PMH Atwater's NDE News

Gary "Cody" Johnson, The Voyage of Purpose, and an NDE Handbook for Clinicians

2012-01-13T19:32:00.001-05:00

*** Gary “Cody” Johnson passed away on December 18th. Cody was a renaissance man and maverick who founded The Prophets Conference, The Great Mystery online programs, and many other events down through the years that made an incredible difference to thousands of people. His own life was turned around by a near-death experience. After that he dedicated his life to the transformation of consciousness – to help the conscious evolution of humanity. His wife, Robin, plans to continue some of his programs.

*** David Bennett has appeared on “George Noory’s Coast-to-Coast AM Radio” on Wednesday, January 11. The two talked about David’s book, Voyage of Purpose – an important book, not only because it describes what “killed” David, but what he went through integrating the aftereffects of his near-death episode. Few near-death books go into the aftereffects like David’s does. Consult the archives of Coast-to-Coast for a replay of this show.

*** Finally, there is a near-death book for clinicians. There has never been one before, so this is very important. The book is Making Sense of Near-Death Experiences: A Handbook for Clinicians, edited by Mahendra Perera, Karuppiah Jagadheesan, and Anthony Peake. Published by Jessica Kingsley: London and Philadelphia, 2012. Please, buy a copy for your doctor, clinics and hospitals, for mental health-care professionals, educators, nurses, any and everyone connected with physical/mental health-care and educational efforts. I feel so strongly about this book that I am having it posted on my website Home Page, as a permanent entry. Clinicians need to know about this book. It is relatively small, so should not be a reading issue for anyone.

NDErs Spiritual Retreat, Earth Video, and Books of Interest

2011-12-10T11:07:00.004-05:00

You can sign up now for the NDErs Spiritual Retreat, to be held at the Mercy Center, St. Louis, MO, April 27-30, 2012. Spaces for only 25 people exist, so sign up as soon as you can. These Retreats are incredible. Register at http://neardeathexperiencers.org. Should you need more info, contact Linda A. Jacquin at jacadv@centurytel.net, or Bill Taylor at wmmtaylor@gmail.com, or David Bennett dharmadb@mac.com, or Sinead Wilder srwilder@comcast.net. I have been to one of these, and there is nothing else like them, anywhere!

For a stunning YouTube-type video on the earth, and it’s free, access www.youtube.com/embed/nGeXdv-uPaw.

Three important books:

"Science and Psychic Phenomena: The Fall of the House of Skeptics,” Chris Carter. Rochester, VT; Inner Traditions, 2012.
"Dark Light Consciousness: Melanin, Serpent Power, and the Luminous Matrix of Reality," Edward Bruce Bynum, Ph.D. Rochester, VT; Inner Traditions, 2012
"The Last Lecture," Randy Pausch. New York, NY; Hyperion Books, 2008.

Atwater Monthly Newsletter - it’s free. Sign up on my website at www.pmhatwater.com. Content varies. I’ll have a big announcement to make in the next several months. Yup, another book. No, it’s not about near-death. Surprise!!!

Spiritual Retreats, Leaders, & Publications

2011-11-19T15:59:00.001-05:00

*** SPECIAL: News about the Annual Spiritual Retreat for Near-Death Experiencers has now been released. Dates are April 27-30, 2012. Starts Friday April 27th at dinner and ends Monday April 30th at noon. To be held at the Mercy Center in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information, please contact David Bennett at
(315) 350-9900, dharmadb@mac.com. The committee putting this on, besides David Bennett, consists of Linda A. Jacquin, Bill Taylor, and Sinead Wilder.

*** The Watkins Review in London, England, has released their list of the 100 Most Spiritually Influential Living People. The Dalai Lama was #2, Deepak Chopra #5, Nelson Mandela #19, the Pope #34, and best-selling author Eckhart Tolle at #l. For more information, access www.marketwire.com/press-release/-1418721.htm.

*** Anita Moorjani’s book about her near-death experience comes out next year. Here’s the title: “Dying to be Me: My Journey from Cancer to Near Death, to True Healing." Publisher, Hay House, Carlsbad, CA, 2012.

*** If you have not signed up already for my free monthly newsletter, please do. You’ll find that section on my website at pmhatwater.com. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

NDE Research

2011-10-12T12:56:00.001-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS

There are several NDE research opportunities you can participate in. Take your pick -

Electromagnetic Aftereffects:

Contact Cheryl Fracasso, M.S. She is working on her Doctoral Thesis for Saybrook University. This is not the same project being done by Dr. Bruce Greyson. This is another one, equally important. Contact her at cherylfracasso@hotmail.com for details. This study runs between 10-1-11 and 9-1-12. So, you can easily jump in now.

Parenting and Survey Issues:

Ryan Rominger, Ph.D. has two assistants for this duo-study. One concerns Near-Death Experiences and Parenting. For this contact Jennifer Hill, Ph.D. at Jennifer.Hill@myitp.itp.edu or call her at (727) 772-3888. You may also contact Dr. Rominger. The other covers Surveys and their appropriate use. Contact him at rrominger@itp.edu or call him at (650) 219-5016 or (650) 493-4430, extension 7309.

Dr. Moody’s latest book is causing quite the buzz

The book is Glimpses of Eternity. In it he establishes a new mode of study, as concerns “shared-death experiences.” I have written quite a bit about this phenomenon and show you how to participate in one (under the heading of empathic experiences), in my book The Big Book of Near-Death Experiences. There is more and more coming out, now that more people are reporting being able to accompany their loved one as the individual dies. Yes, these journeys automatically stop once individuals go as far as they can (so there’s no fear of “going too far”). Still, for those who share their loved ones death, their lives are forever changed.....almost as if they had undergone a near-death experience themselves. These are powerful shared journeys, that are changing how we regard life as well as death.

No longer discussed...

Is that most near-death episodes that happen to women occur during or because of birth, miscarriage, rape, or hysterectomies. Most of the data collected today comes from research with cardiac patients - because it’s easier to do and because verifications come naturally from the machinery hooked up to the patients. This is skewing figures, research papers, and the material available to experiencers. One person very concerned about this is Eileen Tapper-McKelvey. A particular project she has undertaken concerns miscarriages and how the NDE that occurred affects the woman involved. Since all three of mine followed in fairly quick order after a miscarriage, I am acutely aware of the effects. Eileen has designed “The B.I.R.T.H Model Curriculum for Miscarriage Bereavement” as a result. It consists of a book entitled Into the Clear Blue Sky, articles, therapy protocols, classes, discussion groups, etc. She needs help increasing the scope of this project. Please contact her if you want to participate, have ideas to share, or access to funding. Eileen’s e-mail eltapper@yahoo.com . This project is well-done yet needs a little kick-start to involve more people and expand the program. Do get a hold of Eileen.

The Afterlife Awareness Conference

This conference slated for March 9 through 11 in Virginia Beach, VA will be huge. The cast of speakers is among the best I have seen for this topic, authentic talent of exceptional skill and heart. Contact Terri Daniel about registering at info@afterlifeconference.com . Website is www.AfterlifeConference.com.

One more announcement

Susan Babcock notified me that the global movement for peace that began in September has morphed into the growing movement about corporate greed. Their goal is to connect with 144,000 world peacemakers in every country by October 28th - just two weeks away. There will be sacred ceremonies all over our planet on 11-11-11 to change world consciousness. You can participate in this. Link to www.prweb.com/releases/2011/10/prweb8867419.htm . Please do what you can.

A Reply to Scientific American

2011-09-24T19:27:00.001-05:00

On September 12th, Scientific American Magazine carried an article by Charles Q. Choi, entitled “Peace of Mind: Near-Death Experiences Now Found to Have Scientific Explanations by New Research on Abnormal Functioning of Dopamine and Oxygen Flow.” I would like to reply to Choi’s assertions.

Scientific explanations for some of the common aspects of near-death states have relevance, but not as causal to the phenomenon. In keeping with Choi’s assertions, let’s discuss what he mentioned.

There has been no recent survey of experiencer percentages done by the Gallup Poll, but research in the field of near-death studies now estimates that between 4 to 5% of the general population worldwide has had a near-death experience. In crisis and hospital settings, the number hovers between 12 to 21%. Not all experiencers who undergo the phenomenon are actually at the edge of death or are clinically considered dead, although some revive in the morgue, even hours later. There are near-death-like experiencers: those who thought they were going to die but didn’t (a fear death), those who it seemed as if they would die but revived, those who were in a crisis situation but were never harmed, and those who were in good health and had no reason to suddenly experience the phenomenon.

Most of the biological “explanations” for various aspects of the scenario itself have been overturned in clinical studies. Extensive work to this end has been done. To examine these studies and their authors, access the website of the International Association for Near-Death Studies, (IANDS) at www.iands.org, and by referring to the peer-reviewed Journal of Near-Death Studies.

The idea of a “walking corpse” (a delusional belief that one has died) does not apply, even remotely. Only a few experiencers ever thought they were dead. Most had no idea they had died and frankly rejected any such notion. It was only after they were resuscitated or revived, that medical personnel or relatives indicated that vital signs had been lost and that the individual had either been near death or had actually died, much to the experiencer’s surprise.

The notion of the out-of-body component to near-death states is indeed common, most child and adult experiencers speak of it. There is no sense of paralysis. In fact, during episodes like this, the individual has the sense of full movement with vivid, often startling scenes observed, and with details the experiencer could never have known or been able to see. Most of these, at least those I am familiar with, have been verified by third-party testimonials afterward. The experiment conducted August 24, 2007, written up in an article entitled “Out-of-Body Experiences are All in the Brain” and published by Science Journal, described a lab experiment where the illusion of being in a virtual body outside one’s own was created by disturbing the visual input of volunteers wearing virtual-reality goggles connected to video cameras. What these experimenters produced was the “doppelganger” affect and not a real out-of-body experience. The making of “phantom” bodies is a regular part of shamanistic practice, both in ritual work and to increase the spread of information coming to them through the phantom (about their environment). This image supposedly confuses enemies or “signals” that a shaman is present. Superficial at best, doppelgangers have no relation to genuine out-of-body states or to near-death experiences.

A variety of explanations were given for seeing the deceased in a near-death experience, especially as related to what may cause patients who have Parkinson’s disease to report visions of ghosts - that may apply to what causes near-death experiencers to do the same thing. No attempt by the author was made, however, to explain how, during a near-death episode, one can be met by a deceased friend or relative, revive, laugh at what just occurred as that person was known to be quite alive and healthy; and then, upon later investigation, find out that the individual in question did indeed die at time and in the manner revealed. Again and again, the deceased recount information, stories, details that the individual could not have possibly known, that later check out as accurate. This happens so often, it is considered a “signature feature” of a near-death state.

The euphoria experienced in near-death states seems to mirror what can be gleaned through drug highs, ketamine experiences, and even through taking DMT in supervised trials. Yet in case after case when an individual who took drugs compared the highs once obtained with drugs to the euphoria of a near-death state, their reply in essence said “no contest.” What they felt during a near-death state could not be compared to any other experience. In my book, Beyond the Light (Avon Books, NYC, 1994 - in both Chapter 4 and on page 128), I discuss the case of Steven B. Ridenhour who spent 20 years trying to re-create his near-death episode through drug use, and was unsuccessful. His is not the only such case. Adult experiencers sometimes describe the experience as “more powerful than a million suns.”

As concerns the infamous “tunnel” effect, this is more myth than reality. Not that many people report tunnels, and never did. In the Gallup Poll survey conducted in 1982 about people who may have had a near-death experience, only 9% even mentioned a tunnel. It was not until the media sensationalized Raymond Moody’s first book Life after Life (Mockingbird Books, Covington, GA 1975) that reports of tunnels became more comonplace. Were people lying? No, I don’t think so. These experiences are ineffable. How do you describe something you do not have language for? For those who encountered darkness and lights, all of a sudden there was now a word they could use and that word was “tunnels.” Whether I’m right about that or not, the fact is only a few report or describe tunnels. Certainly not enough to account for the exaggerated claim by scientists that oxygen flow explains tunnels which explains near-death states. Not hardly. Yes, the “classical model” of near-death states still includes the tunnel feature as a basic component of scenarios, yet it is only one of many aspects that can occur during the phenomenon. In this regard, I suggest to you that the classical model isn’t always that classical.

Near-death states as a self-fulfilling prophecy about life after death? The public does indeed listen carefully to these stories with the hope that they might illustrate what happens after we die. A check of the various religions and clerics shows that each will endorse only those episodes that apply to their own belief system or dogma, rejecting anything that varies. It’s as if only the “proof” they want to hear is declared “genuine.” If you really study these accounts as I have, you begin to notice that “across the board,” the near-death phenomenon faithfully reveals the core wisdom common to all spiritual and religious traditions - as if these traditions may have sprung from the telling of such stories farther back in time than can be recounted. No research can be certain. What we know is that the phenomenon puts names and faces on life’s “mysteries” in ways no dogma or tradition can.

What is glaringly missing from the article by Charles Q. Choi is the fact that the scientific community he speaks for, investigates only in piece meal fashion some of the various aspects of near-death states without viewing the phenomenon as a whole, and completely devoid of the pattern of physiological and psychological aftereffects which follow. No skeptic that I know of, and none of the scientists Choi uses as references, has ever done a full study of all aspects of the experience and its aftereffects and in numbers acceptable as a valid study. I am quite certain that Choi would lose no time trying to invalid my voice. However, 33 years of mostly fieldwork with nearly 4,000 adult and child experiencers and their significant others, gives me at least a unique lens in which to observe, cross-compare, and analyze.
If the scientific community wants to make a point and inform the public in a credible fashion, I suggest that they know more about their subject before they try to explain it away.

Thank you, P. M. H. Atwater, L.H.D., author of
10 books on near-death findings, among them
The Big Book of Near-Death Experiences and
Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of The Story.

Afterlife Awareness Conference & Miscarriage Bereavement

2011-09-16T10:39:00.001-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS

*** Register now for the AFTERLIFE AWARENESS CONFERENCE, to be held March 9, 2012 through March 11, in Virginia Beach, VA. The lineup of speakers is incredible. You really do not want to miss it.

Contact: Terri Daniel, President,Afterlife Education Foundation;
info@afterlifeconference.com ; (541) 549-4004;
AfterlifeConference.com .

*** This announcement is a little more involved. It concerns a project of Eileen Tapper-McKelvey that concerns Miscarriage Bereavement. She is a near-death experiencer herself, and was quite taken that my first death/near-death state came from a miscarriage. She has created “The B.I.R.T.H. Model Curriculum for Miscarriage Bereavement” that includes a simple, almost child-like book she wrote called Into the Clear Blue Sky, and a manual on how to use the book in therapy. She has applied for a grant for enough money to start training programs. The work she has already done on this project is quite astounding. She is especially interested in providing counseling for the uninsured. In my research of near-death states, a whooping 70% of women had theirs in conjunction with either a miscarriage, birth, or a hysterectomy. I would add rape to that. If this project “speaks to you,” if somehow you want to get involved, know more, or support Eileen’s efforts, please contact her directly. Her e-mail address is eltapper@yahoo.com . Her snail mail is Eileen Tapper-McKelvey, P. O. Box 604, Waterbury, VT 05676.

Quake and Weather Sensitivities

2011-08-26T17:04:00.001-05:00

S P E C I A L B U L L E T I N
Electrical Phenomena with Weather Extremes

This special bulletin is brought about because of the aftereffects from Virginia’s earthquake, which was felt across 20 states and caused unexpected damage. In my research of near-death states, 75% of the people experienced electrical sensitivity afterwards. I am one of them. When we think of electrical sensitivity, what we think about first is the inability to wear watches, sometimes popping light bulbs, computer glitches, microphones which “fight you,” recorders and projectors that suddenly begin to smoke or won’t work - with the only cause for these strange effects being our presence. Having a near-death experience somehow changes your electromagnetic field and that change can affect all sorts of equipment. This does not go away as the years pass, although it may alter some. You learn to live with it.

What nobody talks about is what happens to us during weather extremes such as tornadoes/ lightning storms, and earthquakes. Each of these extremes have electrical phenomena that accompany them. This can affect near-death experiencers, near-death-like experiencers, and anyone else who is quite sensitive or who has gone through a transformation of consciousness.

EARTHQUAKES

The electrical phenomena that accompanies earthquakes is powerful. Displays tend to be wild and will fill your home, go through you, and “dance” around outdoor areas. Those in a closed space are felt the strongest. You can often hear or feel a “buzz,” maybe many buzzes, like bees flying around. Air brightens, whatever you see becomes brighter, lighter. Instantly, your head tends to turn numb. You lose body coordination. You find it hard to think and may start crying or feel dizzy or feel like falling down. When the quake’s movement is through, it’s not through with you. Effects continue. With those who are sensitive, these effects may last hours, very probably for days. My assessment of this: The electrical phenomena connected to an earthquake strips you of your electrical field.

As soon as possible, take whatever supplements or emergency remedies you have that will:
…...............strengthen your heart
…...............strengthen your thymus
…...............help to reconnect your electrical circuitry

I doubt that any medical doctor will know how to help you. Some are into alternative healthcare measures. Most are not. Those health-care practitioners familiar with energy medicine, flower and oil remedies, and realigning the body should know what to do.

What I have found that makes an incredible difference and quickly are the following:
…................take Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)
…................take Thymex, or something like it.
…................eat meat, chicken or red meat preferred, or some type of solid protein with all 8 amino acids (not all protein sources have all 8 amino acids - chicken and red meat do).
…................chanting, affirmations, meditation are seldom that effective until after your bodymind has regained some control. Prayer can be helpful immediately, though.

In taking supplements like mentioned above, I prefer those obtained from Standard Process. I get mine by mail, but I hear their products are now available over their website. Large doses are not needed. I only take one of each per day, and only for those days when brain and body are still uncoordinated, dizzy, or not grounded. A sensitive person does not need a lot of anything for full effect. Many people use Essences of Perelandra successfully. Perelandra has a section in the Marketplace of my website, www.pmhatwater.com. There are other sources and supplements. Look around.

TORNADOES
(effects noted below can also be true in strong lightning storms)

Electrical phenomena with tornadoes can center around wild lightning strikes that spread out from the spinning vortex. But, what few ever mention are the electrical streaks (sometimes a light blue) that can cover a distance of 10 to 40 miles away from the main cone. Sensitive people can feel these streakers and can be affected by the electrical buzz that crowds air space (strong lightning storms can produce similar effects).

If you are within that 10 to 40 mile radius you can feel some of the same effects as with earthquakes. However, if a number of tornadoes touch down within a short radius (as if together), you could feel a temporary paralysis - especially around the neck, larynx, shoulders, and major joints.

What I have done when caught in this type of situation, is to grab a lemon. Put it up to my nose, breathe its scent; if I can, squeeze some of the juice into a glass of water and drink it right down. Cranberries are also good for this. Drink a lot of water. Recenter yourself through meditative practices or good yoga stretches. Read outloud with the goal of speaking the words your eyes see. You may have to force this for a while, as speaking may be difficult or feel clumsy. Engage in hand/eye games, and jumping in place. Swallow, clear your throat, swallow again. Do head and neck exercises.

Under no condition eat sugar-anything, or drink any form of soft drinks or alcohol, or smoke, during or after the electrical effects accompanying either earthquakes or tornadoes (or lightning storms). You can usually clear up all biological effects within about two to three days, and return to normal diets/behaviors. You can be exposed if your electrical field is stripped or compromised. Fortunately, such exposure can be reversed using suggestions like given here. Do not hesitate to seek medical care if you feel you need it. Usually, though, a good healthcare professional can do the job and better. Self-care is fine once you know what to look for and how to handle it.

Blessings to all, PMH

Hit by 5.9 Quake

2011-08-23T17:29:00.001-05:00

We were hit a few hours ago by a 5.9 earthquake. The equicenter was a few miles northeast of us at Mineral, VA. Because it is so close, Charlottesville is considered part of the epicenter. D.C. and Richmond are also quite close, but not as close as we are (we live north of town).

I had clothes in the dryer downstairs. At first I thought it was the dryer, but I could see the walls and ceiling buckling toward me, the entire townhouse we have jumping up and down, and there was this loud awful roar - just roaring and roaring, shaking and shaking. My head felt numb and I could hardly move, still I streaked downstairs to stop the dryer. One thing you can depend on with me - if there is an emergency, I am a good person to have around. I move. I act. It wasn't the dryer. I fled outside screaming, thinking it was that huge machinery in back of us turning what was once a forest, now a moonscape, into a housing development. Susan next door screamed, "What is this?" I yelled for the men to stop their machines, they were destroying our home. Finally the foreman yelled back, "It's not us. It's an earthquake." An earthquake? I told Susan, and asked her to be sure and check all her pipes and connections. I would do the same. I did. Every room. Every floor. Pictures needed straightening, a few things fell off, the fireplace flue was opened and a wasp was flying around.

Our home passed the test. Everything seems to be fine. No cracks. Pipes and connections working. There were several small aftershocks, but I couldn't tell you when they stopped or started as I felt the ground moving continuously. The electricity in the air was phenomenal. I cried. I shook. Then I went next door to help Susan and her son. We are all fine. Terry is too. So many friends called to check in on me. Steff, my webmaster in Northeastern NY State felt it. Ellen Louise felt it in New York City area, bounced the doors off her bedroom closet. Natalie in North Carolina felt it. According to TV a broad sweep of states felt it. I don't know what the final assessment will be, but I doubt that this was just a fault-line shaking. It had to be a rift that was hit, to have involved such a huge swath including Georgia, Michigan, West Virginia, even Toronto in Canada.

I am barely able to think again but am still shaking. My legs are picking up discomfort from the earth. We'll know more about our home this weekend when Hurricane Irene hits our area. For now, thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who prayed for us, called to check in on us - and thank you, God. Mercy reigns, and I am very grateful. God bless us all, PMH

LENGTH OF TIME DEAD - NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCERS

2011-08-09T13:00:00.001-05:00

I am very concerned about claims from near-death experiencers concerning how long they were without vital signs, as if this were the single sign of legitimacy (which it is not).

The average length of time without vital signs in my research (and corresponding with most of the researchers I know) is from five to twenty minutes. The longest in modern history is George Rodania, supposedly a corpse for three days. I say "supposedly" because the only evidence I have for this comes from his wife Nino and their two children, not from the hospital in Tbilisi, Georgia - although their account, especially hers, is not only riveting but evidential. Historically, in the writings of Plato, we do have the case of Er, the soldier, dead for 10 days before he revived on his funeral pyre, but we have no way to validate that story, tantalizing as it may be.

Thanks to my latest book, NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES: THE REST OF THE STORY, we now have the case of Bruna Reyn (62-63). Bruna drowned in the cistern of the convent of The Sisters of Mercy of the Holy Cross when she was three. At the time, the near-death episode she had was considered a dream, as a raging fever took precedence. In 1994 her mother contacted her to say The Sisters wanted to talk with her. Apparently, The Sisters who had rescued her and the physician who had treated her, had recorded every detail of the event and had submitted their documentation to the Catholic Church for an official investigation of a possible miracle. . . she had been dead for at least six hours. The Church did indeed investigate her case. Because of what they found, she was invited to attend the 1995 Beatification Mass for Sr. Maria Theresia Scherer, had an audience with the Pope, and received a medal, acknowledging the validity of what had happened to her and her miracle survival. Bruna, by the way, throughout her life, has exhibited most of the aftereffects pattern. --PMH

Beyond Belief

2011-08-06T19:58:00.001-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS

**** If you missed the ABC show “Beyond Belief” about the near-death experience,
you can still watch it at http://abcnews.go.com/nightline/beyondbelief . There is
also an interview you can watch about the show between Jeffrey Long, M.D. and
Caroline Myss - http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/beyondbelief/experts-death-
experience/story?id=14221154 . No, my work is not mentioned. I was
interviewed for the show. They dropped me when I was unable to find a child
near-death experiencer able to appear with me.

**** Registration is now open for the Second Annual Afterlife Awareness Conference.
This one will be held in Virginia Beach, VA, March 9 through 11, 2012. Guest
speakers are many - one of the most exciting lineups I have seen in a long, long
time. Yes, I will be there, too. Terri Daniel is the producer of this event. You
can contact her at info@afterlifeconference.com. Her website is http://www.Afterlife Conference.com.
You can also access information about the conference from
http://www.regonline.com/builder/site/Default.aspx?EventID=975447 .

**** For those who want to tap into inner guidance and the eternal quest for self-
discovery, here is a clear, inspiring and lucid explanation of how to do this via the
book Soul Writing by Joanne DiMaggio. E-mail Joanne at are.cville@gmail.com
for more information. You can order the book directly from Olde Souls Press,
P. O. Box 6475, Charlottesville, VA 22906. It is just out. The website, by the way,
is http://www.oldesoulspress.com .

Primetime Special on NDE's

2011-08-03T20:43:00.000-05:00

Airing on ABC (US) TV at 10 pm ET.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/pressroom/2011/08/abcs-bob-woodruff-probes-the-mysteries-of-near-death-experiences-including-his-own-on-primetime-nigh.html

Live from the streets of Oslo, Norway.

2011-07-29T20:53:00.004-05:00

Dateline: 7-25-11

The following report is from my dear friend, Liv Evensen. Like all Norwegians she has been shocked and saddened by the terrorism committed in her country, and more determined than ever to heal the wounds caused by this senseless act. ~PMH

I just returned home from downtown... have been glued to the telly for two days,and now I wanted to join all of us here...in a rose ceremony, a rose parade through town.. We all met in front of city hall and was going to walk to the main church where there is a sea of flowers and lights already. We were about 200,000 people or more. We didn't make it to the church, we all carried roses, we all stayed in front of behind up all the side streets of the city hall and listened to the prime minister, the leader of the youth movement and various music and we waved our...roses every time we agreed to something and it was very often and very beautiful....

