Metaphysics & Psychology

Near-death experiences: four possible theories

By T.K. Randall
April 5, 2022 ·  201 comments

Does the human mind exist in the quantum realm ? Image Credit: Pixabay / geralt Seeing events flashing before your eyes, observing a bright light at the end of a tunnel or feeling as though you are floating above your own body are just some of the things commonly described by patients who have had a near-death experience.

But what do such experiences actually mean and how can science explain them ?

In a fascinating new article published in Psychology Today, psychiatrist and author Thomas R. Verny explored four intriguing theories that have been put forward to explain the phenomenon.

The first - and the one that perhaps the most people reading this will subscribe to - is that the mind is entirely separate from the body and exists in the universe independently of the physical world.

Verny admits to being skeptical of this idea, however, as it cannot be scientifically verified.The second, more grounded, possibility is that the mind is simply a by-product of the complex neuronal activities of the physical brain and does not exist independently of the body.

Verny rejects this theory also, citing cases of multi-personality disorder and other medical anomalies as inexplicable if we were to simply consider the mind a physical quantity produced by the brain.

The third, less known possibility he lists is what is known as the Hameroff-Penrose Hypothesis.

This theory suggests that "quantum vibrational computations" within the cell cytoskeleton of the brain are what give rise to human consciousness and that the mind obeys physical laws acting on the neurons of the cerebral cortex that we currently do not understand.

Finally, the fourth possibility listed - the Kauffman Hypothesis - suggests that the mind, consciousness, and free will are all connected to a new, unknown state of matter known as the "Poised Realm".

As things stand, however, we have no way of confirming if any of these possibilities are true.

Source: Psychology Today | Comments (201)

Tags: Near-Death Experiences