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Where Does Consciousness Come From?
Where Does Consciousness Come From?
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Makai Allbert - Ph.D.
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https://www.theepochtimes.com/author/makai-allbert
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Yuhong Dong M.D
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Makai Allbert - Ph.D.
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https://www.theepochtimes.com/author/makai-allbert
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Yuhong Dong M.D
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https://www.theepochtimes.com/expert/yuhong-dong-experts
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Zero Hedge
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The Epoch Times Article
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https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/how-consciousness-opens-doors-higher-
dimensions#google_vignette
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and
The Epoch Times Article
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https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/how-consciousness-opens-doors-higher-
dimensions#google_vignette
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“Where Does
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Consciousness Come From?”
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Health Viewpoints
Scientists have expended prolific efforts searching for the elusive anatomical correlate of consciousness. Yet, the origins of consciousness remain unclear.
By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
This is part 1 in “Where Does Consciousness Come From?”
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
“As a neurosurgeon, I was taught that the brain creates consciousness,” said Dr. Eben Alexander, who wrote in detail about his experiences with consciousness while in a deep coma.Many doctors and biomedical students may have been taught the same about consciousness. However, scientists are still debating whether that theory holds true.
Imagine a child observing an elephant for the first time. Light reflects off the animal and enters the child’s eyes. Retinal photoreceptors in the back of the eyes convert this light into electrical signals, which travel through the optic nerve to the brain’s cortex.
This forms vision or visual consciousness.
How do these electrical signals miraculously transform into a vivid mental image? How do they turn into the child’s thoughts, followed by an emotional reaction—“Wow, the elephant is so big!”
The question of how the brain generates subjective perceptions, including images, feelings, and experiences, was coined by Australian cognitive scientist David Chalmers in 1995 as the “hard problem.”
As it turns out, having a brain may not be a prerequisite for consciousness.‘Brainless’ but Not Mindless
The Lancet recorded a case of a French man diagnosed with postnatal hydrocephalus—excess cerebrospinal fluid on or around the brain—at the age of 6 months.
Brain-Dead People May Not Be Dead—Here’s Why
The Power of Perception: How Your Mind Influences Weight Gain or Loss
You Can Lose Weight Unintentionally, Without Diet Restriction–Here’s How
Despite his condition, he grew up healthy, became a married father of two children, and worked as a civil servant.
When he was 44 years old, he went to the doctor due to a mild weakness in his left leg. The doctors scanned his head thoroughly and discovered that his brain tissue was almost entirely gone. Most of the space in his skull was filled with fluid, with only a thin sheet of brain tissue.
“The brain was virtually absent,” wrote the lead author of the case study, Dr. Lionel Feuillet, of the Department of Neurology, Hôpital de la Timone in Marseille, France.The man had been living a normal life and had no problem seeing, feeling, or perceiving things.
Scientists have expended prolific efforts searching for the elusive anatomical correlate of consciousness. Yet, the origins of consciousness remain unclear.
By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
This is part 1 in “Where Does Consciousness Come From?”
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
“As a neurosurgeon, I was taught that the brain creates consciousness,” said Dr. Eben Alexander, who wrote in detail about his experiences with consciousness while in a deep coma.Many doctors and biomedical students may have been taught the same about consciousness. However, scientists are still debating whether that theory holds true.
Imagine a child observing an elephant for the first time. Light reflects off the animal and enters the child’s eyes. Retinal photoreceptors in the back of the eyes convert this light into electrical signals, which travel through the optic nerve to the brain’s cortex.
This forms vision or visual consciousness.
How do these electrical signals miraculously transform into a vivid mental image? How do they turn into the child’s thoughts, followed by an emotional reaction—“Wow, the elephant is so big!”
The question of how the brain generates subjective perceptions, including images, feelings, and experiences, was coined by Australian cognitive scientist David Chalmers in 1995 as the “hard problem.”
As it turns out, having a brain may not be a prerequisite for consciousness.‘Brainless’ but Not Mindless
The Lancet recorded a case of a French man diagnosed with postnatal hydrocephalus—excess cerebrospinal fluid on or around the brain—at the age of 6 months.
Brain-Dead People May Not Be Dead—Here’s Why
The Power of Perception: How Your Mind Influences Weight Gain or Loss
You Can Lose Weight Unintentionally, Without Diet Restriction–Here’s How
Despite his condition, he grew up healthy, became a married father of two children, and worked as a civil servant.
When he was 44 years old, he went to the doctor due to a mild weakness in his left leg. The doctors scanned his head thoroughly and discovered that his brain tissue was almost entirely gone. Most of the space in his skull was filled with fluid, with only a thin sheet of brain tissue.
“The brain was virtually absent,” wrote the lead author of the case study, Dr. Lionel Feuillet, of the Department of Neurology, Hôpital de la Timone in Marseille, France.The man had been living a normal life and had no problem seeing, feeling, or perceiving things.
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The Lancet recorded a case of a French civil servant diagnosed with postnatal hydrocephalus at the age of 6 months. Later, an MRI revealed massive enlargement of the lateral, third, and fourth ventricles, a very thin cortical mantle, and a posterior fossa cyst. Illustrated by The Epoch Times
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The normal brain cortex is responsible for sense and movement, and the hippocampus is responsible for memory. Hydrocephalus patients lose or have significantly less volume of these brain regions, yet they can still perform related functions.
Even without substantial brains, these people can have above-average cognitive function.
Professor John Lorber (1915–1996), a neurologist from the University of Sheffield, analyzed more than 600 cases of children with hydrocephalus.
Of those, he found that half of around 60 children with the most severe type of hydrocephalus and cerebral atrophy had an IQ higher than 100 and lived normal lives.Among them, one university student had excellent grades, a first-class honors degree in mathematics, an IQ of 126, and was socially normal.
This math genius’s brain was only 1 millimeter thick, while an average person’s is usually 4.5 centimeters thick—44 times larger.
Even without substantial brains, these people can have above-average cognitive function.
Professor John Lorber (1915–1996), a neurologist from the University of Sheffield, analyzed more than 600 cases of children with hydrocephalus.
Of those, he found that half of around 60 children with the most severe type of hydrocephalus and cerebral atrophy had an IQ higher than 100 and lived normal lives.Among them, one university student had excellent grades, a first-class honors degree in mathematics, an IQ of 126, and was socially normal.
This math genius’s brain was only 1 millimeter thick, while an average person’s is usually 4.5 centimeters thick—44 times larger.
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An analysis of more than 600 cases of children with hydrocephalus found that of the 60 cases where fluid took up 95 percent of the skull, around 30 had above average IQs.
The right side of the figure illustrates the brain image of one college student with a 1 mm thick brain who had a 126 IQ, placing him in the top 5 percent of the higher end of the population. The Epoch Times
The right side of the figure illustrates the brain image of one college student with a 1 mm thick brain who had a 126 IQ, placing him in the top 5 percent of the higher end of the population. The Epoch Times
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Lorber’s findings were published in the journal Science in 1980 with the headline “Is Your Brain Really Necessary?”
The Invisible Brain
“The important thing about Lorber is that he’s done a long series of systematic scanning rather than just dealing with anecdotes.” Patrick Wall (1925–2001), professor of anatomy at University College London, was quoted as saying in an article by Roger Lewin published in Science in 1981 discussing Lorber’s article.
The cases of people without brains challenge the conventional teachings that brain structure is the basis for generating consciousness. Is our brain—weighing about three pounds, with roughly two billion neurons connected by around 500 trillion synapses—the real source of consciousness?
Some scientists have proposed that deep and invisible structures in the brain explain normal cognitive function—even with severe hydrocephalus. These structures may not be easily visible on conventional brain scans or to the naked eye. However, the fact that they are not readily apparent doesn’t mean they don’t exist or aren’t important for brain function.
“For hundreds of years neurologists have assumed that all that is dear to them is performed by the cortex, but it may well be that the deep structures in the brain carry out many of the functions assumed to be the sole province of the cortex,” Wall commented in the 1981 article.
These unknown deep structures “are undoubtedly important for many functions,” said neurologist Norman Geschwind (1926–1984) from Beth Israel Hospital, affiliated with Harvard University, in the 1981 article.
Furthermore, the deep structures “are almost certainly more important than is currently thought,” said David Bowsher, a professor of neurophysiology at the University of Liverpool in the UK, in the same article.
The source of consciousness may exist in realms we’ve yet to explore. When medical theories can’t solve a mystery, physics might step in with a plot twist—in particular—quantum physics.Beyond Neurons“To understand consciousness, we can’t just look at the neurons,”
Dr. Stuart Hameroff, director of the Center for Consciousness Studies at the University of Arizona, told The Epoch Times.