We left the roses all around town...stuck in construction site fences, on street corners, around statues, floating in the city's fountains and lining these fountains..so beautiful. I walked with people to the National Theatre, three ambulances were parked there and they were covered in appreciation by people...with roses...further up on the main street people had stuck the roses down in cracks in the street and at the parliament hill the gates were covered by roses... even further up the street, where the devastated government buildings are people had covered the street in...roses...and down the street to the main church, in front of it, the sea of flowers and lit candles....but before that at a temporarily erected fence to fence people off from the street devastated the most, the fence was covered... with roses. People are hugging each other and speaking to each other and rooting for even more tolerance, even more freedom of speech, even more love and caring....and people, most people seem happy at being able to pay such deep respects for our Labour Party who lost so many youths in their youth organization. The Crown Prince said it: Today our streets are covered by love. We will not be silenced. We will not hide our sadness nor grief, some will need longer time than others, but our streets are covered by love. This is the effect that the bombing has had on us...

The Mayor of Oslo said that we would punish the culprit by becoming more.... open, tolerant, generous and warm. As a nation, as a city, as a people...Some people say the feel that Norwegians are kind of "aloof and not so outgoing", but we are...when it really really counts....

I was interviewed at the telly from the Faraoe Islands, lol, and told them that I had hoped that Norway would shine her face of peace and love to a world in great changes. That is what we are doing. And the politicians are kinder to each other, they have decided to postpone the election for one month in reverence for the grief of the Labour Party. I have hugged two politicians today:))...that too:))...

Thought I would let you know....in kindness and care and much love, Liv

“Afterlife: What Happens When We Die?”

2011-07-16T18:06:00.001-05:00

There is now a new documentary DVD for sale called “Afterlife: What Happens When We Die?” The producer is Paul Perry, guests are Drs. Raymond Moody, Melvin Morse, and Jeffrey Long. The documentary follows along Dr. Moody’ latest book Glimpses of Eternity (which Perry co-wrote) and demonstrates the reality and power of near-death states and what is revealed through them about the Afterlife. It focuses on crystal-clear consciousness and alertness during NDEs, realistic out-of-body experiences, heightened senses, consciousness during anesthesia, perfect playback in life reviews, family reunions, children’s experiences, worldwide consistency of accounts, and the aftereffects. The DVD is 70 minutes long, and should be available through regular sources. Dr. Raymond Moody and Paul Perry are now claiming to have had an NDE.

A Tribute to Sai Baba

2011-07-07T13:49:00.000-05:00

This blog posting is a special tribute that appeared in the June 2011 Newsletter of the American Society of Dowsers, featuring their "Water for Humanity" project. The tribute is about the passing of Sai Baba, a revered holy man in India. Should you wish to know more about the dowsers program, please access http://dowsers.org/water-for humanity . Since so many people know about and have followed the life and times of Sai Baba, I felt it a service to carry "the rest of the story" for you. Blessings, PMH

The Passing of Sathya Sai Baba

On Easter Sunday, the 24th of April, Hindu guru Sathya Sai Baba passed from his physical form at the age of 84 near his southern Indian ashram. Considered an avatar and revered around the world, this spiritual master played a part in the history of Water for Humanity when on the occasion of former WFH Chairperson Joe Ann van Gelder’s trip to India in December of 1993, the work of the WFH Fund was blessed by Sai Baba.

Sathya Sai Baba was hospitalized on March 28th, taken to the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences, an institution established as one result of a several billion dollar charitable trust he himself initiated to help others. He had been confined to a wheelchair since 2005 and since his admission to the hospital was on breathing support and undergoing dialysis up until the time of his death. A funeral was held on Wednesday morning, the 4th of May in Puttaparti in Andhra Pradesh state with state honors.

Sai Baba was born November 23rd, 1926, given the name of Sathyanarayana Raju. Even at a very young age he was spiritually precocious and displayed great intelligence, expressing both through music and dance, and the writing of poetry and plays. At the age of fourteen, he revealed himself as an avatar, the reincarnation of a Hindu holy man from the western region of Maharashtra state known as Sri Baba of Shirdi, who died in 1918. On countless occasions, his followers witnessed him to perform miracles, such as the materialization of items such as jewelry and other precious objects, vibhuti – sacred ash with metaphysical properties, or lingams – small crystal, stone or precious metal objects formed within the Master’s body and ejected through the mouth. Sai Baba had his detractors, but he was respected and revered by millions all around the world. His ashrams have been established in 126 countries. He inspired all through his example of true compassion and embodiment of the Divine to live a morally pure and purposeful life, encouraging them to do so while following the religion of their own choice.

The Theatre of Life + Working with Near Death and Anesthesia States

2011-06-25T14:49:00.001-05:00

**** In regards to integrating NDEs and other life transforming episodes, there is a special book about to come out, authored by Arleen Lorrance (OSO), called The Theatre of Life. I’ve known OSO for well over four decades, and I can say without hesitation her work and her ideas are exceptional. The Theatre of Life has been an experiential workshop run and facilitated by OSO and Diane Pike (Mariamne Paulus) for 26 years. Both are teachers of the highest order; their work utterly profound. I was lucky enough after I died to take several classes from them, and I am glad I did. This book (that has evolved from their workshops) is about uncovering your motivating forces, identifying purposes and objectives, becoming more adept at expressing artistically through your body, writing your own life story. Above all, making your life a work of art. To obtain a copy, contact: Teleos Institute, 7119 E. Shea Blvd., Suite 109, PMB 418, Scottsdale, AZ 85254.

**** Another giant who does profound work with people, helping them to integrate their experiences and face all aspects of who they are and what has happened to them in life, is Steven Levine. He is best known for his work in the death and dying field, deathbed experiences, hospice, and trauma. He is now offering workshops for practitioners and students who want to learn his techniques. The Advanced Level I is coming up October 29 through 31 in the Tiburon/Northern California area. Part of that event will be a Group Case Consultation day that is open to all levels of training. He calls this new step in his work, Through the Eye of the Needle: Working with Near Death and Anesthesia States. The integration techniques he offers have stunning effects. If you are interested in attending the classes scheduled for this fall, or in finding out more about his techniques and how you can find a trained practitioner, access this website: www.somaticexperiencing.com/events/48-two-workshops-for-seps-happening-in-northern-california.html . If you scroll down this website, about halfway, there is a video of Levine doing a session with a car accident survivor. Dramatic.

September IANDS, New Books, DVDs, and Interviews

2011-06-07T13:08:00.001-05:00

*** The International Association For Near-Death Studies (IANDS) celebrates their 30th Anniversary with an incredible conference, September 2-4 in Durham, NC (come a day early, there are activities then, too). Raymond E. Moody, Jr., M.D. and Bruce Greyson, M.D. will be the keynote speakers. It will be held at the Millennium Hotel, right across the street from IANDS headquarters on Campus Walk Avenue. Register as soon as possible. Contact: http://www.iands.org; (919) 383-7940; services@iands.org. You will need to register separately for the Hotel. I will be presenting my last research paper at this conference, entitled “The NDE as a Threshold Experience.” The theme is “Lives Changed Forever.”

*** To hear a radio show with me (as the researcher) and Eben Alexander, M.D. (as the experiencer), access www.jennifertill.com, scroll down to the show on 4-23-11. Dr. Alexander was brain dead for a week after a deadly attack of bacterial meningitis. During this time of no neocortex activity, he had a long and detailed near-death experience that completely changed his life and his idea of neurosurgery. The radio show is “Real Life with Jennifer Till.”

*** Out of the blue, as a complete surprise, Brian Hardin, the film maker, called me and said, “Do you remember in late 2007 when I filmed a two-hour interview with you? Well, I just put it on YouTube.” I had completely forgotten the whole thing. The two-parter is basically “Atwater Unplugged.” Yup, it’s a little embarrassing, as I said a few things I wish I hadn’t, but, it’s all true.”

*** Nancy E. Bush has a blog now and is inviting people to climb aboard and participate in the discussion. She calls it “Dancing Past The Dark.” Nancy’s goal is to discuss and explore the deeper issues in near-death experiences, especially those that are unpleasant or frightening. Access: http://dancingpastthedark.wordpress

*** Diane Corcoran was interviewed by “News Line for Nurses.” Nurses are an important link with near-death cases. Access: http://www.news-line.com/online/20110L/1103NLnsF/ .

*** News is starting to trickle out from the huge study concentrating on near-death experiences. Called AWARE (Awareness through Resuscitation), it involves over 1,000 cases of cardiac arrest. Early report from Sam Parnia, M.D.: “Near-death experiences are real and we have the proof.” Access: http://horizonresearch.org/main_page.php?cat_id=253. Also access http://ht.ly/4NvXG.

*** On April 23, 2011, Drs. Sam Parnia, Bruce Greyson, and Melvin Morse were guests on NPR - The People’s Pharmacy radio show. Consciousness is one of the great puzzles of modern neuroscience. As well is the question, what happens when we die? To hear this show, here are two access portals: http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/siteassets/pp-713B.mp3 , and http://ht.ly/4Nw1Y .

*** Three new books: There Is More...18 Near-Death Experiences, put out by Sharon Lund and available through http://www.SacredLife.com ; (619) 692-9507. Glimpses of Eternity: Sharing A Loved One’s Passage From This Life To The Next, Raymond E. Moody, Jr., M.D., with Paul Perry (Guideposts; Harlan, IA, 2010). Heaven is for Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story of His Trip to Heaven and Back, Colton and Todd Burpo (Thomas Nelson Publishing; Nashville, TN 2010).

*** There is a DVD available now called The Afterlife Investigations: Has Science Proven the Afterlife? Tim Coleman is the producer, and it comes out of England. The best way to get a copy is through http://www.theafterlifeinvestigations.com and use PayPal.

"Setting the Record Straight"

2011-05-06T08:17:00.001-05:00

If you have read Amazon.com lately, and the page for Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of The Story, you know about the biting criticism I received from Dr. Harold Widdison and comments by others that are misleading. Everyone has the right to say whatever they please. I honor that. Dr. Widdison is a wonderful man, and he is sincere in whatever he does, and this includes his attacks against me. Normally, I do not reply to such comments. This time I feel the need to set the record straight on some of the points that have been made.

1. I practice the police techniques as shown/taught to me by my police officer father. He was not a detective. He was a “gumshoe” who walked the beat or rode around in his squad car for many years, before being promoted. He never used a tape recorder or notepad that I ever saw, although he did fill out extensive reports and quite often. His advice was brief: a person’s body says more than his or her mouth does. He taught me how to observe, catch things quickly, and never, never use a word in advance of the witness. And he taught me how to cross-check everything. On pages 257-258 in my book, is verification of my protocol by one of the finest officers ever to wear a badge or teach police science. His name is Raymond A. Reynolds, and I am humbled by his support of what I have done and how I work. Unfortunately, Officer Reynolds died several years ago. He never lived to see his statement published in my book. I can only hope his family has, and that they are pleased with the recognition of his expertise.

2. I do not base my work on questionnaires. Frankly, I do not like them. Even the most scientific uses words in advance of individuals, and such words, even if cleverly chosen, put ideas in people’s heads. I have used questionnaires, though, three times, to cross-check previous findings and for no other reason. The first was mentioned in my book Coming Back to Life and was used to test first responses; the second on electrical sensitivity I put in the back of Beyond the Light, to show how the intensity of the near-death scenario was the leading factor with the incidence of electrical sensitivity - not length of episode nor exposure to etheric light; and the last to double check the responses of child experiencers - originally published in Children of the New Millennium, later in The New Children and Near-Death Experiences. I only published the findings of the questionnaire because it matched what I had previously established through sessions I had held with child experiencers of near-death states. Where percentages deviated, I said so in the text.

3. There have been, over the years, many complaints about my book Children of the New Millennium and rightfully so. I didn’t like it either. The original manuscript was on my editor’s desk one week before her company was bought out by another publisher and I was assigned another editor. About half my material was edited out, in an effort by the publisher to create a “fluff piece for new millennium fever.” I had no choice in the matter. As might be expected, the book did not sell well, so they returned my world rights to me and cancelled the contract. Some good resulted from the book, but mostly it left people hanging. Dr. Widdison stripped apart most of the book and me with it. The entire situation - who was complimentary and who hated the thing - is published on my website in the Article Section, and with the permission of all parties involved. Nothing is hidden from the public. The replacement book is truly a fine piece, which made up for the problems with the first. Few people know about it, however, thus sales have been low.

4. It is true that several of my peers have asked me to use “proper” protocol, like the rest do, so my work will not be subject to so much attack. I refused. The reason is simple, at least to me: my distrust of questionnaires, and my distrust of the so-called “classical model” that must be used for comparison if you want your work to be accepted. Please remember, I had never heard of Raymond Moody nor his book when I began my work. It was Ken Ring who told me about both after I had been conducting research on my own and for nearly four years. What I found deviates in some major ways from what is now “acceptable.” For instance, I was able to identify four patterns to the original model of scenario types, a pattern of both physiological and psychological aftereffects, four major phases of integration, and so forth. I was the first to uncover numerous things, and since then have had some of my findings verified in clinical studies, including the prospective study done in Holland and published in Lancet Medical Journal. What I have claimed in numbers, stands.

5. Only those who are not that familiar with near-death research would think this book has nothing new in it. Admittedly, I did start out “easy” in the book, carefully going over my previous work and then slowly adding more and more, going deeper and deeper with each chapter, until, in Chapter 16, I let go of “nice.” I did this on purpose to establish that the near-death experience is not some kind of anomaly after all; rather, is part of the larger genre of transformations of consciousness, no matter how caused. The second half of the book “grinds” this in by showing how near-death patterning is present in numerous other traditions, religious and mystical orders, psychological discoveries, and so forth. My call is for near-death studies to move up a notch or two and include the spiritual. Until we do, there will always be “missing” material that is crucial to making sense of the phenomenon. Up until now, researchers have only “tip-toed” around what they thought constituted things spiritual. Perhaps now they will be more brave.

6. My research of near-death is NOT metaphysical, nor is it “new age.” It is objectively done following a strict protocol. And I can say this: I have cross-checked my findings with experiencers and their significant others more than anyone else in the field, and for year after year after year. I did this to ensure that I was not kidding myself, finding only what I wanted to find, allowing my own near-death experiences to overlay what I was seeing in others, or misinterpreting what I was finding. Irrespective of what anyone else thought about what I did, I wanted to be able to live with myself and be honest about my work. I could not do that without this extra effort. I never chose to be a researcher. I became one because of what I was told to do in my third near-death experience. Anyone who actually chooses to do something like I have done, is nuts.

The upshot of this is, if you feel inclined to make a review comment on that page of Amazon.com where my book is described, I will be forever grateful. Say what you feel led to say. Supportive or not, I appreciate the kindness of your time and effort.

Thank you for reading with this “special announcement.” ~ PMH

Unpleasant NDEs

2011-04-28T19:43:00.000-05:00

There is a new blog - about unpleasant, distressful, and frightening near-death experiences. Done by Nancy Bush, long-time researcher in the field of near-death studies, retired President of IANDS, and a fellow experiencer herself, the material covered is exceptionally helpful and insightful. This blog celebrates, that at last, unpleasant near-death experiences can be recognized and discussed with understanding and respect. Check out: http://dancingpastthedark.wordpress.com .

New Website, Child Experiencers' Books, Rhine Research Center, New Books

2011-03-15T11:01:00.001-05:00

*** My website has been totally redesigned by my webmaster, Steff Wiltse (I am convinced she is a genius). It is so new you may encounter glitches from time to time. If you need any help finding what you want, contact Steff directly. Visit the site. See for yourself what I mean when I say it is beautiful, elegant, and completely modern (perfect for I-Pads and all manner of e-readers and I-Phones). Praise be to Steff!

*** Two best sellers now out cover near-death episodes experienced by children. One is The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, by Alex Malarkey (then aged six) and his dad Kevin Malarkey. Peabody, MA: Tyndale House Publishers, 2010. The other is Heaven is Real by Todd Burpo (then 4) and his family Sonja Burpo, Colton Burpo, and Lynn Vincent. Nashville, TN; Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2010. These books have sold over 500,000 copies already; those involved in the stories cleave to Christian tenets. How much influence their parents and church attendance has had on the stories told by both boys I cannot say, as I have not investigated either case. But I can say that what these children remember from being on “the other side” of death is well worth considering. Any books out by child experiencers are rare. I do have a list of them on my website, and will add these two books to that list.

*** The Rhine Research Center in Durham, North Carolina, is making a come-back. The Center boasts the oldest continuously operating parapsychological research program in the United States. Founded by and named for J. B. Rhine, the Center is now run by Dr. Rhine’s plucky 81-year-old daughter, Sally Rhine Feather, Ph.D. Her father introduced laboratory science into parapsychology research, and coined the now widely-used term “extra-sensory perception,” or ESP. To find out more about the Rhine Research Center, go to their website at www.rhine.org.

*** Two books of mine came out this week. Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of The Story is now available at any bookstore or can be ordered by them. You can also get copies at amazon.com and through my online catalog (if you want an autographed copy). This book will be very controversial. If you want to know why, get a copy and read it. Among the reasons for the book is to take near-death research to the next level. We cannot call near-death states spiritual experiences if we are not willing to address what that might be saying. The second book, a complete surprise to me, is the availability of I Died Three Times in 1977 - The Complete Story as an e-book or a real, printed book, complete with “before” and “after” photographs. This is available through my website, Lulu.com, or on Amazon's Kindle.

Book Debut, St. Louis Retreat, Dr. Kevin Nelson, Euro Herb Ban

2011-02-16T22:37:00.002-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS

*** Only two more weeks before Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of The Story is available worldwide. The debut talk about the book occurs March 5, 2011 from 1 to 4 pm, Unity Church, 2825 Hydraulic Circle, Charlottesville, Virginia. The A.R.E. is sponsoring this. Details through are.cville@gmail.com. The big notice goes out on February 23rd as a newsletter from my website. These newsletters are free. To sign up for them, go to www.pmhatwater.com; bottom of Home Page is where you submit your info. This list of subscribers is totally private.

*** Please hurry if you want to attend the Spiritual Retreat for Near-Death Experiencers. It is May 12-15 in St. Louis, Missouri - held at a very lovely, sacred place. Contact Dave Bennett for more information, dharmadb@mac.com.

*** To read more about the work of Dr. Kevin Nelson, a professor of neurology at the University of Kentucky, and about his book,Wait, What is that White Light Anyway? The Science Behind Near-Death Experiences, please refer to: (all this is a single address) http://www.mydaily.com/2011/02/02/science-behind-near-death-experiences/?icid=maing%7Cmain5%7Cdl9%7Csec1_lnk3%7C41480.

*** I have just been notified of the following that will affect near-death experiencers living in the United Kingdom and in Europe: In April 2011, European legislation which has already been passed, will come into force - which will effectively mean that all herbal medicines will disappear from the UK. No Ayurvedic (Indian) herbs, no Chinese herbs, no Western herbs, no Tibetan herbs - no medicinal herbs whatsoever. You will only have access to treatments which are pharmaceutical drugs based in order to treat your own and your family’s ailments. No access to any medicinal herbs. With no access to the full range of herbal treatments, Herbalists, Ayurvedic doctors, TCM Practitioners, and other herbal traditions will disappear overnight from the UK, as well. This news is of utmost importance to near-death experiencers, because the typical experiencer comes back no longer able to handle pharmaceuticals as before; some, not at all. For instance, after my leg surgery last year, I threw away the doctor’s prescription to pain medicine, and took two gels of Zyflamend instead (put out by New Chapter and available just about everywhere, but especially at Whole Foods stores). Zyflamend is a mixture of herbs as an anti-inflammatory (also good for heart and joints). Not only was I pain-free, but the herbal mixture went on to become a reliable agent in healing and still is, considering other leg injuries I had last year. Certainly, one would not just “take” Zyflamend. You read the label and check out the herbs listed. I did, and I could handle all of them. My oldest daughter also takes Zyflamend. It has prevented her from needing knee replacement surgery. My question is: why did this bill ever pass? Yes, we need herbal regulation, but not a complete ban. This is insane. Can it happen here? Yes it can. Contact your legislators immediately should something like that be attempted in this country.

Latest Announcements...

2011-01-05T09:37:00.005-05:00

*** Two more months before my new book comes out. It is possible to pre-order through www.amazon.com. The title is Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of The Story (Hampton Roads). The description now shown for the book will be changed. To keep abreast of things, sign up for my free newsletter at www.pmhatwater.com. At the bottom of the Home Page is where you sign up. Issues are infrequent.

*** Alister Hardy Religious Experience Research Centre has been asking this question: “Have you ever had a spiritual or religious experience or felt a presence or power, whether you call it God or not, which is different from, or more than, your everyday self?” to date, they have over 6,000 cases, including mystical experiences, out- of-body experiences, visionary experiences, near-death experiences, and after- death communications. Recently, their website address changed. Check them out now at: http://alisterhardysociety.org/.

*** Todd Murphy, a researcher of near-death states (some of his work published in the Journal of Near-Death Studies) has designed a computer screen saver that shows the point of light that appears in many Near-Death Experiences, unfolding into “The Light.” It’s compelling images evoke an otherworldly experience, sometimes also appearing in hallucinations. Its otherwordly images evoke feelings that don’t go into words. Contact Todd Murphy directly for price and installation instructions. . . brainsci@jps.net.

*** Pim van Lommel sent me this link to a short and very funny movie about a “near-death” experience. You may enjoy watching it: http://www.kuriositas.com/2010/07/lady-and-reaper.html.

*** Also, there are now links (Part I and Part II) to an interview done with Pim about his book and the research he and his associates conducted. Pim’s book, by the way, is Consciousness Beyond Life. His research is the best yet done about the near- death phenomenon. Find them both in my NDE News Blog: "A New Interview with NDE Researcher and Author Pim van Lommel."

*** There is a new TV series called “I Survived ...Beyond and Back” and it is on the Biography Channel each Sunday night at 10:00 pm Eastern Time. Each episode features interviews with three people who died, went to the other side, and came back. This show is well done, yet there is no reference to IANDS or the near-death experience, unless the one being interviewed brings it up. If a viewer wishes to learn more about the subject, no links or suggestions are provided (the only “downside” to the show).

*** Thanks to Katie Couric for her interview with Raymond Moody about his new book, Glimpses of Eternity, with excerpts from his “Life After Life” video. It's within this article: "Investigating the Afterlife." Date is October 31, 2010.

A Dollar for Dee?

2011-01-04T17:12:00.006-05:00

Dee Yoh is a very gifted artist and instructor for Family Constellation Therapy. She is bravely fighting a battle with cancer that has cost her her home, her business, her insurance policy, and her income. She has been reduced to living at near poverty levels, unable now to afford either medicine or doctors. I know many people in our country are facing a similar dilemma. Dee Yoh is one more. And, yes, she is an angel who in the past has never hesitated to help another in need. She is not asking for this help, I am asking for her. Give what you can. Thank you, PMH

Whaling Resumes

2010-12-28T23:26:00.004-05:00

Blogpost by John Hocevar - December 8, 2010 at 9:56

As you read this e-mail, the Japanese whaling fleet is steaming towards the Southern Ocean to begin their annual whale slaughter. Their planned death "quota" this season: nearly 1,000 minke whales, 50 humpback whales, and 50 endangered fin whales.

We must stop this massacre now.

During the 2008 campaign, then-Senator Obama said, "As president, I will ensure that the U.S. provides leadership in enforcing international wildlife protection agreements, including the international moratorium on commercial whaling." Three more whaling seasons have come and gone since Obama spoke those words, and no change has been made.

Please rush your most generous contribution as we put pressure on President Obama to fulfill his campaign promise!

"Allowing Japan to continue commercial whaling is unacceptable," as President Obama himself has stated, and Greenpeace is rallying support to put a stop to the slaughter, once and for all.

Commercial whaling is not only unacceptable—it's a violation of international law.

Picture a Japanese harpoon ship speeding through the Southern Ocean. Suddenly, the harpooner spots a mother whale and her calf. The sounds of the ocean are drowned out by the blasts of exploding-tip harpoons being fired at the whales.

The pair struggles to free themselves from the harpoon lines for nearly an hour, desperately thrashing their tails in the water, before a gunman finally steps onto the deck and shoots them dead. The mother whale and her baby are dragged up the ship’s slipway, leaving a long trail of blood behind them.

Much to our frustration, in a few days time this tragic scene will play out in the Southern Ocean over and over again. Greenpeace needs your help, and the help of President Obama, to put an end to the slaughter of our oceans’ most unique, intelligent, and emotional creatures.

Please help us stop this terrible massacre and save the lives of these whales with your most generous donation NOW.

Together, we can let Japan know that commercial whaling has no place in the 21st Century.

New Series on the Bio Channel

2010-12-03T18:59:00.004-05:00

*** New Series on the Biography Channel....”I Survived - Beyond and Back” (near-death experiences). Debuts December 5th at 10 pm EST, 9 pm Central. Every week, new cases.

*** New book - “Science and the Near-Death Experience: How Consciousness Survives Death,” by Chris Carter. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions/Bear & Co, 2010.

*** Special Edition of “New Dawn Magazine,” devoted entirely to near-death experiences, messages from the light, and the afterlife. Large issue, packed with articles. Although “New Dawn” comes out of Australia, you can contact the following to obtain this issue: e-mail editor@newdawnmagazine.com or through their website at www.newdawnmagazine.com. They publish in Melbourne.

*** Extraordinary new book: “The Book: The Creator’s Template for Eternal Life, Expand Your Soul’s Awareness for Eternity,” by Sharon Day. Contact her at thebook4@gmail.com or through her website at www.yoursoteria.com. I know Sharon and have seen her work. She is as extraordinary as her book.

Much going on for NDE'ers!

2010-11-22T13:33:00.002-05:00

Just a reminder: The best science out now on near-death experiences is in the book, "Consciouness Beyond Life" by Pim van Lommel, M.D. and published by HarperOne. Pim was filmed during a recent trip to San Rafael, California. Here is the link, www.consciousnessbeyondlife.com (English version). You can also see it on my News blog here.
A recent "Wall Street Journal" article, "Seeking Proof in Near-Death Claims," written by Melinda Beck.
MSNBC: "Head Toward the Light: The Science of Near-Death Experiences" by Diane Mapes.
The next Spiritual Retreat for Near-Death Experiencers will be May 12-15, 2011, again in Missouri. Contact Dave Bennett for more information: dharmadb@mac.com.
Hey, folks, with all this increase in near-death material, stories, and science, the IANDS office is really buzzing - yet membership is down. This means we are doing more with less, and to the point that it is getting serious. If you want to keep the office staffed, publications and conferences going, please send in your membership dues today. Contact the International Association For Near-Death Studies (IANDS) at services@iands.org or call them at (919) 383-7940. Their website is www.iands.org.

