says Hayes, is spend much more effort working to achieve true equality. “Equality of opportunity [which is hugely championed in the U.S.] and equality of outcome are not the same thing.” (p 222) “Clearly I’m not saying we should do whatever it takes to ensure a perfect equality of outcomes.” (p 223) But much, much more needs to be done to move toward more equality of outcomes. And, says Hayes, creating a more equitable society is an achievable goal. It has been done in some places, notably in Latin America since the 1990s.

Working toward income equality is one place to begin to seek solutions. “But with the exception of England, every other industrialized democracy has higher levels of income equality than the United States.” (p 224) The way to achieve better income equality is through taxation. Anyone paying attention to the politics of our neighbour to the south knows how difficult the issue of taxation is. The Republican Party’s desire to decrease taxes for the very rich is absolutely the wrong way to go if the country wants to be a more equitable one. “In other words, the tax system, the most straightforward means of restraining inequality, has been subverted, so as to become a tool for maintaining and expanding it.” (p 226)

The above is just a small example of many good things Christopher Hayes has to say about American politics and society. It is worth the read, even if it isn’t particularly “grabbing”.

Another Atwater book: Beyond the Indigo Children: The New Children and the Coming of the Fifth World, 2005. This woman contains a wealth of information. So much so that at times the book seemed overwhelming! It took me quite a few weeks (and a few library renewals) to read it. But it is definitely worth the read. There is lots in there.

Atwater pokes a bit of a hole in the current tendency to name today’s talented, bright and insightful children as “indigo”. She says that true indigo children are actually very rare today, although there will be more of them coming in the next few decades. What Atwater does is to outline current generations of children, and then do some explorations of trends and giftedness among the various groups. Today’s children do not need to be labelled as exceptional as much as they need to be taught and guided in the use of whatever intuitive senses they may have.

Today’s children say, pretend that what you want to be true is true, then fill yourself with God’s breath as you link back to Source. By pretending that you are enlightened, you are. By affirming something as so, it is. To them, their intuitive abilities are an open door to the treasure trove that is the imaginal realm (which is true). They dive in en masse, flocking to the astral without a hint of hesitation but with mixed results. Their “magic” isn’t always that magical.

(p 82)

The categories of generations which Atwater works with are the Millennials (1982-2001), the 9/11s (2002-2024) and the coming Aquarians (2025-2043). She identifies the period between 2013 and 2029 as a time when the US “. . . will face the greatest upheaval in American history.” (p182) “The millennials will be the heavy lifters by then, their signature–tolerance and anger. Many will become soldiers. The 9/11s, haunted by subconscious fears, will follow in a struggle to physically change things.” (p 183)

Another bit of wisdom I gleaned from this book is more distinctions between religion and spirituality. Religions develop, become set-in-stone, vigorously defended, and fought over.

Since “no tree would be so foolish as to fight among its branches,” the belief in exclusivity, of being chosen, negates entirely any such claim. Spirituality, on the other hand, is a personal, intimate experience of omnipresence that returns the province of Deity to the individual. I love the way Reverend Don Welsh puts it: “Spiritual growth is really a process of pushing back the boundaries of our ignorance of God and our own nature, so that we grow into who we already are.” We engage the spiritual directly by doing this. The heart and core of true religion is based on experience, not belief. It is the ultimate human journey beyond the self to the ecstasy and bliss of oneness with the One. (p 88f)

Later in the book, the author returns to this theme. “We are now living in the days where the sacred is being reborn, the true self rediscovered, where spiritual technologies–meditation, prayer, affirmations, visualization, contemplation, worship, philosophy, service, compassion, yoga, dance, music, art–outperform hard logic. Let’s take full advantage of these opportunities while we have a chance, because we will need this grace in the times to follow.” (p 181)

In the midst of severely accelerating changes in our world, there is cause for hope:

Yet for most of us, any thought of darkness threatens our comfort zone; we fear a loss of boundaries and clarity. References to tribulation trouble us even more, as if we are somehow fated to walk the knife’s edge betwixt global war and global climate and Earth changes, each step bringing us closer to destruction. Yes, the worst can happen, but so can the best. By focusing on the light released by uplifting energy, the inspiration we need to convert negatives into positives is revealed. We may not be able to stop the change, but we can alter how they play out and to what extent. Light molds and shapes darkness and gives it the luster of volition, that creative shine only our free will can supply. Diversity is light’s child in that the ability to vary, guaranteed by free will, is what fulfills God’s great plan.

