# The Cycle Of Life



## Knightofalbion (Jul 5, 2012)

When you walk through a forest that has not been tamed and interfered with by man, you will see not only abundant life all around you, but you will also encounter fallen trees and decaying trunks, rotting leaves and decomposing matter at every step. Wherever you look, you will find death as well as life.

Upon closer scrutiny, however, you will discover that the decomposing tree trunk and rotting leaves not only give birth to new life, but are full of life themselves. Microorganisms are at work. Molecules are rearranging themselves. So death isn't to be found anywhere. There is only the metamorphosis of life forms. What can you learn from this?

Death is not the opposite of life. Life has no opposite. The opposite of death is birth. Life is eternal.

- Eckhart Tolle (From 'Stillness Speaks')

Life is a school. We incarnate on earth to learn (through experience) and to advance the soul.
Death is, quite simply, 'going home'.

Do not be afraid of death. There is nothing to fear.

For anyone in need of comfort and reassurance, or those in search of further knowledge on the topic of survival of the spirit, I recommend the following books:

'On Death and Dying' by Dr Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
'Glimpses of Eternity' by Dr Raymond Moody
'The Art of Dying' by Dr Peter Fenwick and Elizabeth Fenwick

For those of a more enquiring mind, I would also recommend 'The Golden Key' by Percy Welsford, a classic of British Spiritualist literature.

"Why have most of those who went through a near-death experience lost their fear of death?
Reflect upon this"
- Eckhart Tolle


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 5, 2012)

'When I come to your world I am like a bird that is imprisoned within a cage and when I leave it I am like a bird joyfully released to wing its way though boundless space.
What you call death is the opening of the cage and the release of the bird from its prison'
- Silver Birch


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 6, 2012)

"It's very beautiful over there"

- Last words of Thomas Edison


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 6, 2012)

Remember your magnificence!

One of the most remarkable NDEs you'll ever hear about...
http://www.anitamoorjani.com/?page_id=159


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 6, 2012)

'Suddenly my Gran sat up in bed and smiled. She said, "I'm going now and here's Dad and George come to meet me"
She then died, still with this big smile on her face.
My mother never forgot it.'

- (From 'The Art of Dying')


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 6, 2012)

'My uncle served in the First World War and experienced the horrors of the Somme, which lived with him for the rest of his life.
He had led a group of men, returned with only three survivors and was badly wounded himself.
He was awarded the Military Cross.

It was about thirty years ago, when he was dying of cancer, that the following event took place.

During his illness my mother cared for him at home, and Iremember one evening we were sitting with him talking quietly. He was too ill to contribute much to the conversation, but liked to hear us chatting, when suddenly he leaned forward and stared across the room.
He became very animated and looked very happy as he began to talk to people he could  obviously see but we couldn't. 
He was calling each by name and asking how they were and how wonderful it was to see them.

It became apparent from what he was saying that they served with him at the Somme and had died there.
There was a look of wonderment on his face and he forgot his pain.

I will never forget that night and though I could not see his friends, I have no doubt that they were there.
I didn't see him conscious again and he died a couple of days later.'

- (From 'The Art of Dying')


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 6, 2012)

'My mother's face lit up with joy. She smiled the most marvellous smile. She seemed to come alive.
She suddenly sat up, her arms out towards someone with a great look of happiness and then after a pause sank back on the pillow and died not long after'

(From 'The Art of Dying')


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 7, 2012)

'Many of the patients have spoken of the peace they experienced, beautiful, indescribable peace - no pain, no anxiety. They tell us that all that matters is how much you have loved, how much you have cared and if you know these things then you cannot possibly be afraid of death'
- Dr Elisabeth Kubler-Ross


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## Knightofalbion (Aug 14, 2012)

There is one common element in near-death experiences, they transform the people who have them
- Dr Raymond Moody


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## Knightofalbion (Oct 7, 2012)

(Valerie Feasby-Quigley nursed her father at home while he was dying of lung cancer. About two weeks before his death he started to tell her about the various dead family members who had been to visit him and whom he could see and talk to. She assumed that these 'visits' were due to the drugs he was on.)