An Interview with NDE Researcher and Author Pim van Lommel

2010-11-12T13:36:00.009-05:00

An Update for the Media

What is a near-death experience

The most common definition given by the International Association For Near-Death Studies is this: The near-death experience is an intense awareness, sense, or experience of otherworldliness, whether pleasant or unpleasant, that happens to people who are at the edge of death. It is of such magnitude that most experiencers are deeply affected - many to the point of making significant changes in their lives afterward, because of what they went through.

Statistics

Globally, in the general population at large, 4 to 5% will or have already experienced the near-death phenomenon. In critical care, the number is 12 to 21% of the people have near-death experiences. With children in critical care, the number is much larger, upwards to 50-70%, as established by Melvin Morse, M.D. These numbers indicate that hundreds of millions of people worldwide may have undergone a near-death experience.

What doesn't cause it

Because of four large clinical studies done in three countries, and a plethora of papers published in peer-reviewed journals, it can now be said that the near-death phenomenon is not caused by conditions such as: oxygen deprivation, carbon dioxide in the blood (hypercarbia), optical illusions, temporal lobe excitation/seizures, drug-induced hallucinations, depersonalization, dissociation, reliving birth trauma, culture dependence, dying brain theory, self-fulfilling prophecy, visual deception, or any other known cause. No critic or skeptic of near-death states has ever studied or researched the entire phenomenon as it occurs - which covers the conditions involved, the full slate of scenario elements, how that effects the individual, and the pattern of physiological and psychological aftereffects that tends to be lifelong. . . with both adults and children, including babes being born, after birth, toddlers, and the very young (who talk about their experience when proficient at language, or draw or act it out).

Where research stands at present (11-1-10)

Because of these studies, it can now be said that aspects such as out-of-body experiences, the dead "come back," otherworldly journeys, and spirit beings are typical to the experience and not some kind of anomaly or exaggeration. This has enabled scientists worldwide to use the phenomenon (the experience and the aftereffects) . . .to study consciousness itself.

Within the medical community, what must be addressed are facts like these: during loss of brain function, a person can still have out-of-body states, clear enhanced consciousness, self-identity with emotions, cognition/thought perception, use of faculties, and intact memories. How can a brain produce all of this….when it isn't working? Many of the aftereffects suggest lasting neurological changes (such as synesthesia).

The most common elements

By far the most common element is out-of-body experiences. These can range from the simple viewing of one's body from a space on the ceiling of the hospital room or above the accident scene, looking down; or the more complex, where individuals leave the scene, maybe go home and are there when the call comes through saying they are dead (they see who gets the call and hear what is said), to visiting other cities, areas.

Nearly as often, the light is seen. This light is described by adult experiencers as brighter than a million suns yet it doesn't hurt your eyes to look upon it. This light knows your name, knows all about you, and emits unconditional love and acceptance.

Greeters often come. Usually, greeters are relatives or friends previously deceased, or pets who have died (animal presences are fairly common). They can also be angels, light beings, religious/cultural figures, or the living. Yes, that is true, especially with children. So far, living greeters seem to stay only as long as it takes for the experiencer to calm down and be more relaxed, and then they disappear, replaced by figures more common to near-death scenarios. Occasionally, greeters can be demonic or threatening, or simply critical of the individual.

Occurring less often are life reviews, previews of what is to come, tunnels, reading from or learning about The Book of Life, otherworldly journeys, judgment courts, learning environments, beautiful landscapes or barren ones.

Heaven and Hell

In the research of Dr. Atwater, one out of seven had a hellish or frightening experience. Other researchers encountered more, some not any. It is suspected that perhaps a third of the cases could be this type of uncomfortable occurrence, as most of those who experience it will not talk admit or discuss having had one.

What is known today is that the classical model of near-death scenarios is not classical. Dr. Atwater discovered four types of experiences, which addresses more closely the actual scenarios of both adults and children. Please refer to the Eight Fliers on this website for charts of what Dr. Atwater found, not only with near-death scenarios, but with the pattern of physiological and psychological aftereffects, phases of integration, and so on.

Reported repeatedly is the layered appearance of what exists on the other side of death, as if there were levels to that which is uncomfortable and unpleasant, to layers for that which is comfortable and beneficial. We seem to go to whatever layer or level we resonate with - according to the vibration of our consciousness. Seldom is any top or bottom mentioned. Rather, the arrangement of layers/levels seems open-ended, indicating that choice, growth, and change are possible. The vast majority of near-death experiencers talk about God/Allah/Deity and the soul, even if the individual was formerly an atheist.

Cultural differences

These do exist. For instance, mostly in the industrialized countries do you ever hear anything at all about tunnels or life reviews. In third-world countries, otherworldly journeys and heavenly courts are more common. The pattern itself of the near-death phenomenon holds worldwide, yet how it is described will depend on language constraints and sometimes even on cultural beliefs.

A spiritual experience

The vast majority of near-death experiencers consider the phenomenon to be a spiritual experience, an opportunity to know for certain that God/Allah/Deity exists, and that we are each co-creators with the Creator in making this a better and more loving world. Most return with a clear sense that they have a job to do to help make this happen. Few remember exactly what that job is, yet they set about doing what they can to make a difference. It takes a minimum of seven years to integrate the experience (verified by the Lancet study); some of those years can be depressing and confusing as the individual grapples with how to interpret what happened while dealing with the range of aftereffects.

The survey most often used in the U.S.

The poll most often used estimates 15 million near-death experiencers in the United States (or 5% of the population). This poll was conducted by U.S. News & World Report in 1997. However, the figure more in keeping with actual case reportings in the United States, Holland, and Germany is 4% (which makes 11 million in the U.S.). What is of keen interest to researchers is that the 4% figure for general population groups shows up consistently in countries worldwide. This is why former claims of 20 to 30 million, even of 15 million experiencers, are usually down-scaled.

The new science behind the near-death experience

Pim van Lommel, a Dutch cardiologist, and his Associates, have done the most scientific clinical prospective-study thus far on the near-death experience. Published 12-15-01 in Lancet Medical Journal, it covered 10 hospitals, 344 cardiac patients, in two and eight-year followups (one of Dr. Atwater's findings was verified in this study). Dr. van Lommel asked: "How could clear, continuous consciousness - outside one's body - be experienced at the moment that the brain no longer functions during a period of clinical death, with a flat EEG?" His study and his answer are contained in his new book Consciousness Beyond Life: The Science of the Near-Death Experience, HarperOne, NYC, 2010.

The AWARE study is to follow (Awareness During Resuscitation). Covering several countries, it too is a clinical prospective study - but with only a three-year followup. Findings have not yet been released.

Other new books that are stretching what is known

Jeffrey Long, M.D., with Paul Perry. Evidence of the Afterlife. New York, NY; HarperCollins, 2010. Based on a study of 1,600 cases taken from his Internet site at www.nderf.org.

Raymond Moody, M.D., with Paul Perry. Glimpses of Eternity. Harlan, IA; Guideposts. Stories of "shared death" experiences.

Edward F. Kelly, Emily Williams Kelly, Adam Crabtree, Alan Gauld, Michael Grosso, and Bruce Greyson. Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the 21st Century. Blue Ridge Summit, PA; Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.

Edited by Janice Miner Holden, Ed.D, Bruce Greyson, M.D., and Debbie James, RN/MSN. The Handbook of Near-Death Experiences: Thirty Years of Investigation. Santa Barbara, CA; Praeger Publishers, 2009.

P. M. H. Atwater, L.H.D. The Big Book of Near-Death Experiences. Charlottesville, VA; Hampton Roads, 2007. Even though this book was written several years ago, it is still a timely source for updated research worldwide.

Controversial book due out March, 2011 - Now Available for Pre-Order

P. M. H. Atwater, L.H.D. Near-Death Experiences: The Rest of The Story. Hampton Roads, publisher. Combines the 33 years Dr. Atwater spent researching near-death states with nearly 4,000 adults and children, with the years she spent in the sixties and seventies experimenting with and studying altered states of consciousness, mysticism, psychic phenomena, and the transformational process, involving 3,000 plus experiencers. This book establishes that near-death states are not some kind of anomaly, but are, rather, part of the larger genre of transformations of consciousness. Shown are what a transformation of consciousness is, why we have them, why we crave them, and where they lead us. Full of surprises. Controversial. A lifetime achievement.

Books about Dr. Atwater's three near-death experiences

The original version of I Died Three Times in 1977 is a compilation of four articles she wrote for Many Smokes Magazine (published by The Bear Tribe) shortly after her experiences. This original version is still available as a download from her website at www.pmhatwater.com. The second version, I Died Three Times in 1977 - The Complete Story, is finally available, and as a electronic book through www.amazon.com. It is because of what she was told by The Voice Like None Other in her third near-death experience that she ever became a researcher of near-death states. Her resume can be found on her website, as well as the links to her blogs, her free newsletters, her YouTubes, and Twitters.

Books about childrens' near-death experiences

Kathy Forti. The Door to the Secret City. No longer available in bookstores, it can be obtained without charge through http://www.scribd.com/kjforti. Orginally published in 1984 by Stillpoint Press, it was the first fictionalized account written by a child experiencer once grown. Refer to Future Memory for Kathy's actual story.

Denise Mendenhall (with the help of her father Doug Mendenhall). In His Arms. Self-published and available from the Mendenhall family. The first book about a child's near-death experience written by the child while still a child. Obtain from Publishing Hope, P. O. Box 282, Mt. Pleasant, UT 84647. Originally published in 2006, the book is both wondrous and disturbing, showing more clearly than ever how differently than an adult a child tends to regard both the experience and its aftereffects.

Aafke H. Holm-Oosterhof. A Journey with the Angel of Light. Done 30 years after-the-fact, this is an account of her near-death experience as a child, plus artwork. The book, however, is only available in Dutch. Contact Aafke directly at aafke@holm.myweb.nl or through http://home.hccnet.nl/p.g.holm.

Kathryn Diamond. Rachel's Magic Swing. A fictionalized version of a child's near-death experience by a child experiencer now an adult. The Day I Almost Drowned: A Child's Near-Death Experience. At much urging, Kathryn finally wrote about her own story. Both books are self-published and can be obtained at www.rachelsmagicswing.com. Follow directions.

Michael Martin, with the near-death section by Linda Jacquin. Near-Death Experiences. Published in 2005, this book is part of a series entitled The Unexplained, designed by Capstone Press for students from third to sixth grade reading levels. Capstone Press, 151 Good Council Drive, P. O. Box 669, Mankato, MN 56002. Linda is a child experiencer now grown.

Evelyn Elsaesser-Valarino. Talking with Angel: About Illness, Death, and Survival. Edinburgh, Scotland; Floris Books (available worldwide). A fictionalized account of a child's near-death experience written by a researcher of near-death states.

Carol McCormick. A Bridge for Grandma. Self-published and illustrated. Available from Beavers Pond Press, 7104 Ohms Lane, Suite 216, Edina, MN 55439; www.BeaversPondPress.com. A fictionalized account of a child's near-death experience written for children by an author familiar with near-death research.

Melvin Morse, M.D., with Paul Perry. Closer to the Light: Learning from the Near-Death Experiences of Children. New York, NY; Villard Books, 1990. Breakthrough research from a children's doctor.

Cherie Sutherland, Ph.D. Children of the Light: The Near-Death Experiences of Children. Sydney, Australia; Bantam Books, 1995. Another breakthrough book
about children.

P. M. H. Atwater, L.H.D. The New Children and Near-Death Experiences. Rochester, VT; Inner Traditions/Bear & Co., 1999/2003. (Originally published in short form as Children of the New Millennium by Three Rivers Press, NYC.) An in-depth study of not only children's near-death experiences but of their aftereffects and the different way children have of dealing with them. A large resource section.

A Blog for research on the paranormal

http://publicparapsychology.blogspot.com/

International clearing house for information about near-death states

International Association For Near-Death Studies (IANDS), 2741 Campus  Walk Avenue, Building 500, Durham, NC 27705; (919) 383-7940; services@iands.org; www.iands.org.

The November Elections

2010-10-23T16:08:00.004-05:00

I am so concerned about the anger and excesses of the coming election, that I am carrying this special prayer opportunity for all of us from The Center for Visionary Leadership. I know the founders, Corinne and Gordon. They are among the most inspired and ethical people I know. Their National Conference Call Prayer Opportunity called for November 1, the healing prayer they suggest to use now and beyond that time, and information about their new book The Practical Visionary - all of these offerings I consider to be exceptional opportunities. Should you wish to contact The Center for Visionary Leadership, please do so directly.

Election day this year is All Souls Day. I do not consider this to be “accidental.” VOTE on November 2nd. PMH

Excerpt -- "SoulLight" the Newsletter of Inspiration and Insight from the Center for Visionary Leadership

Monday, November 1, 8:00-9:00pm Eastern Time (5:00pm PDT)

National Conference Call:
Non-Partisan Election Meditation

Join us for a national conference to meditate together and ask for the highest good for the U.S. election on November 2, and ask that the voting process be safeguarded and our democracy protected. We’ll start with introductions and the meditation will begin approximately 5 minutes after the hour, so please don’t join late as it can be disruptive. After the introductions, we’ll then ask everyone to put their phone on mute (by either pressing the mute button or *6 on their phone) and we’ll have a guided meditation (based on the Meditation and the Prayer below) for about 20 minutes or longer, and then we’ll unmute the phones and ask participants to share inspirations from the meditation. If you can’t join us on the call, please meditate or pray with us wherever you are, and please share this email widely with friends.

Call 1-308-344-6400, Code is 344107#

--With best wishes,

Corinne McLaughlin, Gordon Davidson and Ginger Young

Non-Partisan Meditation for the Highest Good in the Election

Begin by taking a few deep breaths to relax your body, emotions and mind; breathe in peace and stillness, and allow yourself to be fully present in this moment.

Inwardly affirm your highest intention for this meditation, using the prayers of your own spiritual tradition, and aligning with your highest self or soul

Set aside your own political views for this meditation and ask for the highest good.

Link inwardly with all of those around the world who are also meditating for the U.S. at this time, connecting with them heart to heart and soul to soul.

Align with the soul of America, with her highest purpose, and see this nation and her people surrounded with spiritual light and love so they may vote with wisdom and clarity.

Ask the higher spiritual forces to protect the election process on national, state and local levels, and to ensure a fair election, free from tampering.

Pray that the election bring forth the highest good for the American people and for all humanity, and ask for the most positive outcome of the election for our collective future.

Prayer for America

We ask you to join with us wherever you are, for prayer and meditation for the future of your nation, with the following prayer:

May we as nation be guided by the Divine to rediscover the sacred flame of our national heritage, which so many have given their lives to safeguard;

Let the wounds of separation and division be healed by opening our hearts to listen to the truth on all sides, allowing us to find a higher truth that includes us all;

May we learn to honor and enjoy our diversity and differences as a people, even as we more deeply touch our fundamental unity;

May we, as a people, undergo a transformation that will draw forth individuals to lead our nation who embody courage, compassion and a higher vision;

May our leaders inspire us, and we so inspire each other with our potential as individuals and as a nation, that a new spirit of forgiveness, caring and honesty be born in our nation;

May we, as a united people, move with clear, directed purpose to take our place within the community of nations to help build a better future for all humankind;

May we as a nation rededicate ourselves to truly living as one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all;

And may God's Will be done for the United States, as we, the people, align with that Will.

By Gordon Davidson and Corinne McLaughlin

THE CENTER FOR VISIONARY LEADERSHIP
369 3rd Street, #563 · San Rafael, CA 94901
Phone: (415) 472-2540

New East Coast Office: (For orders, donations and membership)
6423 Hermsley Road · Charlotte, NC 28278
Phone: (704) 583-0080

Email: cvldc@visionarylead.org
Website: www.visionarylead.org

© Copyright 2010 The Center for Visionary Leadership

Permaculture and "The Rest of the Story"

2010-07-19T17:45:00.002-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

You all know how keenly interested I am in food, farming, crops, and seeds. The techniques of Permaculture and Biological Farming I believe are the ways to go for the future of our world, to ensure good food and plenty of it. With Permaculture in mind, I highly recommend Mollison and Holmgren’s “The Permaculture Designer’s Manual.”

There is an important opportunity very soon you can take advantage of. Big Bend Ecovillage is sponsoring “Permaculture Design Certification Course,” July 27-August 13 at Big Bend Hot Springs in Shasta County, Northern California. They have an intergenerational ecovillage development there which is outstanding. The contacts I have for this are: www.LivingMandala.com; education@livingmandala.com; (707) 634-1461

ANOTHER ANNOUNCEMENT:

The official title of my new book is NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES: THE REST OF THE STORY. It comes out late January, 2011, hardcover, from Hampton/Red Wheel. I promise you the book will be controversial. More about this later.

Stand with Diary Farmers Today!

2010-07-07T09:06:00.005-05:00

OF SPECIAL CONCERN:

What I have personally seen in the large corporate dairy farms is beyond belief. For this reason, I only buy organic milk today and am very careful as to where my milk comes from. As you have seen from past blogs, I take very seriously what near-death experiencers and those who have undergone the transformational process go through afterward. These experiences change one, and sometimes drastically. That directly affects the food and drink one has afterward, pharmaceuticals/medications, and the various energies one is exposed to. Today, our dairy farmers, the good ones, need our help. They are being forced out of business by large firms who care more for profit than product. And they have lost interest in treating cows as the living beings they are. The following is a cry for help. I hope you can respond.

Thank you, PMH Atwater

From: "Food Democracy Now Team"

End corporate abuse in our food!

Stand with farmers today!

Last Friday in Madison, Wisconsin dairy farmers from across America came together1 to tell stories of price manipulation, antitrust violations and corruption in the dairy industry to Department of Justice and USDA officials. Like the previous two sessions, Food Democracy Now! was there to stand with farmers and represent your voices.

We heard why an investigation into dairy price fixing during the George W. Bush administration, one DOJ official stated that the dairy industry was "more corrupt than Enron." If we didn't believe it before, we do now. Many of these stories were heartbreaking, as dairy farmers talked about being forced to sell their herds and losing their farms. Unbelievably, the results of that investigation have not been released yet.

Right now we have unprecedented opportunity to hold corporations accountable. They have used their influence to rake in more profits, while driving farmers off the land, as they go deeper into debt with each passing month and no end in sight to this corruption.

It's time to take on corporate power in our food supply. Stand with farmers today to tell the Department of Justice that enough is enough.

http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/go/worse_than_enron/175?akid=158.103834.VUV7nR&t=7

For the past 18 months America's dairy farmers have faced their worst crisis since the Great Depression3 while at the same time, giant dairy processors and co-ops have taken in record profits.

While dairy farmers have suffered historic low prices in 2009, their dairy processors and the "farmer-owned" co-ops that are supposed to offer them a fair price, have been skimming off all the profits. In 2009, Dean Foods profits soared to $76.2 million, more than 254% higher than 2008.4 During this same time, farmers have been taking on record debt, with a 100 head dairy farm losing more than $10,000 per month on average.

Countless pleas for justice and numerous attempts to remedy the situation have failed, both in Congress and at the USDA. Why?

Much of this inequity in the dairy industry can be traced directly to the excessive consolidation in the sector, which has bred the same type of corruption that we have recently witnessed in many other sectors of our economy and society.6 And despite the benefit of having this hearing, time is running out for many dairy farmers as they are being crushed under a burden of mounting monthly debt. Many have said that they can no longer hold on.

Today farmers need you to stand with them and tell the Department of Justice that we will no longer tolerate corruption at the hands of corporate power. Lobbyists are hard at work on a daily basis telling a very different story. Our voices need to be louder. Will you use your voice today? It only takes a moment.

http://action.fooddemocracynow.org/go/worse_than_enron/175?akid=158.103834.VUV7nR&t=9

Then please tell your friends and join us over at FightBigFood.org as we challenge corporate power for America's farmers, families and the future of our food.

Thank for your creating food democracy today -

Dave, Lisa and The Food Democracy Now! Team

We need to keep the pressure on! Please donate to Food Democracy Now today - whether it's $5, $10 or $25, every bit helps! We rely on folks like you to keep us going. Thank you!

http://fdn.actionkit.com/go/donate/133?akid=158.103834.VUV7nR&t=12

Sources:

1. Dairy Farmers, Shrinking Profits Pinching Industry, June 26, 2010, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/06/26/2045708/dairy-farmers-shrinking-profits.html

2. John Kinsman and Joel Greeno: Unfair milk prices are destroying dairy farmers, June 18, 2010, The Cap Times

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/column/article_b3b0ce14-553f-5a9d-ac92-337e1905e836.html?ak_proof=1

3. "Stand up for Rural America While You Still Can", Grist.org, June 16, 2009

http://www.grist.org/article/stand-up-for-rural-america-while-you-still-can/?ak_proof=1

4. "Dairy Farmers Sue Dean Foods", Vermont Press Bureau, October 10, 2009

http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?ak_proof=1&id=8f6da8d9-cfc5-4099-8773-4d8506323bd6

5. "Dairy Processors Profits "Legal Steal", Some Say", The-Daily-Record.com, September 24, 2009

http://www.the-daily-record.com/news/printer_friendly/4674775?ak_proof=1

6. "Independent Farmers Feel Squeezed By Milk Cartel", National Public Radio, August 20, 2009

http://www.the-daily-record.com/news/printer_friendly/4674775?ak_proof=1

NDE Conference & USPA Farm and Garden Workshops

2010-06-27T09:55:00.002-05:00

RESERVE SPACE NOW!!!!!!!!!

The first week of September is the big Near-Death Conference in Denver, Colorado. The roster of speakers this year is incredibly outstanding. Our keynoter is Pim van Lommel, M.D., the cardiologist who did the largest clinical study of near-death states to date, the one that was published in "Lancet" medical journal. His book, ENDLESS CONSCIOUSNESS, is now out through HarperCollins. Contact IANDS for more information: services@iands.org, or call themat (919) 383-7940. Their website: www.iands.org.

NEW TITLE FOR BOOK

I find out later next week what title my publisher will chose for my newest and last book on my near-death research. They did tell me that this new book will be a hard-cover (the ultimate compliment for an author) and that it will sell for $23.95. Save your pennies, folks, the book will be worth that price!!!

ATTENTION ANYONE INTERESTED IN GARDENS AND FARMS:

Lutie Larson will be one of the speakers at the USPA (United States Psychotronics Association) conference July 17-19 at Inn Place Hotel, 9700 Bluegrass Parkway, Louisville, KY.

Lutie is busy amazing the world with how easy and efficiently one can use psychotronics (simple gadgets/methods that operate with mind-over-matter) to raise better, healthier food in less time. Her talk is on Saturday, July 17, 10:15 – 11:45 am; Farmers Workshop Sunday, July 18, 7 to 10 pm; Gardners Workshop Monday, July 19, 9 am to 12 noon.

Why she is so important……… not only is Lutie internationally known, her focus is bio-energetic treatment (psychotronic) of soil and plants which produces organic grade vegetables. The quality of her food is actually defined at bio-dynamic (a higher form of organic). She is a leader in sustainable farming. In Utah, Robert Redford’s Sundance Restaurant buy her lettuce crops – which are normally grown and harvested in as little as 22 days. She has a summer apprentice program, teaching others to do what she does.

If you are interested at all in the quality of the food you eat, please attend this conference. There will be other speakers there as well, including myself, talking about my latest research on near-death states and including material that takes the subject of near-death to the next level – the larger genre of transformative states – and why we have them.

The big USPA conference is a conference of leading-edge inventors, scientists, and researchers, who are showing the world a better way of living – here and now – and a more enriching version of the true reality. I hope I will see you there.

Contact: USPA (502) 429-6600 or go online at http://www.psychotronics.org

My Trip to Moscow

2010-06-04T18:59:00.002-05:00

Please consider this a friendly sharing, a report, in a way, about my recent trip to Moscow, Russia. I hope you will find it of interest.

Originally this was to have been a business trip, to give a talk and seminar put on by my Russian publisher at "Stigmarion." Andrey is his name and he had just published "The New Children and Near-Death Experiences" in Russian, planning also to bring out two more of my books later. Andrey did advertise, sent out fliers, had posters put up, and did heavy website promotions. He rented a hall, and arranged for a talk at the White Cloud bookstore, and a magazine interview with a reporter. He did everything he could to help us get Visas; and, although the process of getting them took months, it went well. We e-mailed back and forth, made plans, and were both excited.

Well, things did not turn out as planned.

A short while before I was to leave, Andrey suddenly cancelled everything. So I cancelled everything - the plane trip, the hotel in the U.S. we would stay in coming back. But I kept hearing in prayer, "Go anyway." Two days later, Andrey wrote: "Come. Everything is in divine order." Much to my surprise, when I called the airlines back to arrange another flight, my original one never cancelled. It was still in force. When I called the hotel back, my original reservation never cancelled, it was still in force. I was stunned. Obviously, I really was to go. My son-in-law Greg was going with me. Because of leg injuries I could not go alone. So, on May 19th we took off for Russia.

The talk at White Cloud Bookstore went well, good crowd, very interested, but only 3 or 4 books sold. The magazine changed hands and the new people were not interested in me, preferring instead to focus on fashions, entertainment, and food. The seminar bombed. I wound up being stuck with a travel bill for $4,087 (I had to pay both Greg and my expenses). Whoa! This was too much. Why did I take the chance on coming here? There were obvious signs that things would not be successful and I would not get any of my money back. Why did I come?

Well, in prayer I kept hearing "Go."

So why Moscow, Russia?

I can't really give you an answer that makes sense, but I can say that before I left, I kept hearing from Guidance, "This trip will be a surprise."

Because of all the losses I had incurred during the first two decades of my work in researching near-death states (from changes in the publishing industry and nonpayment of royalties), I had become very careful of finances, almost to the point of squeezing every penny. I know that's not like the typical near-death experiencer. Believe me, I was typical, giving away more than I ever kept, at first. I had to relearn the value of money - the hard way. The trip to Moscow forced me to face this hidden pain, to bring it out again and reexamine the whole issue. Maybe I couldn't afford to lose $4,087, but what I really couldn't afford was to carry around pain from the past. I had forgiven everyone involved, but I had not fully "let go." Where money was concerned, there was still fear in me. Caution is okay, but not fear. Fear freezes us inside and stops the creative juices from showing us new and different ways to handle our situation. Fear paralizes, sooner or later.

