Emmett M NDE

Experience Description

As I said before, we were playing good guys - bad guys. I was the bad guy and was hanged for being the bad guy.

When I woke up on the garage floor, I remembered that I had just had a sort of dream, but didn't understand it and soon forgot it. However, off and on through the years after this happened it would keep popping up in my mind. This would happen at no particular time or circumstance. When I was in my late thirties and early forties, I figured there must be a reason for this to be coming up and reminding me about what had happened. I started to look into it a little bit and then it dawned on me that it was probably an NDE. However, the NDE did not have much of all the 'Bells and Whistles' as others have had. No Angels, no Christ, no Heaven or Hell visiting, and no dead relatives.

The Experience - I was in a sort of a room area that had three to five monks in it. There was something like a table that had little televisions on it, what I thought were funny typewriters. Later in my life, I recognized these as computers. At least three of the monks were standing in the left-hand portion of the room. Towards the back of the room was something like a large round doorway with very light colored fog in it. There appeared to be a bright light behind the slowly circling fog. If I recall correctly, the fog was moving in a counter-clockwise direction. On the left-hand side of the room, there was another large round door. This one had a dark fog in it. I asked the monk who was closest to me (just a few feet away, to the front right of me) if I was supposed to go through the round doorway with the light colored fog, and he told me something along the lines of, 'NO, you have to go back and do [or learn] something.'

No other monk said anything. I woke up on the garage floor.

I relate this to something that happened when I was around seven years old when I almost drowned in a lake. I was having problems not being able to touch the bottom of the lake and then being able to pull myself up into the air in time to catch my next breath. I knew that I was going to die and I had to say my prayers. I felt relaxed as I started to say my prayers. Then the next thing I knew, I was lying on the beach and my brother (ten years older) was leaning over me and performing what I now know as CPR.

Background Information:

Gender: Male

Date NDE Occurred: Guessing 1952

NDE Elements:

At the time of your experience, was there an associated life-threatening event? Uncertain Accident 'I got hung, they (he or she) let go of the rope and I dropped to the garage floor and regained consciousness.' Other Playing good guys - bad guys. I got hung. It was not intentional. We were just kids playing a little too realistically.

How do you consider the content of your experience? Mixed

Did you feel separated from your body? No I clearly left my body and existed outside it

How did your highest level of consciousness and alertness during the experience compare to your normal everyday consciousness and alertness? Normal consciousness and alertness When the monk told me that I could not go.

At what time during the experience were you at your highest level of consciousness and alertness? When the monk told me that I could not go.

Were your thoughts speeded up? Incredibly fast

Did time seem to speed up or slow down? Everything seemed to be happening at once; or time stopped or lost all meaning

Were your senses more vivid than usual? Incredibly more vivid

Please compare your hearing during the experience to your everyday hearing that you had immediately prior to the time of the experience. Either my hearing was unclear at the time, or I just can't remember. I have not been able to determine whether the monk told me to 'do things' or to 'learn things.'

Did you seem to be aware of things going on elsewhere? Yes, and the facts have been checked out

Did you pass into or through a tunnel? Uncertain I just remember that all a sudden I was in this room-like place. I am guessing that they didn't want to go into the tunnels.

Did you see any beings in your experience? I actually saw them

Did you encounter or become aware of any deceased (or alive) beings? Yes I refer to them as being monks. I am assuming that if they had a gender, it was male. They wore full length robes (very dark brown or black) that had what looked like pointed hoods that covered the whole head except for a clean shaven face.

The experience included: Light

Did you see, or feel surrounded by, a brilliant light? A light clearly of mystical or other-worldly origin

Did you see an unearthly light? Uncertain The room had some light source that was above and behind me. Also, there was a light coming from behind the light-colored fog that was through the round open door.

Did you seem to enter some other, unearthly world? No

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Surprised.

Did you have a feeling of peace or pleasantness? Relief or calmness

Did you have a feeling of joy? incredible joy

Did you feel a sense of harmony or unity with the universe? I felt united or one with the world

Did you suddenly seem to understand everything? Everything about the universe

Did scenes from your past come back to you? My past flashed before me, out of my control I have no recall of any vision of past events.

Did scenes from the future come to you? Scenes from the world's future

Did you come to a border or point of no return? I came to a barrier that I was not permitted to cross; or was sent back against my will

God, Spiritual and Religion:

What was your religion prior to your experience? Moderate

Have your religious practices changed since your experience? Yes My method of saying prayers is different now. Instead of just repeating the words as I used to do, I now think about what I am saying and visualize the actions of the prayer.

What is your religion now? Moderate Catholic but not full functioning.

Did you have a change in your values and beliefs because of your experience? Yes My method of saying prayers is different now. Instead of just repeating the words as I used to do, I now think about what I am saying and visualize the actions of the prayer.

The experience included: Presence of unearthly beings

Did you seem to encounter a mystical being or presence, or hear an unidentifiable voice? I encountered a definite being, or a voice clearly of mystical or unearthly origin

Did you see deceased or religious spirits? I actually saw them

Concerning our Earthly lives other than Religion:

During your experience, did you gain special knowledge or information about your purpose? Uncertain As most people do, I get my share of hunches, or whatever. I can usually talk with new folks and I just 'know' if I want them as friends. Sometimes it almost seems to me that some people wear a sign that tells me that they are not good people. I, however, have not usually paid close attention to this.

Have your relationships changed specifically because of your experience? No

After the NDE:

Was the experience difficult to express in words? Uncertain Mostly because I still don't understand it. So it is in some ways hard to relate it. I did not go to Heaven or Hell, just some type of place in between. There were no angels, or bright colors etc.

Do you have any psychic, non-ordinary or other special gifts after your experience that you did not have before the experience? Yes I have a sometimes uncanny ability to 'read' some people that I have just met. Also, when I was in the United States Marine Corps (USMC), I was promoted to E-4 in nineteen months - pretty good for a peace-time Marine. I was told by 'quite' an insider that when I 'shipped over,' (re-enlisted) I would be quickly promoted to E-5. My insides told me not to ship over. So I left the USMC. This was in Feb. 1964. Within a year, we were at full war in Viet Nam. I have been married twice, the first marriage ended due to my stupidity, and the second - my insides told me not to marry her, but I did it anyways and have paid dearly for it.

Have you ever shared this experience with others? Yes For a few years.

Did you have any knowledge of near death experience (NDE) prior to your experience? Uncertain I already talked about my 'drowning' as a little kid. It had no effect, as I never related either of them until just the last few years.

What did you believe about the reality of your experience shortly (days to weeks) after it happened? Experience was probably not real At first, the way I saw it was that the experience was probably not real. I used to think it was just a dream.

What do you believe about the reality of your experience now? Experience was definitely real Now I understand that the experience was definitely real. The incident kept coming back to me over the years in a way that was telling me to check it out. So, as I check it out now, I find that it is 'talking' to me and that I have a BIG BIT to learn yet at bald old-age!

At any time in your life, has anything ever reproduced any part of the experience? No