P. M. H. Atwater writes: “In my work, I discovered four
distinctive patterns to the near-death experience. Here they are. The
incident-rate figures I present are based on 3,000 adults and 277 child
experiencers.
Initial experience—sometimes called the
'non’ experience.
"Involves one, maybe two or three elements, such as a loving
nothingness, the living dark, a friendly voice/visitation, a brief out-of-body
experience, or a manifestation of some kind. Usually experienced by those who
need the least amount of shake-up in their lives at that point in time. Often,
this becomes a ‘seed’ experience or an introduction to other ways of perceiving
and recognizing reality. Rarely is any other element present. (76 percent of
children, 20 percent of adults.)
Unpleasant or hellish experience—sometimes
referred to as ‘distressing.’
"Encounter with a threatening void, stark limbo, or hellish
purgatory, or scenes of a startling and unexpected indifference (like being
shunned), even ‘hauntings’ from one’s own past or having to face ‘unfinished business.’
Usually experienced by those who seem to have deeply suppressed or repressed
guilt, fear, and anger, and/or those who expect some king of punishment or
discomfort after death. Life reviews common. Some have life previews. (3
percent of children, 15 percent of adults.)
Pleasant or heavenly experience—sometimes
referred to as ‘radiant.’
"Involves heaven-like scenarios of loving family reunions
with those who have died previously, reassuring religious figures or light
beings, validation that life counts, affirmative and inspiring dialogue, lovely
landscapes. Usually experienced by those who most need to know how loved they
are and how important life is, and how every effort has a purpose in the
overall scheme of things. Life reviews common. Some have life previews. (19
percent of children, 47 percent of adults.)
Transcendent experience—sometimes called
the ‘collective universality.’
"Encounter with otherworldly dimensions and scenes beyond the
individual's frame of reference; sometimes includes revelations of greater
truths. Seldom personal in content. Usually experienced by those who are ready
for a ‘mind-stretching’ challenge and/or individuals who are apt to utilize (to
whatever degree) the truths that are revealed to them. Life reviews rare.
Collective previews common—the world’s future, evolutionary change, etc. (2
percent of children, 18 percent of adults.)
Do not affix ‘positive or ‘negative’
labels to any of these experiences or types.
"Positive and negative are judgmental terms that do not
necessarily apply to near-death states or to the aftereffects that follow. Case
in point: I gave a talk about the phenomenon in a large hall. It was so packed
that there were not enough chairs, leaving some standing. When l I finished, I
asked if there were any experiencers in the audience who would like to come up
to the microphone and share what had happened to them. Two volunteered.
"A
slender man, maybe in his late twenties, enthralled everyone with his tale of
one of the most beautiful, heavenly experience I had ever heard. There was
hardly a dry eye in the place. Then he shocked the audience by saying this was
the worst thing that had ever happened to him, that it had fouled up his life
and he felt cursed to have had it.
"Immediately, a woman, probably in her
thirties, jumped up and described her experience, a terror-filled scenario of
being at the mercy of a raging storm, with high winds, thunder, and lightning.
She had to fight to save herself from being sucked into a whirlpool as she swam
to shore. What she said next was equally a stunner: 'This was the best thing
that ever happened to me. I proved to me that we all have a second chance in
life, and we can succeed no matter what the obstacles are.' She was so glowing
when she said this that she appeared to be engulfed by a special light."
P. M. H. Atwater, Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of the
Story (Hampton Roads, 2011).
