Journeys Beyond the Light: Ultimate Near-Death Experiences Kenneth Ring*

In researching Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) for more than two decades, I have interviewed innumerable persons who have told me mesmerizing stories of their encounters with a dazzling light and with figures of light that seem to emanate from the very heart of the near-death experience itself. Such stories have, of course, now become part of our common knowledge about what it is like to die, and, collectively, they have brought about a new and immensely consoling vision of what awaits us when we make the transition into death.

Even though many of us have been deeply moved by reading such accounts, almost no one seems to appreciate the fact that these stories are nevertheless examples of incomplete or partial NDEs. That is, they take us far into the first stages of death, but they do not take us all the way.

From this perspective, it is natural to ask whether anyone has actually made what seems to be the full journey into death and then been able to return to tell us about it.

© "The Theosophist" (December, 2000) published by The Theosophical Publishing House, Adyar, Chennai 600 020, India. Website: www.ts-adyar.org. Reprinted with permission.

* Dr. Kenneth Ring is Professor Emeritus of Psychology at the University of Connecticut, USA.

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