Well, surprise, surprise, I let go of my fear and opened myself up to the miracle of being where I was and the delight to be found in each moment.

Yup, the whole picture changed. What was supposed to have been a business trip became a glorious vacation in the incredible wonderland of Moscow, Russia. Yes, you heard me right. We have not been told the truth about Russia and its people. They are loving, generous, and caring. I fell in love with Russia!

Did you know how close Moscow is to the North Pole? We had only about 3 hours of darkness at night. It seemed like always there was light, around the clock. We were told that in St. Petersberg, once a year, they had White Night - 24-hour sun. I can imagine what winter would be like. Really dark.

Moscow is a huge city with the most beautiful subways I have seen. The trains aren't that great but the subways themselves are filled with fine art, sculptures, fancy light fixtures - all of them depicting the glory of Russia, the military, the people, the farms. You had a real sense, just from the artwork, that the emphasis was on the people's republic, people sacrificing for their country - nothing about individuals or what individuals achieved. It's like the individual didn't exist.

You walk in Moscow. I mean you walk everywhere, to and from the subways, across town, up and down many floors of many buildings and sites. There are stairs and stairs and stairs. For someone with two legs that are temporarily challenged, the constant walking became a challenge of its own. I only saw two bicycles during my stay; lots of cars, but unbelievable traffic jams. I guess "road rage" is a big deal there. Perhaps that's because people do not obey traffic laws like they do here, creating lanes to travel where there aren't any - especially at intersections. The place is not the free-for-all like Seoul, South Korea, when I was there, but, almost.

The churches, those gold onion-domes are everywhere, and I could't get enough of them, had to see all I could. Our interpretor, Julia, explained that during the days of Stalin most of the churches were destroyed and religion was banned. People were taught that there is no God. Times have changed and God is back, not like here, but gaining steadily. Spirituality, prayer, meditation, monasteries, ceremonies and rituals, the importance of nature and sacredness, the way of the shaman - yup - God is back! The State no longer owns any of the churches - they own themselves and are free to function accordingly. Religious study groups and meetings are encouraged.

It was very important for me to see the Kremlin and Red Square. When my first child was born - Kelly - I was in labor, five minutes apart, for 2 1/2 days, right around the time of the first of May, which is the birthday of the Communist Party. I was so concerned that my baby would be born on May 1st, that I had a long talk with the baby and then with God. Before or after, but not May 1st. I couldn't handle that. I just couldn't have a baby of mine born on that day. Like all Americans were taught then, Russia to me was a monster and Communism was a horrible threat. Kelly took his first breath on the afternoon of May 2nd. I was so relieved!

So, to the Kremlin I marched. What a surprise! The Kremlin and Red Square are a lot like Washington, D.C. - the Capitol and the Mall. The Kremlin was once a fortress (huge reddish colored walls), then it was a conclave of incredibly powerful and breathtakingly beautiful churches, then it became a walled-in seat of government. Government buldings and the President's quarters parallel the inside of several walls; but, in the greater part of the Kremlin, is a large hall for meetings, concerts, and exhibits - and churches of powerful energy and religious treasures and museums.

Especially the Church of the Assumption. You walk in there and almost immediately you leave your body and float upwards to the dome. It is a spiritual high just to walk in the door, sit on a bench, and just "drink" in the splendor, the beauty, the awe-inspiring art work, the power of God filling you, overwhelming you, holding you, protecting you, loving you. There aren't words to describe the energy of that Church!!!!!!!! The magic, the glory, the power of the Eastern Orthodox Churches in Moscow are awe-inspiring and truly unique. I've been privileged to visit some of the most powerful churches on this planet, but nothing compares to the energy I found behind the Kremlin walls. Who would have thunk it!

Yes, Lenin's tomb is just outside the Kremlin walls in Red Square. No one visits it, yet there it is - like a dark blob that won't go away. Red Square is just like the Mall in D.C. and used the same way - festivals, displays, exhibits, marches, activities of all kinds. It belongs to the people and they use it lavishly. The surface is covered with stones cut to resemble bricks, and there are painted lines from one end to the other -obviously for formal gatherings and marches. On one end is St. Basil's Cathedral - truly one of a kind - with all the different and colorful, onion-shaped domes; and on the other end a huge museum of the revolution. There is a large clock on the wall of the Kremlin which plays beautiful music on each hour. Behind the revolution museum is an area of formal gardens, an exhibition hall (Korean dancers and exhibits were there when we were - reminding me of my time in Korea). And then there is a raised area of three lovely domes, to one side a few lunch places. Surprise, surprise, in four floors below those domes, deep in the earth, is a huge and colorful shopping center!

Stalin built seven extremely large buildings that ring the city and areas, to remind everyone of the glory of Communism. Nope, they're not used for anything like that now. The one we visited is a university.

What you see throughout Moscow is a city and a people shoving aside the old and welcoming in the new. You see well-educated, free and independent people, creative people, colorful people, on the march forward - and a real emphasis on self-employment, own your own business, run things yourself. The individual has emerged from nothingness to take charge and awaken a new strength and a new vigor. Russia is very dedicated to becoming the home to the next Silicon Valley and showing the world how they have changed.

What is so surprising, so dramatic about Moscow, is the stark and unmistakable failure of Communism, and what the people are stuck with today. I mean shoddy construction, unbelievably shoddy construction - the old stuff, the hundreds of apartment buildings built during the Soviet era. People were not allowed to own anything, so a home of your own was impossible. All you could do is rent a room in an apartment building. Even today having a four-room apartment is considered a luxury. Drainage - almost none. All over the city, those huge buildings - you know how they drain water from roofs? Massive metal pipes strung down building sides that open up at the sidewalk, so water can gush across the sidewalks - right where people walk. I only found one place where these pipes drained into a grill-covered ditch. Only one. I just couldn't believe the foolishness of such designs (I could go on and on about shoddy building construction - it is so obvious, so glaring). And tiny little pods, like metal sheds, cheap metal, absolutely everywhere - they are used for tiny stores, tiny booths, tiny storage facilities, tiny garages for cars - inside buildings, outside of apartments, up and down streets. Goodness, I've never seen the like of it. One story, tiny little metal sheds - everywhere.

In trying to update and modernize, they are building skyscrapers - big and beautiful - a new business district, that is awesome.........but they forgot to plan in parking. A huge embarrassment. The people just don't understand real planning, real management. They are still saddled with the inability to "vote the bums out." That means cronies still hold a lot of the power, and corruption is rampant.

And, because of this, the minute you get off the plane in Moscow, it hits you - smog! That acid stuff, like it was back in the forties and fifties in Los Angeles. Well, maybe not quite that bad, but almost. In the air there hangs this thick blanket of brown, sometimes yellowish brown, from smokestacks belching continuously - all for the sake of industry/modernization and short cuts to handling results. The smog dulls your brain, affects your breathing, and leaves you thirsty - even after taking a drink, your mouth and throat feel parched. Pay attention to this folks: do not reduce our Clean Air Protection laws for the sake of encouraging more business. Don't do it. We need those laws. You dilute them and you will pay for that shortsightedness with people's health and the alertness and clarity of available brain-power and vision.

Yet, believe it or not, the city is full of birds, more so than anywhere else I've been - mostly crows, sparrows, and nightingales. We were sung to sleep every night by nearby nightingales filling nearby trees. Trees everywhere. There is a law there now that you cannot chop down a tree without written permission from a regulator. Yes, Moscow, and perhaps the whole of Russia, is finally becoming environmentally aware. Why so many birds with constant smog? I don't have an answer for that, except to say, somehow, the birds are adapting - and so are the trees, except that many of them are malformed in the upper branches.

Please hear me: Russia has a long way to go in dealing with and turning around a legacy of horror and brutality. In esoteric traditions, Russia is known as the "Great Bear Who Eats Her Cubs." No one has suffered more from Russia than its own people. They have suffered under tyrannts and idiots for centuries, never able to have even a reasonable government, rulership, or lifestyle. And they have endured. The Russian soul is deeper than deep and more passionate than imaginable. Their history is nothing short of a series of nightmares, yet their soul is alive with color and joy and love - love of land, each other, and God. Make no mistake about that. Even the Mafia, the crime syndicate of Russia, cannot dampen the Russian soul.

What you see today is that soul struggling to find an identity. Edgar Cayce, one of the most-documented psychics of all time, once said "Russia is the hope of the world." You can see the beginnings of that now, the beginnings of an awakening in Russia that may duplicate or parallel what happened in our country after we won our independence from Great Britain and began to flex new muscles and great hope. Putin-like men are everywhere - he is so admired people want to look like him. Putin understands his country, his people. Yes, he is KGB, he may indeed be in league with the criminal element - still, his determination to rebuild his country and bring it up to speed in the world today, to establish a modern power in a modern world, is unmistakable. I now admire the man. No, I don't trust him, but I admire him. And I love Russia and what is happening there - the people, they are Russian's greatest treasure.

Did I tell you the food is good? Those people really know how to cook. Did I tell you that as part of their wedding ceremony, the new bride and groom go to the Kremlin's wall where the eternal flame burns at the tomb of the unknown and pay their respect? Did I tell you the women over there wear very little that covers even less, especially the young women, and the guys dress in shabby clothes - all the style now? Did I tell you about the sad part of the new freedoms? Couples are having a tough time getting together as they do not want to give up their freedom and commit, or work on a relationship. Men use this as an excuse not to support babies and their mothers. Those men who do commit, however, make some of the best fathers I have ever seen.

What did I learn in Russia? That growing pains are just as hard on a country as they are for individuals. That if you unleash the creative spirit in people they can solve any problem and redefine any question. That to deny individual rights is to enslave a people. That to educate and challenge and encourage the individual, allow him or her the freedom of choice and the freedom of religion and the freedom to communicate at will, is the only real formula for success, happiness, and achievement. You see this in Russia. These truths are emblazoned across the faces of people on every street, packed into every train, and on every walkway. Americans who work in Russia seldom leave. Does that surprise you? It did me.

I don't know if anything will ever come of my trip there. Andrey of Stigmarion has asked that I send him a selection of my articles and papers, so he can have them translated and put on his website. He also wants to publish some of my creations, such as "The Frost Diamond," a children's coloring book (available free on my website).

You never know about ripples, what comes from what we do. I know I will always cherish my trip to Russia, and spending time with Andrey and Julia, and, oh, those incredible churches. Greg feels the same way, and has vowed to learn Russian just in case he can ever go back.

Don't believe all the rhetoric about Russia that you hear in this country. There's a lot of good there. Cayce just might be right. Russia's soul is in search of a new identity - a better one than ever before. And I feel privileged to have seen this, and to have some of my work available for those who are interested. I will be forever grateful to Andrey and Julia and their many kindnesses, and for the Guidance I hear in prayer that said "Go. This will be a trip of many surprises.

Blessings to all of you, PMH

China-TV: "Discovering Life: Near-Death Experience"

2010-04-23T09:40:00.004-05:00

Correspondence from San Diego IANDS:

The Biggest Potential Media Event in History

Dear Friends:

It's happening on Friday!! Three years ago, after starting in L.A., a few people in San Diego were filmed for this program by a local physician practicing unconventional Chinese medicine, Dr. Jason Liu, a very gifted healer who helped me immensely after my stroke. Included in the program were: Tiffany Snow, Suzanne Boehm, Suzie Jezek, Mark Zeigler, and myself. Also, from Los Angeles, there were Denis Purcell, Scott Hobbes, Mari Kelley, and Al Taylor, all of whom have been guests in San Diego. So check out the web links for the simulcast: http://www.ntdtv.com/xtr/b5/tv.html#d

This can be received in mainland China itself, despite their repression of spirituality, and particularly the Fulan Gong practice. It is being aired on a cable and satellite program that broadcasts to the Chinese-speaking public in parts of Asia not controlled by China, like Taiwan, Singapore, and Indonesia. It's wonderful to be getting the word out to this population, thanks to NTDTV (New Tang Dynasty TV), who sponsor festive Chinese New Year programs (with traditional Chinese values and costumes) around the world and provide CCP (Communist Chinese Party)- free programming worldwide on Satellite and the Internet.

On April 23rd, our first broadcast will occur. See the details below. This is our largest potential media event in history, with the possibility of 200 million Chinese (Mandarin) speakers. I wanted to share it with you, and give you a chance to participate. This will be the first major NDE event in the largest country on the planet!

Real Time Broadcast Page: http://www.ntdtv.com/xtr/b5/tv.html#d

(click the first or second button MMS or HTTP)

Days: Friday, April 23 (episode 1) and

Friday, April 30 (episode 2) Time

(Pacific Time):

05:00 Near Death Experience / episode 1

10:00 Near Death Experience/ episode 1

16:45 Near Death Experience/ episode 1

22:00 Near Death Experience/ episode 1

Love,

Beverly Brodsky

Coordinator, San Diego IANDS

Fwd: Dear Friends ( from Dr. Liu) :

The email describes a simulcast of the Mandarin Near-Death Experience program on NTDTV on the internet. Note that the MMS and HTTP buttons are on the top left side of the buttons arranged vertically on the screen. I find I can see it just as well by just bringing up the link without clicking on either of these buttons. The Pacific Daylight Times of the broadcasts are also given.

The email follows:

Dear Beverly,

Actually I checked the NTD TV website and found out that beside cable TV, the Near Death Experience program will be also played real time online at the NTDTV web page at www.ntdtv.com. It will reach unexpected large number of audiences all over the world including people outside China and people inside China who use software like FirePhoenix to break through CCP blocks. You can imagine how big number of people will be viewed. NDE is a topic people in the nation are very curious about.

Real Time Broadcast Page:

http://www.ntdtv.com/xtr/b5/tv.html#d (click the first or second button MMS or HTTP)

Days: Friday, April 23 (episode 1) and Friday, April 30 (episode 2)

Time (Pacific Time):

05:00 Near Death Experience / episode 1

10:00 Near Death Experience/ episode 1

16:45 Near Death Experience/ episode 1

22:00 Near Death Experience/ episode 1

Please do the test on your system before the play time so you will have the right plug in installed on your browser.

It will be in Chinese but hopefully the original English talking in the background will be still heard.

I talked to Qing about the possibility of making English version DVD of this TV program. Hopefully the individuals who were interviewed, may have opportunity to receive a free copy of English DVD of the program, and for any other members of your organization or their families and friends, purchasable NTDTV copyrighted DVD will be available upon enough number of requests. Please consider this opportunity and let me or Qing know how many of your people or organization will be interested in the Near Death Experience NTDTV interveiw DVD, so we can consider making mass DVD production.

Sincerely,

Dr. Liu

Dr. Jason Liu

Center of Brainwave-Meridian Therapy /

www.mindbody-science.com

Mind-Body Medical University (mbmu.org">http://mbmu.org/>mbmu.org)

790 E Colorado Blvd., Suite 907A

Pasadena, CA 91101

Office: 626-588-7818

Direct: 619-316-3198

Dear Friends,

I was informed by Qing Ma, local producer for New Tang Dynasty Television, which reaches 200 million Mandarin speakers worldwide, that our experiencers and myself will be shown on NTDTV (Digital Channel 44.7 on dish receivers) on Friday, April 23 (episode 1) and Friday, April 30 (episode 2). The Mandarin language is dubbed into the presentations. Air time is simultaneous worldwide and is (Eastern Daylight Time): 8am, 1pm, and 7:45pm. The IANDS website will be given out. The text of Qing Ma's letter follows:

Hi Denis,

How are you! Haven't talk to you for a while.

Our TV program for "Discovering Life: Near-Death Experience" episode 1 will be aired on NTDTV (Channal 44.7) on Friday April 23. The episode 2 will be aired on following week on Friday April 30. Air time as follow:

Eastern time:

8am

1pm

19:45pm

It's Chinese version in 13-14 minute each episode. But we will make English version soon.

I will let you know the web link when it's availiable.

Thanks for your help.

Qing Ma

We're getting out there!

Love and Light,

Denis

Straight Talk about the NDE

2010-04-17T15:38:00.001-05:00

SPECIAL NEWS:

One more book - mine. I finished it a few days ago; the manuscript is now winging it's way to reviewers and prospective publishers. The working title is: STRAIGHT TALK ABOUT THE NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE: WHO WE ARE AS HUMANS, WHERE WE'RE HEADED AS THE SOULS WE TRULY ARE. (This is subject to change at the behest of publishers.)

Two years writing it, 33 years researching near-death states plus a previous decade experimenting with and studying altered states of consciousness, mysticism, psychic phenomena, and the transformative process. Yup, this is my last hurrah. I am retiring this year from active, original fieldwork. Yes, I will continue with this blog, available as a consultant, public speaker, workshops, and the like, but my work as a front-line researcher is done. A full-announcement will be made once a publisher is found for the book.

Caution: STRAIGHT TALK is far more outspoken than any of my other books, and it will be controversial. I stick my neck out with this one and say what I've never dared to say before - about the larger picture and what I suspect is really going on with transformative states such as near-death. Stay tuned: I'll keep you informed.

See what I mean? This really is an exciting year of revelation about that edge between life and death. PMH

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The near-death experience is once again in vogue, in that some incredible research is seeing the light of day this year. In case you didn't know, the near-death experience is now the number one choice of scientists worldwide to study consciousness itself. Great opportunities exist this year to learn about this in the way of books, announcements, and conferences that take us to the next level of revelation.

NEW BOOKS -

EVIDENCE OF THE AFTERLIFE, Jeffrey Long, M. D., with Paul Peary.

New York, NY; HarperOne 2010. (Now out)

ENDLESS CONSCIOUSNESS, Pim van Lommel, M.D.

New York, NY; HarperCollins 2010 (Out in June)

ANNOUNCEMENT -

September 11, doctors in the AWARE PROJECT (Awareness through Resuscitation) give their findings - from 600 patients, 20 Hospitals.

CONFERENCE -

September 1-5, Denver, Colorado, "Mysteries of Near-Death Experiences: Perspectives from Experiencers, Science, and Spirituality. Sponsored by International Association For Near-Death Studies (IANDS). Anyone can come. For more info, contact IANDS headquarters: www.iands.org; services@iands.org.

NDE Retreat and IANDS Conference

2010-03-22T12:23:00.002-05:00

ANNOUNCING:

Reservations are filling up fast for the "Spiritual Retreat for Near-Death Experiencers," July 15-18, in Missouri. I am surprised at how eager people are to attend this Retreat. There are only eight spaces left. So, if you want to come, do the following: Access this website to learn more about it: http://neardeathexperiencers.org . You can register at this site.

Contact for more information: Linda Jacquin at jacadv@centurytel.net Bill Taylor at wt123@verizon.net Dave Bennett at dharmadb@mac.com

I attended the first Retreat, and I can personally recommend how very good they are and how incredibly wonderful the site is where this is held.

The annual Conference of International Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS) is in Denver, CO this year. The dates are September 1-5 if you want to stay for the whole thing. Reserve now. I did, and yes I'm going. Full information plus registration is on their website at www.iands.org, or you can contact the office of IANDS at services@iands.org or call them at (919) 383-7940. Papers are still being solicited, so, get busy right now with your plans.

The Farmstead Community

2010-01-31T11:50:00.002-05:00

I know Joel Salatin personally and have eaten food grown on his farm. My respect for him and the way he does things runs deep. You may not think something like this is of concern to near-death experiencers and those like them, but it is. Soil, food, animals, water – all of these are of immense interest to experiencers of transformational states. Without good soil, water, food, we have nothing to build from. Our experiences teach us how valuable the earthplane is and how we are responsible for taking care of it. Some experiencers return unable to even step on an ant, they are so in awe of life and the many levels of being. I am a member of VICFA Voice, because I stand with farmers who understand deep ecology and the way of the sacred. Check around and see if there is a group like this in your state. If there is, join it, or help this one. Do what you can to support people who truly love nature and farming. If we help them, they can support us with the wonder of good nutrition and fabulous food! Thank you, PMH Atwater

http://www.vicfa.org/newsletter/2010-FebVICFAVoice.pdf

The Farmstead Community

By Joel Salatin

What defines the allure of Historic Williamsburg? Is it the costumes, the drum and fife corps, the buildings? All of those things add to it, of course, but I think most people are drawn to the imbedded farmstead crafts and industry.

The defining characteristic about Williamsburg, which differs from modern America, is the proximity to residences of what was, in that day, fairly heavy industry. They didn’t have the commercial district, the retail outlet district, the farming district, and the residential district. If you visit the George Wythe House, after going through the house you enter the backyard. There, busy at their work, are candle makers, spinners, a blacksmith, a barrel maker, and a woodworker.

If you study the on farm industry at Monticello, it’s the same thing. I recently finished a fascinating book about Pharsalia, a plantation south of Charlottesville that cured hams and had an on-site hospital for the slaves. These farmsteads bustled with the industry of the day. At Mt. Vernon, George Washington owned a mill, dock, and had numerous income streams, from whiskey to shad fishing.

All of these activities are appropriate for farms. Butchering, tanning, all food preservation from canning to curing, welding, energy generation, brewing, woodworking, spinning and clothes making—the list is endless. But today, this kind of activity is considered incompatible with farming. Oh, you can do it for yourself as a hobby, but don’t dare sell any of it! I call all this social and economic apartheid. And, lest anyone think this is a product of big business and conservatives, the radical environmentalists are just as bad. They want to lock up large tracts of land called wilderness. They kicked farmsteads off the Blue Ridge Mountains and took land and farms for a national park, dislocating people who had lived there for a long time. Today, we parse this apartheid down even to residential square footage. If you can afford a 1,500 square foot house, you can live in this section. But, if you can only afford a 1,000 square foot house, you have to live over in that section. Talk about becoming insular.

In 1915 some 1,500 auto manufacturers existed. Many of them were glorified backyard mechanics, tinkering and working in their own home shops, long before zoning regulations. This creativity worked out the kinks and slowly birthed the automobile. Today, this same kind of creativity has birthed the e-boom from home offices and computer consoles. The e-breakthroughs largely have come from individual, independent minds, not from big corporate efforts.

Two areas need this kind of home-based creativity to be unleashed today: food and energy. We hear about inner city food deserts. Nothing would solve that problem faster than vacant lot mini-farms and in-home food preservation and processing. Re-imbedding the entire food chain in a farm and village setting would exponentially increase creativity and innovation in food. The way to solve problems is not to centralize the innovation, but to spread it out and let more people participate in the solutions.

Rarely does the answer come from one source. The more brains, eyes, ears, and hands participate, the better the solution and the quicker it will occur. A lady in Texas told me recently that she’d been turned in to the zoning board for growing a tomato plant in her flower garden. Her residential area prohibits farming…and growing a tomato is farming. Is this crazy or what?

The same is true for energy. The best thing we could do for energy is to dismantle the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF) so that anyone who wanted a still could have one. We should have a blanket exemption for windmill towers up to a certain height. The paperwork and bureaucratic permitting process to produce your own energy is not only inappropriate, it actually stifles innovation.

I wish I had a nickel for every time some jackleg mechanic has told me about a little carburetor gizmo that will increase fuel efficiency by 20 percent. I’m not mechanical enough to figure out how to install these things. I’d be happy to pay someone to install these things and they’d be happy to do it. But if they do, then they have a business, and if they are working out of their residence, that’s prohibited.

If we’re ever going to bring creativity to the table, we have to quit this economic and vocational apartheid nonsense. Instead of restricting access to local commerce, we need to encourage local commerce. Taken from the February VICFA Voice. You can join the Virginia Independent Consumers and Farmers Association at: http://www.vicfa.org/.

For more about Joel Salatin, read this blog post.

Jimmy Carter - "Losing my Religion"

2010-01-31T11:38:00.003-05:00

This proclamation by former President Jimmy Carter is so true and so powerful, I wanted to share it with you. ~PMH Atwater

Women and girls have been discriminated against for too long in a twisted interpretation of the word of God.

I have been a practicing Christian all my life and a deacon and Bible teacher for many years. My faith is a source of strength and comfort to me, as religious beliefs are to hundreds of millions of people around the world. So my decision to sever my ties with the Southern Baptist Convention, after six decades, was painful and difficult. It was, however, an unavoidable decision when the convention's leaders, quoting a few carefully selected Bible verses and claiming that Eve was created second to Adam and was responsible for original sin, ordained that women must be "subservient" to their husbands and prohibited from serving as deacons, pastors or chaplains in the military service.

This view that women are somehow inferior to men is not restricted to one religion or belief. Women are prevented from playing a full and equal role in many faiths. Nor, tragically, does its influence stop at the walls of the church, mosque, synagogue or temple. This discrimination, unjustifiably attributed to a Higher Authority, has provided a reason or excuse for the deprivation of women's equal rights across the world for centuries.

At its most repugnant, the belief that women must be subjugated to the wishes of men excuses slavery, violence, forced prostitution, genital mutilation and national laws that omit rape as a crime. But it also costs many millions of girls and women control over their own bodies and lives, and continues to deny them fair access to education, health, employment and influence within their own communities.

The impact of these religious beliefs touches every aspect of our lives. They help explain why in many countries boys are educated before girls; why girls are told when and whom they must marry; and why many face enormous and unacceptable risks in pregnancy and childbirth because their basic health needs are not met.

In some Islamic nations, women are restricted in their movements, punished for permitting the exposure of an arm or ankle, deprived of education, prohibited from driving a car or competing with men for a job. If a woman is raped, she is often most severely punished as the guilty party in the crime.

The same discriminatory thinking lies behind the continuing gender gap in pay and why there are still so few women in office in the West. The root of this prejudice lies deep in our histories, but its impact is felt every day. It is not women and girls alone who suffer. It damages all of us. The evidence shows that investing in women and girls delivers major benefits for society. An educated woman has healthier children. She is more likely to send them to school. She earns more and invests what she earns in her family.

It is simply self-defeating for any community to discriminate against half its population. We need to challenge these self-serving and outdated attitudes and practices - as we are seeing in Iran where women are at the forefront of the battle for democracy and freedom.