(p 188)

Atwater continues on a positive note as the book comes to a close. “Thus there is no substitute for a grounded, healthy lifestyle, good friends, loving relationships, and a work ethic of sweat, common sense, charity, and service.” (p 203)

If I learned nothing else from the near-death phenomenon, I learned this: Death does not end life, it only changes the perspective by which we view and value life. Believe me when I say that I, for one, am looking forward to what the future holds. (p 178)

I greatly enjoyed working through this book. I learned a lot from P. M. H. Atwater, and would highly recommend this book to anyone out there who wants to understand more fully what is happening in our world today.

Near-Death Experiences, The rest of the story: What they teach us about living, dying, and our true purpose. Written by P. M. H. Atwater, who spent her entire life researching near-death experiences (NDE’s), this book is a wealth of information. Based on her own experiences, as well as interviewing nearly 7000 experiencers, both adult and children, Atwater comes up with information and patterns which show the breadth and variety of experiences which people have had over the years. She has very obviously read and researched this subject exhaustively.

In fact, the only real criticism of this book is its overwhelming amount of information. She quotes so many sources it became difficult to keep everything sorted in my mind. Atwater calls this book her “last hurrah” (p xi) and she seems to be attempting to include absolutely everything she has discovered or thought about over the years of her work. The presentation sometimes appeared disjointed to me, but I must confess that my reading this book was also disjointed, taking place over at least a month.

But even with this caveat, I found the book well worth reading. I am tempted to purchase one, after reading my library’s copy; it contains so much information, it would be worth-while to keep as a reference book for the future.

As the subtitle indicates, Atwater’s intention with this book is to share insights into life learned from NDE’s. What can we learn from the stories of experiencers? For example: “A NEW MIND . . . there is a Presence that breathes through us, feels through our heart, thinks through our mind, hears through our ears, speaks through our mouth, touches through our skin. When we are aligned with this Presence, we are healthier, happier, more alive than we could possibly imagine or describe. This Presence is a subtle, quiet force that possesses great power and sets ‘afire’ an ego-less passion waiting within to be set free. A  NEW REALITY . . . we live in a giant hologram that reflects back to us One God, One People, One Family, One Existence, One Law–Love, One Commandment–Service, One Solution–Forgiveness.” (p 228f)

One thing I really appreciated about her treatment of NDE’s was putting them in context with other consciousness-shifting experiences. I have been moving in this direction myself, realizing that there are many ways to achieve ascension, many ways of waking up spiritually. Atwater gives full credence to this idea. There are valid experiences other than NDE’s; NDE’s follow similar patterns and reveal similar truths and wisdom as other soul-shifting experiences. For example, my own work with soul regression leads to results and experiences similar to many facets of NDE’s. I discuss this more extensively elsewhere. See chapter 13 and following in Out of Winkler

Of especial interest to me, as a Christian, is Atwater’s chapter 24: Spirit Shift; A New Christology. “Jesus became the Christ, and in so doing, passed on the template of what this is, why it is a preferred state of consciousness, and where it can lead. His teachings apply to every religion, every nation, every peoples, every time-frame, every experiencer of a transformative state of consciousness.” (p 226) She then outlines some of the characteristics of this template, which are very basic wisdom gleaned from the many NDExperiencers she has interviewed over her lifetime.

“He [Jesus] presented himself as a model for individual empowerment and the expansion of consciousness, and he never wavered from such teachings. It is only in conservative sects that he is regarded as the ‘great exception,’ instead of the ‘great example’ he sought to convey.” (p 226) This helped explain the struggle with my conservative background. Yes, I was taught that Jesus is our example, but I was also imbued with the idea that the ideal of Jesus was totally unreachable, and that to think being Christlike was attainable was heresy; he was “the great exception”, exceptional. I had always wondered about that. How could Jesus be our example, if he was totally different? Atwater helped put this into context for me.

Atwater finishes the book with chapter 26: Voices. These are stories of experiencers and how the NDE affected their life. This was one of my favourite parts of the book. While peoples’ stories are found throughout the book, in this chapter are a number presented one after the other. I thought it a great way to end the book.

I finished this book recently, another story of a young child who underwent a near-death-experience (NDE). Alex Malarkey was six when he was in a severe car accident with his father. The accident left him a quadriplegic, his life saved by heroic efforts from the medical team, and by prayer. Yes, this is another Christian miracle story, following on the heels of the four-year-old NDE experiencer I wrote about a few months ago.

