Close to the moment of death, apparitions of deceased friends and loved ones appear to escort the dying to the other side. Such deathbed visions are not just the stuff of stories and movies. They are, in fact, more common than you might think and are surprisingly similar across nationalities, religions, and cultures. Instances of these unexplained visions have been recorded throughout history and stand as one of the most compelling proofs of life after death.
Study of Deathbed Visions
Anecdotes of deathbed visions have appeared in literature and biographies throughout the ages, but it wasn’t until the 20th century that the subject received scientific study. One of the first to examine the subject seriously was Sir William Barrett, a Professor of Physics at the Royal College of Science in Dublin. In 1926 he published a summation of his findings in a book titled “Death Bed Visions.” In the many cases he studied, he discovered some interesting aspects of the experience that are not easily explained:
- It was not uncommon for the dying people who saw these visions to identify friends and relatives who they thought were still living. But in each case, according to Barrett, it was later discovered that these people were dead. (Remember, communications then weren’t what they are today, and it might take weeks or even months to learn that a friend or a loved one had died.)
- Barrett found it curious that children quite often expressed surprise that the “angels” they saw in their dying moments did not have wings. If the deathbed vision is just a hallucination, wouldn’t a child see an angel as it is most often depicted in art and literature—with large, white wings?
More extensive research into these mysterious visions was carried out in the 1960s and 1970s by Dr. Karlis Osis of the American Society for Psychical Research. In this research, and for a book he published in 1977 titled “At the Hour of Death,” Osis considered thousands of case studies and interviewed more than 1,000 doctors, nurses, and others who attended the dying. The work found some fascinating consistencies:
- Although some dying people report seeing angels and other religious figures (and sometimes even mythical figures), the vast majority claim to see familiar people who had previously passed away.
- Very often, the friends and relatives seen in these visions express directly that they have come to help take them away.
- The dying person is reassured by the experience and expresses great happiness with the vision. Contrast this with the confusion or fear that a non-dying person would experience at seeing a “ghost.” The dying also seem quite willing to go with these apparitions.
- The dying person’s mood—even state of health—seems to change. During these visions, a once depressed or pain-riddled person is overcome with elation and momentarily relieved of pain until death strikes.
- The people having these experiences do not seem to be hallucinating or to be in an altered state of consciousness; rather, they appear to be quite aware of their real surroundings and conditions.
- Whether or not the dying person believes in an afterlife is irrelevant; the experience and reactions are the same.
Are Deathbed Visions Fact or Fantasy?
How many people have deathbed visions? This is unknown since only about 10 percent of dying people are conscious shortly before their deaths. But of this 10 percent, it is estimated, between 50 and 60 percent of them experience these visions. The visions only seem to last about five minutes and are seen mostly by people who approach death gradually, such as those suffering from life-threatening injuries or terminal illnesses.
So what are deathbed visions? How can they be explained? Are they hallucinations produced by dying brains? Delusions produced by drugs in the systems of the patients? Or could the visions of spirits be exactly what they appear to be: a welcome committee of deceased loved ones who have come to ease the transition to life on another plane of existence?
Leave a Reply