I understand, however, why many political leaders can be reluctant about stepping into this minefield. Religion, and tradition, are powerful and sensitive areas to challenge. But my fellow Elders and I, who come from many faiths and backgrounds, no longer need to worry about winning votes or avoiding controversy - and we are deeply committed to challenging injustice wherever we see it.

The Elders are an independent group of eminent global leaders, brought together by former South African president Nelson Mandela, who offer their influence and experience to support peace building, help address major causes of human suffering and promote the shared interests of humanity. We have decided to draw particular attention to the responsibility of religious and traditional leaders in ensuring equality and human rights and have recently published a statement that declares: "The justification of discrimination against women and girls on grounds of religion or tradition, as if it were prescribed by a Higher Authority, is unacceptable."

We are calling on all leaders to challenge and change the harmful teachings and practices, no matter how ingrained, which justify discrimination against women. We ask, in particular, that leaders of all religions have the courage to acknowledge and emphasize the positive messages of dignity and equality that all the world's major faiths share.

The carefully selected verses found in the Holy Scriptures to justify the superiority of men owe more to time and place - and the determination of male leaders to hold onto their influence - than eternal truths. Similar biblical excerpts could be found to support the approval of slavery and the timid acquiescence to oppressive rulers.

I am also familiar with vivid descriptions in the same Scriptures in which women are revered as pre-eminent leaders. During the years of the early Christian church women served as deacons, priests, bishops, apostles, teachers and prophets. It wasn't until the fourth century that dominant Christian leaders, all men, twisted and distorted Holy Scriptures to perpetuate their ascendant positions within the religious hierarchy.

The truth is that male religious leaders have had - and still have - an option to interpret holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends, overwhelmingly chosen the latter. Their continuing choice provides the foundation or justification for much of the pervasive persecution and abuse of women throughout the world. This is in clear violation not just of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but also the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Apostle Paul, Moses and the prophets, Muhammad, and founders of other great religions - all of whom have called for proper and equitable treatment of all the children of God. It is time we had the courage to challenge these views.

"Too Soon Old"

2010-01-25T13:40:00.003-05:00

This poem was originally written 20 years ago by Dave Griffith of Forth Worth, Texas. He titled it “Too Soon Old” and put it on his website. Someone stole it, changed the title, made up a story about it, then posted it on the Internet. It’s been floating around ever since. Here, for once, Dave Griffith gets proper credit and we can all enjoy this incredible poem titled as Dave wanted it:

TOO SOON OLD.

What do you see nurses? .. . . .. . What do you see?
What are you thinking . . . . . When you're looking at me?
A crabby old man . . . .. . Not very wise,
Uncertain of habit . . . . . With faraway eyes?

Who dribbles his food . .. . . . And makes no reply.
When you say in a loud voice . . . . . 'I do wish you'd try!'
Who seems not to notice . . . . .. The things that you do.
And forever is losing . . . . . A sock or a shoe?

Who, resisting or not . . ... . . Lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding . . . .. . The long day to fill?
Is that what you're thinking? . . . . . Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse . . . .. . You're not looking at me.

I'll tell you who I am. . . . . . As I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding, . . . .. . As I eat at your will.
I'm a small child of Ten . . . .. . With a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters . . . . .. Who love one another.

A young boy of Sixteen . .. . . With wings on his feet.
Dreaming that soon now . . . . . A lover he'll meet.
A groom soon at Twenty . . . . . My heart gives a leap.
Remembering, the vows . .. .. . .. That I promised to keep.

At Twenty-Five, now . . . . . I have young of my own.
Who need me to guide . .. . . . And a secure happy home.
A man of Thirty . . . . . My young now grown fast,
Bound to each other . . . . . With ties that should last.

At Forty, my young sons . . . . . Have grown and are gone,
But my woman's beside me . . . . . To see I don't mourn.
At Fifty, once more, babies play 'round my knee,
Again, we know children . . . . . My loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me . . . . . My wife is now dead.
I look at the future . .... . . . Shudder with dread.
For my young are all rearing . .. . . . Young of their own.
And I think of the years . . . . . And the love that I've known.

I'm now an old man . . . . ... And nature is cruel.
Tis jest to make old age . . . .. . Look like a fool.
The body, it crumbles . .. . . . Grace and vigor depart.
There is now a stone . .. . . Where I once had a heart.

But inside this old carcass . . . . . A young guy still dwells,
And now and again . . . . .. My battered heart swells.
I remember the joys . . . . . I remember the pain.
And I'm loving and living . . . . . Life over again.

I think of the years, all too few . . . .. .. Gone too fast.
And accept the stark fact . .. . . That nothing can last.
So open your eyes, people . . . . . Open and see.
Not a crabby old man . . . Look closer . . . See ME!!

Nadia McCaffrey Seriously Ill

2009-12-09T11:03:00.000-05:00

To the Near-Death Community of Healers and Helpers:

I have just been advised that Nadia McCaffrey is seriously ill. She is in Redding, California, with her former husband, to obtain the medical help she needs, as she is not covered by any type of insurance. I do not know her condition.

Let me tell you a little about Nadia. She is French, Americanized long since, and a fierce defender of whatever is just and right. She has gone to bat for countless people of all races, defending them, taking on corporate giants all by herself, and winning the compensation that was denied employees and the fair right to trial. She is the epitome of a child experiencer of a near-death state, and is part of my original research - her case is in "The New Children and Near-Death Experiences." She has had several other near-death states in adulthood. Her son was killed in Iraq by one of the locals he was trying to help - the situation becoming her next project - to help and to heal veterans who returned with serious mental conditions. She was the first Gold Star Mother to allow the media to film her son's coffin - against the strong objection of the U.S. Army. Because of her, the media can now film all aspects of a soldier's demise and the effect that has on their families. With this new project, she has opened up Retreat House for soldiers all over this country, made trips to Iraq herself, and become a spokesperson for the real truth about the war. Nadia has never asked for a penny for herself - all monies she has raised go directly to the Retreat Houses and their staffs. Her efforts have helped thousands of people, in this country and in Jordan and Iraq.

I am calling upon all people who will, to unite in prayer for Nadia McCaffrey. Our prayers have been requested by those closest to her. I affirm, as I know you do, that God's Great Healing Love surrounds and fills Nadia, for she is a precious child of the Most High, beloved of countless souls, a servant of God ever since she was touched by "The White Lady" during her childhood near-death experience. I invoke Divine Order, in accord with whatever is best for her highest good and the highest good of all concerned.

Thank you, all of you, for praying for Nadia. Blessings, PMH

Sharing "The Love"

2009-11-23T18:23:00.006-05:00

I am sharing this flier about "The Love," not just because it is a special book and I have a piece in it, but because of how the subject is handled - with all its many inflections and meanings. Who among us really knows what could be known about love? This book will be especially helpful to near-death experiencers and those like them.

If you've never read Laura George's last book, allow me to introduce this lady, a former lawyer, who brings to any subject the professionalism and thoroughness she is noted for. Her previous work is: "The Truth: About the Five Primary Religions." To say this book is masterful would be an understatement. Ahead, she plans to do one on the new human. Believe me, you don't want to miss anything she's does.

All the information you need to purchase this book for yourself or as a gift is on this flier. You may use the same contact info to inquire about "The Truth," should you be interested in her previous work.

Many blessings to all of you, PMH

Take a closer look...

Also read my latest E-Newsletter at: http://ow.ly/F2jv

Childhood NDEs Survey -- Need Participants

2009-11-22T10:52:00.004-05:00

Dear Childhood NDEers,

You have the chance to participate in a study to help near-death researchers understand more about the childhood near-death experience and psychotherapy. The researcher not only wants to learn what people who had an NDE as a child experienced, but also what they would like to achieve from attending therapy.

Participants must be 18 years or older, younger than 18 when NDE occured, and have read and agreed to the Consent to Participate. This survey will take approximately 30-40 minutes to complete. You are invited to participate whether or not you have experience with psychotherapy. The results of the surveys are one way for researchers to learn what NDEers want from therapy, so that treatment programs may be designed specifically for childhood NDEers.

Please feel free to foward the survey to Childhood NDEers that would like to participate.

In addition, please contact the researcher if you would prefer to have the survey mailed to you instead of completing the online version of the survey.

Thank you!

Jenny Moores, MA, Doctoral Candidate,

Researcher California School of Professional Psychology

Member of IANDS jmoores@alliant.edu (559) 801-2381

Follow this link to the Survey.

Natalie Smith-Blakeslee

2009-10-29T21:06:00.003-05:00

Well-known and loved near-death experiencer, Natalie Smith-Blakeslee, passed away October 28, 2009. She had cancer in her brain fluid and spine, which suddenly became aggressive and took her life in mere months. She had just married Steve Hodak the year before, the two celebrating their first wedding anniversary when she became ill. Natalie had a late-in-life daughter still in grade school, and several grown children, although a daughter preceded in her death several years ago.

Natalie had a section in the Marketplace on my website for many years. She refined her "breakthrough" abilities after her near-death state, training at Lily Dale to become a professional medium, psychic, and spiritualist minister. What set her apart, however, was her uncommon generosity to others and her devotion to hospice and those in grief, especially from the death of a child. She finally wrote her book about what happened to her along life's way. Check on her website to find out how to obtain a copy, if any are still available. Natalie had plans to host a brand new TV show and was filled with life and a multitude of projects. That's why her sudden death was such a surprise. During the early days of my near-death research, Natalie proved to be far more than a research subject. She arranged several talks for me and promoted my work tirelessly. She had clear, sharp eyes, as if she could see forever, and a smile that could melt concrete. To say that she was an angel of light would be an understatement, as she helped thousands and thousands of people. She will be missed!

Right now, her husband Steve Hodak needs you. He was one of those who lost their job during the downturn. They have no insurance, no money - not even enough to bury her. If you can possibly help out, return to her family what she so generously gave to others during decades of service, please do. Any amount will be helpful. There are several ways to give. On her website at www.loveandlight.com, there is a PayPal button. Or, if you're like me and prefer to send a check, make it out to Steve Hodak and mail it to him at P. O. Box 352, Girard, PA 16417. On behalf of her family, thank you!!

Natalie, you were a blessing to the world. Much love, PMH

Sustainable Agriculture

2009-09-21T10:10:00.004-05:00

Joel Salatin (photo/Polyface Farms)

As most of you know, I am keenly interested in farms, food, and seeds, and the state of our soil today. Near-death experiencers, and those like them, come back more sensitive to food and drink than before and are acutely affected by nutritional content, chemicals, odors, and the vibrational content of what is consumed. This is no small matter. That’s why, whenever something special comes across my desk, I pass it on through my blog. This article about Joel Salatin is one of those “specials.” I know Joel. I have heard him speak numerous times and have toured his farm. This man and what he has done is the future of farms in America and across the globe. If we stick with present methods of “industrial” farming and continue to go the way of Monsanto and other corporate giants, we will condemn ourselves as a species to poor health, increased obesity, and the side-effects of estrogen-laden sprays and products (which is linked to the feminization of nature). I am grateful that someone like Joel Salatin finally receive a major award, and that people everywhere are beginning to wake up to his message and take note.

Blessings to all, PMH

Joel Salatin receives Heinz Award for innovation
in sustainable agriculture
September 14, 9:28 PM SF Sustainable Food Examiner Jeri Lynn Chandler
http://www.examiner.com/x-7030-SF-Sustainable-Food-Examiner~y2009m9d14-Joel-Salatin-receives-Heinz-Award-for-innovation-in-sustainable-agriculture

Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms in Swoope, Virginia, is being honored with a $100,000 Heinz Award for creating alternative, environmentally friendly farming techniques and helping to propel a movement towards local, sustainable agriculture that has been replicated by family farms around the country.

According to the Heinz selection committee, Salatin was chosen because he has "developed a new paradigm for sustainable agriculture by successfully challenging the commercial production of chickens and beef by food industry giants of the 1970s. His pioneering agricultural practices inextricably and beautifully interweave a food system with the land and have been embraced by farmers throughout the country."

Salatin also drew the attention of the Heinz committee because he "has successfully challenged the traditional commercial production of chicken and beef that has been the mainstay of food industry giants since the 1970s. Instead, his pioneering vision inextricably and beautifully interweaves a food system with the land, creating new agricultural practices that are being embraced by thousands of farmers throughout America."

On his 550 rolling acres of Virginia hills in the Central Shenandoah Valley, Salatin raises beef, sheep, chickens, pigs, rabbits and turkeys in a complex rotation based on the symbiotic relationships of these animals to one another and to the grass that is the basis of the farm's food chain.

Polyface Farm nets more than $150,000 annually, which, Salatin maintains, is proof that sustainable farming is a viable way to keep family farms together while producing healthy food in harmony with the environment. Salatin's infectious and inspiring enthusiasm for the benefits of his alternative methods has gotten him featured in Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma as well as articles in Smithsonian, National Geographic and Gourmet magazines. He was also in the 2009 documentary Food Inc.

In announcing the award, Teresa Heinz, chairman of the Heinz Family Foundation said, "Joel Salatin is more than the 'high priest of the pasture;' he's a brilliant farmer. He is brilliant because he keeps it simple. It starts with the grass and a divine rotation of cows, chickens, sheep and other farm animals taking their turn to graze. They work in unison the way, I believe, Mother Nature intended. The big corporate farms can no longer tell us that pollution will always come with farming. Mr. Salatin's work shows us that is not true because on his lands, farming is no longer part of the problem; it is part of the solution to a better environment. For this wonderful work, it is an honor to present him with this award."

Traditionally the Heinz Awards are made each year in five categories: arts and humanities; environment; the human condition; public policy; technology, economy and employment. This year, to mark the 15th anniversary of the awards and to honor John Heinz's devotion to environmental issues, all ten awards have been made in the environmental achievement category.

For more information about this year's Heinz Awards: visit www.heinzeawards.net.
More About: Profiles in sustainability · Sustainable food news

Health Care Reform

2009-08-20T17:47:00.004-05:00

A friend of mine by the name of Barbara Vitale sent me this e-mail message below, real facts about health-care reform. I have received many e-mails about this, as I am certain you have too. None of them checked out. None! The anger over this issue is being fanned by flames coming out of Russ Limbaugh’s mouth about “Nazism,” claims of “evil” from Sarah Palin, and exaggerations from medical lobbies and labor unions, that make me almost ashamed to call myself an American. We want solutions, not name calling. I am not interested in your politics. I am interested in a plan of health-care reform that works. The bill we have before us isn’t quite there. It’s more of a bandaid than reform, but it’s a start.

I have had what Barbara sent me investigated. Everything checks out and with high praise from investigators. For this reason, I am passing this information on. Do with it as you like, but leave me out of any step you take. We must each take this up with our own Congress-people and in civil town-hall discussions. Thank you. PMH

Excellent web site that addresses all the political issues. The Desolation Angel - An Idiot's Ravings At the Ragged Edge of the American Century.

. . .There is a website that you can go to for separating health care fact from fiction, truth from lies, and debunking the myths. Reality Check will answer a lot of your questions.

Interested in "following the money" ? Facts are revealed over at Open Secrets about $1.6 billion on lobbying money thrown by doctors, hospitals and pharma at Washington, and following up some items by, Dr. Dean Ornish:

. . .Just in case you are one of those people who doesn't believe that the health care system isn't broken, that it isn't in need of serious reform, that it should "just be left alone". Well, how does the figure $1.2 trillion sound. Nope, it's not the projected cost. It's the amount of money that current health care system wastes every year. The system we have right now. Are you willing to settle for that? Money magazine lists the top six ways that $1.2 trillion gets wasted every year:

$210 billion in overtesting, unnecessary testing, and unneeded testing
$210 billion in processing claims alone
$110 billion dollars wasted by us, the people, by ignoring doctors orders and then winding up having to use the ER when it gets as bad as he/she warned us it would be - $17 billion a year in medical errors, "oops" and clerical errors
$25 billion in medical readmissions caused by discharging patients too soon due to insurance coverages and time limits
$88 billion dollars in completely ineffective and inefficient uses of medical technologies - $14 billion dollars on completely unnecessary ER visits, things that don't actually require a clinical or medical setting
$3 billion dollars on hospital acquired infections

I'm going to ask this of you for the next 30 days. Turn your TV off, turn your radio off. Start to use that beautiful mind that your Creator gave you, that your underpaid, underappreciated High School teachers tried to develop. If you hear something, if you read something, if someone sends you an e-mail that says "this bill will do this", or "this politician says this", I'm asking you to check it out. Check it out this way, use some of the following fact-based sites, who exist solely for the purpose of data and fact-checking.

If whatever you've heard or read concerns a bill in Congress, use the following:

- Open Congress, it's non-partisan and devoted to a complete tracking of every bill in Congress, both houses. How a bill is developed, who is sponsoring it, what the riders are, what the discussion around it is.

- GovTrack, again non-partisan, non-commercial and open source; devoted to the same things, tracking Congress.

- Open Secrets, one of the most important ones, it tracks the lobbying money and campaign contributions flowing to your congressperson, and most of the time is a pretty good predictor of how they'll vote.

- Political Party Time, non-partisan, devoted to solely tracking political fundraisers, and letting you know exactly what parties your Representative and Senators are throwing for fundraisers and who is attending and how much money they're throwing at them to gain influence.

. . .If someone sends something to you saying "this is so" or "that is so" or "the President/Senator/Representative said this" use the following:

- Fact Check, non-partisan, designed to separate fact from bullshit and fiction
- Snopes, devoted to the same thing.

Be a part of the solution!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TeleSeminar with PMH

2009-08-05T21:43:00.005-05:00

Announcing!

A live TeleSeminar with PMH Atwater
and
Medical Intuitive
Caroline Sutherland.

Attend this free special event on
the Near-Death Experience
on Friday, August 7th, at 3 pm EDT.

Call: 503-290-5016 and enter PIN 156102#

Topic:

PMH Atwater is interviewed by Caroline Sutherland internationally known medical intuitive and Hay House author of "The Body Knows" books. In 1995 Caroline had a near death experience which led her to understand the nature and connection of all of life. During this compelling interview Caroline and PMH Atwater will discuss the NDE and the effect it has on one's life, the existence of angels, guidance on death and dying and why "we live forever."

http://www.carolinesutherland.com

IANDS Conferences

2009-07-19T17:21:00.000-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

The next big conference on the near-death experience will be held October 16-17 near San Diego, California, at the Mission Valley Resort (they have very reasonable prices). Ann Ellis is the Conference Chairperson. You can contact her directly at ellisann@juno.com. For more information about the conference itself, access the IANDS website at www.iands.org (that's the International Association For Near-Death Studies). This conference will focus on the enhanced abilities experiencers come to have afterward, and what to do with them. A topic IANDS has never tackled before, but one that really needs a good hearing. I will be there. So far, they have not announced who will present papers or the keynote speakers. Make your arrangements now, anyway. Don't wait. I know the program will be incredible! It always is.

September 11 through 13, I will be in Skaneateles, New York, doing a full program for Upstate New York Friends of IANDS group. Anyone can attend. Everyone is invited! Friday night there will be a public talk on "Revelations from Near-Death Experiences." Saturday I will be giving readings for those who are interested. Sunday is a six-hour intensive on "Deepening Into Spirit," for those who are ready to "dig deeper" into the realms of spirit and soul. I seldom give this intensive, so this session will be particularly special - to me and I hope to you! Access www.unyi.org and Dave@unyi.org.

Possible TV Series about NDEs

2009-05-29T10:04:00.004-05:00

IANDS (International Association for Near Death Studies) is cooperating with a television production company on a possible TV series about near-death experiences and their impact on people's lives. We are inviting experiencers to consider participating.

The producers are interested in the following types of experience:

NDE
Near-death-like experiences
Shared near-death experiences
Distressing near-death experiences
Out-of-body experiences (without other elements of an NDE)
Tunnel experiences
Angel experiences
Light beings experiences
Light experiences (without other elements of an NDE)
Life review experiences
Meetings with dead relatives
After-death communication
Apparitions

If you have had an experience like any of these--especially if your life has been strongly affected by it--and would like to have it considered as the basis for an episode, please let IANDS know (see below).

This is a preliminary request for experiences, as there is no guarantee that the series will be picked up for broadcast. Your willingness to participate does not ensure that your experience will be included, as we cannot guarantee that it will be selected. The producers, not IANDS, will select the accounts they wish to use. If your experience is selected, there is no guarantee that you will appear on camera.

We will review all experience accounts that come to the office. Someone will notify you if the TV producer wants to talk with you. Please DO NOT call the IANDS office to check on your status. If the producer wants to talk with you, you will be notified; if you do not receive a message that the producer wants to talk with you, the producer has decided not to use your experience.

We will post an announcement on the IANDS website when we know whether the series has been picked up for broadcast.

Here's how to send your experience for consideration:

Send us an email or letter, including these four things:

your name, address, phone number, and email address if you have one
a full description of your experience and its impact on your life
a statement that you agree to having your experience considered for a TV show
a statement that you agree not to submit your experience to any other TV show unless it is not selected by these producers

If you are using email, send to office@iands.org. If you use regular mail, send the letter to IANDS, 2741 Campus Walk Ave, Durham, NC 27705-8878, USA. Be sure to include the description of your experience.

Near-Death Phenomenon Online Course and Experiencer Retreats ]

2009-05-27T10:23:00.000-05:00

The International Association For Near-Death Studies (IANDS) now has available an online course covering the near-death phenomenon. Called "Near-Death Experience: An Online Educational Course," it is designed primarily for healthcare professionals, but can be used by anyone. CEU credits are currently available for some; later on for people nationwide. Dubed the "best-ever introductory course," you can see for yourself by accessing this address:
www.iands.org/education/educational_credits/ceu-course-home.html.
Anyone interested should contact IANDS directly at www.iands.org.

Dates have been set for future near-death experiencer retreats at The Mercy Center, St. Louis, MO. These dates are:

July 15-18, 2010
May 12-15, 2011
April 27-30, 2012

IANDS sponsors these highly successful spiritual retreats, led by Linda Jacquin, Dave Bennett, and Bill Taylor. The website to learn more about experiencer retreats is www.neardeathexperiencers.org. To reach those in charge, contact:

Linda Jacquin jacadv@centurytel.net
Dave Bennett Dharmadb@mac.com
Bill Taylor wt123@verizon.net

1918 Flu (Success) Story

2009-05-10T12:59:00.002-05:00

Ellen Louise Kahne is a healer whom I deeply respect. She sent me this true story from her own life, that she learned from a retired nurse, concerning the 1918 Flu Epidemic. It speaks volumes about epidemics and how to take care of oneself and others with simple items readily available. Perhaps we can all learn from this. As per the swine flu situation, investigators are closing in on pig farms in Mexico that were the result of outsourcing, where corporations “set up shop” in places where rules and standards were lax. What the various parties involved did to increase profits is bankrupting an entire nation. Is this how business is done today? PMH

1918 Flu (Success) Story:

In 1960, as a young teenager, I met an elderly retired nurse from Baddeck, Nova Scotia, on a trip to Canada. I vividly recall the story she told to my mother about the 1918 flu epidemic, during which she served at a hospital near her home.

The nurse was in her late 80s and said that she had never married.

In 1918, she was living with her sister and brother in law who were local farmers, who had a large family of young neices and nephews (9 children). She was very concerned with contracting the flu, which was killing massive numbers all over the world (including in her local area of Baddeck). Her colleagues (nurses and doctors) serving with her at the local hospital were dying daily right before her eyes. Even more so, she feared bringing home the infection to her family.

She said "people were dying like flies. You just couldn't keep up with it in the hospital. The sick and dying were everywhere."

So, she thought about what was readily available which would prevent flu transmission and keep her family healthy.

She knew that her family had a root cellar brimming with onions from the summer harvest. She insisted that each member of the family (including each of the kids) eat a whole raw onion every day, and she did th is herself.

She told my mom "Ours was the only family in the entire area which did not have one case of the flu, and I believe that it was the raw onions which we ate daily which kept us all from getting sick."

At the time, I was listening very quietly, thinking to myself "this bizarre little old lady is really crazy...how can eating a raw onion every day keep you from getting a flu which killed more people than WWI?"

Now, knowing the antiviral and antibiotic properties of onions (and garlic) and the sulfur compounds which they contain, I have a quite different opinion.

I have never forgotten this nurse's story. Sometimes, it is the most simple thing which G-d provides in our environment which can the protective remedy for what is most threatening to health and life.

with peace, love, and blessings (for good health), Ellen Ellen Louise Kahne, founder Reiki Peace Network© and Reiki University™ http://www.ReikiPeaceNetwork.com

P.S. Gary Null always recommended using citrus oil spray for germ killing properties, especially in closed spaces. Before 911, he used to carry a pocket sized can onto his airline flights and spray it around his seat, and where people were coughing and sneezing (that's not possible today, though, as people on any airline would panic, if you sprayed anything on a plane). The health food stores (including Whole Foods) carry=2 0a pump spray called "Air Therapy." This is basically orange oil derived from the citrus peel. I have used this for years to disinfect a "sick" room or space where people have been coughing and sneezing, as well as for the bathroom. Citrus oil (used on any surface) will kill germs, too.

Margaret Fields Kean

2009-04-11T15:21:00.003-05:00

Margaret died the first time back in 1978 from severe phlebitis, and then she came back - much to the surprise of family and medical staff. The near-death experience she had at that time was extraordinary, but not nearly as amazing as what came next with her sudden ability to heal others. I'd like to quote from some of her story that appears in my book, "Beyond the Light" (pages 83 to 88):

"When Fields Kean revived, the nurses were in a state of panic; pandemonium reigned. Irritated at first by the abruptness of her reentry, Field Kean nonetheless took on the role of healer: She spoke softly to the boy shot in the neck and soothed him to sleep (the nurses later thanked her); she "projected" into the isolation room of a white boy charred black by severe burns and counseled him about his purpose in life and told him it was okay if he chose to die, for God was loving and he had nothing to fear."

When Margaret described her visit with the young boy, she told me she just floated right through the wall of that room and sat on the boy's bed. He saw her and they conversed verbally. She introduced herself, and asked why he was there. They had a long talk about death. The boy was worried about his parents, what would happen to them after he left. With loving assurances from Margaret, he calmed down and smiled at her.