Even single-celled organisms like paramecium demonstrate purposeful behaviors such as swimming, avoiding obstacles, mating, and, significantly—learning—without having a single synapse or being part of a neural network.
The Invisible Brain
“The important thing about Lorber is that he’s done a long series of systematic scanning rather than just dealing with anecdotes.” Patrick Wall (1925–2001), professor of anatomy at University College London, was quoted as saying in an article by Roger Lewin published in Science in 1981 discussing Lorber’s article.
The cases of people without brains challenge the conventional teachings that brain structure is the basis for generating consciousness. Is our brain—weighing about three pounds, with roughly two billion neurons connected by around 500 trillion synapses—the real source of consciousness?
Some scientists have proposed that deep and invisible structures in the brain explain normal cognitive function—even with severe hydrocephalus. These structures may not be easily visible on conventional brain scans or to the naked eye. However, the fact that they are not readily apparent doesn’t mean they don’t exist or aren’t important for brain function.
“For hundreds of years neurologists have assumed that all that is dear to them is performed by the cortex, but it may well be that the deep structures in the brain carry out many of the functions assumed to be the sole province of the cortex,” Wall commented in the 1981 article.
These unknown deep structures “are undoubtedly important for many functions,” said neurologist Norman Geschwind (1926–1984) from Beth Israel Hospital, affiliated with Harvard University, in the 1981 article.
Furthermore, the deep structures “are almost certainly more important than is currently thought,” said David Bowsher, a professor of neurophysiology at the University of Liverpool in the UK, in the same article.
The source of consciousness may exist in realms we’ve yet to explore. When medical theories can’t solve a mystery, physics might step in with a plot twist—in particular—quantum physics.Beyond Neurons“To understand consciousness, we can’t just look at the neurons,”
Dr. Stuart Hameroff, director of the Center for Consciousness Studies at the University of Arizona, told The Epoch Times.
Even single-celled organisms like paramecium demonstrate purposeful behaviors such as swimming, avoiding obstacles, mating, and, significantly—learning—without having a single synapse or being part of a neural network.
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Even single-celled organisms like paramecium demonstrate purposeful behaviors such as swimming, avoiding obstacles, mating, and learning without having a single synapse or being part of a neural network. Lebendkulturen.de/Shutterstock
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According to Hameroff, these intelligent, possibly conscious behaviors are mediated by microtubules inside the paramecium. The same microtubules are found in brain neurons and all animal and plant cells.
Microtubules, as the name suggests, are tiny tubes inside cells. They play essential roles in cell division, movement, and intracellular transport and appear to be the information carriers in neurons.
The proteins that make up microtubules (tubulin) are “the most prevalent or abundant protein in the whole brain,” Hameroff told The Epoch Times. He hypothesizes that microtubules are key players in human consciousness.
“Because [when] you look inside neurons, you see all these microtubules, and they’re in a periodic lattice, which is perfect for information processing and vibrations,” Hameroff stated.
Due to their properties, microtubules function like antennas. Hameroff says they serve as “quantum devices” to transduce consciousness from a quantum dimension.
Quantum Devices
British physicist, mathematician, and Nobel Laureate Sir Roger Penrose and Hameroff hypothesized a theory that quantum processes generate consciousness.
Quantum refers to tiny units of energy or matter at a microscopic level. Its unique features can help us understand many things that current science cannot explain.
In simple terms, microtubules act as a bridge between the quantum world and our consciousness. They take quantum signals, amplify them, organize them, and somehow, through processes we don’t fully understand, turn them into the feelings, perceptions, and thoughts that make up our conscious awareness.
Microtubules can explain bewildering facts about the brain. Hameroff posits that the brains of individuals born with hydrocephalus can adapt as their microtubules control neuroplasticity and reorganize their brain tissue.
“So over time, the microtubules in that brain adapt and rearrange themselves to sustain consciousness and cognition,” he said.
Therefore, according to Hameroff, our brains serve like information processors, receiving signals from the universe and forming them into consciousness.
The brain processes information across multiple scales, each vibrating at different frequencies. Brain waves oscillate slowly at 0.5–100 hertz (Hz). Individual neurons fire faster at 500–1000 Hz. Inside neurons, microtubules vibrate much quicker, in the megahertz range. At the tiniest quantum scale, frequencies reach incredibly high levels, theoretically up to 10^43 Hz.
Microtubules, as the name suggests, are tiny tubes inside cells. They play essential roles in cell division, movement, and intracellular transport and appear to be the information carriers in neurons.
The proteins that make up microtubules (tubulin) are “the most prevalent or abundant protein in the whole brain,” Hameroff told The Epoch Times. He hypothesizes that microtubules are key players in human consciousness.
“Because [when] you look inside neurons, you see all these microtubules, and they’re in a periodic lattice, which is perfect for information processing and vibrations,” Hameroff stated.
Due to their properties, microtubules function like antennas. Hameroff says they serve as “quantum devices” to transduce consciousness from a quantum dimension.
Quantum Devices
British physicist, mathematician, and Nobel Laureate Sir Roger Penrose and Hameroff hypothesized a theory that quantum processes generate consciousness.
Quantum refers to tiny units of energy or matter at a microscopic level. Its unique features can help us understand many things that current science cannot explain.
In simple terms, microtubules act as a bridge between the quantum world and our consciousness. They take quantum signals, amplify them, organize them, and somehow, through processes we don’t fully understand, turn them into the feelings, perceptions, and thoughts that make up our conscious awareness.
Microtubules can explain bewildering facts about the brain. Hameroff posits that the brains of individuals born with hydrocephalus can adapt as their microtubules control neuroplasticity and reorganize their brain tissue.
“So over time, the microtubules in that brain adapt and rearrange themselves to sustain consciousness and cognition,” he said.
Therefore, according to Hameroff, our brains serve like information processors, receiving signals from the universe and forming them into consciousness.
The brain processes information across multiple scales, each vibrating at different frequencies. Brain waves oscillate slowly at 0.5–100 hertz (Hz). Individual neurons fire faster at 500–1000 Hz. Inside neurons, microtubules vibrate much quicker, in the megahertz range. At the tiniest quantum scale, frequencies reach incredibly high levels, theoretically up to 10^43 Hz.
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According to neuroscientist Hameroff and Nobel Laureate Sir Roger Penrose, our brains serve as information processors, receiving signals from the universe and forming them into consciousness.
Microtubules, the most abundant proteins in neurons, may act as a bridge to collect the waves from the quantum world into our brains. Once processed in the brain, consciousness is generated.
Microtubules, the most abundant proteins in neurons, may act as a bridge to collect the waves from the quantum world into our brains. Once processed in the brain, consciousness is generated.
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Other scientists are also using alternative quantum theories to explain mental activities.
A study published in Physical Review E shows that vibrations in lipid molecules within the myelin sheath can create pairs of quantum-entangled photons. It suggests that this quantum entanglement may help synchronize brain activity, providing insights into consciousness.
A Quantum Orchestra
Rather than a computer of simple neurons, the brain is a quantum orchestra,” Hameroff described, “Because you have resonances and harmony and solutions over different frequencies, much like you do in music.
And [so] I think consciousness is more like music than it is a computation.”Science is always evolving. The study of consciousness is still an area of active research and debate in neuroscience and philosophy.
However, each new discovery opens up new possibilities. As we continue to explore these mysteries, let’s remain curious and open-minded.
A study published in Physical Review E shows that vibrations in lipid molecules within the myelin sheath can create pairs of quantum-entangled photons. It suggests that this quantum entanglement may help synchronize brain activity, providing insights into consciousness.
A Quantum Orchestra
Rather than a computer of simple neurons, the brain is a quantum orchestra,” Hameroff described, “Because you have resonances and harmony and solutions over different frequencies, much like you do in music.
And [so] I think consciousness is more like music than it is a computation.”Science is always evolving. The study of consciousness is still an area of active research and debate in neuroscience and philosophy.
However, each new discovery opens up new possibilities. As we continue to explore these mysteries, let’s remain curious and open-minded.
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Part 2.
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Consciousness Does Not Go to the Grave
So Where Does It Go?
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Part 2.
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Consciousness Does Not Go to the Grave
So Where Does It Go?
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Many verifiable details from organ recipients and near-death experiencers have informed medical guidelines, shedding light on the nature of human consciousness.
By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
This is part 2 in “Where Does Consciousness Come From?”
