ing phenomena. With this in mind, we can divide the existing evidence into two categories: (1) experiences and observations that challenge the traditional understanding of the nature of consciousness and its relationship to matter; (2) experiences and observations specifically related to the understanding of death and survival of consciousness. 2 Experiences and observations challenging the traditional understanding of consciousness and its relationship to matter The work with NOSC has generated a vast body of evidence that represents a serious challenge for the Cartesian-Newtonian paradigm of materialistic science. Most of the challenging data are related to transpersonal phenomena that represent an important part of the spectrum of experiences observed in NOSC. They suggest an urgent need for a radical revision of our current concepts of the nature of consciousness and its relationship to matter and the brain. Since the materialistic paradigm of Western science has been a major obstacle for any objective evaluation of the data describing the events occurring at the time of death, the study of transpersonal experiences has an indirect relevance for thanatology. In transpersonal experiences, it is possible to transcend the usual limitations of the body, ego, space, and linear time. The disappearance of spatial boundaries can lead to authentic and convincing identifications with other people, animals of different species, plant life, and even inorganic materials and processes. One can also transcend the temporal boundaries and experience episodes from the lives of one’s human and animal ancestors, as well as collective, racial, and karmic memories. In addition, transpersonal experiences can take us into the archetypal domains of the collective unconscious and mediate encounter with blissful and wrathful deities of various cultures and visits to mythological realms. In all these types of experiences, it is possible to access entirely new information that by far surpasses anything that we obtained earlier through the conventional channels. The study of consciousness that can extend beyond the body, William Roll’s “theta consciousness” or the “long body” of the Iroquois, is extremely important for the issue of survival, since it is this part of human personality that would be likely to survive death. According to materialistic science, any memory requires a material substrate, such as the neuronal network in the brain or the DNA molecules of the genes. However, it is impossible to imagine any material medium for the information conveyed by various forms of transpersonal experiences described above. This information clearly has not been acquired during the individual’s lifetime through the conventional means that is by sensory perception. It seems to exist independently of matter and be contained in the field of consciousness itself, or in some other types of fields that cannot be detected by our scientific instruments. The observations from the study of transpersonal experiences are supported by evidence that comes from other avenues of research. Challeng12 (10) Stanislav Grof
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MzgxMzI=