'On a couple of occasions when I heard him talking, I thought he was calling me. When I went to his room to ask what he wanted, he would say, "Nothing, I was talking to your mum." On the day he died....he said, "Look, there's your mum and David [her brother], they've come again. I think I'll go now".
I thought he meant he wanted to go to sleep, so I said, "OK Dad, just lie back and close your eyes - you can go to sleep now."
I held his hand, he lay back on the pillow, still looking at the wall opposite, and just sighed a deep breath and passed away.
I put all this down to the medication he was on.
When I cleaned his room after the funeral I found the tablets that I had been giving him, and I thought he was taking, under the bed. He had not taken any of his medication. It then dawned on me that he was not hallucinating, he must really have see my mother and brother, and they met him to help him on his journey'

- From 'The Art of Dying' by Dr Peter Fenwick and Elizabeth Fenwick


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## maybenot (Nov 10, 2012)

My husband (Steve) has had Diabetes for30yrs, other than that he's always been very fit etc.
5 years ago he was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, the accepted average survival rate is 
at 5yrs.
Three years ago, after his 3rd round of radiation, he developed pneumonia and was put on life support
and was in intensive care for 3 mnths, initially, I was warned that there was very little hope.
However, this week the oncologist expressed his amazement at how well Steve is doing,and that
maybe he'd be around for another 5, we have a very open and honest relationship with this Dr.
and altho Steve looks and is very frail,(he's only 64) I think the Dr is right and the articles you've introduced me to 
make me feel much better about our future:love_heart:


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## Ginger (Nov 11, 2012)

Gosh!

I can surely sympathize with all that you have been going through........that is such a looong time , of "going through it" for you !  :concern: How are you holding up, as the "care giver" in this situation?  I always tell people who have "a lot on their plate".....to remember what they tell us on the airplane..."give yourself oxygen first"....so we can have it to keep giving......and we can never be " miserable enough" to make anything better for them.....so take care....Dear?   I see our   "Knight in Shining Armor"  is being helpful?   Hope you are having a good day!  I can also see that you are " learning the ropes" on the forum !  GOOD JOB, Maggis!!


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## Ginger (Nov 11, 2012)

Knightofalbion said:


> Remember your magnificence!
> 
> One of the most remarkable NDEs you'll ever hear about...
> http://www.anitamoorjani.com/?page_id=159



Hi Knight!


I will look into this one, as I have always had an interest in NDEs....Did you ever read   "EMBRACED BY THE LIGHT", by Betty Eadie?   I loved her amazing story!
   I actually took a little "elective" course, while attending college, called "DEATH AND DYING".  I guess the main thing that I " took away" from this course was that there is NOTHING TO FEAR about death....it will confront every single person on earth, at some point.... usually several times....(via losing those we love etc.) then, finally, it will be "our time to go"....the course made it all seem "SO NATURAL"....as you have described....like it is just a "natural part of life"  for every man/woman.  Some cultures actually celebrate ...rather than mourn it, as it is a time of "graduation" from this level to the next.  Sometimes, when I look at how things are in this old world, I do wonder if we have it backward....i.e.   maybe we should be mourning a birth and celebrating a death? 

I do think that you have exceed the limits of what is known as "chit chat", though?  You could actually earn a Doctorate with your "discertation" !!!  LOL!   I'm still wondering how one becomes a KNIGHT?  So, if you have time....?


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## SeaBreeze (Nov 11, 2012)

maggis said:


> My husband (Steve) has had Diabetes for30yrs, other than that he's always been very fit etc.
> 5 years ago he was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, the accepted average survival rate is
> at 5yrs.
> Three years ago, after his 3rd round of radiation, he developed pneumonia and was put on life support
> ...



