There are hundreds of books on the subject of Near Death Experience (or NDE). Most of them are filled with positive experiences such as meeting loved ones, angels, and beautiful landscapes. I bought this book because it covered the darker aspects of NDE, which Barbara Rommer calls LTP (or Less Than Positive) experiences. One statement made in the book stands out very clearly. If you expect hellfire and brimstone, that’s what you’re going to get.

There were a wide variety of individual accounts, some of them typical of the NDE. But she also covers those who have misinterpreted their experiences as bad. Such as those who had relived all the horrible aspects of their lives before being resucitated. Those she labeled Type II LTPs. The type IIIs, I found disturbing.

Many of these people suffered from depression and/or drug abuse of varying degrees, or they were brought up to believe that their soul would go to Hell for all the sins they committed during their lifetime. Some of these people had attempted suicide, either overtly or covertly. Every account was distinctly different from the next, but every one of these people were given the same message. They could face up to their misgivings or misperceptions and change their own destinies. Many of them have.

Blessing in Disguise is the most informative book I’ve read on Near Death Experiences. It isn’t clinical or watered-down, like some of the books by Moody and Ring. Another good book is “Beyond the Darkness, My Near-Death Journey to the Edge of Hell and Back,” by Angie Fenimore.

What is a Near Death Experience?

A Near Death Experience (NDE) is the memory of the sensations a person experiences when he/she dies for a brief period of time. The most common trait of an NDE is a long, dark tunnel with a bright white light at the end. Many people have reported meeting their long lost relatives and experiencing a life review.

What Causes Near Death Experiences?

According to Dr. Pim van Lommel, the clinical cause of an NDE is anoxia to the brain. The psychological cause is a fear of death. van Lommel conducted a study of 344 cardiac arrest survivors and found that 18% of these patients had experienced an NDE.

Are Near Death Experiences Real?

Scientists have been trying to find an answer to this question for a long time. Skeptics believe that near death experiences are produced by the neuronal events in the brain. van Lommel argues that the brain is clinically dead when these NDEs occur.

What strikes me is the similarity of the NDE cases, especially the tunnel. We pass through a tunnel to be born. It appears that (in most cases) we pass through a tunnel when we die.

To read more about van Lommel’s findings, visit A Reply to Shermer Medical Evidence for NDEs.

To learn more about Near Death Experiences, visit the Near Death Experience Research Foundation, where you’ll find many stories of people who have had an NDE as well as book reviews and articles.

I’m delighted to hand over the authorship of Supernatural to Deborah Woehr who will start blogging here shortly.

Deborah has had a varied career in writing for a number of websites, including her own Writers’ Buzz. She is a co-founder of our writing community, Writers’ Blog Alliance, and has her own editing and design business.

I’m pleased to welcome Deborah into the Syntagma Media team.

I’ve just been remembering an incident that happened to me before I’d heard of the book, Cosmic Ordering. I must have inadvertently practised this technique over some furniture a few months ago.

We had noticed that the sofa and single chairs were looking a bit tatty, so decided to replace them. Now, I loathe shopping, so I thought I’d try the internet. After a long spell online I stared up at the ceiling (as one does) and cried, “Why can’t I find some decent furniture?”

Well, time passed … about two weeks, then my former business partner turned up out of the blue. He’d inherited his mother’s house and all the furniture. Most of it was being sold but a few items were being kept for sentimental value. These included a very luxurious, red leather suite, spectacularly comfortable and absolutely huge. It was far too big for his cottage, so he asked if I would “store” it indefinitely.

When it arrived it fitted perfectly and looks quite magnificent. Everyone is satisfied and we didn’t pay a penny.

So, does “cosmic ordering” work, or not?