When someone encounters a near-death experience, they seem to
pass through a dark tunnel towards an incredibly bright light. Then
they may feel great peace and comfort. Once they reach the light,
they may become aware of the presence of their relatives and
friends who already died. Next, they may have an out-of-body
experience and see emergency workers or medical personnel working
on their bodies.
That is the "near-death experience" Dr Raymond A. Moody
described in his recent visit to Songtang Hospice in Beijing.
The globally renowned US psychiatrist and best-selling author
has a unique perspective of near-death experience, or NDE, a term
he coined, after decades of interviews with thousands of people who
almost died. "The NDE of people all over the world is similar,
despite their different religious beliefs and different languages
in their descriptions," he said. "It is all related to a journey
out of their body to some place and then come back."
Moody said the writings of the ancient Greek philosophers
inspired his pioneering research on NDE. Plato, his favorite
philosopher, wrote about the account of a soldier's NDE after the
warrior was nearly killed on a battlefield about 2,400 years
ago.
Moody then stumbled upon two NDE accounts from a university
professor and a student. "I was impressed how similar their stories
were to what I have read from Plato. At that time, I realized there
had to be many more of these stories," said Moody.
In the following years, Moody traveled around the world and
interviewed people who had been to brink of death and had been
resuscitated back to life. His work gave birth to his best-known
book "Life After Life," first published in 1975. It sold more than
20 million copies worldwide. The book has been translated into
several languages and was published in 25 countries. It is also to
be published in China very soon, according to Moody.
This book inspired a worldwide exploration of near-death
experiences afterwards.
Chinese research
In 1978, the International Association for Near-Death Studies
(IANDS) was established to provide a platform for information
exchange between NDE researchers worldwide.
Two psychiatrists at the Tianjin Anding Hospital, Feng Zhiying
and Liu Jianxun, began their own NDE research in 1987. Feng said
when he was studying psychiatry, he read many NDE research
articles, but could not find any records of NDE in China.
Feng and Liu interviewed 100 people who survived the 1976 great
earthquake in Tangshan, which killed more than 240,000 people. The
doctors collected 81 valid cases. Nearly half of the survivors said
they underwent an out-of-body experience. The survivors felt
themselves floating above their own bodies as they were being
crushed under the ruins. About one third reported the feeling of
passing through a tunnel.
About one quarter said they felt their bodies did not belong to
themselves any more, and felt all the parts of the body dispersing
into a dark space.
According to Feng, these NDE descriptions were very similar to
accounts from their international colleagues.
In Songtang Hospice, a charitable hospital caring for the
elderly and terminally ill patients, many elderly people also
reported near-death experiences, according to Li Wei, head of the
hospital.
Doctors have collected about 300 reports of NDE at the hospital
over the past few years.
"The patients told us that they saw bright light, heard some
strange sounds never heard before, and later entered into a dark
tunnel. After an initial period of fear, they reported that they
became relaxed, calm and even comfortable," said Li.
More common than ever before
According to Moody, near-death experiences were rare because it
was uncommon for someone to come close to death and survive.
However with the advent of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, which
enabled persons pronounced "dead" without heartbeat and respiration
to be brought back to life, millions of people around the world
have been resuscitated back to life. "So many more people have had
a NDE and like to talk about it," he said.
A 1997 poll by the US News and World Report indicates 15 million
Americans have had such an experience. According to Moody, the
closer one came to death, the more likely one would later report a
near-death experience. Patients who have been hospitalized at the
time of their near-death crisis, who had been unconscious for long
periods of time and required resuscitation, were much more likely
to report NDE.
Moody admitted he still did not know why some people on the
brink of death had the experience while others did not. He believed
much more study was needed before this question was answered.
Moody also believed extensive NDE research encouraged patients
to openly talk about their experiences. In the past, people who had
a NDE often thought they were unique, and were very reluctant to
talk about it for fear of being judged harshly.
Clinical significance
Moody said his own clinical practice was helping terminally ill
patients. "Occasionally, they ask me how it feels when they are
approaching death. I can tell them about how those who came back
from the brink of death accounted of their experience. That will
relieve their fear for death," he said.
For older people who are approaching the end of their lives and
have had the near-death experience, it was important to listen to
their stories because the experience touched them so deeply,
according to Moody.
Feng believed NDE research could be applied to help people who
attempted suicide. Near-death experiences are commonly
life-altering events and can change people's primary focus of life
interests, he said.
(China Daily September 21, 2006)