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
“When he hugged me, I could feel my son,” recounted Jerry’s mother. “He was there.”
When Jerry was 16 months old, he tragically drowned. His heart was transplanted into Carter, a 7-month-old boy with congenital heart disease. Years later, when Jerry’s mother, a physician and self-proclaimed “natural born skeptic,” met Carter, she was struck by similarities to her son. “Carter is 6 [years old],” she observed, “but he was talking Jerry’s baby talk and playing with my nose just like Jerry did.”
Carter’s mother also witnessed extraordinary behaviors in her son after the heart transplant. “I saw Carter go to her,” she reported, referring to Jerry’s mother. “He never does that. He is very, very shy, but he went to her just like he used to run to me when he was a baby. When he whispered ‘It’s okay, Mama,’ I broke down. He called her mother.”
Even more astonishing was Carter’s reaction to Jerry’s father. “When we went to church together, Carter had never met Jerry’s father,” she explained. “We came late, and Jerry’s dad was sitting with a group of people in the middle of the congregation. Carter let go of my hand and ran right to that man. He climbed on his lap, hugged him, and said ‘Daddy.’ We were flabbergasted. How could he have known him? Why did he call him dad?”
Carter’s case raises a remarkable question about the nature of consciousness: Is it confined to the brain? A large corpus of medical research suggests otherwise, indicating that consciousness may extend to other organs, such as our hearts, and even transcend the body in special liminal (transitional) states between life and death.
A New Heart, A New Person?
Paul Pearsall, a clinical neuropsychologist at the University of Hawaii, and Gary Schwartz and Linda Russek, from the departments of psychology and medicine at the University of Arizona, Tucson, first documented Jerry and Carter’s cases.Research in their study was based on more than 74 organ transplantation cases, including 23 heart transplants, brought to Pearsall’s attention over a 10 year span.
He found that organ recipients sometimes adopt traits of the donors, including preferences, emotions, personality characteristics, memories, and even aspects of identity. Pearsall’s study design was thorough, incorporating interviews with the transplant recipients, their social circles, and close contacts of the donors.
From Blindness to 360-Degree Vision–What 4,000 Near-Death Cases Bring to Light
Where Does Consciousness Come From?
People Near Death From Traumatic Brain Injury May Still Revive: Study
The researchers detailed key observations from 10 pairs of cases in which patients shared their experiences of personality changes following organ transplantation, including the case of “Danielle.”
Danielle, an 18-year-old girl, received a heart transplant from an 18-year-old boy named Paul. Before the transplant, Danielle had no musical inclination. However, after receiving Paul’s heart, she developed a profound love for music and felt a strong urge to play the guitar, the same instrument Paul played.
When Danielle met Paul’s family, she reported feeling a significant connection, stating, “I knew him [Paul] directly.”
Another prominent case involves Claire Sylvia, who wrote “A Change of Heart,” a memoir of her experiences after a heart transplant. She reported developing unexpected food cravings after the transplant. As a self-described “health-conscious dancer,” Sylvia suddenly had an “uncontrollable urge” for chicken nuggets, a food she previously disliked. This craving was later found to match her donor’s preferences.
A retrospective study published in 1992 reported that among 47 Australian transplant patients, six percent had distinct personality changes as a result of receiving new hearts.
A 2024 cross-sectional study investigated the personality changes of 23 heart transplant recipients compared to 24 recipients of other organs, including kidneys, lungs, and livers.
The study reported that 89 percent of organ recipients experienced personality changes, though the authors didn’t correlate these changes to their donor’s traits.The results showed that 47.8 percent of the heart transplant recipients experienced at least four significant personality changes, in contrast to 25 percent of recipients of other organs.
By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
This is part 2 in “Where Does Consciousness Come From?”
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
“When he hugged me, I could feel my son,” recounted Jerry’s mother. “He was there.”
When Jerry was 16 months old, he tragically drowned. His heart was transplanted into Carter, a 7-month-old boy with congenital heart disease. Years later, when Jerry’s mother, a physician and self-proclaimed “natural born skeptic,” met Carter, she was struck by similarities to her son. “Carter is 6 [years old],” she observed, “but he was talking Jerry’s baby talk and playing with my nose just like Jerry did.”
Carter’s mother also witnessed extraordinary behaviors in her son after the heart transplant. “I saw Carter go to her,” she reported, referring to Jerry’s mother. “He never does that. He is very, very shy, but he went to her just like he used to run to me when he was a baby. When he whispered ‘It’s okay, Mama,’ I broke down. He called her mother.”
Even more astonishing was Carter’s reaction to Jerry’s father. “When we went to church together, Carter had never met Jerry’s father,” she explained. “We came late, and Jerry’s dad was sitting with a group of people in the middle of the congregation. Carter let go of my hand and ran right to that man. He climbed on his lap, hugged him, and said ‘Daddy.’ We were flabbergasted. How could he have known him? Why did he call him dad?”
Carter’s case raises a remarkable question about the nature of consciousness: Is it confined to the brain? A large corpus of medical research suggests otherwise, indicating that consciousness may extend to other organs, such as our hearts, and even transcend the body in special liminal (transitional) states between life and death.
A New Heart, A New Person?
Paul Pearsall, a clinical neuropsychologist at the University of Hawaii, and Gary Schwartz and Linda Russek, from the departments of psychology and medicine at the University of Arizona, Tucson, first documented Jerry and Carter’s cases.Research in their study was based on more than 74 organ transplantation cases, including 23 heart transplants, brought to Pearsall’s attention over a 10 year span.
He found that organ recipients sometimes adopt traits of the donors, including preferences, emotions, personality characteristics, memories, and even aspects of identity. Pearsall’s study design was thorough, incorporating interviews with the transplant recipients, their social circles, and close contacts of the donors.
From Blindness to 360-Degree Vision–What 4,000 Near-Death Cases Bring to Light
Where Does Consciousness Come From?
People Near Death From Traumatic Brain Injury May Still Revive: Study
The researchers detailed key observations from 10 pairs of cases in which patients shared their experiences of personality changes following organ transplantation, including the case of “Danielle.”
Danielle, an 18-year-old girl, received a heart transplant from an 18-year-old boy named Paul. Before the transplant, Danielle had no musical inclination. However, after receiving Paul’s heart, she developed a profound love for music and felt a strong urge to play the guitar, the same instrument Paul played.
When Danielle met Paul’s family, she reported feeling a significant connection, stating, “I knew him [Paul] directly.”
Another prominent case involves Claire Sylvia, who wrote “A Change of Heart,” a memoir of her experiences after a heart transplant. She reported developing unexpected food cravings after the transplant. As a self-described “health-conscious dancer,” Sylvia suddenly had an “uncontrollable urge” for chicken nuggets, a food she previously disliked. This craving was later found to match her donor’s preferences.
A retrospective study published in 1992 reported that among 47 Australian transplant patients, six percent had distinct personality changes as a result of receiving new hearts.
A 2024 cross-sectional study investigated the personality changes of 23 heart transplant recipients compared to 24 recipients of other organs, including kidneys, lungs, and livers.
The study reported that 89 percent of organ recipients experienced personality changes, though the authors didn’t correlate these changes to their donor’s traits.The results showed that 47.8 percent of the heart transplant recipients experienced at least four significant personality changes, in contrast to 25 percent of recipients of other organs.
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A 2024 cross-sectional study investigated 23 heart transplant recipients and 24 recipients of other organs, including kidneys, lungs, and livers.
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A 2024 cross-sectional study investigated 23 heart transplant recipients and 24 recipients of other organs, including kidneys, lungs, and livers.
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The Epoch TimesPersonality changes, including participation in or watching sporting activities, changes in temperament, and food preferences, were reported.
Different studies report different findings, which may arise from differences in study designs and methodologies. It should be pointed out that some reports show no personality changes after transplantation.Heart Brain
Dr. Mitchell B. Liester, an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, hypothesized that during heart transplants, the donor’s consciousness or memories stored in the organ might be transferred to the recipient.
He outlined that the recipients may adopt personality traits from their donors through cellular memory, which he categorized into six types: epigenetic, DNA, RNA, protein memory, heart nerves, and electromagnetic energy.
Anatomically, the heart’s nervous system bears a striking resemblance to that of the brain. Both systems possess intricate structures, share similar neurotransmitters, and display adaptability over time. Due to these parallels, the heart is often called the heart brain.
Traditional Chinese medicine, with a history of 5,000 years, has a similar adage: “The heart governs the mind and spirit,” suggesting that our hearts are part of our consciousness.