When near-death researchers talk about being able to verify the stories experiencers tell - stories about shoes that were seen out-of-body and a man's false teeth and where a nurse put them - Margaret's visit with this boy is one of the most stunning I have come across, FULLY verified by the parties involved. Here's the rest of her story:

"Months later, while continuing her recovery and still in great pain, Fields Kean was attending a horse show when a couple, hearing the loudspeaker announce her daughter's name as a winner, sought her out. They were the parents of the severely burned boy. Before he had died, he had told them about the meeting with her and relayed all the wonderful truths she had told him about God and about life. The parents were thrilled to have finally located her so they could say thanks for what she had done for their son. The dying boy had identified her by name - EVEN THOUGH THE TWO HAD NEVER PHYSICALLY SEEN EACH OTHER OR VERBALLY SPOKEN IN ANY MANNER, NOR HAD ANY NURSE KNOWN THAT THE TWO HAD EVER COMMUNICATED, NOR HAD IT EVER BEEN POSSIBLE THAT SHE COULD HAVE KNOWN IF THE ISOLATION ROOM WAS EVEN OCCUPIED WHEN SHE "PROJECTED" INTO IT."

Later on, Margaret developed the Results System, a technique that enables anyone to access the wisdom of "inner knowing." Her system of healing took off, hundreds were trained, thousand were affected; and she even took the system to Africa where she trained the "sangomas" (native healers) of Swaziland and Transkei. Countless people owe their good health to this woman; countless more were touched by her generosity of spirit, her love, her gentle ways, her joy. If there was ever an angel come to earth, it is Margaret Fields Kean.

Margaret died for the second time, leaving her body at 2:00 am, April 8, 2009, with her husband Leonard Kean by her side, family and close friends. God's Heaven is blessed to have her now in residence. The rest of us are blessed to have ever known her. This fall, "Beyond the Light" is reissued by Transpersonal Publishing. In the year she finally returns Home, the book with her story in it is finally republished.

God bless you, Margaret. PMH

Reincarnation and the Early Christians

2009-04-10T09:31:00.002-05:00

Here is an article on early Christianity and the concept of reincarnation. It is long but well-researched by Kevin Williams. It is worth reading. So many near-death experiencers come to embrace the concept after their episode. Quite a number of them had components in their near-death episode or immediately afterward that revealed past lives, inner connections between lives, and a completely new way for them to understand life itself and the soul’s passage as it matures in and through life cycles. The author, by the way, is Kevin Williams and this article is posted on my blog with his permission. Blessings, PMH

Reincarnation and the Early Christians

In December, 1945, early Christian writings containing many secrets of the early Christian religion were found in upper Egypt, a location where many Christians fled during the Roman invasion of Jerusalem. Undisturbed since their concealment almost two thousand years ago, these manuscripts of Christian mysticism rank in importance with the Dead Sea Scrolls. These writings affirmed the existence of the doctrine of reincarnation being taught among the early Jews and Christians. These Christian mystics, referred to as Christian Gnostics, were ultimately destroyed by the orthodox Church for being heretics. Their sacred writings were destroyed and hidden with the belief that they would be revealed at an appropriate time in the future. The discovery in 1945 yielded writings that included some long lost gospels, some of which were written earlier than the known gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Brian A. Bain, M.A., has this to say about the 1945 discovery:

"Long considered to be heretical, ancient Gnostic Christian texts unearthed this century display compelling similarities between Gnostic conceptions of life and death and modern near-death experiences. The Gnostic texts devoted extensive tracts to what readers could expect to encounter when they died. Other passages make numerous allusions to near-death-like experiences that can be realized in this life, most notably the human encounter with a divine light. The Gnostic Christian literature gives us one more example of NDEs and similar experiences in the ancient world."

Another interesting fact comes from Edgar Cayce (a near-death experiencer) who affirmed that Gnosticism is the highest form of Christianity.

The Christian Gnostics were regarded by some as a new Jewish sect who believed they had finally found the long-awaited Messiah and not a new religion. Some of the apostles became Gnostic and because of this, Christianity could well have grown up as a Gnostic religion had it not been for their eventual persecution by the organized Church centuries later.

The Secret Teachings of Jesus

An important Christian Gnostic teaching was the "Logos" which in Greek is translated as "the image of the Word." It is an important concept found in the gospel of John:

"In the beginning was the Word (Logos), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1)

Logos is the part of God that acts in the world. It is the perfect unity of the human and the divine. This is affirmed by John when he wrote that "the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us." When John stated that Jesus is the Logos, he is stating that Jesus became the Logos, the Christ. The Logos is the divine "spark" of God within humans that needs to awakened. Everyone has the "image of the Word (Logos)" within them and it is for this reason that Genesis describes humanity as created "in the image and likeness of God." The Logos is the divine Spirit in humanity. By using the Christian Gnostic idea of the Logos, John is not only affirming the preexistence and divinity of Jesus, but he is affirming that all sons of God created in the "image of the Word" as Jesus was, preexisted in spirit before being born. In other words, every human is an incarnation of the Logos and every human has to potential of becoming like Jesus, a manifestation of the human-divine unity. Every human can be a "Christ" and because of this, every soul will eventually be drawn back to God.

The Roman Church misunderstood what the Logos was in John and incorrectly concluded from this that only Jesus is divine - the Word made flesh. The orthodox Church either rejected or ignored this Christian Gnostic concept found in John. This may have been a factor when the gospel of John was almost rejected from New Testament canon when it was being put together. This was during a time when Christian Gnosticism became an enemy of the organized Church. Nevertheless, it was the idea of the preexistence of the soul and its corresponding doctrine of reincarnation that the Roman Church had great difficulty with.

The Christian Gnostics emphasized spiritual knowledge rather blind faith as the road to salvation. They indicated that they possessed secret knowledge (i.e., "gnosis" in Greek) concerning the hidden meaning of the "resurrection." This was a part of the secret teachings of Jesus handed down to them by the apostles. This special knowledge was restricted to people who were given the public teachings of Christianity before qualifying to be initiated and receive the secret teachings. In contrast, the very term "Catholic" means "universal", implying that anyone could become a member of the Church by adhering to the public teachings of faith and rituals. The Christian Gnostics were harsh critics of the orthodox Church. The Christian Gnostics accused the Church of watering down the gospel in order to popularize it for the masses. The orthodox Church stressed salvation through faith alone and by the rituals of the Church.

This secret gnosis emphasized spiritual "resurrection" (i.e,. spiritual rebirth) and physical "resurrection" (i.e., reincarnation) as opposed to a resurrection defined as people sleeping in their graves until it is time their corpses to crawl out of their graves at the last day. Christian Gnostics held the view that if spiritual resurrection was not attained in one lifetime, then the soul would be subjected to as many reincarnations as it takes until spiritual rebirth is attained.

One of the great Church leaders was Clement of Alexandria in Egypt (150-211 A.D.) who indicated that he possessed the secret teaching handed down from the apostles.

In the Gnostic text entitled The Secret Gospel of Mark, one of the Christian Gnostic texts discovered in 1945, describes Jesus performing secret initiation rituals. Before the discovery of this secret gospel, our only knowledge of it came from a letter written by Clement. Clement quotes from this secret gospel and refers to it as, "a more spiritual gospel for the use of those who were being perfected." He also states, "It even yet is most carefully guarded [by the church at Alexandria], being read only to those who are being initiated into the great mysteries." Clement mentions elsewhere that Jesus revealed a secret teaching to those who were "capable of receiving it and being molded by it" He also affirmed that, "The gnosis (secret knowledge) itself is that which has descended by transmission to a few, having been imparted unwritten by the apostles." (Miscell. Book VI, Chapter 7)

The existence of a secret teaching can be found in the New Testament:

“The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, 'they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding…'” (Mark 4:11-12)

"He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance." (Matt. 13:11-12)

"We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing. No, we speak of God's secret wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began." (1 Cor. 2:6-8)

"So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God." (1 Cor. 4:1)

"At that time Jesus said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and Earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure." (Matt. 11:25-26)

Paul wrote about teachings which are taught to spiritual "babies," teachings about righteousness for the more mature, and then teachings for the spiritually mature. Paul reveals this fact immediately after equating Melchizedek to Jesus by stating:

"We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Heb. 5:11-14)

According to tradition, after the Roman invasion of Jerusalem, the author of the Gospel of Mark established a church in Alexandria, Egypt. Mark may also have been the author of a "secret gospel" containing more advanced teaching for those being initiated into the Christian mysteries. This secret gospel contains passages portraying Jesus teaching secret doctrines.

The Champion for the Secret Teachings of Jesus

As the orthodox church in Rome gained more and more political power the more it viewed secret teachings as a threat to their own public teachings. But the Church leader who made the final and greatest attempt to revive the secret teachings of Jesus within the orthodox teachings was the first Church Father named Origen (183-253 A.D.) of Alexandria in Egypt who was a disciple of Clement of Alexandra. Origen was the first person since Paul to develop a system of theology around the teachings of Jesus. His effort was the first within the orthodox church to systematize a theology on so vast a scale. Although Origen defended orthodoxy, he included in his system the wisdom of the Christian Gnostics. His theology was a perfect synthesis of "orthodox" and "gnostic" teachings and came the closest to reviving the "Lost Christianity" of the original sects, communities and schools, at a time when the Christian Gnosticism was falling into disrepute. Unfortunately, hundreds of years later, the Church declared him a heretic and his teachings as heresy mostly because they affirmed preexistence and therefore reincarnation.

Origen had this to say about the secret teachings of Jesus:

“[Jesus] conversed with His disciples in private, and especially in their sacred retreats, concerning the Gospel of God; but the words which He uttered have not been preserved, because it appeared to the evangelists that they could not be adequately conveyed to the multitude in writing or in speech… and they saw… what things were to be committed to writing, and how this was to be done, and what was by no means to be written to the multitude, and what was to be expressed in words, and what was not to be so conveyed”. (Contra Celsus, Chap. VI. 18)

Concerning these secret teachings, Clement stated:

“James the Righteous, John and Peter were entrusted by the Lord after his resurrection with the higher knowledge. They imparted it to the other apostles, to the seventy…” (Outlines Book VI)

The Theology of Christian Gnosticism

According to Gnostic theology, a series of "falling away" from the Whole that is God occurred in eternity which resulted in all that there is today. After the first "fall", the divine consciousness descended to the level of the divided consciousness; now after another "fall", it has fallen even further, into the depths of the unconscious; it has been "forgotten." It is now humanity's privilege to discover the potential realms of human existence and face the great challenge of the "ascension of consciousness" through the Man-God-Spirit transformation.

Once souls fell into the lower levels of consciousness, they became enamored of it and burned with the desire to experience the pleasures of matter. The souls then no longer wanted to disengage itself from these lower levels. Thus the world was born. From that moment souls forgot themselves. They forgot they original habitation, their true center and eternal being.

Gnosticism proceeds from one fundamental insight: this world in which we find ourselves is thoroughly and irretrievably less than holy. The soul is trapped in a prison of flesh, and the flesh is intrinsically less than divine. According to Gnostic theology, the creation of the cosmos came about as the result of a tragicomic mistake: the fall of the soul from God. Thanks to the advent of Christ in the lower realms of consciousness, the power of reconciling the fallen souls has been given to restore the One-ness and usher in the kingdom of light over the kingdom of flesh and matter. The unity of the Godhead is assured thanks to the introduction of the new uniting force, the Logos, the part of God who acts in the flesh and the material. It is important to distinguish the Logos (Christ) from the soul named Jesus. Any person has the potential of becoming a Logos but it was the soul known as Jesus who actually incarnated as a Logos and therefore became a Christ on Earth.

We, as humans, cannot comprehend the omnipotent power available to us until we utilize the Christ power. When we effectively use the divine "Christ awareness" we have the ability to help in the liberation of the imprisoned "sparks of divinity" from flesh and rejoin them to the Source. The divine plan of creation will become complete as the divine outpouring of Christ gnosis liberates humanity from ignorance. The result of this will be the redemption of all human beings.

The Christ power can only liberate souls through the call and revelation of Christ gnosis to, "Awake, remember who you are and where you come from!" But since the soul cannot by itself hear the gnosis, the Christ power resorts to elaborate strategies to create the conditions for which all souls will be saved.

Christian Gnostics felt that initiation into the Cosmic Christ gnosis is inseparable from "the light which lighteth every person coming into the world." It is this light within, our Higher Self, which each individual must bring to at-one-ment with the divine Source if liberation is to occur.

As more and more people hear the call to "Wake up!" and attain the Christ gnosis and become liberated, their souls are received back into the bosom of Divine Consciousness. The soul becomes free from unholy flesh and the cycle of birth and rebirth. Christian Gnostics seek to achieve this by cultivating the Higher Self within people to seek reunification with the Godhead. But each soul returning to its divine source must, after death, pass through the various levels of consciousness. Sometimes Christian Gnostics describe seven of these heavenly realms, other times ten.

Christian Gnostic Writings

The quote from Jesus from the Christian Gnostic gospel, the Book of Thomas the Contender, describes Jesus teaching reincarnation:

"Watch and pray that you may not be born in the flesh, but that you may leave the bitter bondage of this life." (Book of Thomas the Contender 9:5)

In another part of the Book of Thomas the Contender, Jesus tells the disciple Thomas that after death, those people who were once believers but have remained attached to things of "transitory beauty," will be consumed "in their concern about life" and will be "brought back to the visible realm."

The following quote from Jesus in the Gospel of Thomas affirms Jesus teaching reincarnation to his disciples:

"When you see your likeness, you are happy. But when you see your images that came into being before and that neither die nor become visible, how much you will bear!" (Gospel of Thomas, saying 84)

More excerpts from this very interesting gospel will be profiled later.

In the Secret Book of John, written by 185 A.D. at the latest, reincarnation is placed at the center of the discussion concerning the salvation of souls. The following is a summary of the Secret Book of John's perspective on reincarnation.

Everyone has drunk from the water of forgetfulness and lives in a state of ignorance. Some people are able to overcome ignorance by having the life-giving Spirit descend upon them. These souls "will be saved and will become perfect," that is, escape the cycle of birth and rebirth. John asks Jesus what will happen to those who do not attain salvation. They are hurled down "into forgetfulness" and thrown into "prison," the Christian Gnostic symbol for a new body.

Jesus says the only way for these souls to escape is to acquire knowledge after coming from forgetfulness. A soul can accomplish this by finding a teacher who can lead the soul in the right direction:

"This soul needs to follow another soul in whom the Spirit of life dwells, because she is saved through the Spirit. Then she will never be thrust into flesh again." (Secret Book of John 14:20)

Another Christian Gnostic book, the Pistis Sophia (Greek for "Faith Wisdom"), outlines a system of punishment and rewards that includes reincarnation. The book explains the differences in one's fate as a result of past-life actions. A "man who curses" will be given a body that is continually "troubled in heart." A "man who slanders" will be given an "oppressed" body. A thief will be given a "lame, crooked and blind body." A "proud" and "scornful" man will be given "a lame and ugly body" that "everyone continually despises." From this, we can see how this Earth, as well as hell, is a place of education through suffering.

According to the Pistis Sophia, some souls experience hell as a place of shadows and torture. However, after these souls pass through hell, they return to Earth for further experiences. Only a relatively few extremely evil souls are not permitted to reincarnate. These souls are cast into "outer darkness" until a time when they are "destroyed and dissolved."

The Pistis Sophia combines the ideas of reincarnation and divine union in a verse beginning with the question:

"[What happens to] a man who has committed no sin, but done good persistently, but has not found the mysteries?" (Pistis Sophia)

The Pistis Sophia reveals such a soul will receive "a cup filled with thoughts and wisdom," allowing the soul to remember its divine origin and pursue the "mysteries of the light" until it finds them and is able to "inherit the light forever." To "inherit the light forever" is a Gnostic term for union with God.

In the Gospel of Phillip, Jesus makes a clear distinction between the resurrection of the spirit (i.e., spiritual rebirth) and the resurrection of the body (i.e., physical rebirth, reincarnation):

"People who say they will first die and then arise are mistaken. If they do not first receive resurrection while they are alive, once they have died they will receive nothing." (Gospel of Philip 73:1-4)

In the Apocryphal book, Wisdom of Solomon, recognized as canonical by the Catholic Church, is the following verse:

"I was given a sound body to live in because I was already good." (Wisdom of Solomon 8:19-20)

This verse raises the following question: How is it possible to get a body after you have already been good, unless reincarnation is true?

Among the works of the Christian Gnostics are some of the early gospels, including secret gospels which were not preserved in the New Testament. The Gospel of Thomas was the first gospel ever written and is considered by scholars to be the most reliable gospel. Much of this gospel contains sayings of Jesus that are contained in the four New Testament gospels.

The Christian Gnostic gospels reveal a clear and strong vision of the resurrection as a past and present event. Below is a verse from the Gospel of Thomas that shows the "resurrection" to be a past event:

"His followers said to him, 'When will the rest for the dead take place, and when will the new world come?' He said to them, 'What you look for has come, but you do not know it.'" (Gospel of Thomas, saying 51)

In the verse above, Jesus says the resurrection and the kingdom are already here. In Gnostic terms, this quote from Jesus refers to a person's past "resurrection" (i.e., physical rebirth, reincarnation) and the fact that we are already living in the kingdom of God which exists within us. Only through the Christ gnosis can this kingdom be realized and the cycle of resurrection end.

The sayings that are presented below are excerpts of the Gospel of Thomas that are not present in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

The Gospel of Thomas

"These are the secret sayings that the living Jesus spoke and Judas Thomas the Twin recorded.

Jesus said, "Whoever finds the interpretation of these sayings will not taste death."

Jesus said, "Let one who seeks not stop seeking until one finds. When one finds, one will be disturbed. When one is disturbed, one will be amazed, and will reign over all."

Jesus said, "If your leaders say to you, 'Behold, the kingdom is in the sky,' then the birds in the sky will get there before you. If they say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the fish will get there before you. Rather, the kingdom is inside you and outside you. When you know yourselves, then you will be known, and will understand that you are children of the living Father. But if you do not know yourselves, then you live in poverty, and embody poverty."

Jesus said, "Know what is within your sight, and what is hidden from you will become clear to you. For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed."

Jesus said, "I have thrown fire on the world and, behold, I am guarding it until it is ablaze."

Jesus said to his disciples, "Compare me with someone, and tell me whom I am like." Simon Peter said to him, "You are like a just angel." Matthew said to him, "You are like a wise philosopher." Thomas said to him, "Teacher, my mouth is utterly unable to say whom you are like." Jesus said, "I am not your teacher. You have become intoxicated because you have drunk from the bubbling spring that I have tended." And he took Thomas and withdrew, and told him three things. When Thomas came back to his friends, they asked him, "What did Jesus tell you?" Thomas said to them, "If I tell you even one of the things he told me, you will pick up rocks and stone me. Then fire will come forth from the rocks and devour you."

The disciples said to Jesus, "Tell us about the end." Jesus said, "Have you already discovered the beginning, that now you can seek after the end? For where the beginning is, the end will be. Blessed is one who stands at the beginning: that one will know the end, and will not taste death."
Jesus said, "Blessed is one who came to life before coming to life."

Jesus said, "If you become my disciples and hearken to my sayings, these stones will serve you."

Jesus saw some babies nursing. He said to his disciples, "These nursing babies are like those who enter the kingdom." They said to him, "Then shall we enter the kingdom as babies?" Jesus said to them, "When you make the two into one, when you make the inner like the outer and the outer like the inner, and the upper like the lower, when you make male and female into a single one, so that the male will not be male and the female will not be female, when you make eyes replacing an eye, a hand replacing a hand, a foot replacing a foot, and an image replacing an image, then you will enter the kingdom."

Jesus said, "Blessed are those who are alone and chosen: you will find the kingdom. For you have come from it, and you will return there again."

His disciples said to him, "When will the final rest for the dead take place, and when will the new world come?" He said to them, "What you look for has already come, but you do not know it."

Jesus said, "I disclose my mysteries to those who are worthy of my mysteries. Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing."

Jesus said, "Whoever knows everything but lacks within lacks everything."

Jesus said, "If you bring forth what is within you, what you have will save you. If you do not have that within you, what you do not have within you will kill you."

Jesus said, "I am the light that is over all things. I am all: all came forth from me, and all attained to me. Split a piece of wood, and I am there. Pick up a stone, and you will find me there."

Jesus said, "Whoever is close to me is close to the fire, and whoever is far from me is far from the kingdom."

Jesus said, "Images are visible to people, but the light within is hidden in the Father's image of light. He will reveal himself, but his image is hidden by his light."

Jesus said, "When you see a likeness of yourself, you are happy. But when you see your images that came into being before you, and that neither die nor become visible, how much you will be able to tolerate!"

Jesus said, "When you make the two into one, you will become sons of man, and when you say, 'Mountain, move!' it will move."

Jesus said, "Whoever drinks from my mouth will be like me, and I shall be that person, and what is hidden will be revealed to that one."

Jesus says, "Whoever finds self is worth more than the world."

His disciples said to him, "When will the kingdom come?" "It will not come by looking for it. Nor will it do to say, 'Behold, over here!' or 'Behold, over there!' Rather, the kingdom of the Father is spread out on the Earth, but people do not see it." (Gospel of Thomas)

The Apocalyptic Texts

Among the Christian Gnostic writings were no less than five separate apocalypses. Here they are.

The First Apocalypse of James contains the secret teachings of Christ that were given to James the Just, the Lord's brother. In it, James refers to Jesus as "rabbi." Jesus warns James to leave Jerusalem, for the city is a dwelling place of a great number of "archons" or evil angels. Jerusalem is stigmatized as the city which "gives the cup of bitterness to the sons of light." Jesus coaches James on what to say when he is judged and challenged by the "toll collectors" of heaven in order to pass through the gates of heaven.

The Second Apocalypse of James

The Apocalypse of Adam

The Apocalypse of Peter is a record of the vision of Peter the apostle in which he speaks with Christ in the spirit. In this, Peter is clearly seen as the true successor to Christ and the founder of the Gnostic community. In the vision, Peter first sees hostile priests who seem to be intent upon stoning him and Christ to death. Next, Peter recalls the crucifixion during which Jesus stood nearby talking with him.

Peter asks, "Who is this one glad and laughing on the tree (i.e., cross)? And is it another one whose feet and hands they are striking?"

Christ replies, "He whom you saw on the tree, glad and laughing, this is the living Jesus. But this one into whose hands and feet they drive the nails is his fleshy part, which is the substitute being put to shame, the one who came into being in his likeness. But look at him and me."

Peter seemed to realize that it would be a long time before his book was read and understood, for he writes:

"These things, then, which you saw you shall present to those of another race who are not of this age."

He seems to be right, as this apocalypse has only just seen the light of day before we enter the age that many believe will begin with the second coming of Christ.

The Apocalypse of Paul

The Apocalypse of Paul is an account of the apostle's ascent into heaven and what he found there, with instructions for other souls on how to conduct themselves during judgment. One of the most interesting aspects of this text is that it corresponds to events found in the New Testament and includes references to reincarnation. Several Christian Gnostic texts combine the ideas of reincarnation and union with God.

As Paul passes through the fourth heaven, he witnesses a soul being punished for murder. This soul is brought "out of the land of the dead" (i.e., Earth) by angels where three witnesses charge the soul with murder. The soul looks sorrowfully down and is cast down into a body that has been prepared for it. The book describes Paul's journey through the heavens, which is also symbolic for the Gnostic process of union with God.

The New Testament contains a letter by the apostle Paul to the Christians in the city of Corinth, Greece, where he had founded a church on his first visit there. The Christians at this church were being divided by the teachings of so-called "false teachers" that were infiltrating the church there and Paul wrote a letter telling them to not forget what they were taught by Paul. These "false teachers" were trying to get people to follow their teachings and not Paul's. In order to put these false teachers to shame, Paul rebukes the Corinthians by using false pride and boasting about himself and telling the church why he is more qualified than the false teachers. He tells them of his sufferings and how he was once stoned and left for dead (2 Cor. 11:23-26). The letter goes on to say:

"I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know - God knows. And I know that this person - whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows - was caught up to paradise. He heard inexpressible things, things that humans are not permitted to tell." (2 Cor. 12:1-4)

In the above passage, Paul continued his "boasting" by telling about visions and revelations he had received from the Lord. "I know a person in Christ" means that he was speaking about himself. He explained that he didn't know if he was taken up in his body or in his spirit, but he was in paradise ("the third heaven"). This incident cannot be positively identified with a recorded event in Paul's career, although some think this may have been when he was stoned and left for dead (Acts 14:19-20). Paul told about this incident to show that he had been uniquely touched by God.

Many people are unaware of this passage of the Bible and that it is a near-death experience which Paul had. The person who wrote most of the New Testament, the sacred writings of orthodox Christianity, had a near-death experience which he based his authority as an apostle of Christ to the Corinthian church. It can even be argued that his near-death experience directly or indirectly inspired his epistles.

The Apocalypse of Paul reveals how each soul must rise as best it can after death through a hierarchy of heavens and face the increasingly difficult challenges posed by the guardian angels of each heaven. The journey begins with Paul meeting a child on the mountain of Jericho on the way to heaven (symbolized by Jerusalem). This child turns out to be the Holy Spirit, who takes Paul first to the third heaven.

The Holy Spirit warns Paul to keep his wits about him for they are about to enter the realm of "principalities ... archangels and powers and the whole race of demons." The Holy Spirit also mentions that they will pass "one that reveals bodies to a soul-seed," that is, the being that takes souls and plants them in new bodies for reincarnation. For the soul who wished to ascend to the highest heaven, reincarnation was to be avoided.

When Paul reaches the fourth heaven, the Holy Spirit encourages him to look down upon his body which he has left behind on the mountain of Jericho. As Paul ascends, he witnesses in the fourth heaven the judgment and punishment of another soul. He says, "I saw the angels resembling gods ... bringing a soul out of the land of the dead." The soul has been resurrected so that it can be judged, one of the four events promised for the end of the world. The angels were whipping it.

The soul spoke, saying, "What sin was it that I committed in the world?" The "toll collector" of this heavenly gate accuses the soul. The soul replies, "Bring witnesses! Let them show you in what body I committed lawless deeds." Three bodies rise up as witnesses and accuse the soul of anger and envy, and finally murder. When the soul heard these things, it gazed downwards in sorrow ... It was cast down.