While much of the book deals with efforts to save Alex’s life, the truly remarkable content comes from what Alex saw while in a coma, the places he visited, and the wisdom he received. While his body was immediately knocked unconscious in the accident, he has clear memories of what happened inside the car to himself and his father. He sees human and heavenly interventions to save his father from serious injury, and to save his own life.

After emerging from his coma and learning to communicate he begins sharing bits and pieces of what he experienced while unconscious. The first time he talks about seeing angels in his room with his Dad and a friend present (they of course could not see these angels), Kevin, his father, admits that the presence of angels “. . . are not part of my [conservative evangelical] experience or background, but I can’t deny or ignore that they took place. . . . It may sound crazy, but it did happen. I’ll leave the explanations to the theologians.” (p 114)

Interspersed with commentary from Alex himself, Kevin details the years immediately following the accident, and the numerous miracles which followed. For myself it was the supernatural aspect that made the story riveting. “From the time of the accident, Alex says, the angels have graced our home. . . . Alex knew them all by name, and he would carry on conversations with them.” (p 166f)

Although the book is not preachy, it does get a little on the wearisome side when it goes to great lengths to tell about all the prayers, the church life of the Malarkey family and so on. I would offer one opinion: when Kevin says, “We all need to be on guard against counterfeit truth. Anything that doesn’t square with Scripture is counterfeit. Alex’s angels never operate outside the parameters we find in Scripture–the measure of authenticity,” I have to fall back on all the material I have read on NDE’s and other spiritual phenomena.

The Spirit world always comes to us in ways we can relate to, in ways we are comfortable with, within our own frame-of-reference. So I can accept that in a churchy family like the Malarkeys the Divine would appear in ways they can understand. Not everyone experiences the heavenly realm in the same way, because we all come with our own background experiences. No one way is normative for everyone else. With that qualification I quite enjoyed the story. It is incredible, really. The healing that occurred, the medical measures that were taken, successfully, the tremendous outpouring of support to the family and to Alex during his recovery process, all are a very uplifting. Alex, through his accident, recovery and sharing of his heavenly experiences, has impacted a huge number of people. “God has touched so many lives and brought so much good out of Alex’s pilgrimage that I know God is not only directing His plan, but He is also directing the timing of His plan. That’s where our confident hope rests.” (p 209)

I recommend this book to anyone, but especially Christians and those comfortable with Christian-talk!

Watched this movie last evening. What a story. It follows a couple who is one of the one-percenters, the extremely wealthy of the U.S. David and Jackie Siegel were billionaires, he having made his fortune on developing and selling time-shares. They were in the process of building the largest house in the U.S., a 90,000 square feet monstrosity in Florida. Since they had basically unlimited wealth, there were no limits. Anything either of them wanted in this house, or could think of, went in. The basic structure was modelled after the French palace of Versailles, and they called their place “Versailles”; thus the name of the film. It seemed that the publicity of them building this house is what put them in the news, and probably into the sights of the documentary maker.

While Lauren Greenfield’s documentary mainly follows them around, filming their everyday life and high-flying lifestyle, there are a few telling moments. In one interview, David admits he basically is responsible for George W. Bush winning the 2000 election. “But I can’t go into detail because it is basically illegal what I did.” (Did any of us ever truly wonder about this? I did not find myself in the least bit surprised at his revelation.) He admits that after the Iraq war began he felt he had made a mistake in getting Bush into office. The doc shows some of the activities of his various business enterprises, the high-pressure tactics used to wheedle money out of the “moochers” (Siegel’s term) who would respond to an invitation for a free vacation in exchange for listening to a sales presentation. (Haven’t most of us attended one of these things?)

What really makes the documentary is the fact that after much filming of the Siegel family, the economic crash of 2008 occurred. The time-share business basically ceased to exist, and David began losing one part after another of his businesses. The viewer can watch him age in front of our eyes as his financial disaster unfolds. Their house becomes increasingly untidy and disorderly as they have to pare down from 19 personal staff to 4. Dog shit all over the place, misplaced car keys, nobody able to keep track of anything or anybody (they have 8 children!). I’m not sure I remember the number correctly, but the house they were living in while building the 90,000 palace was “only” about 26,000 square feet.

