Death is the one experience we all will one day face, whether we’re ready for it or not. But the final transition need not be the “great mystery” it’s often made out to be. Toward a practical understanding, this post explains what happens when we die.
People end physical life in a variety of ways: naturally, accidentally, expectedly, unexpectedly. At the end of a full term or, in the opinion of some, much too soon.
Yet no matter how the end is reached, most experiences of transition share ten elements, identified by Dr. Raymond Moody in Life After Life (1975).
Your Possible Transition
The following is a composite experience that contains all of the elements, which I will list afterward.
Whether from an extended illness or a sudden trauma, you are dying.
As you reach the turning point where your physical body can no longer sustain life, you hear someone—a doctor, a loved one—pronounce that you are dead. An uncomfortable ringing or buzzing sound follows. You feel yourself speeding through a long, dark tunnel.
Then you find yourself outside of your physical body in the place where you have died. A silver cord connecting the back of your head to your physical body snaps and retracts.
You are surprised to see your own body lying there, feel strange to be a spectator from a vantage point you’ve never experienced before. Perhaps you observe others exerting themselves to resuscitate you. Or maybe a loved one is there, mourning your passing, and this may trouble you emotionally. But after some time, you adjust to the situation and accept this different experience.
You discover that you still have a body, but notice that it’s different from the one you’ve vacated. You find you have new abilities. You can move at the impulse of desire.
Wondering whether you’re all alone in your newfound state, others suddenly appear, and you somehow know they’ve come to help you. You’re pleased to realize that they’re the spirits of relatives and friends who have passed on before you—sometimes many years ago: your parents or grandparents, a lifelong friend or other supporter.
With them is a being you don’t recognize, and whose kind you’ve never met on the earthly plane. But this soul of light is incredibly kind and loving, and you are extremely comforted by its presence.
No one speaks—at least not with their mouths. Communication happens by the transfer of thoughts, and you find this fascinating.
The being of light engages you in a dialogue, and together you begin to review your life. This thought-conversation is accompanied by a panoramic playback of the primary events of your life. But it is an objective review, without distress or judgment concerning the presentation. From it, you gain a new perspective on the meaning of your physical existence and the lessons you learned.
While you’ve been engaged in the cinematic review of your incarnation, you find that you have moved with your companion to a new setting, what you sense is the borderline that separates the natural world from the next realm. You are overcome with intense feelings of love, joy, and peace.
With your spirit guide, you cross over into a countryside whose beauty you’ve only imagined in your sweetest dreams. And more loved ones are there to greet you. As you move through the gate of light, you understand that this is now your home.
The Elements of Transition
This composite scenario includes the following elements, events that most transitional experiences share:
- Hearing the pronouncement of death or realizing that you have died.
- Feeling a newfound peace and quiet.
- Hearing the roaring noise that accompanies the spirit vacating the body.
- Seeing the dark tunnel, which is the visual counterpart of the roaring noise as the spirit leaves the body through the crown of the head. The “silver cord” is severed.
- Being out of the body and discovering new super-physical abilities.
- Meeting other spirit beings known (or known of) during earthly life.
- Engaging with the being of light.
- Experiencing the life review.
- Reaching the border between the physical and spiritual worlds.
- Crossing over into the Summerland.
Now you know what to expect when you inevitably reach the end of physical life. You will shed your body, be greeted by loved ones, and transition into the world of Spirit with the help of a being of light. Although it will be a new experience, it is not to be feared. Compared to a brief sojourn in the earthly plane, Spirit is our true home, one whose beauty is to be enjoyed for eternity.
For more information, see “Where Do We Go When We Die?”.
If this post has helped you in some way, please comment so that others may also benefit from your understanding. God bless you!