There are other explanations for personality changes, such as the effects of immunosuppressant drugs, the stress of the surgery, and statistical coincidence.
These alternative explanations could explain some cases but are insufficient to account for the cases where donors and recipients had a high level of similarity.Dr. Eben Alexander, a former neurosurgeon and professor at Harvard Medical School, stated in an interview with The Epoch Times, “To look at it as a ‘heart consciousness’ makes perfect sense.”
He added that confining consciousness to only the heart or the brain may not be the full picture. The organs serve more as “a transceiver, a filter,” he said. “Our physical body is just a way of manifesting this consciousness.”
Alexander’s viewpoint echoes Dr. Larry Dossey, former chief of staff at Medical City Dallas Hospital, who suggests that our consciousness is nonlocal—not limited to specific locations like hearts or brains.
However, when neither the heart nor the brain functions, consciousness can still exist.
Out of Body ...
One compelling case reported by former cardiologist Dr. Michael Sabom involves 35-year-old Pam Reynolds (pseudonym), who underwent brain surgery for an aneurysm. To ensure the success of the surgery, all blood was drained from her brain, and even her heart stopped beating.
During surgery, there were no EEG waves, and her brain stem showed no activity. Additionally, she was under deep anesthesia, with her body temperature lowered to 60 degrees Fahrenheit. By all clinical definitions, she was completely unconscious.
However, as later recounted in the book “Light and Death” by Sabom, shortly after beginning the surgery, Pam heard a buzzing sound and felt as though she had left her body, eventually observing the surgery from a higher vantage point as if she were sitting on the surgeon’s shoulder.
After the surgery, she reported several vivid details. She accurately described the neurosurgeon’s tools used to open her skull and was able to recount the conversations among the medical staff. She claimed to hear the song “Hotel California” playing despite the fact that a 100-decibel device was inserted into her ears, resulting no brain activity at all. All of her observations were later verified by the medical staff.
Dr. Pim van Lommel, a Dutch cardiologist, reported another case in the Netherlands in The Lancet in 2001.A 44-year-old man had a cardiac arrest and fell into a coma. During resuscitation, a nurse removed the patient’s dentures and placed them on a nearby cart. Hours later, the medical team successfully restarted the man’s heart.
A week passed before the patient fully regained consciousness. As he lay in his hospital bed, he noticed staff members searching for something. To everyone’s astonishment, he suddenly said, “She knows where my dentures are,” pointing to one of the nurses. He accurately recalled that the dentures were put into a sliding drawer underneath the cart.
Not a Rare Experience
These phenomena, known as “near-death experiences,” or NDEs, have been reported by people who have had vivid experiences during moments of clinical death or extreme danger.
Research by Dr. Sam Parnia and colleagues examined 2,060 cardiac arrest cases and found that in 9 percent of the patients, consciousness stayed active even when their hearts had stopped. Nearly one in every 10 people experienced an NDE, indicating that the phenomenon is not rare.
Similarly, van Lommel reported that 18 percent of 344 patients who were resuscitated after cardiac arrest reported vivid experiences.
A common aspect of near-death experiences is the sensation of “separation of consciousness from the physical body,” often referred to as “out-of-body experiences.”
Such occurrences were reported by 13 percent of near-death experiencers in Parnia’s study and 24 percent in van Lommel’s study on NDEs.These individuals describe floating outside their bodies and observing details of their surroundings, many of which can be independently verified by medical personnel, such as in Pam’s case.
Different studies report different findings, which may arise from differences in study designs and methodologies. It should be pointed out that some reports show no personality changes after transplantation.Heart Brain
Dr. Mitchell B. Liester, an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, hypothesized that during heart transplants, the donor’s consciousness or memories stored in the organ might be transferred to the recipient.
He outlined that the recipients may adopt personality traits from their donors through cellular memory, which he categorized into six types: epigenetic, DNA, RNA, protein memory, heart nerves, and electromagnetic energy.
Anatomically, the heart’s nervous system bears a striking resemblance to that of the brain. Both systems possess intricate structures, share similar neurotransmitters, and display adaptability over time. Due to these parallels, the heart is often called the heart brain.
Traditional Chinese medicine, with a history of 5,000 years, has a similar adage: “The heart governs the mind and spirit,” suggesting that our hearts are part of our consciousness.
There are other explanations for personality changes, such as the effects of immunosuppressant drugs, the stress of the surgery, and statistical coincidence.
These alternative explanations could explain some cases but are insufficient to account for the cases where donors and recipients had a high level of similarity.Dr. Eben Alexander, a former neurosurgeon and professor at Harvard Medical School, stated in an interview with The Epoch Times, “To look at it as a ‘heart consciousness’ makes perfect sense.”
He added that confining consciousness to only the heart or the brain may not be the full picture. The organs serve more as “a transceiver, a filter,” he said. “Our physical body is just a way of manifesting this consciousness.”
Alexander’s viewpoint echoes Dr. Larry Dossey, former chief of staff at Medical City Dallas Hospital, who suggests that our consciousness is nonlocal—not limited to specific locations like hearts or brains.
However, when neither the heart nor the brain functions, consciousness can still exist.
Out of Body ...
One compelling case reported by former cardiologist Dr. Michael Sabom involves 35-year-old Pam Reynolds (pseudonym), who underwent brain surgery for an aneurysm. To ensure the success of the surgery, all blood was drained from her brain, and even her heart stopped beating.
During surgery, there were no EEG waves, and her brain stem showed no activity. Additionally, she was under deep anesthesia, with her body temperature lowered to 60 degrees Fahrenheit. By all clinical definitions, she was completely unconscious.
However, as later recounted in the book “Light and Death” by Sabom, shortly after beginning the surgery, Pam heard a buzzing sound and felt as though she had left her body, eventually observing the surgery from a higher vantage point as if she were sitting on the surgeon’s shoulder.
After the surgery, she reported several vivid details. She accurately described the neurosurgeon’s tools used to open her skull and was able to recount the conversations among the medical staff. She claimed to hear the song “Hotel California” playing despite the fact that a 100-decibel device was inserted into her ears, resulting no brain activity at all. All of her observations were later verified by the medical staff.
Dr. Pim van Lommel, a Dutch cardiologist, reported another case in the Netherlands in The Lancet in 2001.A 44-year-old man had a cardiac arrest and fell into a coma. During resuscitation, a nurse removed the patient’s dentures and placed them on a nearby cart. Hours later, the medical team successfully restarted the man’s heart.
A week passed before the patient fully regained consciousness. As he lay in his hospital bed, he noticed staff members searching for something. To everyone’s astonishment, he suddenly said, “She knows where my dentures are,” pointing to one of the nurses. He accurately recalled that the dentures were put into a sliding drawer underneath the cart.
Not a Rare Experience
These phenomena, known as “near-death experiences,” or NDEs, have been reported by people who have had vivid experiences during moments of clinical death or extreme danger.
Research by Dr. Sam Parnia and colleagues examined 2,060 cardiac arrest cases and found that in 9 percent of the patients, consciousness stayed active even when their hearts had stopped. Nearly one in every 10 people experienced an NDE, indicating that the phenomenon is not rare.
Similarly, van Lommel reported that 18 percent of 344 patients who were resuscitated after cardiac arrest reported vivid experiences.
A common aspect of near-death experiences is the sensation of “separation of consciousness from the physical body,” often referred to as “out-of-body experiences.”
Such occurrences were reported by 13 percent of near-death experiencers in Parnia’s study and 24 percent in van Lommel’s study on NDEs.These individuals describe floating outside their bodies and observing details of their surroundings, many of which can be independently verified by medical personnel, such as in Pam’s case.
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Sensing a separation of consciousness from the physical
body is often described as an out-of-body experience (OBE).
Illustration by The Epoch Times
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Sensing a separation of consciousness from the physical
body is often described as an out-of-body experience (OBE).
Illustration by The Epoch Times
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Remarkable Accuracy
Janice Holden, whose primary research focus has been counseling implications of near-death experiences, after-death communication, and other transpersonal experiences, conducted interviews with 93 patients who experienced near-death situations.
She asked the participants to describe their observations of the events that occurred around them. Hospital staff later verified these observations for accuracy.
The results revealed that 92.5 percent of the observations were completely accurate, meaning they matched the actual events as confirmed by hospital staff. Additionally, 6.5 percent of the observations were nearly accurate, indicating that while they were mostly correct, there were minor discrepancies.
Only 1.1 percent of the observations were deemed inaccurate, which was attributed to a single patient in the study.
Janice Holden, whose primary research focus has been counseling implications of near-death experiences, after-death communication, and other transpersonal experiences, conducted interviews with 93 patients who experienced near-death situations.