At this point we expect the soul to be cast into hell, as in later Christian doctrine, but no: "the soul that had been cast down went to a body which had been prepared for it," and was reincarnated.

Paul, somewhat shaken by this experience, was beckoned forward by the Holy Spirit and allowed to pass through the gate of the fifth heaven. Here he saw his fellow apostles and "a great angel in the fifth heaven holding an iron rod in his hand." This angel and three other angels, with whips in their hands, scourge the souls of the dead and drive them on to judgment. Paul remains with the Holy Spirit and the gates to the sixth heaven swing open effortlessly before him.

In the sixth heaven, Paul sees a strong light shining down on him from the heaven above. He is motioned by the "toll collector" through the gates of the seventh heaven. Here, he sees "an old man filled with light and whose garment was white. His throne, which is in the seventh heaven, was brighter than the sun by seven times." This old man bears a striking resemblance to Jehovah as he is described in the vision of Ezekiel.

The old man asks, "Where are you going, Paul?" Only reluctantly, after some encouragement from the Holy Spirit, does Paul speak with him and give the Gnostic sign he has learned. The eighth heaven then opens and Paul ascends. Here he embraces the twelve disciples, most of whom he has not met before, and together they rise to the ninth heaven. Finally, Paul reaches the tenth and highest heaven, where he is transformed.

The Suppression of Christian Gnosticism

The Christian Gnostics believed in reincarnation and the preexistence of the soul. They refused to believe in a resurrection of corpses at the end of time. They emphasized meeting Jesus on a spiritual level to become liberated and attain permanent citizenship in heaven. The Church of Rome of the second century A.D., on the other hand, declared that those who deny a Last Day resurrection of corpses are heretics.

Many Christian Gnostics regarded themselves as part of the organized body of Christians of the early church. However, as the organized Church gained political control of the Roman Empire, the Christian Gnostics were persecuted by the organized Church and many were martyred. The Christian Gnostic tradition is one of many branches of early Christianity labeled as heretical by the early Church fathers. The Gnostic influences and writings were cut out of official Church doctrines as heresy. Because of their suspected Christian Gnostic origins, the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation was almost rejected from the New Testament. Nevertheless, the organized Church succeeded in hiding its Christian Gnostic doctrines.

It is not surprising that the orthodox Church bishops edited out the practical spiritual knowledge which was once an integral part of Christianity and was known and practiced by the apostle Paul. For these fathers, it was far more convenient and gratifying for their egos to assert that spiritual grace could only be attained through them as Christ's representatives on Earth. To control the masses, the political organization of the church declared that salvation was attained only through the church rituals and through the priesthood. Salvation through a personal mystical experience with Christ apart from the organized church was cast away. In a move that is very likely to have met with the disapproval of Christ himself, the worldly political aspirations of a few priests won out over the spiritual enlightenment of the many.

And as it is with any religion or movement, the successors of its founder decided which things to keep and which to throw out. The organized Church discarded the spiritual knowledge of Christian Gnosticism as being too dangerous and kept the concept of blind acceptance of church doctrine.

Ultimately, the organized Church declared Christian Gnosticism a heresy and began killing those who adhered to its doctrines. Thus the powerful Roman Church began its crusade of eliminating all rivals to its authority. Christian Gnosticism was obliterated and relatively little historical and theological information was left to fully understand early Christian history. This all changed in 1945 with the discovery of the Gnostic Christian scriptures discovered in Egypt. Then in 1947, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls of early Jewish Gnostic writings occurred. Today, with many Christians wondering if the Second Coming of Christ is soon to happen, it may not be a coincidence that these secret writings have come to surface after two thousand years of being hidden. Finally, after two thousands years, the secret is finally out again.

"The soul has neither beginning nor end… [They] come into this world strengthened by the victories or weakened by the defeats of their previous lives" - Origen

Copyright © 2007 Near-Death Experiences & the Afterlife

Peace and Light,

Kevin R. Williams
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Author of the NDE book "Nothing Better Than Death"
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The City That Ended Hunger

2009-04-09T10:41:00.003-05:00

Once again I came across an article that is so important I wanted to share it with you. One of the reasons countries in Africa and other places in the world never seem to rise above tyrants, genocide, and the politics of terror is…..food. By keeping protein and complex carbohydrates away from people, or given in limited small amounts, ensures that the brain will never develop in ways supportive of reasoned thought, the ability to question, and the power of individual will. People deprived of proper protein and complex carbohydrates are easier to dominate and control. Here is what people did in a city in Brazil to turn the tide of hunger around. Remember, the issues here are not just poverty and food access. What’s really at stake concerns the right to have a brain capable of critical thought. If you have that type of brain, you can solve many of your own problems and avoid or fight back against the politics of control and domination. The right to choose is God-given, and not at the behest of any government or religion.
Thank you, PMH

The City That Ended Hunger

A city in Brazil recruited local farmers to help do something U.S. cities have yet to do: end hunger.

by Frances Moore Lappé
March 13, 2009

From YES! Magazine

"To search for solutions to hunger means to act within the principle that the status of a citizen surpasses that of a mere consumer." CITY OF BELO HORIZONTE, BRAZIL

In writing Diet for a Small Planet, I learned one simple truth: Hunger is not caused by a scarcity of food but a scarcity of democracy. But that realization was only the beginning, for then I had to ask: What does a democracy look like that enables citizens to have a real voice in securing life's essentials? Does it exist anywhere? Is it possible or a pipe dream? With hunger on the rise here in the United States-one in 10 of us is now turning to food stamps-these questions take on new urgency.

To begin to conceive of the possibility of a culture of empowered citizens making democracy work for them, real-life stories help-not models to adopt wholesale, but examples that capture key lessons. For me, the story of Brazil's fourth largest city, Belo Horizonte, is a rich trove of such lessons. Belo, a city of 2.5 million people, once had 11 percent of its population living in absolute poverty, and almost 20 percent of its children going hungry. Then in 1993, a newly elected administration declared food a right of citizenship. The officials said, in effect: If you are too poor to buy food in the market-you are no less a citizen. I am still accountable to you.

The new mayor, Patrus Ananias-now leader of the federal anti-hunger effort-began by creating a city agency, which included assembling a 20-member council of citizen, labor, business, and church representatives to advise in the design and implementation of a new food system. The city already involved regular citizens directly in allocating municipal resources-the "participatory budgeting" that started in the 1970s and has since spread across Brazil. During the first six years of Belo's food-as-a-right policy, perhaps in response to the new emphasis on food security, the number of citizens engaging in the city's participatory budgeting process doubled to more than 31,000.

The city agency developed dozens of innovations to assure everyone the right to food, especially by weaving together the interests of farmers and consumers. It offered local family farmers dozens of choice spots of public space on which to sell to urban consumers, essentially redistributing retailer mark-ups on produce-which often reached 100 percent-to consumers and the farmers. Farmers' profits grew, since there was no wholesaler taking a cut. And poor people got access to fresh, healthy food.

When my daughter Anna and I visited Belo Horizonte to write Hope's Edge we approached one of these stands. A farmer in a cheerful green smock, emblazoned with "Direct from the Countryside," grinned as she told us, "I am able to support three children from my five acres now. Since I got this contract with the city, I've even been able to buy a truck."

The improved prospects of these Belo farmers were remarkable considering that, as these programs were getting underway, farmers in the country as a whole saw their incomes drop by almost half.

In addition to the farmer-run stands, the city makes good food available by offering entrepreneurs the opportunity to bid on the right to use well-trafficked plots of city land for "ABC" markets, from the Portuguese acronym for "food at low prices." Today there are 34 such markets where the city determines a set price-about two-thirds of the market price-of about twenty healthy items, mostly from in-state farmers and chosen by store-owners. Everything else they can sell at the market price.

"For ABC sellers with the best spots, there's another obligation attached to being able to use the city land," a former manager within this city agency, Adriana Aranha, explained. "Every weekend they have to drive produce-laden trucks to the poor neighborhoods outside of the city center, so everyone can get good produce."

Another product of food-as-a-right thinking is three large, airy "People's Restaurants" (Restaurante Popular), plus a few smaller venues, that daily serve 12,000 or more people using mostly locally grown food for the equivalent of less than 50 cents a meal. When Anna and I ate in one, we saw hundreds of diners-grandparents and newborns, young couples, clusters of men, mothers with toddlers. Some were in well-worn street clothes, others in uniform, still others in business suits.

"I've been coming here every day for five years and have gained six kilos," beamed one elderly, energetic man in faded khakis.

"It's silly to pay more somewhere else for lower quality food," an athletic-looking young man in a military police uniform told us. "I've been eating here every day for two years. It's a good way to save money to buy a house so I can get married," he said with a smile.
No one has to prove they're poor to eat in a People's Restaurant, although about 85 percent of the diners are. The mixed clientele erases stigma and allows "food with dignity," say those involved.

Belo's food security initiatives also include extensive community and school gardens as well as nutrition classes. Plus, money the federal government contributes toward school lunches, once spent on processed, corporate food, now buys whole food mostly from local growers.

"We're fighting the concept that the state is a terrible, incompetent administrator," Adriana explained. "We're showing that the state doesn't have to provide everything, it can facilitate. It can create channels for people to find solutions themselves."

For instance, the city, in partnership with a local university, is working to "keep the market honest in part simply by providing information," Adriana told us. They survey the price of 45 basic foods and household items at dozens of supermarkets, then post the results at bus stops, online, on television and radio, and in newspapers so people know where the cheapest prices are.

The shift in frame to food as a right also led the Belo hunger-fighters to look for novel solutions. In one successful experiment, egg shells, manioc leaves, and other material normally thrown away were ground and mixed into flour for school kids' daily bread. This enriched food also goes to nursery school children, who receive three meals a day courtesy of the city.

"I knew we had so much hunger in the world. But what is so upsetting, what I didn't know when I started this, is it's so easy. It's so easy to end it."

The result of these and other related innovations?

In just a decade Belo Horizonte cut its infant death rate-widely used as evidence of hunger-by more than half, and today these initiatives benefit almost 40 percent of the city's 2.5 million population. One six-month period in 1999 saw infant malnutrition in a sample group reduced by 50 percent. And between 1993 and 2002 Belo Horizonte was the only locality in which consumption of fruits and vegetables went up.

The cost of these efforts?

Around $10 million annually, or less than 2 percent of the city budget. That's about a penny a day per Belo resident.

Behind this dramatic, life-saving change is what Adriana calls a "new social mentality"-the realization that "everyone in our city benefits if all of us have access to good food, so-like health care or education-quality food for all is a public good."

The Belo experience shows that a right to food does not necessarily mean more public handouts (although in emergencies, of course, it does.) It can mean redefining the "free" in "free market" as the freedom of all to participate. It can mean, as in Belo, building citizen-government partnerships driven by values of inclusion and mutual respect.

And when imagining food as a right of citizenship, please note: No change in human nature is required! Through most of human evolution-except for the last few thousand of roughly 200,000 years-Homo sapiens lived in societies where pervasive sharing of food was the norm. As food sharers, "especially among unrelated individuals," humans are unique, writes Michael Gurven, an authority on hunter-gatherer food transfers. Except in times of extreme privation, when some eat, all eat.

Before leaving Belo, Anna and I had time to reflect a bit with Adriana. We wondered whether she realized that her city may be one of the few in the world taking this approach-food as a right of membership in the human family. So I asked, "When you began, did you realize how important what you are doing was? How much difference it might make? How rare it is in the entire world?"

Listening to her long response in Portuguese without understanding, I tried to be patient. But when her eyes moistened, I nudged our interpreter. I wanted to know what had touched her emotions.

"I knew we had so much hunger in the world," Adriana said. "But what is so upsetting, what I didn't know when I started this, is it's so easy. It's so easy to end it."

Adriana's words have stayed with me. They will forever. They hold perhaps Belo's greatest lesson: that it is easy to end hunger if we are willing to break free of limiting frames and to see with new eyes-if we trust our hard-wired fellow feeling and act, no longer as mere voters or protesters, for or against government, but as problem-solving partners with government accountable to us.

Frances Moore Lappé wrote this article as part of Food for Everyone, the Spring 2009 issue of YES! Magazine. Frances is the author of many books including Diet for a Small Planet and Get a Grip, co-founder of Food First and the Small Planet Institute, and a YES! contributing editor.
The author thanks Dr. M. Jahi Chappell for his contribution to the article.

Goodbye Farmer's Markets

2009-03-12T10:54:00.002-05:00

URGENT MESSAGES OF SPECIAL CONCERN:

On occasion I post special articles to my blog that are not only of concern to near-death experiencers, but to anyone alarmed about what is happening to our food base, our farms, and a healthy way of life. The first article about Farmers Markets and Roadside Food Stands, and the second about the new animal identification bill currently before Congress, require action. So, if you are moved to act after reading these articles, please contact Senators and Representatives in your area and ask that these bills be defeated. Both call for a type of Federal regulation of foods that is draconian and anti-farm. Do not believe that either bill is designed to protect the American public. Not so. Both bills are really designed to curcumvent and defeat the organic food movement, to stop the diversity of seed groups, and to hamper the right of any farmer to make a living in a sustainable, clean, and honorable way. Please act!
Thank you, PMH

Goodbye Farmer's Markets, CSAs, and Roadside Stands

By Linn Cohen-Cole
March 3, 2009

The "food safety" bills in Congress were written by Monsanto, Cargill, Tyson's, ADM, etc. All are associated with the opposite of food safety. What is this all about then?

In the simplest terms, organic food and a rebirth of farming were winning. Not in absolute numbers but in a deep and growing shift by the public toward understanding the connection between their food and their health, between good food and true social pleasures, between their own involvement in food and the improvement in their lives in general, between local food and a burgeoning local economy.

Slow Food was right - limit your food to what comes from your region and from real farmers, and slow down to cook it and linger over it with friends and family, and the world begins to change for the better.

And as we face an unprecedented economic crisis, and it is hard to be sure what has value, one thing that always does is food. Which is why the corporations are after absolute control over it. But what obstacles to a complete lock on food do they face? All the people in this country who are "banking" on organic farming and urban gardens and most of all, everyone's deepening pleasure in and increasing involvement with everything about food.

Farmers markets. Local farmers. Real milk. Fresh eggs. Vegetable stands.

Those are things we not only all want, but things we are actively getting involved in, and things we very much need. And where they are truly good, they are growing.

The international financial corporations which have wreaked havoc around the world with astounding nonsensical "solutions" that are destructive of everyone but them, are brothers to the international agribusiness giants (Monsanto, Cargill, Tyson's, ADM, etc.) which are just as aggressively after their own form of "taking." Just seeds, animals, water, land.

And freedom.

Be cause human beings are by in large good and by in large incredibly resilient and clever, and left to their own devices - that is, free - they would handle this gargantuan financial stupidity the corporations brought us with NAFTA, CAFTA, GATT and all other globalized schemes (which they hope to eventually top off with CODEX). How? By being productive in real ways and locally. And farming is the solid ground under that. Farmers produce something of real value (something we used to take for granted), and from that base, businesses grow up. Local markets, local food processors, local seed companies, local tool and supply companies, local stores ... and an economy based on reality and something truly good for us, too, begins to grow.

So, look again at what has been exciting us - Farmers markets. Local farmers. Real milk. Fresh eggs. Vegetable stands. - and realize that they are not only wonderfully healthy but fun and naturally community building. And more, they are a real economy and deeply democratic - and just at a time we need something that works economically, that supports our democratic rebirth, and that protects food itself and our easy access to it.

And it is all those things that threaten the corporations ... which is why we now have these massive "fake food safety" bills in Congress. Everything is going under thanks to these fools, and they wish to be there like vultures to make sure that every drop of blood that can be sucked out of our resources and us, is theirs. To wit, they must get rid of such good and innocent things and yet truly powerful things as:

Farmers markets. Local farmers. Real milk. Fresh eggs. Vegetable stands.

An d how will those who contaminate our country's food with pesticides, hormones, antibiotics and more, do that? Why, by setting standards for "food safety" that are so grotesquely and inappropriately and even cruelly applied to a local, independent farmers and ranchers that there is no way they can manage. Imagine your being faced with a 100 page IRS form and facing a million dollar a day penalty for screwing up. That would be in the ball park of the impossible complexity mixed with threat facing our farmers. Imagine having the government and corporations deciding every single thing you can do and must do in your kitchen and backing that up with the threat of 10 years in prison for screwing up - though you have never made anyone sick, and those corporations have. Imagine being surveilled 24 hours a day by GPS tracking devices that feed into ... a corporate data bank, one they have now moved out of the country so no one here can have legal access t o see what is in it.

Imagine the devil himself - or a whole boardrooms of them, dressed in suits - defining the only safe and healthy food in this country as dangerous and burdening hard working farmers with more work then anyone could bear, while his own, their own, food is so dangerous at this point that in the last 10 years alone, diabetes has gone up 90%.

And how did they get this far with such a scheme to apply insane industrial standards to every farm in the country? Through fear of diseases and of outbreaks of food borne illnesses, both of which they cause themselves.

How it works: Tyson helps Bill Clinton get into office. Bill Clinton immediately and significantly lowers contamination standards for poultry as a thank you. And it is such contaminated waste from transnational poultry factories which is now implicated as the source of bird flu. Then fortunes on made on that fear. And then poultry industry uses the crisis they created to push out small farmers and take greater control than ever. Their mantra? Biodiversity not only be damned but be eliminated. And get rid of those damn farmers who protect it while we're at it.

The bills would require such a burdensome complexity of rules, inspections, licensing, fees, and penalties for each farmer who wishes to sell locally - a fruit stand, at a farmers market - no one could manage it. And THAT is the point. The whole dirty tricks point. The whole "be in tight control of everything needed for survival because it'll be worth a fortune" point.

So, if you like farmers markets, local farmers, fresh milk, fresh eggs, vegetables stands, and freedom, let your friends know that it's all on the line right now with those "fake food safety" bills brought to us with well-planned evil and more of it to come, by Monsanto, Cargill, Tyson's, ADM, etc.

Slow Food reminds us of just where we need to be (and notice how much would help any local economy):
Forming and sustaining seed banks to preserve heirloom varieties in cooperation with local food systems;
Developing an "Ark of Taste" for each ecoregion, where local culinary traditions and foods are celebrated;
Preserving and promoting local and traditional food products, along with their lore and preparation;
Organizing small-scale processing (including facilities for slaughtering and short run products);
Organizing celebrations of local cuisine within regions (for example, the ;Feast of Fields held in some cities in Canada);
Promoting "taste education;"
Educating consumers about the risks of fast food;
Educating citizens about the drawbacks of commercial agribusiness and factory farms;
Educating citizens about the risks of monoculture and reliance on too few genomes or varieties;
Developing various political programs to preserve family farms;
Lobbying for the inclusion of organic farming concerns within agricultural policy;
Lobbying against government funding of genetic engineering;
Lobbying against the use of pesticides;
Teaching gardening skills to students and prisoners;
Encouraging ethical buying in local marketplaces.

But we need to stop these bills first or we are left with no money from the financial bailout and no food from the food stealout.

Send a message to Congress.

We need millions to be fighting this. Contact Eli Pariser at MoveOn to tell him MoveOn is badly needed.

And below, where Oped News offers a means of writing your local newspaper, take advantage of a chance to vent.

Author's Bio: I'm a mother and grandmother. There is no way I can leave my family or anyone else's children, things as they are now.

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The issue of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) is heating up in both Congress and the USDA. Below are two important actions alerts explain how you can help protect your right to farm and our food supply!

SUBMIT COMMENTS TO THE USDA BEFORE MARCH 16

The USDA has proposed a rule to require all farms and ranches where animals are raised to be registered in a federal database under the NAIS for existing disease control programs. The draft rule covers programs for cattle, goats, sheep, and swine. It also sets the stage for mandatory NAIS animal identification in the future.

It is CRITICAL that the USDA and Congress hear from the hundreds of thousands of people who will be adversely affected by the NAIS program. This includes not only animal owners, but also consumers who care about local and sustainable foods, taxpayers who object to wasteful government programs, and advocates for a safer food system.

TAKE ACTION: Submit comments to USDA online or by mail. The comments must be received by USDA by Monday, March 16, 2009.

You can submit comments online at the USDA's official site:
http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2007-0096

An easier way to comments online is through the Organic Consumers Association's system, at:
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/642/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=26665

Please be sure to personalize the letter! It can be as easy as a couple of sentences at the beginning stating who you are (for example, a farmer, consumer, property rights proponent) and why you care about NAIS.

Or mail two copies of your comments to USDA at : Docket No. APHIS-2007-0096, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Clearly state that your comments refer to Docket No. APHIS-2007-0096.

Sample comments can be downloaded from the Take Action page at www.FarmAndRanchFreedom.org

CONGRESSIONAL HEARING ON NAIS, MARCH 11

The U.S. House Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy and Poultry will hold a hearing on "animal identification programs" on Wednesday, March 11, 2009. This is the first time in several years that any Congressional Committee will hear testimony about NAIS! It is critical that the thousands of farmers and consumers who oppose NAIS make their voices heard in this process!

STEP 1: Before the Hearing:

At the end of the alert is a list of Subcommittee members. If one of the Subcommittee members is from your state, call that member. If your state does not have any representation on the Subcommittee, contact your own Representative and ask him or her to approach the Subcommittee to urge them to oppose NAIS. If you're not sure who represents you, go to http://www.congress.org

When you call, ask to speak to the staffer who handles agricultural issues, and talk with them about your concerns about NAIS. Use a brief personal story to explain how NAIS would impact you. Emphasize that you want them to ask hard questions of both the industry and USDA representatives, and to make sure that people representing those who oppose NAIS are also heard at the hearing.

STEP 2: At the Hearing:

If you are in the DC area, please try to come to the hearing!

WHEN: Wednesday, March 11th - 10:00 a.m.
WHERE: 1300 Longworth House Office Building (go to http://www.aoc.gov/cc/cobs/lhob.cfm for maps and parking information)
WHAT: Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry -- Public hearing to review animal identification systems.

The subcommittee will hear invited testimony only, so you won't be able to speak at the hearing. But it is still good for the subcommittee to know that a lot of people care enough about this issue to show up in person!

Immediately after the hearing, we encourage you to visit the Subcommittee members' offices. Be polite and concise during your visit. Let them know that you were at the hearing because you are against NAIS. Briefly bring up one or two points that you felt weren't covered at the hearing that show the problems with NAIS. Keep your visit short and thank them for their time.

STEP 3: After the Hearing:

You can submit written testimony to the subcommittee before the hearing, at the hearing, or up to 10 days after the hearing. Send your testimony to the Hearing Clerk, Jamie Mitchell, at Jamie.Mitchell@mail.house.gov Be sure to put "March 11 Hearing - Animal Identification Programs" in the subject line. Keep your comments clear, polite, and concise.

We will send out some guidance after the hearing for key points to make in your testimony, based on what is said at the hearing. If you are submitting comments before the hearing, you can draw ideas from the comments submitted by FARFA on the USDA's proposed rule for NAIS, posted at:
http://farmandranchfreedom.org/content/files/090202_FARFA_Comments_USDA_rule.pdf

SUBCOMMITTEE MEMBERS:

Below are the Subcommittee members, their party and state, and phone numbers. You can also send an email by using this format: firstname.lastname@mail.house.gov We strongly recommend that you make at least your initial contact with the ag staffer with a telephone conversation.

Mike Rogers (R-AL), (p): 202-225-3261, (f): 202-226-8485
Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), (p): 202-225-6131, (f): 202-225-0819
Jim Costa (D-CA), (p): 202-225-3341, (f): 202-225-9308
Joe Baca (D-CA), (p): 202-225-6161, (f): 202-225-8671
Betsy Markey (D-CO), (p): 202-225-4676, (f): 202-225-5870
David Scott (Chair), (D-GA), (p): 202-225-2939, (f): 202-225-4628
Leonard Boswell (D-IA), (p): 202-225-3806, (f): 202-225-5608
Steve King (R-IA), (p): 202-225-4426, (f): 202-225-3193
Walt Minnick (D-ID), (p): 202-225-6611, (f): 202-225-3029
Frank Kratovil, Jr. (D-MD), (p): 202-225-5311, (f): 202-225-0254
Adrian Smith (R-NE), (p): 202-225-6435, (f): 202-225-0207
Tim Holden (D-PA), (p): 202-225-5546, (f): 202-226-0996
David P. Roe (R-TN), (p): 202-225-6356, (f): 202-225-5714
K. Michael Conaway (R-TX), (p): 202-225-3605 or 866-882-3811, (f): 202-225-1783
Randy Neugebauer, Ranking Minority Member (R-TX), (p): 202-225-4005 or 888-763-1611, (f): 202-225-9615
Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), (p): 202-225-5431, (f): 202-225-9681
Steve Kagen (D-WI), (p): 202-225-5665, (f): 202-225-5729

For more information about NAIS, go to www.FarmAndRanchFreedom.org

Our postal address is
PMB #106-380
4200 Wisconsin Avenue, NW
Washington, District of Columbia 20016
United States

Juliet Nightingale

2009-03-04T10:12:00.002-05:00

Juliet Nightingale was nearly blind. She experienced several near-death states in her lifetime; in each, her sight was more than perfect and her experiences life-changing. With rare courage she moved around a lot, searching for the right place to live, always starting up Friends of IANDS groups wherever she was, reaching out to others through the media and any opportunity she could find; counseling, teaching, helping. Her radio show, "Towards the Light," became a beacon to untold thousands. It's archives, her legacy to the world. Her website address was www.TowardTheLight.org, and her blog was http://towardthelightorg.blogspot.com. What will become of her archives has yet to be decided. For now, I believe they can still be accessed. During the final weeks and months of her life, she shared with her audience what it was like for her to be dying and what she was going through. DJamil, her daughter, stayed with her and took care of her during the final months. This time together was rich and deep. Last I heard DJamil was thinking of writing a book about her mother's death, and the gift of conscious dying. I'll let you know if this happens.