Sending positive thoughts and prayers you way Maggis, hoping for the best for your hubby, and wishing you the strength to stay positive and healthy yourself. :love_heart:


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## maybenot (Nov 11, 2012)

Thanks so much for all your goodwill, I didn't realise that
so many people would read it and I didn't mean to imply that 
i'm miserable as I'm not, things could be a lot worse and there are millions
in dire circumstances.
I told a lie, I am a bit down at the mo', I found one of my 2 cats behind
 the shed on Sat morning, He was fine the night before so am guessing
that it may have been a heart attack, he was 12 and in good health ( so I thought)
We''ll miss him very much and we still have his twin brother and our much loved dog to lavish 
with attention


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## SeaBreeze (Nov 11, 2012)

maggis said:


> Thanks so much for all your goodwill, I didn't realise that
> so many people would read it and I didn't mean to imply that
> i'm miserable as I'm not, things could be a lot worse and there are millions
> in dire circumstances.
> ...



Dear Maggis, you in no way implied that you were miserable, and you are in a situation that merits serious concern.  My deepest sympathy for the loss of your cat, after a  twelve year relationship, it's not to be taken lightly.  I have lost pets myself, and they truly leave a hollow in our hearts.  Wonderful that you have a twin brother to keep on loving, and of course your dog. :love_heart:  You have a lot going on right now, my thoughts are with you. (((hugs)))


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## Ginger (Nov 11, 2012)

Sorry about your kitty.......? Glad you are" holding up" through all the "storms"!


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## R. Paradon (Nov 11, 2012)

The kindest way of accepting death of our loved ones, in my opinion is just to think of them going back home after a nice vacation!  There is no reason to fear!


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## maybenot (Nov 11, 2012)

Rainbow Bridge' is nice place to imagine and Ginger, the storms around where I 
live were really not so bad compared to other places 
I think what most of us worry about is the really hot weather on the way and 
the ever present arsenists around.


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## SifuPhil (Nov 12, 2012)

Knightofalbion said:


> "It's very beautiful over there"
> 
> - Last words of Thomas Edison



He no doubt was facetiously referring to Tesla's apartment in New York City, a bare, squalid room where Tesla died alone and lonely after proving the superiority of alternating over direct current (Edison's favorite).

I'm sorry, but Edison was a jerk. It figures that he would die in an exclusive, hoity-toity community attended by his physician and loved ones after a life of stealing other people's work. Besides, this attribution is said to have occured several days _before_ his death and were not exactly his very last words.

This was Edison's home where he died...


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## Ginger (Nov 12, 2012)

maggis said:


> Rainbow Bridge' is nice place to imagine and Ginger, the storms around where I
> live were really not so bad compared to other places
> I think what most of us worry about is the really hot weather on the way and
> the ever present arsenists around.



Hi Maggis! 

I was just thinking about you in Australia....and isn't it almost summer there?   That is such a nice thought!


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## Knightofalbion (Nov 13, 2012)

SifuPhil said:


> Besides, this attribution is said to have occured several days _before_ his death and were not exactly his very last words.



He was gravely ill at the time, he awoke from a comatose state, expressed that statement, then shortly after lapsed into a coma again from which he did not regain consciousness, so they were his last words.


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## Knightofalbion (Nov 13, 2012)

"Oh wow. Oh wow. Oh wow." - Last words of Apple co-founder and computer legend Steve Jobs.

Whatever he saw in the Beyond, it was wonderful...


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## Knightofalbion (Nov 13, 2012)

Mother darling, you never could, even in your darkest moments of despair, wish us back, if you could see us here in this beautiful place...

- Percy Welsford (From 'The Golden Key')


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## Knightofalbion (Nov 13, 2012)

Never be afraid of death; it is the gift of life. Never grieve for us, we are not dead. We live a life of beauty and happiness.
Life on earth is like living in a valley; life over here is like being transported to the mountain top where the great vision of life is laid before one

- Percy Welsford (From 'The Golden Key')


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## SifuPhil (Nov 13, 2012)

Knightofalbion said:


> He was gravely ill at the time, he awoke from a comatose state, expressed that statement, then shortly after lapsed into a coma again from which he did not regain consciousness, so they were his last words.