She asked the participants to describe their observations of the events that occurred around them. Hospital staff later verified these observations for accuracy.
The results revealed that 92.5 percent of the observations were completely accurate, meaning they matched the actual events as confirmed by hospital staff. Additionally, 6.5 percent of the observations were nearly accurate, indicating that while they were mostly correct, there were minor discrepancies.
Only 1.1 percent of the observations were deemed inaccurate, which was attributed to a single patient in the study.
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Dr. Janice Holden interviewed 93 patients about their near-death experiences (NDE), which she termed “apparently nonphysical veridical NDE perception.” The Epoch Times
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Dr. Jeffrey Long, a practicing radiation oncologist in Kentucky, studied NDEs for 25 years. In his book, “Evidence of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death Experiences,” Long described a survey of 617 near-death experiencers, of whom 46.5 percent described out-of-body experiences. Among these individuals, 97.6 percent of the observations were verified as real.
“When they check out what they saw when they recovered from their life-threatening event, it’s essentially always accurate down to the finest detail.” Long, who studied more than 4,000 NDE cases, told The Epoch Times.
The similarities, consistencies, and accuracy observed in near-death experiences should encourage us to consider these studies and phenomena legitimate scientific inquiries, he said.
In his book, Sabom stated that he was initially skeptical of NDEs.
He even set out to disprove them. However, after several years of intensive research, his perspective changed.
Science fundamentally relies on the principle that reality is established through repeated, verifiable observations. With thousands of reported cases, NDEs are worthy of serious scientific consideration.To Other DimensionsIn addition to out-of-body experiences, prominent medical journals and doctors have reported cases where people journeyed beyond the current physical world.
In van Lommel’s study, 29 percent of individuals with NDEs reported that their consciousness journeyed into alternative dimensions and returned with vivid experiences.
Meanwhile, 7 percent of subjects in Parnia’s study reported that they seemed to enter some other unearthly world.Alexander’s career includes more than 25 years of experience as a neurosurgeon, with 15 years spent at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Children’s Hospitals and Harvard Medical School in Boston.
In the early hours of Nov. 10, 2008, Alexander fell into a deep coma due to a rare bacterial meningitis. The doctors told him that he was “down to a 2% chance [of survival] with no chance of recovery,” he told The Epoch Times in an interview.
Though his condition deteriorated rapidly, he awoke seven days later.
During the week he was in a coma, as his life ebbed away, Alexander had an extremely vivid experience. According to his recollection, he felt reborn as a primitive, gooey substance, then rode on the wing of a butterfly guiding him to a realm “entirely different kind of eternal nature outside of Earth.” he said.
The world he saw had immense clouds of pink and white, transparent, shimmering beings moving in an arc across the sky, leaving rainbow streaks, he told The Epoch Times. In his book, “Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Afterlife,” Alexander interpreted this world as heaven. He also described feeling the love of God and the presence of angels.
Dr. Mary C. Neal, an orthopedic surgeon at the University of Southern California, reported a similar experience in her book “To Heaven and Back.”In 1999, during a kayaking accident, Neal drowned, and her consciousness seemed to leave her body, entering a realm of light. There, she encountered spiritual beings and underwent a life review.
“Guidelines and standards for the study of death and recalled experiences of death” by Dr. Sam Parnia and a team of medical experts, including neuroscientists, critical care specialists, psychiatrists, and psychologists from Harvard University, Baylor University, University of California, Riverside, and the University of Virginia, summarized that NDEs follow a strikingly similar pattern to one another.
“When they check out what they saw when they recovered from their life-threatening event, it’s essentially always accurate down to the finest detail.” Long, who studied more than 4,000 NDE cases, told The Epoch Times.
The similarities, consistencies, and accuracy observed in near-death experiences should encourage us to consider these studies and phenomena legitimate scientific inquiries, he said.
In his book, Sabom stated that he was initially skeptical of NDEs.
He even set out to disprove them. However, after several years of intensive research, his perspective changed.
Science fundamentally relies on the principle that reality is established through repeated, verifiable observations. With thousands of reported cases, NDEs are worthy of serious scientific consideration.To Other DimensionsIn addition to out-of-body experiences, prominent medical journals and doctors have reported cases where people journeyed beyond the current physical world.
In van Lommel’s study, 29 percent of individuals with NDEs reported that their consciousness journeyed into alternative dimensions and returned with vivid experiences.
Meanwhile, 7 percent of subjects in Parnia’s study reported that they seemed to enter some other unearthly world.Alexander’s career includes more than 25 years of experience as a neurosurgeon, with 15 years spent at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Children’s Hospitals and Harvard Medical School in Boston.
In the early hours of Nov. 10, 2008, Alexander fell into a deep coma due to a rare bacterial meningitis. The doctors told him that he was “down to a 2% chance [of survival] with no chance of recovery,” he told The Epoch Times in an interview.
Though his condition deteriorated rapidly, he awoke seven days later.
During the week he was in a coma, as his life ebbed away, Alexander had an extremely vivid experience. According to his recollection, he felt reborn as a primitive, gooey substance, then rode on the wing of a butterfly guiding him to a realm “entirely different kind of eternal nature outside of Earth.” he said.
The world he saw had immense clouds of pink and white, transparent, shimmering beings moving in an arc across the sky, leaving rainbow streaks, he told The Epoch Times. In his book, “Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Afterlife,” Alexander interpreted this world as heaven. He also described feeling the love of God and the presence of angels.
Dr. Mary C. Neal, an orthopedic surgeon at the University of Southern California, reported a similar experience in her book “To Heaven and Back.”In 1999, during a kayaking accident, Neal drowned, and her consciousness seemed to leave her body, entering a realm of light. There, she encountered spiritual beings and underwent a life review.
“Guidelines and standards for the study of death and recalled experiences of death” by Dr. Sam Parnia and a team of medical experts, including neuroscientists, critical care specialists, psychiatrists, and psychologists from Harvard University, Baylor University, University of California, Riverside, and the University of Virginia, summarized that NDEs follow a strikingly similar pattern to one another.
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A 2022 medical guideline by Dr. Sam Parnia and a team of medical experts, summarized NDEs as having strikingly similar patterns. Illustration by The Epoch Times
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Some scientists have proposed other explanations for these experiences, as detailed in a previous article.‘
Non - Physical
Both heart transplant surgery and NDEs suggest a remarkable fluidity to consciousness. Human consciousness is likely a free entity moving around in our body. It can relocate to our hearts, move outside our bodies, and even travel to other dimensions that are imperceptible to human eyes.
“Rather like a rainbow, you can see it is real, but you cannot touch it.”
Dr. Peter Walling from Baylor University Medical Center said to The Epoch Times.Long shared that if people really understood the overwhelming evidence for the existence of consciousness independent from the body, “it’s very easy to accept that we are literally eternal beings that have an earthly, physical existence, but our greater reality is that of non-physical and in that non-physical consciousness.”
Regardless of where consciousness may travel, it must have an origin—a starting point.
Next, we explore the possible origins of human consciousness through the lens of medical and scientific research.
Non - Physical
Both heart transplant surgery and NDEs suggest a remarkable fluidity to consciousness. Human consciousness is likely a free entity moving around in our body. It can relocate to our hearts, move outside our bodies, and even travel to other dimensions that are imperceptible to human eyes.
“Rather like a rainbow, you can see it is real, but you cannot touch it.”
Dr. Peter Walling from Baylor University Medical Center said to The Epoch Times.Long shared that if people really understood the overwhelming evidence for the existence of consciousness independent from the body, “it’s very easy to accept that we are literally eternal beings that have an earthly, physical existence, but our greater reality is that of non-physical and in that non-physical consciousness.”
Regardless of where consciousness may travel, it must have an origin—a starting point.
Next, we explore the possible origins of human consciousness through the lens of medical and scientific research.
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Where Does Consciousness Come From?
Part 3
The River of Consciousness: An Exploration Through Time and Space
Where Does Consciousness Come From?
Part 3
The River of Consciousness: An Exploration Through Time and Space
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Health Viewpoints
The River of Consciousness
An Exploration Through Time and Space
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If our consciousness doesn’t fade at death, where does it go?
Children’s memories provide missing pieces to this puzzle.
By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
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Updated:February 27, 2025
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Health Viewpoints
The River of Consciousness
An Exploration Through Time and Space
❖
If our consciousness doesn’t fade at death, where does it go?
Children’s memories provide missing pieces to this puzzle.