The film left me feeling incredibly sad. Both David and Jackie came from modest backgrounds. Their lives were the epitome of the American Dream. And they did not know how to handle either the extreme wealth, or the sudden downturn in fortune. They continued to dream, to believe that everything would eventually turn around, that their life could resume its former privileged status. But the viewer can easily see how totally out-of-touch they were with “normal” life, and also with each other and their family and friends. They were average people who happened to hit it rich, and it did not do them any good. Jackie commented toward the end of the doc that she could see herself being happy with a basic four-bedroom, $300,000 family home. But I could see that David could not. He was 74 years old as the film came to its end, and his whole life’s work was going up in smoke.

By the way, they were only about half-finished with Versailles, and the banks had forced them to put it on the market. But how large a clientele would there be for a 90,000 square foot house, priced at $75,000,000? It had not sold, and David, sounding very depressed, said he hoped they could hang onto it. “I would like to finish it.”

The Calgary Herald review aptly called this film, “An enlightened, open and entirely unbiased view of obscene indulgence, . . . a thoughtful and somewhat humane post-mortem of the American dream.” I couldn’t agree more!

Watched a video this evening which really blew my socks off! The Way, starring Martin Sheen, is about a father searching for his son, who has died at the beginning of his pilgrimage to El Camino de Santiago. El Camino, The Way, is an ancient pilgrimage through the French and Spanish Pyrenees Mountains. Often known in English as The Way of St James, church tradition maintains that St James (one of the twelve disciples of Jesus) is buried in Santiago de Compostela.

People take the pilgrimage for many reasons. In medieval times it was usually for religious reasons, to honour the memory of St James. Today people do it for personal reasons, for physical reasons, spiritual, psychological, recreational, and so on. The scenery is stunning, people are gracious along the way; it is fun to watch travellers on The Way and the many experiences they have.

In the movie, Thomas Avery, an orthodontist from California, receives word that his son has died on this trek. He goes to retrieve his son’s remains from France, and while there decides to walk The Way himself, in honour and memory of Daniel. As happens to many who undertake such a pilgrimage, he goes through many changes, within himself, and in his life. He meets others on the road, and gradually a group of four fall into the pattern of travelling together, slowly learning to know each other, despite the solitary nature of each of them and their reasons for undertaking The Way.

The movie, such a departure from typical Hollywood fare, shows the gradual healing process experienced by Thomas and his fellow travellers. Without going over the top, it shows each of them as very average, common people, with all their foibles, fears, secrets and goals. It really does a great job of telling this story, simply, and with a good sense of place and pace. It makes me want to walk El Camino myself!

This novel, written by Chase Brandon, a former CIA operative, is a conspiracy thriller. As such, it does a great job of keeping the reader in suspense.

There are a lot of components included in the story which I wonder about. Sure, we have all heard of underground bunkers to keep the President and other government officials safe in the event of a national crisis. But underground train links between Washington D. C. and New York? Does the sculpture outside the CIA headquarters contain a cryptic code message? I suspect there is truth to these things; I wonder about the detail. How much literary licence did he use?

Written by a former CIA guy lends an air of credibility to the story, which covers a sweep of history from the entire 20th century up till about 2055. It deals with secrecy around UFO’s and contact with ET’s. The words in the title are names of certain projects undertaken to safeguard the U.S. Ultra-top-secret files open to very few contain information crucial to the future of the country and the planet. But as conspiracy theorists have long surmised, this information is kept secret in the belief that open dissemination would lead to panic and social collapse.

There are elements of the supernatural included in this story. The main character seems to be specially chosen by spiritual forces to bring about certain policies and projects ensuring the survival of the human race. The story includes brief glimpses into the spiritual dimension as heavenly beings oversee this planet and its inhabitants. There is spiritual warfare involved, as two ET races conflict and collide with each other. But the story centers mostly on U.S. power brokers, a select few knowing what is really going on, with the rest just doing the best they can with their limited information.

One aspect of the story I really appreciated is that it portrays these heavenly forces, at least the “good” ones, as attempting to support and foster the nobility of the human race. That seems to be their objective. When humans reach out to each other in compassion and brotherhood, this is what they look for and encourage.

But the overall portrayal of our future is rather bleak. I am sure it is realistic from the author’s perspective. And being who he is, he should know. I find myself not totally agreeing with his perspective, being considerably more hopeful and optimistic than he sounds in his book. But it is certainly worth a read. It is a spell-binding tale, well-written. I found it difficult to put down at times.