> "It's very beautiful over there." In the Spring of 1929, Thomas Edison traveled from his home and  laboratory at Menlo Park, New Jersey, to Dearborn, Michigan, to  celebrate the 50th anniversary of his invention of the electric light as  well as the opening of both the Ford Museum and Greenfield Village.  After being introduced by President Hoover, Edison delivered a brief  banquet speech and then collapsed. The president's physician quickly  rushed to Edison's aid and determined that he was suffering from severe  pneumonia. Edison returned to Menlo Park but never fully recovered. He  collapsed again in August, 1931, and was bedridden for the last two  months of his life. He sank into semi-consciousness, and his second  wife, Mina, remained by his side. On Edison's last day, she leaned close  and asked, "Are you suffering?" to which he replied, "No, just  waiting." Edison then looked out of his bedroom window and softly spoke  his last words.


Source



> *It is very beautiful over there!*
> These have sometimes been reported as his last words, but were  actually spoken several days before his death, as he awoke from a nap,  gazing upwards, as reported by his physician Dr. Hubert S. Howe, in _Thomas A. Edison, Benefactor of Mankind : The Romantic Life Story of the World's Greatest Inventor_ (1931) by Francis Trevelyan Miller, Ch. 25 : Edison's Views on Life — His Philosophy and Religion, p. 295


Source


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## Knightofalbion (Nov 14, 2012)

Thomas Edison died at 9 p.m. on October 18th 1931 in New Jersey. He was 84 years of age. Shortly before passing away, he awoke from a coma and quietly whispered to his very religious and faithful wife Mina, who had been keeping a vigil all night by his side "It is very beautiful over there". http://www.thomasedison.com/biography.html


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## Ginger (Nov 14, 2012)

I heard that his final words were:  "See ya"!!!!   "wouldn't wanna be ya" !


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## SifuPhil (Nov 14, 2012)

Knightofalbion said:


> Thomas Edison died at 9 p.m. on October 18th 1931 in New Jersey. He was 84 years of age. Shortly before passing away, he awoke from a coma and quietly whispered to his very religious and faithful wife Mina, who had been keeping a vigil all night by his side "It is very beautiful over there". http://www.thomasedison.com/biography.html



LOL - the War of the Quotes! 

There was also one reference that claimed he was looking out the window as he said it, so maybe he was just referring to Mrs. Satterwhite's lovely bush. 

The way I see it, there are two points that come into play here: first, it's extremely difficult to attribute any quotes to historical figures. They are so often wrongly attributed, modified or simply made-up. If Edison's wife was the only one in the room that would open his last words to the word of a single person - not exactly like making a speech to an auditorium full of people.

Secondly, Edison has been lionized over the past 80 years as a saint, when he was nothing of the sort. There is hard proof of his stealing patents, intimidating or just plain buying-out competitors, electrocuting animals and even pushing for the first electric-chair execution in Sing Sing just to make a point, treating his workers like dirt ... it's a long list, all documented, but if you wanted to say the man was a wonderful capitalist and driven to succeed then I would agree.

But attributing his supposed last words in a way that make him out to be a saint, which is how the majority of the literature does it, is just too much for me to handle. I know he was ruthless, cunning, deceitful, proud, arrogant, vain ... those aren't exactly the traits of someone I hold in high esteem. As is usual with our "heros" the myth is much, much larger than reality.


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## Knightofalbion (Mar 13, 2013)

NDE sceptic undergoes a NDE - and changes his tune...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-convinced-theres-heaven-body-experience.html


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## Knightofalbion (Mar 13, 2013)

An extract from a NDE account given by a lady called Mary.

"Horses and dogs were playing together and when they stopped they seemed to stare a hole right through me and then went back to playing.
I was told they were checking to see if I was the person they were waiting for that had loved them while on earth..."


