Abstract

Notes the recent popular interest in deathbed experiences and reviews the considerable material on the subject amassed by parapsychology since the 1800s. These experiences are divided into two large general categories. The 1st consists of what the dying person "sees" at the moment of death, along with the psychic experiences of those in attendance. These experiences could be seen as mere wish fulfillment except for incidents where the dying individual perceives dead friends or relatives they had not known were dead. The 2nd category includes the experiences of those who died clinically but were revived later. These phenomena parallel the out-of-the-body experiences reported by healthy, nondying individuals. Taken collectively, the body of literature supports a survival hypothesis, although an attempt is made to argue the alternative point of view, that these experiences are merely a psychological manifestation of the dying process. (29 ref)