By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
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Updated:February 27, 2025
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This is part 3 in “Where Does Consciousness Come From?”
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
On Oct. 11, 2002, in Lafayette, Louisiana, Bruce Leininger was cleaning up his yard in the aftermath of Hurricane Lili. Taking a moment to rest, he sat down with his four-year-old son, James, and cradled him in his lap. Hugging him, Bruce told James, “You are such a good son.”
James looked up at his father and replied, “That’s why I picked you. I knew you would be good parents.”
This may sound like the musings of a child, but the remainder of the conversation perplexed Bruce.
“Where did you find us?” Bruce asked. “A big pink hotel in Hawaii,” James answered.
“What were we doing when you picked us?” Bruce asked.
“You were having dinner on the beach at night,” James stated matter-of-factly.
Bruce and his wife, Andrea, were astonished. From late May to early June 1997, they celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary at the Royal Hawaiian, a coral-pink hotel in Honolulu. There, indeed, they enjoyed dinner on the beach at night.
James looked up at his father and replied, “That’s why I picked you. I knew you would be good parents.”
This may sound like the musings of a child, but the remainder of the conversation perplexed Bruce.
“Where did you find us?” Bruce asked. “A big pink hotel in Hawaii,” James answered.
“What were we doing when you picked us?” Bruce asked.
“You were having dinner on the beach at night,” James stated matter-of-factly.
Bruce and his wife, Andrea, were astonished. From late May to early June 1997, they celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary at the Royal Hawaiian, a coral-pink hotel in Honolulu. There, indeed, they enjoyed dinner on the beach at night.
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The Royal Hawaiian Hotel, a beachfront luxury hotel in Honolulu on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Source: Frank Schulenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0
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The Royal Hawaiian Hotel, a beachfront luxury hotel in Honolulu on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Source: Frank Schulenburg, CC BY-SA 4.0
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The experience was personal, one they had never discussed in front of James. Furthermore, the trip occurred four to five weeks before Andrea became pregnant. There was no way James could have known these intimate details.
These conversations were recorded in “Consciousness Survives Physical Death,” a prize-winning article submitted to the Bigelow Institute, sponsored by Bigelow Aerospace and owned by Robert Bigelow.
James’s recollections didn’t end with choosing his parents. He is one of many children with memories beyond this life. A large body of research suggests that consciousness carries memories from life to life.A World War II PilotSince birth, James had an unusual fascination with airplanes.
At the age of two, he began having nightmares of a plane crash, where he described himself as an American pilot whose plane was shot down by the Japanese.
James provided details that included the name of the aircraft carrier, the name of the friend on the ship with him, and the location and specific details of the crash.
The details corresponded to the death of World War II pilot James McCready Huston Jr.Premium Picks
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Moreover, James knew specific, historically accurate details that neither his parents nor the general public would have known. At the age of two, he identified the ship’s name, the USS Natoma Bay, where Huston’s plane flew from, as well as a fellow pilot, Jack Larsen.
Huston’s family also verified little James’s statements about his claimed previous personal life. For example, he knew Huston’s nickname for his sister, which only her deceased brother—James Huston—had used.
Dr. Jim Tucker, a psychiatrist from the University of Virginia who reported the case in a 2016 paper, concluded, “On the face of it, the most obvious explanation for this connection is that he experienced life as James Huston, Jr. before having his current one. The facts in the case indicate that this explanation warrants serious consideration.
”The phenomenon of past life memories (PLM) is regarded in some Asian religions and philosophies as reincarnation, which refers to the rebirth of consciousness after bodily death.
During the past century, more and more scientists have become interested in this topic.
Prominent scientist Carl Sagan, founding member of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, wrote in his book,
“The Demon - Haunted World,”
“There are three claims in the ESP [parapsychology] field which, in my opinion, deserve serious study,” with the third being, “that young children sometimes report details of a previous life, which upon checking turn out to be accurate and which they could not have known about in any other way than reincarnation.”2,500 Cases:
‘Data That Cannot Be Ignored’
The discussion about past life memory has extended beyond religion to the scientific field.Dr. Ian Stevenson (1918–2007), a chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Neurology at the University of Virginia, was the first medical professional to push the boundaries of reincarnation research.
In a contest by the American Society for Psychical Research, which studies paranormal mental phenomena, Stevenson chose to analyze 44 people with memories of past lives. His paper won first place.
While conducting his research, he was struck by the similarities in cases from different countries and sources and felt compelled to investigate further.
Stevenson went on to dedicate more than 30 years to systematically studying the phenomenon of past life memories.
He collected and meticulously documented in his book, “Reincarnation and Biology,” more than 2,500 cases of children worldwide who claimed to remember past lives.
One of his studies, published in Medical Hypotheses, involved 856 cases of PLM, of which 67 percent were marked as solved. According to Stevenson’s methodology, a “solved” case means researchers identified a deceased individual whose life and death details precisely matched the child’s recounted memories.
These conversations were recorded in “Consciousness Survives Physical Death,” a prize-winning article submitted to the Bigelow Institute, sponsored by Bigelow Aerospace and owned by Robert Bigelow.
James’s recollections didn’t end with choosing his parents. He is one of many children with memories beyond this life. A large body of research suggests that consciousness carries memories from life to life.A World War II PilotSince birth, James had an unusual fascination with airplanes.
At the age of two, he began having nightmares of a plane crash, where he described himself as an American pilot whose plane was shot down by the Japanese.
James provided details that included the name of the aircraft carrier, the name of the friend on the ship with him, and the location and specific details of the crash.
The details corresponded to the death of World War II pilot James McCready Huston Jr.Premium Picks
Consciousness Does Not Go to the Grave ...
So Where Does It Go?
See the Human Brain Like Never Before
When Food Hijacks Your Brain, There Are Ways to Get It Back
Moreover, James knew specific, historically accurate details that neither his parents nor the general public would have known. At the age of two, he identified the ship’s name, the USS Natoma Bay, where Huston’s plane flew from, as well as a fellow pilot, Jack Larsen.
Huston’s family also verified little James’s statements about his claimed previous personal life. For example, he knew Huston’s nickname for his sister, which only her deceased brother—James Huston—had used.
Dr. Jim Tucker, a psychiatrist from the University of Virginia who reported the case in a 2016 paper, concluded, “On the face of it, the most obvious explanation for this connection is that he experienced life as James Huston, Jr. before having his current one. The facts in the case indicate that this explanation warrants serious consideration.
”The phenomenon of past life memories (PLM) is regarded in some Asian religions and philosophies as reincarnation, which refers to the rebirth of consciousness after bodily death.
During the past century, more and more scientists have become interested in this topic.
Prominent scientist Carl Sagan, founding member of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, wrote in his book,
“The Demon - Haunted World,”
“There are three claims in the ESP [parapsychology] field which, in my opinion, deserve serious study,” with the third being, “that young children sometimes report details of a previous life, which upon checking turn out to be accurate and which they could not have known about in any other way than reincarnation.”2,500 Cases:
‘Data That Cannot Be Ignored’
The discussion about past life memory has extended beyond religion to the scientific field.Dr. Ian Stevenson (1918–2007), a chairman of the Department of Psychiatry and Neurology at the University of Virginia, was the first medical professional to push the boundaries of reincarnation research.
In a contest by the American Society for Psychical Research, which studies paranormal mental phenomena, Stevenson chose to analyze 44 people with memories of past lives. His paper won first place.
While conducting his research, he was struck by the similarities in cases from different countries and sources and felt compelled to investigate further.
Stevenson went on to dedicate more than 30 years to systematically studying the phenomenon of past life memories.
He collected and meticulously documented in his book, “Reincarnation and Biology,” more than 2,500 cases of children worldwide who claimed to remember past lives.
One of his studies, published in Medical Hypotheses, involved 856 cases of PLM, of which 67 percent were marked as solved. According to Stevenson’s methodology, a “solved” case means researchers identified a deceased individual whose life and death details precisely matched the child’s recounted memories.
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In a study conducted by Ian Stevenson from the University of Virginia, 67 percent of the 856 cases of claimed past life were identified. The Epoch Times
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Stevenson’s research encompassed diverse regions, including India, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Lebanon, Thailand, Myanmar, and countries in North and South America and Europe.
He focused his studies on children for two reasons. First, young children were less likely to fabricate past-life memories with a high level of verifiable detail. Second, they typically had limited exposure to external sources of information, making it improbable they could have acquired detailed knowledge about deceased individuals through ordinary means.
His articles outline each step of his process and invite readers to scrutinize his methods and results.