Juliet died at 1:30 pm on February 28th, my Mother's birthdate. My Mother died the last day of 2007; had she lived, she would have been 92. The next morning, while in prayer, Juliet came to visit me. I heard her first - "Hi Lovey" - her British brogue pronounced and healthy. I turned and saw the upper part of her body, mostly her face, and was struck at how innocent and free she looked, fleshed out and full, light-filled and glowing. She thanked me for praying for her, her words almost playful and musical. Her hair floated about her head as if it were threads of yellow-gold-white, each individual hair alive and glowing. Juliet is free now, and all of us who loved her will miss her. She is in a good place. Yet I know that if DJamil writes that book, it will be a collaboration, a two-some project, a mother/daughter effort to heal themselves, their relationship with each other, and a mighty statement about consciousness and the path of the sacred and holy. I know it will be wonderful.

God bless you Juliet, and DJamil, and all of us, who choose the path of love. PMH

Buddhist Conference, NDE Reseach & Retreat, and German NDE Network

2009-02-15T10:56:00.005-05:00

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Time-sensitive - May 8 thru May 11 the International
Association for Near-Death Studies (IANDS) will again
be hosting a spiritual retreat for experiencers of
near-death states. This unique experience will be
held in the Mercy Center near St. Louis, MO. If you
are interested in knowing more, access this website -
www.neardeathexperiencers.org. There is a limit of
30 people who can attend. SIGN UP NOW! I was lucky
enough to attend once. It was like experiencing the
Holy of Holies, where many of our near-death episodes
lead us, in the beauty and joy of each other's hearts.

NDE Research Index - For anyone who has gone searching for
solid information about the phenomenon, you know how
difficult it can be to find what you want. IANDS has
prepared an NDE Research Index that covers all papers
and English-language articles on the subject between
1877 and 2005. That's 128 years of information! For
information on how to use and the cost of doing so,
access www.iands.org/bibcd.html.

Large Buddhist Conference held last December in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia, covered "Closer to Reality: Understanding
Death and Beyond." They had several sessions on near-
death and out-of-body experiences, and on children's
spontaneous past-life recall. This was a scholarly
event. To learn more, access www.c2rc.org/.

German NDE Network - At the January 2009 meeting of IANDS-
Munich, 110 people attended of which 40% were near-
death experiencers. Speakers were Pim van Lommel, M.D.
and Evelyn Elsaesser-Valarino. This group is growing
in numbers. If you are interested in attending their
meetings or want to know more about them, contact Alois
Serwaty at netzwerk-nahtoderfahrung@t-online.de or
Thomas Angerpointner at Angerpointner@t-online.de.
For what is going on in other countries, contact IANDS at
www.iands.org.

Masanobu Fukuoka's Natural Farming and Permaculture

2009-01-30T19:00:00.003-05:00

SPECIAL ARTICLE:

Here is another special article that I believe deserves a lot of attention – the subject is permaculture.

You might have guessed by now that I have a long and broad background in farming, ranching, crops, gardens, and growing things. This background was augmented tremendously by my near-death experiences and what I learned from them. Because food and gardening become of deep interest to many near-death experiencers and those like them, I consider Masanobu Fukuoka and what he has to say about permaculture to be of upmost importance. This offering has two parts. PMH

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http://www.permaculture.com/

Masanobu Fukuoka's Natural Farming and Permaculture
by Larry Korn

Masanobu Fukuoka is a farmer/philosopher who lives on the Island of Shikoku, in southern Japan. His farming technique requires no machines, no chemicals and very little weeding. He does not plow the soil or use prepared compost and yet the condition of the soil in his orchards and fields improve each year. His method creates no pollution and does not require fossil fuels. His method requires less labor than any other, yet the yields in his orchard and fields compare favorably with the most productive Japanese farms which use all the technical know-how of modern science.

How is this possible? I admit, when I first went to his farm in 1973 I was skeptical - but there was the proof. Beautiful grain crops in the fields, healthy orchard trees growing with a ground cover of vegetables, weeds and white clover. Over the two-year period I lived and worked there his techniques and philosophy gradually became clear to me.

Mollison and Fukuoka took entirely different routes to get to essentially the same place. Permaculture is a design system which aims to maximize the functional connection of its elements. It integrates raising crops and animals with careful water management. Homes and other structures are designed for maximum energy efficiency. Everything is made to work together and evolve over time to blend harmoniously into a complete and sustainable agricultural system.

The key word here is design. Permaculture is a consciously designed system. The designer carefully uses his/her knowledge, skill and sensitivity to make a plan, then implement it. Fukuoka created natural farming from a completely different perspective.

The idea for natural farming came to Fukuoka when he was about twenty-five years old. One morning, as he sat at sunrise on a bluff overlooking Yokohama Bay, a flash of inspiration occurred. He saw that nature was perfect just as it is. Problems arise when people try to improve upon nature and use nature strictly for human benefit. He tried to explain this understanding to others, but when they could not understand, he made a decision to return to his family farm. He decided to create a concrete example of his understanding by applying it to agriculture.

But where to begin? Fukuoka had no model to go by. "How about trying this? How about trying that? That is the usual way of developing agricultural technique. My way was different. How about not doing this? And, how about not doing that, this was the path I followed. Now my rice growing is simply sowing seed and spreading straw, but it has taken me more than thirty years to reach this simplicity."

The basic idea for his rice growing came to him one day when he happened to pass an old field which had been left unused and unplowed for many years. There he saw healthy rice seedlings sprouting through a tangle of grasses and weeds. From that time on he stopped sowing rice seed in the spring and, instead, put the seed out in the fall when it would naturally have fallen to the ground. Instead of plowing to get rid of weeds he learned to control them with a ground cover of white clover and a mulch of barley straw. Once he has tilted the balance slightly in favor of his crops Fukuoka interferes as little as possible with the plant and animal communities in his fields.

This is not to say that Fukuoka did not experiment. For example, he tried more than twenty different ground covers before noticing that white clover was the only one which held back weeds effectively. It also fixes nitrogen so it improves the soil. He tried spreading the straw neatly over the fields but found the rice seeds could not make their way through. In one corner of the field, however, where the straw had scattered every which way, the seedlings emerged. The next year he scattered the straw across the entire field. There were years when his experiments resulted in almost a total crop loss, but in small areas things worked out well. He closely observed what was different in that part of the field and next year the results were better. The point is, he had no preconceived idea of what would work the best. He tried many things and took the direction nature revealed. As far as possible, Fukuoka was trying to take the human intellect out of the decision making process.

His vegetable growing also reflects this idea. He grows vegetables in the spaces between the citrus trees in the orchard. Instead of deciding which vegetables would do well in which locations he mixes all the seeds together and scatters them everywhere. He lets the vegetables find their own location, often in areas he would have least have expected. The vegetables reseed themselves and move around the orchard from year to year. Vegetables grown this way are stronger and gradually revert to the form of their semi-wild ancestors.

I mentioned that Fukuoka's farm is a fine model of permaculture design. In Zone 1, nearest his home in the village, he and his family maintain a vegetable garden in the traditional Japanese style. Kitchen scraps are dug into the rows, crops are rotated, and chickens run freely. This garden is really an extension of the home living area.

Zone 2 is his grain fields. He grows a crop of rice and one of barley every year. Because he returns the straw to the fields and has the ground cover of white clover the soil actually improves each year. The natural balance of insects and healthy soil keep insect and disease infestations to a minimum. Until Bill Mollison read The One-Straw Revolution, he said he had no idea of how to include grain growing in his permaculture designs. All the agricultural models involved plowing the soil - a practice he does not agree with. Now he includes Fukuoka's no-tillage technique in his teaching.

Zone 3 is the orchard. The main tree crop is Mandarin oranges, but he also grows many other fruit trees and native shrubs. The upper story is tall trees, many of which fix nitrogen and so improve the soil deep down. The middle story is the citrus and other fruit trees. The ground is covered with a riotous mixture of weeds, vegetables, herbs and white clover. Chickens run freely. This multi-tiered orchard area came about through a natural evolution rather than conscious design. It still contains many of the basic permacultural design features. It has many different plant species, maximizes surface area, contains solar sunlight traps and maintains a natural balance of insect populations.

Fukuoka invites visitors from Zone 4 anytime. Wild animals and birds come and go freely. The surrounding forest is the source of mushrooms, wild herbs and vegetables. It is also an inspiration. "To get an idea of the perfection and abundance of nature," Fukuoka says, "take a walk into the forest sometime. There, the animals, tall trees and shrubs are living together in harmony. All of this came about without benefit of human ingenuity or intervention."

What is remarkable is that Fukuoka's natural farming and permaculture should resemble each other so closely despite their nearly opposite approaches. Permaculture relies on the human intellect to devise a strategy to live abundantly and sustainably within nature. Fukuoka sees the human intellect as the culprit, serving only to separate people from nature. One mountain top, many paths.

Natural farming and permaculture share a profound debt to each other. The many examples of permaculture throughout the world show that a natural farming system is truly universal. It can be applied to arid climates as well as humid, temperate Japan. Also, the worldwide permaculture movement is an inspiration to Fukuoka. For many years he worked virtually alone. For most of his life Japan was not receptive to his message. He had to self-publish his books because no publisher would take a chance on someone so far from the mainstream. When his experiments resulted in failure, the other villagers ridiculed him. In the mid-1980's he came to a Permaculture Convergence in Olympia, Washington and met Bill Mollison. There were nearly one thousand people there. He was overwhelmed and heartened by the number and sincerity of the like-thinking people he met. He thanked Mollison for creating this network of bright, energetic people working to help save the planet. "Now," he said, "for the first time in my life I have hope for the future."

In turn, permaculture has adopted many things from Fukuoka. Besides the many agricultural techniques, such as continuous no-tillage grain growing and growing vegetables like wild plants, permaculture has also learned an important new approach for devising practical strategies. Most importantly, the philosophy of natural farming has given permaculture a truly spiritual basis lacking in its earlier teachings.

Fukuoka believes that natural farming proceeds from the spiritual health of the individual. He considers the healing of the land and the purification of the human spirit to be one process, and he proposes a way of life and a way of farming in which this process can take place. "Natural farming is not just for growing crops," he says, "it is for the cultivation and perfection of human beings."

Text and images copyright 2003, Larry Korn.
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Larry Korn

Trained and certified by Bill Mollison in 1983, Larry is best known for his years of study with Masanobu Fukuoka, author of the One Straw Revolution. Larry not only translated this landmark book into English but also traveled with Fukuoka on his trips to the U.S. Larry applies his knowledge as a Permaculture designer and landscape contractor, teaching in both the Pacific Northwest and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Larry has a Masters Degree in soil science and teaches us to see the soil as a living, breathing organism. He also teaches about Fukuka's farming methods, which he briefly describes in his informative essay above.

Masanobu Fukuoka is a farmer/philosopher who lives on the Island of Shikoku, in southern Japan. His farming technique requires no machines, no chemicals and very little weeding. He does not plow the soil or use prepared compost and yet the condition of the soil in his orchards and fields improve each year.

His method creates no pollution and does not require fossil fuels. His method requires less labor than any other, yet the yields in his orchard and fields compare favorably with the most productive Japanese farms which use all the technical know-how of modern science.

General Email: info@alcoholcanbeagas.com

The Marijuana Trick

2009-01-19T09:46:00.002-05:00

SPECIAL ARTICLE:

Occasionally I post articles of special interest on my blog that are not related to near-death research or experiences. This is one of them. Let me be clear upfront: I oppose the use of marijuana except in medical matters. It is a drug and it is harmful. Long term use is devastating to brain function. But hemp, when you are looking at the hemp plant itself, is one of the most versatile, helpful, useful crops any farmer could grow – the ban placed against it as a farming commodity is senseless. This article, written several years ago by Doug Yurchey, presents the history of hemp and why it was banned. It is still the best I have come across on the subject, and well worth reading – especially now as our economy is in crisis. Truly, we need to know about hemp.. PMH

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http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/article.asp?ID=3774>http://www.thetruthseeker.co.uk/article.asp?ID=3774

The Marijuana Trick

Doug Yurchey - 2005

And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land. - Ezekiel 34/29

Where did the word 'marijuana' come from? In the mid 1930s, the M-word was created to tarnish the good image and phenomenal history of the hemp plant...as you will read. The facts cited here, with references, are generally verifiable in the Encyclopedia Britannica which was printed on hemp paper for 150 years:

* All schoolbooks were made from hemp or flax paper until the 1880s; Hemp Paper Reconsidered, Jack Frazier, 1974.

* It was LEGAL TO PAY TAXES WITH HEMP in America from 1631 until the early 1800s; LA Times, Aug. 12, 1981.

* REFUSING TO GROW HEMP in America during the 17th and 18th Centuries WAS AGAINST THE LAW! You could be jailed in Virginia for refusing to grow hemp from 1763 to 1769; Hemp in Colonial Virginia, G. M. Herdon.

* George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers GREW HEMP; Washington and Jefferson Diaries. Jefferson smuggled hemp seeds from China to France then to America.

* Benjamin Franklin owned one of the first paper mills in America and it processed hemp. Also, the War of 1812 was fought over hemp. Napoleon wanted to cut off Moscow's export to England; Emperor Wears No Clothes, Jack Herer.

* For thousands of years, 90% of all ships' sails and rope were made from hemp. The word 'canvas' is Dutch for hemp; Webster's New World Dictionary.

* 80% of all textiles, fabrics, clothes, linen, drapes, bed sheets, etc. were made from hemp until the 1820s with the introduction of the cotton gin.

* The first Bibles, maps, charts, Betsy Ross's flag, the first drafts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were made from hemp; U.S. Government Archives.

* The first crop grown in many states was hemp. 1850 was a peak year for Kentucky producing 40,000 tons. Hemp was the largest cash crop until the 20th Century; State Archives.

* Oldest known records of hemp farming go back 5000 years in China, although hemp industrialization probably goes back to ancient Egypt.

* Rembrandts, Gainsborough's, Van Gogh's as well as most early canvas paintings were principally painted on hemp linen.

* In 1916, the U.S. Government predicted that by the 1940s all paper would come from hemp and that no more trees need to be cut down. Government studies report that 1 acre of hemp equals 4.1 acres of trees. Plans were in the works to implement such programs; Department of Agriculture

* Quality paints and varnishes were made from hemp seed oil until 1937. 58,000 tons of hemp seeds were used in America for paint products in 1935; Sherman Williams Paint Co. testimony before Congress against the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act.

* Henry Ford's first Model-T was built to run on hemp gasoline and the CAR ITSELF WAS CONSTRUCTED FROM HEMP! On his large estate, Ford was photographed among his hemp fields. The car, 'grown from the soil,' had hemp plastic panels whose impact strength was 10 times stronger than steel; Popular Mechanics, 1941.

* Hemp called 'Billion Dollar Crop.' It was the first time a cash crop had a business potential to exceed a billion dollars; Popular Mechanics, Feb., 1938.

* Mechanical Engineering Magazine (Feb. 1938) published an article entitled 'The Most Profitable and Desirable Crop that Can be Grown.' It stated that if hemp was cultivated using 20th Century technology, it would be the single largest agricultural crop in the U.S. and the rest of the world.

The following information comes directly from the United States Department of Agriculture's 1942 14-minute film encouraging and instructing 'patriotic American farmers' to grow 350,000 acres of hemp each year for the war effort:

'...(When) Grecian temples were new, hemp was already old in the service of mankind. For thousands of years, even then, this plant had been grown for cordage and cloth in China and elsewhere in the East. For centuries prior to about 1850, all the ships that sailed the western seas were rigged with hempen rope and sails. For the sailor, no less than the hangman, hemp was indispensable...

...Now with Philippine and East Indian sources of hemp in the hands of the Japanese...American hemp must meet the needs of our Army and Navy as well as of our industries...

...the Navy's rapidly dwindling reserves. When that is gone, American hemp will go on duty again; hemp for mooring ships; hemp for tow lines; hemp for tackle and gear; hemp for countless naval uses both on ship and shore. Just as in the days when Old Ironsides sailed the seas victorious with her hempen shrouds and hempen sails. Hemp for victory!'

Certified proof from the Library of Congress; found by the research of Jack Herer, refuting claims of other government agencies that the 1942 USDA film 'Hemp for Victory' did not exist.

Hemp cultivation and production do not harm the environment. The USDA Bulletin #404 concluded that hemp produces 4 times as much pulp as wood with at least 4 to 7 times less pollution.

From Popular Mechanics, Feb. 1938:
'It has a short growing season...It can be grown in any state...The long roots penetrate and break the soil to leave it in perfect condition for the next year's crop. The dense shock of leaves, 8 to 12 feet above the ground, chokes out weeds.

...hemp, this new crop can add immeasurably to American agriculture and industry.'

In the 1930s, innovations in farm machinery would have caused an industrial revolution when applied to hemp. This single resource could have created millions of new jobs generating thousands of quality products. Hemp, if not made illegal, would have brought America out of the Great Depression.

William Randolph Hearst (Citizen Kane) and the Hearst Paper Manufacturing Division of Kimberly Clark owned vast acreage of timberlands. The Hearst Company supplied most paper products. Patty Hearst's grandfather, a destroyer of nature for his own personal profit, stood to lose billions because of hemp.

In 1937, DuPont patented the processes to make plastics from oil and coal. DuPont's Annual Report urged stockholders to invest in its new petrochemical division. Synthetics such as plastics, cellophane, celluloid, methanol, nylon, rayon, Dacron, etc., could now be made from oil. Natural hemp industrialization would have ruined over 80% of DuPont's business.

THE TRICKS

Andrew Mellon became Hoover's Secretary of the Treasury and DuPont's primary investor. He appointed his future nephew-in-law, Harry J. Anslinger, to head the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.

Secret meetings were held by these financial tycoons. Hemp was declared dangerous and a threat to their billion dollar enterprises. For their dynasties to remain intact, hemp had to go. These men took an obscure Mexican slang word: 'marihuana' and pushed it into the consciousness of America.

MEDIA MANIPULATION

A media blitz of 'yellow journalism' raged in the late 1920s and 1930s. Hearst's newspapers ran stories emphasizing the horrors of marihuana. The menace of marihuana made headlines. Readers learned that it was responsible for everything from car accidents to loose morality.

Films like 'Reefer Madness' (1936), 'Marihuana: Assassin of Youth' (1935) and 'Marihuana: The Devil's Weed' (1936) were propaganda designed by these industrialists to create an enemy. Their purpose was to gain public support so that anti-marihuana laws could be passed.

Examine the following quotes from 'The Burning Question' aka REEFER
MADNESS:
*a violent narcotic.
*acts of shocking violence.
*incurable insanity.
*soul-destroying effects.
*under the influence of the drug he killed his entire family with an axe.
*more vicious, more deadly even than these soul-destroying drugs (heroin, cocaine) is the menace of marihuana!

Reefer Madness did not end with the usual 'the end.' The film concluded with these words plastered on the screen: TELL YOUR CHILDREN.

In the 1930s, people were very naive; even to the point of ignorance. The masses were like sheep waiting to be led by the few in power. They did not challenge authority. If the news was in print or on the radio, they believed it had to be true. They told their children and their children grew up to be the parents of the baby-boomers.

On April 14, 1937, the Prohibitive Marihuana Tax Law or the bill that outlawed hemp was directly brought to the House Ways and Means Committee. This committee is the only one that can introduce a bill to the House floor without it being debated by other committees. The Chairman of the Ways and Means, Robert Doughton, was a DuPont supporter. He insured that the bill would pass Congress.

Dr. James Woodward, a physician and attorney, testified too late on behalf of the American Medical Association. He told the committee that the reason the AMA had not denounced the Marihuana Tax Law sooner was that the Association had just discovered that marihuana was/is hemp.

Few people, at the time, realized that the deadly menace they had been reading about on Hearst's front pages was in fact passive hemp. The AMA understood hemp to be a MEDICINE found in numerous healing products sold over the last hundred years.

In September of 1937, hemp became illegal. The most useful crop known became a drug and our planet has been suffering ever since.

Congress banned hemp because it was said to be the most violence-causing drug known. Anslinger, head of the Drug Commission for 31 years, promoted the idea that marihuana made users act extremely violent. In the 1950s, under the Communist threat of McCarthyism, Anslinger now said the exact opposite. Marijuana will pacify you so much that soldiers would not want to fight.

Today, our planet is in desperate trouble. Earth is suffocating as large tracts of rain forests disappear. Pollution, poisons and chemicals are killing people. These great problems could be reversed if we industrialized hemp. Natural biomass could provide all of the planet's energy needs that are currently supplied by fossil fuels. We have consumed 80% of our oil and gas reserves. We need a renewable resource. Hemp could be the solution to soaring gas prices.

THE WONDER PLANT

Hemp has a higher quality fiber than wood fiber. Far fewer caustic chemicals are required to make paper from hemp than from trees. Hemp paper does not turn yellow and is very durable. The plant grows quickly to maturity in a season where trees take a lifetime.

ALL PLASTIC PRODUCTS SHOULD BE MADE FROM HEMP SEED OIL. Hempen plastics are biodegradable! Over time, they would break down and not harm the environment. Oil-based plastics, the ones we are very familiar with, help ruin nature; they do not break down and will do great harm in the future. The process to produce the vast array of natural (hempen) plastics will not ruin the rivers as DuPont and other petrochemical companies have done. Ecology does not fit in with the plans of the Oil Industry and the political machine. Hemp products are safe and natural.

MEDICINES SHOULD BE MADE FROM HEMP. We should go back to the days when the AMA supported hemp cures. 'Medical Marijuana' is given out legally to only a handful of people while the rest of us are forced into a system that relies on chemicals. Hemp is only healthy for the human body.

WORLD HUNGER COULD END. A large variety of food products can be generated from hemp. The seeds contain one of the highest sources of protein in nature. ALSO: They have two essential fatty acids that clean your body of cholesterol. These essential fatty acids are not found anywhere else in nature! Consuming hemp seeds is the best thing you could do for your body. Eat uncooked hemp seeds.

CLOTHES SHOULD BE MADE FROM HEMP. Hemp clothing is extremely strong and durable over time. You could hand clothing, made from hemp, down to your grandchildren. Today, there are American companies that make hemp clothing; usually 50% hemp. Hemp fabrics should be everywhere. Instead, they are almost underground. Superior hemp products are not allowed to advertise on fascist television. Kentucky, once the top hemp producing state, made it ILLEGAL TO WEAR hemp clothing! Can you imagine being thrown into jail for wearing quality jeans?

The world is crazy...but that does not mean you have to join the insanity. Get together. Spread the news. Tell people, and that includes your children, the truth. Use hemp products. Eliminate the word 'marijuana.' Realize the history that created it. Make it politically incorrect to say or print the M-word. Fight against the propaganda (designed to favor the agenda of the super rich) and the bull.... Hemp must be utilized in the future. We need a clean energy source to save our planet. INDUSTRIALIZE HEMP!

The liquor, tobacco and oil companies fund more than a million dollars a day to Partnership for a Drug-Free America and other similar agencies. We have all seen their commercials. Now, their motto is: 'It's more dangerous than we thought.' Lies from the powerful corporations, that began with Hearst, are still alive and well today.

The brainwashing continues. Now, the commercials say: If you buy a joint, you contribute to murders and gang wars. The latest anti-hemp commercials say: If you buy a joint...you are promoting TERRORISM! The new enemy (terrorism) has paved the road to brainwash you any way THEY see fit.

There is only one enemy; the friendly people you pay your taxes to; the war-makers and nature destroyers. With your funding, they are killing the world right in front of your eyes. HALF A MILLION DEATHS EACH YEAR ARE CAUSED BY TOBACCO. HALF A MILLION DEATHS EACH YEAR ARE CAUSED BY ALCOHOL.

Ingesting THC, hemp's active agent, has a positive effect; relieving asthma and glaucoma. A joint tends to alleviate the nausea caused by chemotherapy. You are able to eat on hemp. This is a healthy state of being.

The hemp plant is an ALIEN plant. There is physical evidence that hemp is not like any other plant on this planet. One could conclude that it was brought here for the benefit of humanity.

HEMP IS ILLEGAL BECAUSE BILLIONAIRES WANT TO REMAIN BILLIONAIRES!

NOTE: Do not send me your comments on this article. I present it
as a public service because I believe the subject is important. Thank you,
PMH

Leslee Morabito

2009-01-16T18:51:00.001-05:00

I just received word that Leslee Morabito died yesterday at her home in Trinidad, California. She was recovering from breast cancer when, suddenly, after the holidays, her condition worsened and she was gone. She died surrounded by her adoring husband, son, and pets.

For those of you who may not remember Leslee, she was a steady presence and office support for Nancy Bush, the first and only full-time, paid Secretary of the International Association For Near-Death Studies (IANDS), when it was located in the Psychology Department of the University of Connecticut, in Storrs. I met Leslee on my first trip to this hallowed place back in 1981, the year I began writing the column "Coming Back" at the behest of Kenneth Ring. The column was published in "Vital Signs" magazine - what became a five-year run. We bonded immediately and have remained good friends throughout the years since. We shared a hotel room at an IANDS conference not too long ago, a stay I treasure because it enabled me to re-establish old ties and enjoy again this incredible woman - a spunky, loving, honest and very real angel come to earth. When you meet someone like this, you don't forget them. And I can never forget Leslee. Thank you, dear one, for blessing me with your presence, your joy, and the sound of your voice as you told your stories and laughed. – PMH

Tony Cicoria - Post NDE Composer

2008-11-02T10:20:00.003-05:00

Tony Cicoria, M.D., is the physician who could suddenly play the piano and compose music after being hit by lightning in 1994 and having a near-death experience. His story is truly amazing and so is his mucic. Thanks to Dave Bennett and the Upstate New York Friends of IANDS group, we now have a listing of Dr. Cicoria’s music. Enjoy, PMH

Very Exciting news

Tony Cicoria now has his Music CD Available.

Dr. Cicoria's musical career began rather remarkably when he was struck by lightning in 1994 while speaking on a public telephone during a family reunion near Albany. Shortly thereafter he developed an insatiable desire to hear and to play the piano. Around the same time, music started coming to him ·first in a dream, some of which ultimately contributed to the original compositions featured on this CD.

On the CD

1 Fantasia, Op.1, The Lightning Sonata, Movement 1

2 Fantasia, Op.1, The Lightning Sonata, Movement 2

3 Fantasia, Op. 1, The lightning Sonata, Movement 3

4 Rhapsody in D Minor, Op. 3, In Memory of John Lusins, MD

5 Nocturne, Op. 2

You can order his CDs online at CDBaby.com:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/drtonycicoria