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## Knightofalbion (Mar 13, 2013)

'You think dogs will not be in Heaven? I tell you, they will be there before any of us"
- Robert Louis Stevenson


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## Knightofalbion (Mar 21, 2013)

American Bryce Bond underwent a NDE after being taken seriously ill and rushed to hospital.

'He remembered suddenly passing through a long tunnel toward a beautiful light and then...

"I hear a bark and racing toward me is a dog, I once had, a black poodle named Pepe. When I see him, I feel an emotional floodgate open. Tears fill my eyes. He jumps into my arms, licking my face. As I hold him, he is real, more real than I had ever experienced him. I can smell him, feel him, hear his breathing and sense his great joy at being with me again....

I feel the presence of my dog around me as I ponder these two questions. Then I hear barking and other dogs appear, dogs I once had. As I stand there in what seems to be an eternity, I want to embrace and be absorbed and merge. The sensation of not wanting to come back is overwhelming...."

But he did come back because it wasn't his 'time'. 
The doctor told him he had been 'dead' for over ten minutes.

[Bryce was also greeted by all of his relatives who had passed on before him.]


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## That Guy (Apr 1, 2013)

Knightofalbion said:


> Death is not the opposite of life. Life has no opposite. The opposite of death is birth. Life is eternal.



"The end is near," said the caterpillar
"It's just the beginning," said the butterfly


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## Knightofalbion (Apr 6, 2013)

A gentleman approached me at a book-signing event in Seattle to tell me about the shared death experience he'd had with his wife several years earlier.

She had just completed a round of chemotherapy and was not feeling well.
 There was no reason to expect her to die anytime soon, said Dave, which is why he was so surprised to 'hear' her voice as he stood in the kitchen.

"I knew she was dying because I could 'hear' her talking directly into my ear," he said. "She was saying, 'I've just died, but that's okay. Everything is fine. Please don't worry.' "

Dave walked into the bedroom and found what he feared: his wife lying dead in bed.

What he didn't expect to see was his wife's mother (in spirit) leaning over her daughter and welcoming her to the other side.
"Her mother had died thirty years earlier and I saw their bond renew right before my eyes," said Dave. The mother and daughter hugged and then "swirled up and out of the room."

It was a great relief to Dave, who said that there was cheerfulness in his wife's voice that "lifts me up and keeps me going every day."

- From 'Glimpses of Eternity' by Dr Raymond Moody


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## Knightofalbion (Sep 15, 2013)

An atheist undergoes a NDE...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShSDaB_9Rek


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## Knightofalbion (Feb 4, 2014)

A new book on NDEs by Dr Penny Sartori is due to be published shortly.

The book received some marvellous advance publicity in the Daily Mail...


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...dramatic-evidence-says-banish-fear-dying.html


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...oungsters-young-six-months-lucid-visions.html


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ht-provoking-series-intensive-care-nurse.html


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## Knightofalbion (Mar 18, 2014)

Go back, Brian!

A man 'dies' but gets sent back by his mother-in-law!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...ibes-walking-light-near-death-experience.html


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## Gael (Mar 18, 2014)

maggis said:


> Thanks so much for all your goodwill, I didn't realise that
> so many people would read it and I didn't mean to imply that
> i'm miserable as I'm not, things could be a lot worse and there are millions
> in dire circumstances.
> ...



Prayers for your husband there Maggis, and hopes for continued improvment. And for you as well to keep your spirits up in the midst of such trials.


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## Knightofalbion (Apr 19, 2014)

What is it like to have a NDE? This will explain ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqInhGpECak


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## Ina (Apr 19, 2014)

Knight, I tried the NDE link, and it came up, but when  I tapped the go arrow. All I would get is a blank screen.


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## Knightofalbion (Apr 20, 2014)

Ina said:


> Knight, I tried the NDE link, and it came up, but when  I tapped the go arrow. All I would get is a blank screen.



Just tried it. Working okay. Try again ...


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## drifter (Apr 20, 2014)

To Knightoffalbion, thank you.