Stevenson was a prominent scientist credited with around 60 publications in mainstream medical society.
His methods of research are widely respected as a role model for studying past life memory cases. Stevenson’s contributions earned him the title of “chair professor,” a distinction awarded to particularly eminent scholars.
“He has painstakingly and unemotionally collected a detailed series of cases,” Dr. Lester S. King commented on Stevenson’s research in a 1975 article in JAMA. “He may not convince skeptics but he [Stevenson] has placed on record a large amount of data that cannot be ignored.”
Dr. Emily Kelly, a long-time colleague of Stevenson, wrote in a 2007 article in the BMJ, “He [Stevenson] believed the evidence was sufficient to permit a reasonable person to believe in reincarnation.”
One such example of evidence—that drew the attention of Mahatma Gandhi—is that of Shanti Devi in India.A Case That Captivated GandhiShanti Devi was a girl who lived in Delhi since her birth in 1926. When she was three years old, she began recalling her past life as a woman named Lugdi. Initially, her parents dismissed her vivid memories as childish fantasies.
Shanti Devi began recalling her past life memories at the age of three. Source: John H. Manas, CC BY-SA 4.0
As Devi grew older, she insisted on visiting her former husband, Kedar Nath, in Mathura, 162 kilometers away. Their curiosity piqued, her family located and wrote to Nath, who eventually visited Devi. To his astonishment, the nine-year-old girl accurately identified him and other relatives, recounting details of their lives that she could not have possibly known.
The media report on Devi drew the attention of Mahatma Gandhi. When Devi was 10, Gandhi established a “committee of inquiry” comprising 15 distinguished members--including lawyers, journalists, political leaders, and congressional members—to investigate the claims.The committee affirmed that Devi had never left Delhi.
They later accompanied her to Mathura, where she correctly identified Nath’s house and her father-in-law’s house and described its layout.
Furthermore, Devi pointed to a corner of the room where she claimed to have buried money. When witnesses excavated the area, they uncovered a case meant for storing valuables, but it was empty. Devi insisted she had left money there, and eventually, Nath acknowledged that he had found and taken the money after his wife’s death.
Stevenson noted that at least 24 of her claims were confirmed—compelling evidence that her memories were not fabrications.
Ultimately, the committee published a 26-page report in 1936, concluding that Devi was a rebirth of Lugdi. The case was also featured in the Dec. 12, 1937, issue of American Weekly.
Impossible Knowledge
According to Stevenson, a typical child case of past-life memory usually arises between the ages of 2 and 4 years.
These children spontaneously relate details of past lives, even if they are thousands of miles away from where they occurred, and the events happened a dozen years or more prior. These details are often as much as 90 percent accurate.
He focused his studies on children for two reasons. First, young children were less likely to fabricate past-life memories with a high level of verifiable detail. Second, they typically had limited exposure to external sources of information, making it improbable they could have acquired detailed knowledge about deceased individuals through ordinary means.
His articles outline each step of his process and invite readers to scrutinize his methods and results.
Stevenson was a prominent scientist credited with around 60 publications in mainstream medical society.
His methods of research are widely respected as a role model for studying past life memory cases. Stevenson’s contributions earned him the title of “chair professor,” a distinction awarded to particularly eminent scholars.
“He has painstakingly and unemotionally collected a detailed series of cases,” Dr. Lester S. King commented on Stevenson’s research in a 1975 article in JAMA. “He may not convince skeptics but he [Stevenson] has placed on record a large amount of data that cannot be ignored.”
Dr. Emily Kelly, a long-time colleague of Stevenson, wrote in a 2007 article in the BMJ, “He [Stevenson] believed the evidence was sufficient to permit a reasonable person to believe in reincarnation.”
One such example of evidence—that drew the attention of Mahatma Gandhi—is that of Shanti Devi in India.A Case That Captivated GandhiShanti Devi was a girl who lived in Delhi since her birth in 1926. When she was three years old, she began recalling her past life as a woman named Lugdi. Initially, her parents dismissed her vivid memories as childish fantasies.
Shanti Devi began recalling her past life memories at the age of three. Source: John H. Manas, CC BY-SA 4.0
As Devi grew older, she insisted on visiting her former husband, Kedar Nath, in Mathura, 162 kilometers away. Their curiosity piqued, her family located and wrote to Nath, who eventually visited Devi. To his astonishment, the nine-year-old girl accurately identified him and other relatives, recounting details of their lives that she could not have possibly known.
The media report on Devi drew the attention of Mahatma Gandhi. When Devi was 10, Gandhi established a “committee of inquiry” comprising 15 distinguished members--including lawyers, journalists, political leaders, and congressional members—to investigate the claims.The committee affirmed that Devi had never left Delhi.
They later accompanied her to Mathura, where she correctly identified Nath’s house and her father-in-law’s house and described its layout.
Furthermore, Devi pointed to a corner of the room where she claimed to have buried money. When witnesses excavated the area, they uncovered a case meant for storing valuables, but it was empty. Devi insisted she had left money there, and eventually, Nath acknowledged that he had found and taken the money after his wife’s death.
Stevenson noted that at least 24 of her claims were confirmed—compelling evidence that her memories were not fabrications.
Ultimately, the committee published a 26-page report in 1936, concluding that Devi was a rebirth of Lugdi. The case was also featured in the Dec. 12, 1937, issue of American Weekly.
Impossible Knowledge
According to Stevenson, a typical child case of past-life memory usually arises between the ages of 2 and 4 years.
These children spontaneously relate details of past lives, even if they are thousands of miles away from where they occurred, and the events happened a dozen years or more prior. These details are often as much as 90 percent accurate.
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According to Ian Stevenson,
details of past lives recounted by children were 90 percent accurate. The Epoch Times
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According to Ian Stevenson,
details of past lives recounted by children were 90 percent accurate. The Epoch Times
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This sign of reincarnation involves “talking about things that there is absolutely no way in the world these kids could know at that age,” Carol Bowman, a past-life regression therapist who has been investigating PLM in American families for 35 years, told The Epoch Times.
These children usually have no psychosocial problems, Bowman said. Their past lives are often of ordinary families rather than renowned people or celebrities, so there is a lack of motive to fabricate stories.
Bowman described a three-year-old girl named Megan who talked about her past life as a man (John) whose wife (Mary) died of “the consumption,” a common term for tuberculosis in the 1800s. Megan also said that because of Mary’s sickness and inability to give birth to a child, she was very sad.
How could this little girl learn medical knowledge regarding consumption and infertility during the course of her current young life?Children who remember past lives can often show an unlearned skill. Devi naturally spoke the local language in Mathura, where she had lived in her previous life, even though she had never been there and had not learned it in her life.
Bowman reported that a four-year-old American boy, Tommy, had expertly sewn a button on his pants. When his mother asked where he learned the skill, the boy replied, “Well, we used to do it on my ship all the time,” and he started to describe his past life as a sailor.
“They shift into a very serious way of expressing themselves, very matter of fact, serious, adamant that what they are saying is true,” said Bowman.
A systemic review published in 2021 analyzed 78 observational studies and found that of those children with past-life memory, 23 percent had unlearned skills. More surprisingly, 37 percent had birthmarks or defects matching wounds from previous lives.
Birthmarks are common—so how can a birthmark connect a past life with the current one?
Birthmarks and Defects - Coincidental?
In a study of 895 children with past life memories, 35 percent had unusual birthmarks or congenital defects, according to Stevenson.
Stevenson’s research indicates a significant consistency rate of 88 percent between wounds and birthmarks in past life cases supported by postmortem reports or other confirming documents.For example, in one case, a Turkish boy had a malformed right ear. The boy remembered being shot on the right side of his skull in a previous life. Stevenson identified the past life and confirmed the cause of death by reviewing hospital records.
Bowman has also collected evidence related to birthmarks and behaviors. For instance, Kathy’s first child, (also named) James, tragically passed away from neuroblastoma shortly after his second birthday. James had problems with his left eye, right ear, and left leg, and an intravenous injection left a scar on his neck.
Twelve years after James’s death, Kathy’s other son, Chad, was born. Chad began to show striking physical similarities to James. Chad experienced blindness in his left eye, had a problem with his right ear, faced a disability in his left leg, and bore a scar in the exact same spot on his neck as James.
Moreover, Chad shared a quiet and nervous demeanor similar to James’s. At four years old, Chad started claiming he lived in a house with chocolate-colored furniture and played with certain toys, perfectly matching every detail of James’s life.
Postmortem reports and medical records confirm that the means of death in a previous life are consistent with current birthmarks, which is beyond coincidence.
