Phenomena
Overview of the three main experiences related to death
An After-Death Communication (ADC)
An End-of-life experience (ELE)
A Near-Death Experience (NDE)
All three phenomena play a crucial role at a critical moment in the life of the person experiencing them.
Provisional conclusion
When death-related experiences — near-death experiences (NDEs), after-death communications (ADCs), and deathbed visions (DBVs) — are examined separately, they appear highly enigmatic, and many questions remain unresolved. However, when studied comparatively through a systematic analysis of their phenomenology and impact on experiencers, notable parallels emerge. These correspondences suggest the existence of a continuum among these diverse phenomena, which may represent distinct expressions of a singular underlying reality.
To date, the critical question of the veridicality of death-related experiences remains unresolved within the scientific domain. Their authenticity is established in the sense that the experience is real for the experiencer; however, their veridicality — i.e., their correspondence with external reality, and whether they reflect something "real" outside the mind — remains uncertain. The mechanisms underlying these phenomena remain unknown, as does the source from which they appear to originate. Unlike psi phenomena — which can, at least in principle, be investigated under controlled conditions and are generally categorized under extrasensory perception (ESP) and psychokinesis (PK) — these experiences cannot be reliably elicited or studied in the laboratory, making it considerably more challenging to determine their ontological status.
There are, however, indications — not conclusive evidence — that these experiences are genuine. The first indication comes from the profound and lasting impact they have on the lives of those who had a near-death experience (NDE), an after-death communication (ADC), or a deathbed vision (DBV). The second indication arises from the frequency with which these phenomena occur: they happen daily, at any moment, and anywhere in the world. While science cannot determine the objective reality of these experiences, they are undeniably real for those who live through them.
Information transfer is a common and undeniably essential aspect of death-related experiences. During near-death experiences (NDEs), individuals report encounters with a being of light, unknown guides, and deceased loved ones, engaging in telepathic communication with them. Although these individuals are generally unconscious, under anesthesia, in a coma, or clinically dead, the exchanges are rich in content and emotion, leaving vivid and lasting impressions on memory upon returning to ordinary consciousness.
The information perceived by individuals during deathbed visions (DBVs) is both powerful and compelling. The deceased appearing in these visions seem to convey information about the dying process and what lies beyond, fostering a sense of peace in those approaching death. These experiences suggest a transfer of information that eradicates the fear of dying. There appears to be an inherent quality in these visions that not only immediately dissolves apprehension but also engenders a sense of acceptance and even anticipatory joy regarding the imminent transition and the journey that lies ahead.
During after-death communications (ADCs), the perceived information is mainly centered on the recipients and, consequently, on the physical world. The essential information, inherent in the very fact of perceiving the deceased loved one and in the personalized messages received, informs the recipients that their loved one has survived physical death. These contacts are deeply comforting, particularly during periods of bereavement.
Twenty-four percent of the participants in our survey reported perceiving information that was previously unknown to them and later verified, thereby constituting evidential cases. These may involve practical ADCs, for example enabling the recovery of a family record book, or the discovery of an insurance policy taken out without the knowledge of relatives, or any other information urgently needed by family or friends. In cases of "ADCs for protection", information transfer occurs in situations of crisis or imminent danger, warning recipients of a threat of which they were unaware and thereby preventing potential harm or tragedy.
Yet, no information is communicated about "the other dimension." The deceased generally indicate that they are well and at peace, suggesting that the afterlife is a realm of peace and well-being. However, they do not describe their new environment — which is likely a state of consciousness rather than a place — nor their conditions of existence.
It should be noted that all of these experiences occur within a very brief time span — often only a few seconds, and rarely more than a few minutes — yet a remarkable amount of information is perceived, as if they were unfolding outside ordinary time or within a temporal framework of a fundamentally different nature.
For all three types of death-related experiences, there is no doubt that information transfer occurs.
The comfort provided by these experiences is a common and essential aspect of death-related phenomena.
During a near-death experience (NDE), individuals receive information that enables them to comprehend what they are undergoing. The comfort of an NDE arises from the transfer of knowledge regarding the nature of the experience at the threshold of death, with the loss of fear of death as a natural consequence. Encounters with a being of light, embodying absolute love and knowledge, are so profound that experiencers become convinced of a luminous and joyful existence awaiting all of us at the time of physical death.
Deathbed visions (DBVs) similarly relieve the dying of fear and facilitate acceptance of their imminent demise. Regardless of their prior beliefs — whether they accepted the hypothesis of survival of consciousness or not — a deathbed vision changes everything within seconds: the dying are reassured about what awaits them, a profound sense of peace seizes them, serenity settles over them, and they are ready to depart.
After-death communications (ADCs) comfort the bereaved, reassure them about the well-being of their deceased family member or friend, help them accept the loved one's departure, and assist them in coping more effectively with their grief. An ADC serves as a source of profound comfort and opens new perspectives on the survival of consciousness after physical death.
And here is my take:
Hypotheses:
- Information transfer is a common and essential element of death-related experiences.
- Death-related experiences foster a new understanding of death.
- They often lead to a conviction in the survival of consciousness.
- Intense positive emotions — including love and the sense of not being alone in this ordeal — arise from this information transfer.
- Comfort and reassurance are consistent and essential effects of these experiences.
- Death-related phenomena are manifestations of a shared underlying reality.
- All such experiences originate from a common source and are intrinsically of the same nature.
Death-related experiences occur at critical moments in individuals' lives, when there is an urgent need for information and reassurance to navigate a major crisis: facing imminent death during a near-death experience (NDE), confronting actual death during a deathbed vision (DBV), or coping with the sorrow of bereavement during an after-death communication (ADC).
The post-materialist hypothesis: a preliminary explanation of death-related experiences
The post-materialist hypothesis is the idea that reality cannot be reduced solely to physical matter. Unlike materialism, which holds that consciousness is produced by the brain, this hypothesis suggests that consciousness may be fundamental and may not depend entirely on the brain to exist. In this view, the brain would function more like a filter or transmitter of consciousness, similar to how a radio receives a signal rather than creating it. This hypothesis is discussed in certain areas of the philosophy of mind and consciousness studies, particularly to explore phenomena that materialism struggles to fully explain. However, it remains controversial and debated within the scientific community.
From this perspective, certain phenomena related to subjective experience — such as the nature of consciousness or unusual experiences — may suggest that the mind has a dimension that goes beyond the purely biological processes of the brain. The hypothesis is sometimes invoked to shed light on certain death-related phenomena, such as near-death experiences (NDEs), after-death communications (ADCs), or deathbed visions (DBVs). Proponents of the post-materialist hypothesis do not reject the findings of neuroscience, but argue that these findings primarily describe how the brain interacts with consciousness, rather than how it entirely produces it. The aim of this approach is therefore to broaden the scientific framework in order to more fully explore the relationship between the mind, the brain, and reality.