Near-death experiences: the weirdly consistent backstage pass

Near-death experiences: the weirdly consistent backstage pass

Near-death experiences are a widely reported yet poorly understood phenomenon, and they sit in the messy overlap of science, spirituality, and the unknown. There’s no agreed-upon definition, but one study describes them as "profound psychological events with transcendental and mystical elements, typically occurring in individuals close to death or in situations of intense physical or emotional danger," according to the 2009 Yearbook of Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine.

What keeps showing up in these accounts is the same strange itinerary: unusual noises, a dark tunnel, out-of-body sensations, spiritual beings, a bright light or a "being of light," a realm of bewildering spirits, a sensed boundary or limit, and then the return trip. People may even hear themselves being pronounced dead, but instead of panic, they often report peace.

Gobble's Take: If this is just the brain improvising, it has an astonishingly repetitive script. Source: What Near-Death Experiences Reveal About Consciousness

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