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## Ina (Apr 20, 2014)

Knight, I tried it again this Easter day, and it worked fine, must have been my Kindle. After watching the video, I went back to the beginning of the thread, and read several of the post. 
If I can find a couple of the recommended books, I will read them.
Thank you.


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 5, 2014)

Knightofalbion said:


> What is it like to have a NDE? This will explain ...
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqInhGpECak



So yes, that is what it is like to 'die'. As you see there is nothing to worry about, so don't be afraid.


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## Knightofalbion (Oct 6, 2014)

Having a NDE awakened and changed me in many ways. It also brought me to full understanding that nobody is here on earth 'by accident', that we each have a purpose, something we came here to do in this lifetime, before we return 'home'....
When I look at the world today, it seems that more and more, people are living out their lives as if their sole purpose is to 'get', rather than concentrating on living their *soul* purpose ... which is to *give*
- Jules Lyons


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## Debby (Oct 6, 2014)

Just did a quick run through of your posts and those of others.  Nice idea to share those links Knightofalbion and so good for folks to understand that others have been there before and returned to tell of its joy.  Actually I'm mailing off a copy of Dr. Alexander's book, Proof of Heaven, to my mother tomorrow.  She recently 'lost' her two oldest sisters and she is 78 herself, so I think the good Dr.'s book will suit her very well.  

Have a nice day!


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## Knightofalbion (Oct 22, 2014)

My wife the butterfly:

The wife who came back to earth as a butterfly; the poignant moment that a grieving husband lost his scepticism about the after-life

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/a...nt-grieving-husband-lost-scepticism-life.html


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## Knightofalbion (Oct 22, 2014)

(From the same series)

Are these glimpses of the after-life? Top brain surgeon who claims he saw Heaven while in a coma reveals the stories of others who say they have had similar life-changing experiences ...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/a...say-ve-similar-life-changing-experiences.html


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## Twixie (Oct 22, 2014)

I always thought life was like a river..some of us get caught up on branches and are lost...and then we all gently float our way to the sea!!


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## Knightofalbion (Nov 20, 2014)

My brother was in hospital dying of emphysema. His breathing was very laboured, when all of a sudden he stopped and his breathing suddenly appeared normal. He looked at about 45 degrees upwards and smiled broadly, as if at something or someone. He turned to me and died suddenly in my arms.
I am positive to this day that he wanted to tell me what he had seen.
Those few seconds before he died will live with me for ever, it was so powerful.
(From 'The Art of Dying' by Dr Peter Fenwick and Elizabeth Fenwick)


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## Knightofalbion (Jan 5, 2015)

Woman's heart stops beating for 45 minutes ... but she survives, returns to life again completely uninjured and reports encountering the spirit of her 'dead' father on the Other Side.
You know you're onto something profound and significant when even the hospital spokesman can only put it down to "Divine Providence" ...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...e-reveals-felt-moving-tunnel-late-father.html


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## Knightofalbion (Mar 4, 2015)

'What Happens When You Die?'

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRRgWV2lIvc


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 7, 2015)

Knightofalbion said:


> Having a NDE awakened and changed me in many ways. It also brought me to full understanding that nobody is here on earth 'by accident', that we each have a purpose, something we came here to do in this lifetime, before we return 'home'....
> When I look at the world today, it seems that more and more, people are living out their lives as if their sole purpose is to 'get', rather than concentrating on living their *soul* purpose ... which is to *give*
> - Jules Lyons



This is the full account of Jules's NDE. It is one of the most beautiful, comforting and uplifting NDEs I've come across ...
Well worth reading.

http://www.allaboutheaven.org/observations/11070/221/jules-lyon-and-her-near-death-experience-013027

The account originally appeared in the book 'The Wisdom of Near-Death Experiences: How Understanding NDEs Can Help Us Live More Fully' by Dr Penny Sartori. An excellent book. Recommended reading.


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## Knightofalbion (Jul 7, 2015)

This Life, Next Life.

A fascinating film. Does psychic phenomena *prove *that death is not the end  ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5RpbveVC_4


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