Samadhi – Beyond Death Experience!

NDE’s (Near Death Experiences) are easily recognised from the common feature of a person’s consciousness being distinguished from the physical-self. The process covers exit of the soul from the bodily boundaries, declared dead medically, and then revival of the individual’s life with soul re-entering the body.

One cannot ignore the mention of a vital study conducted by cardiologist Michael Sabom with near-death survivors. Sabom compared survivors’ account with the actual medical records that took place during their heart operations. The NDE survivors’ description of activities while being out of body and close to death, astonishingly matched with both medical records and the eyewitness testimonies of medical personnel present during these operations.[1]

Forty-year-old wife of an American Governor Ms. Barbara’s account of such experiences also proves their existence. In the year 1917, Barbara was admitted to a hospital in Washington to cure the formation of blood-clots in lungs. She died while undergoing treatment, though Dr. Fen’s hard attempts revived her. While recalling the after death experience, she said that suddenly her existence started floating in the air, she was at peace and it was an extremely pleasant experience. She saw her body lying on the bed, experiencing herself totally
detached from it and completely carefree of the actions being performed on her body. She saw Dr. Fen massaging her upper-body and was surprised as to why he was doing that as she was in a state of complete happiness. Suddenly she saw an unknown person coming and injecting a needle in her breast. As he withdrew the needle, a nurse approached and in hurry collided with the stand holding the blood-bottle. She saw that blood fell on bed and the bottle hit her face. Though she didn’t care about the injury, nor did she feel the
pain! Suddenly she felt as if she had reached her brother who had died last year. She turned to see her brother when suddenly she heard the voice of Dr. Fen who was loudly saying, “Take a heavy breath...Barbara, breathe again”.

“Don’t separate me from that heaven. I do not want to relive again…,”Barbara wanted to say. The point of consideration in Barbara’s context is that the exact was the treatment conducted by Dr. Fen as she stated. Most important thing here is that the injury from the bottle was right near her eye; she also saw another doctor injecting a needle in her body.

What kept Barbara completely conscious despite her being physically unconscious and dead? If after death a person’s Self itself ceases to exist, then why were Barbara’s experiential narrations so real? This is the place where we find ourselves forced to think on the subject of soul and its existence. Well, this is a proven and certified experience, yet there are many which are individual-specific and one doesn’t find any account of them.[2]

Just ponder: If the Self can temporarily dissociate and re-enter the body of an ordinary individual, then why can’t it happen in case of yogis in Samadhi– a state, which is not NDE but BDE (Beyond Death Experience)?

As a matter of fact, Samadhi is a much more advanced state than the one experienced in NDE. In case of NDE, it is due to the conglomeration of certain non-conducive parameters of situations and surroundings that the consciousness is forced to make an exit from the physical frame. In other words, it is an involuntary exit, happening just by chance, with no assurance of return of the Soul to the body. However, a yogi can make his Soul transcend his body at his own will and return the same when desired.

Besides, it being a blissful revelation in the oasis of cosmic zone, through this journey of the Soul from the microcosm to the macrocosm, a yogi accomplishes a bigger and a nobler purpose. He prepares a rich pool of divine cosmic energy for it to be transmitted for the benefit of mankind. The decision of the duration of this journey lies solely to his jurisdiction. In parlance of the yogic heritage of India, a yogi is said to be in Samadhi during this period.

Another point worth mentioning here is that only after witnessing a good number of evidences, the authenticity of which could not be doubted, science was forced to comply with the concept of NDE. May be that the present era puts forth such proofs and facts about Samadhi as well, whereupon, science is compelled to give a yet another acceptance confirming the genuineness of the concept.

To add on to this, if one does not contend himself simply by witnessing such facts but also discovers the underlying philosophy on his own, then, verily, it would not be a forced acceptance for him but a willing recognition of the subject of Samadhi!
 

References:

[1] Page - 239,240; Experiencing the Soul before Birth, During life, After Death
[2] Page 134, Arun Sharma, ‘Parlok Vigyan Ka Mahetv’