Hare Krishna prabhujis and matajis
I've recently complicated myself in an unending tangle of NDEs and religion.
REF: *NDE-Near Death Experiences
*OBE- Out of Body Experiences
Let me introduce my problem in detail :
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PART 1: MY NDE/OBE
I've been a very spiritual person , a staunch hindu but my belifs were softened (that is , i began accpeting other belifs as well ) .
My belief that we CONTINUE TO EXIST AFTER DEATH has always remained unbroken and shall remain unbroken. It is just that i am confused very much on karma and reincarnation and NDEs and OBEs to the extent that I now find myself very confused.
I maybe had an NDE or a OBE. On 19th/20th July while i was asleep , i was pulled out of my body. It was somewhat a dark but i could sense i was in my room. I had slight freedom to move in two directions - up and down. As i went downwards , i felt that it was becoming much darker , but I hadn't seen any malovelant beings as i went downwards , nor any hellish stuff.
As i tried moving upwards , it was becoming more bright. I had noticed this.
But suddenly , i was pulled upwards , it become much brighter and then i was suddenly in this room like place. It looked something like this, but dimmer : https://www.dreamstime.com/abstract-dark-background-rough-surface-black-spray-paint-rusty-iron-plate-image207183275
Two beings communicated with me. One of them said(or telepathically communicated , i don't exactly remember) this '"I am Yogananda " (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramahansa_Yogananda) .
The other communicated that " I am God".
While these beings communicated , i had no thrill or feelings. It can be described as blankness - my response was blank. I had no thoughts . I wasn't even thinking or forming impressions or opinions.
I then asked them a question (materialistic one) and they did not respond. But i remember coming down through this light and telling myself "okay this is a lot of information and i must write this down" . I vaguely remember the word "purpose of life" , but I have no recollections of them talking to me on this topic at all.
But when i woke up , i felt very light. It refreshed my body and i think i had an NDE or an OBE.
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PART-2: NDERF Website.
I have known this website : nderf.org and oberf.org for many days before this. It is a recollection of people who died and came back to life , telling what they saw.
I also believe these to be true.
The problem is :
*They are contradictory
*Some of them suggest reincarnation , some of them say it is optional , some of them say we chose to come down and experience some things.
*Some of them say Karma exists , some of them say karma doesn't exist.
*Some of them are strictly christian ( Jesus showed me hell and heaven (christian perspective) etc etc)
* Some of them show Jesus Christ telling about reincarnation and karma
* One lady had seen Jesus christ and Shiva/Krishna ( I dont have the link now but i will upload it as soon as i get it)
Conclusion : NDEs have confused me.
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PART-3: Grandmother's visits:
My maternal grandmother had passed away in 2020. I was also with the ISKCON community and Srila Prabhupad's version of geeta made me get over her death incident very efficiently . I listened to this one :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WULN3n9Ltzo and the sorrow of death was non-existent .
I hadn't seen my grandmother in her last moments , but everyone else in my family did. I caught a cold during the covid season and they did not allow me in to see her as she was in ICU.
To the best of my memory , i had seen her three days continously in my dream immediately after her death. She was kissing me on the cheeks and so on , very affectionate.
She makes constant visits to my mother and me. She appeared a few days/weeks after her death to my mom in her dreams. My mom asked what happened to you in your last moments and my grandmother showed a bluish leg (she had kidney problems and they probably messed with her leg). My mom asked something and my granny gave a positive response by laughing.
She made many visits to me in my dreams. Exactly one year after her hospitalization , I had a very intense dream about her presence , and it was so strong that i woke up crying. The irony is I did not even cry during her death , but i did after one year after having a dream.
Her recent visit was on her shraddha , 2 years after her death. I had a dream where we were in our home and she showed me a fat , south Indian lady and said that she was with her. I did not even know it was her shraddha , i woke up and asked my mom and coincidentally it was her shraddha.
An even greater irony is that she told me in my dream that when MY MOM dies , she will come to pick her up.
This coincides with the NDE accounts , that family members appear to pick up the deceased relative.
Coincidentally , my mom also got a dream few days before my grandmother's deathh that her great-grandma ( my mom's granny) was instructing my grandpa (my mom's father) something like this : " Hey go check out your wife she is sick". This made my family panick.
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PART-4: THE PROBLEM:
I have strong belief in hindusim , very strong one . I have been to countless ancient temples and have unflinching beleif in gods (especially Lord Shiva and Lord VIshnu). I have seen their vigraha roopas in my dreams many times even on special days without my knowledge. I have seen their vigrahas on days where i was fervently repenting for my papa karma that i had done in this janma. They are communicating with me and i have no doubt.
But , does our shastra mention that we incarnate with specific people to solve our karma ? Are there any refernces by saints on this.
I am sorry that this has been very long , but i would be greatly thankful if exalted people like devotees comment on this.
Thank you so much
Your das
Replies
Hare Krsna PRabhuji,
PAMHO.
Firstly, sorry for late response. Too many things happening at the same time.
Read your post. If you are interested in NDE & OBE so much, you may want to read this book - Many Lives Many Masters, by Brian Weiss. It will answer all the questions you are asking.
It is important whom we are putting our faith in, and whom we consider as authority. The experiences you have mentioned are of individuals with varied level of consciousness. YOu are trying to test teh veracity of what is mentioned in the scriptures through their experiences. It should be reverse. Put your faith on what scriptures and test the consciousness of the person who experiences NDE/ OBE.
Once you understand the principle of karma kanda, you will not get bewildered and will stop doing research.
I hope you are chanting a committed number of rounds of Hare Krsna mahamantra everyday. It will help to clear the thought process a lot.
Haribol,
Your servant,
Radha Rasamayi DD
Thank you mataji for your reply.
I had tried to read that book , but then found out that the book is not something which i would use to confirm reincanration. Moreover , the reviews on amazon truly state critical reviews. As far as i remember , the book had past life regression stories , which are not very reliable in general. But that book can be read , there's nothing wrong.
I should probably shut my mouth and visit pilgrimage sites and do charity and keep chanting. I had complicated myslef in this tangle , and this confusion has given me no result.
Anyways mataji , please bless me.
Hare Krishna dear Abhishek Prabhu,
It seems you are researching a lot on NDE and OBE and such other topics. Even I get intrigued when I see some people who claim they had these types of experiences.
Well, when we read and listen to such things our subconscious mind stores images, keeps memories of all these. They usually come out when we are deep sleep as dreams. Like for example I read about and was thinking deep about it whole throught the day and start relating to my near and dear who passed away and felt for a second oh how I wish i could talk to my grand mother or deceased grand father.. and I forget about that in due course of time it was just a thought but that thought is also stored in the Subconscious mind. When i got to sleep unknowing I start to open my subsconsious mind and from that that part will open where I felt I wish I had a contact with them, and that is how we dream about that and experience it what we had desired in conscious state.
Some have experienced NDE and OBE went into a tunnel of bright light and at the end of of the bright light tunnel met God and saints and some other people ( their expriences are also ) because of the active subconscious mind. When you lose touch with the body ( physical body) your are not conscious about ur body anymore, ur subconsious mind is active at that time. That sub conscious mind which has stored immense data ( memories) what you read, what you saw, what you heard which you wanted to recollect these all are projected as pictures in front of ur mental vision.
well, it is not untrue. When you sleep ( deep sleep) there is a stage of sleep called the REM sleep. where you are lying without consciouness of ur body parts. now also you subconsious mind becomes very active. This phase of sleep is when your eyes are moving fast ( rapid eye movement) you are not in totally comotose ( deep sleep) nor you can feel any body parts also. At this stage you start to recollect all that what you read, heard, seen. That is why.. waking time ( just before you get up ) that time REM sleep time is best time for recollecting all that you have studied. Now, your hard disk which has stored so much data over so many past year is active. In that the most recent data that " I want to meet my deceased granny" came up and you talking in dream, seeing her ..etc. You felt it is so realistic as you were were out of ur body.
Well, it is nice experience! Yogi's use this techinique to active this subconscious mind during waking state instead to see God. It is good that you are going into REM sleep many times daily. That is a good actually it said that it refreshes, rejuvinates and makes you lighter and active next day.
People use this power subsconsious mind to study, store and recollect information read and this makes them briliant kids achive good high grades at school. yogis' use this power to channelize their thoughts and connect to higher reality.
Well, one thing is for sure whethere is there any experience or not or dream or not what is more important that "But when i woke up , i felt very light. It refreshed my body and i think i had an NDE or an OBE. " This indicative that you had a refreshing rejuvinating sleep. yoohoo!! prepared for next day.
Life and death is handled by God why bother so much about these? let do our nihita karma ( prescribed duties).
YES, Shastras do mention that we always take birth among a group of people whom we have to fininsh our duties with or complete our karma with!
If karma with the people is over the people go away or leave us. May the souls go back to Godhead. Why bother the poor souls to keep coming back to earth. We always should wish they leave the Earth peacfully and go back to Godhead.
If they are coming in ur dreams or asking you something that means their Shraddha cermonies were not properly performed or if they always keep coming to ur dreams and bothering you. You could arrange a Bhagwad saptah ( 7 days bhagwat parayana ) reading in their name and donate food or clothing in their name and satisfy the souls and ask them to leave happily to higher planets and give them a good farewell.
Hare Krishna
Thank you mataji for your reply. It makes a lot of sense.
I also went through nadi readings of my parents. It's a form of astrology supposedly dictated by lord shiva himself , and in that they said that my mom and dad would be together in the next janma as well and my mom would gain brahma vidya and acheive moksha next time. The reading also told that they would just change genders. He even predicted the family in which my mom would be born.
Yes , some of my relatives had commited laziness in carrying out the sradda for my grandmother , but my dad meticulosly took it on his own shoulders to do it rightfully , as a son in law. But she appears to be in a good place , seemingly surrounded by her friends , that's how i have been seeing her.
Your reply does make sense. The reason why i don't want to lose some of my relatives in the next life is because some of them have a deep sense of aatma vidya and godly knowledge . I would want to be with them , not with some random monkey in this universe who is devoid of spiritual knowledge. I shudder to think of being born in a place devoid of right spiritual knowledge.
I am chanting the rounds daily mataji , please keep blessing me. Without the blessings of devotees , spiritual endeavours are useless.
i don't think your question needs any reference of any saint...i think it is just logical to assume that we are not put anywhere in this material creation in a random fashion..
the energies of the supreme lord can function in way more complicated ways than we can imagine and putting a living entity in some place using some data of karma etc. is like child's play for durga devi..who bythe way is incharge of these matters..
Thank you so much prabhuji