Floated Explanations
Alternative explanations for past-life memories include memory distortions, parental influence, and cultural or social conditioning. However, these hypotheses have weaknesses.
A 2007 study suggested that past life memories appeared to be caused by confusion in memory or false memories. However, confusion in memory cannot explain the accuracy and verifiable details demonstrated in many well-documented cases by researchers.
Moreover, studies have shown that the initial attitude of mothers toward past-life memories of their children varied. Overall, 51 percent of mothers were neutral or tolerant of past life memories, 28 percent were discouraging, and 21 percent were encouraging.Some attribute birthmarks to the child’s mother’s maternal impression.
They state that a pregnant woman’s awareness of a deceased person’s wounds could influence the developing embryo and fetus, resulting in physical characteristics that correspond to those wounds.
According to Stevenson’s research, the children’s mothers usually did not know about their past life’s wounds. The hypothesis also couldn’t explain how the mother’s thoughts could modify her unborn child’s body or why the children would have those memories.
For the cultural or social conditioning hypothesis, the 2021 systemic review found that PLM cases were not only reported in countries from Asia that have cultural and religious reincarnation beliefs but also in America and Europe, suggesting a cross-cultural phenomenon.
These children usually have no psychosocial problems, Bowman said. Their past lives are often of ordinary families rather than renowned people or celebrities, so there is a lack of motive to fabricate stories.
Bowman described a three-year-old girl named Megan who talked about her past life as a man (John) whose wife (Mary) died of “the consumption,” a common term for tuberculosis in the 1800s. Megan also said that because of Mary’s sickness and inability to give birth to a child, she was very sad.
How could this little girl learn medical knowledge regarding consumption and infertility during the course of her current young life?Children who remember past lives can often show an unlearned skill. Devi naturally spoke the local language in Mathura, where she had lived in her previous life, even though she had never been there and had not learned it in her life.
Bowman reported that a four-year-old American boy, Tommy, had expertly sewn a button on his pants. When his mother asked where he learned the skill, the boy replied, “Well, we used to do it on my ship all the time,” and he started to describe his past life as a sailor.
“They shift into a very serious way of expressing themselves, very matter of fact, serious, adamant that what they are saying is true,” said Bowman.
A systemic review published in 2021 analyzed 78 observational studies and found that of those children with past-life memory, 23 percent had unlearned skills. More surprisingly, 37 percent had birthmarks or defects matching wounds from previous lives.
Birthmarks are common—so how can a birthmark connect a past life with the current one?
Birthmarks and Defects - Coincidental?
In a study of 895 children with past life memories, 35 percent had unusual birthmarks or congenital defects, according to Stevenson.
Stevenson’s research indicates a significant consistency rate of 88 percent between wounds and birthmarks in past life cases supported by postmortem reports or other confirming documents.For example, in one case, a Turkish boy had a malformed right ear. The boy remembered being shot on the right side of his skull in a previous life. Stevenson identified the past life and confirmed the cause of death by reviewing hospital records.
Bowman has also collected evidence related to birthmarks and behaviors. For instance, Kathy’s first child, (also named) James, tragically passed away from neuroblastoma shortly after his second birthday. James had problems with his left eye, right ear, and left leg, and an intravenous injection left a scar on his neck.
Twelve years after James’s death, Kathy’s other son, Chad, was born. Chad began to show striking physical similarities to James. Chad experienced blindness in his left eye, had a problem with his right ear, faced a disability in his left leg, and bore a scar in the exact same spot on his neck as James.
Moreover, Chad shared a quiet and nervous demeanor similar to James’s. At four years old, Chad started claiming he lived in a house with chocolate-colored furniture and played with certain toys, perfectly matching every detail of James’s life.
Postmortem reports and medical records confirm that the means of death in a previous life are consistent with current birthmarks, which is beyond coincidence.
Floated Explanations
Alternative explanations for past-life memories include memory distortions, parental influence, and cultural or social conditioning. However, these hypotheses have weaknesses.
A 2007 study suggested that past life memories appeared to be caused by confusion in memory or false memories. However, confusion in memory cannot explain the accuracy and verifiable details demonstrated in many well-documented cases by researchers.
Moreover, studies have shown that the initial attitude of mothers toward past-life memories of their children varied. Overall, 51 percent of mothers were neutral or tolerant of past life memories, 28 percent were discouraging, and 21 percent were encouraging.Some attribute birthmarks to the child’s mother’s maternal impression.
They state that a pregnant woman’s awareness of a deceased person’s wounds could influence the developing embryo and fetus, resulting in physical characteristics that correspond to those wounds.
According to Stevenson’s research, the children’s mothers usually did not know about their past life’s wounds. The hypothesis also couldn’t explain how the mother’s thoughts could modify her unborn child’s body or why the children would have those memories.
For the cultural or social conditioning hypothesis, the 2021 systemic review found that PLM cases were not only reported in countries from Asia that have cultural and religious reincarnation beliefs but also in America and Europe, suggesting a cross-cultural phenomenon.
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PLM cases have been reported in countries around the world, suggesting a cross-cultural phenomenon. The Epoch Times
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Other people explain PLM as coincidental events--that a birthmark or defect occurs by chance—and the person subsequently learns about a deceased individual with a similar mark. The similarity causes them to feel connected to that person. However, there is no solid evidence, and it appears unlikely, especially considering most PLM cases are kids.Skeptics often dismiss birthmarks or defects as indicators of past lives as mere coincidence.
How many coincidences need to occur to substantiate a single case PLM when documented facts align with the memories expressed? The more detailed and verifiable the connections are, the harder it becomes to dismiss such claims as coincidence.
Dr. Eben Alexander is a renowned neurosurgeon who has studied the brain for decades and had a near-death experience. In a previous interview, he told The Epoch Times, “I would say our human consciousness can be quite limited because of our prejudices and assumptions when we think we understand things but are not paying attention to all the evidence.”
Past - Life Regression
When people have a traumatic memory in an earlier stage of their current lives, it can have implications on their physical or mental health, often contributing to post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD).
Psychologists may use talk therapy to help patients release the traumatic injury in their bodies to heal mentally and physically. Such psychotherapeutic approaches complement pharmacologic treatment prescribed by a psychiatrist.Similarly, some health practitioners have explored past-life regression therapy, a type of hypnotherapy, to treat diseases.
Like the treatment of PTSD, past-life regression therapy relies on guided dialogue under hypnosis, with the therapist helping the patient explore what they believe are memories from past lives.
While there is ongoing debate surrounding the robustness of the efficacy of past-life regression therapy, there are documented patients who have benefited from this treatment.
Dr. Jason Liu, a holistic health practitioner in California with a doctorate in neuroscience, told The Epoch Times that he witnessed one patient with fibromyalgia who went back to normal life after past life regression therapy.
Marilyn, a 46-year-old woman, had been suffering from constant, debilitating chronic pain for years, which led her to attempt suicide. In addition to fibromyalgia, she struggled with coexisting conditions, including chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
Though her husband was a medical doctor, conventional treatment didn’t help her. Liu decided to try past life regression therapy.
Under hypnosis using theta brainwaves, Marilyn entered a peaceful trance state. In the hypnotic state, she accessed a fragment of memory where she was a soldier in a war and under attack.
Through a series of conversations with Liu, she came to understand that the intense fears she had experienced in her past life were linked to the physical pain she was enduring in her present life.
With Liu’s gentle guidance, Marilyn was able to separate the emotional trauma of her past life from her current reality. Since then, she has felt significantly more at peace and hopeful. Her physical and mental symptoms improved dramatically, leading to a full recovery.
Bowman’s son also had past life memories. He developed chronic eczema and a phobia of loud noises when he was five years old.
“When we asked him what this was about, he proceeded to tell us, in first person account, that he had been a soldier and he was killed on a battlefield behind a cannon,” said Bowman.
After her son talked about his past life memory, his physical condition of chronic eczema disappeared, and his phobia of loud noises went away.
“There is some [kind of] body memory, somatic memory, related to these memories,” Bowman said, suggesting that the past life may be stored in our consciousness and body.
Flowing River
A river transports sand, nutrients, and aquatic life as it flows gracefully from the peaks of the mountain to its destination. Similarly, studies related to past life memories suggest that our consciousness is like a flowing river, carrying memories, experiences, and the essence of our souls from one life to the next, connecting us to the tapestry of existence.
“I think [it] is fascinating because, as Ian Stevenson [talked] about too—our current situations, our current personalities, can have origins in past life experience,” Bowman told The Epoch Times. “Consciousness survives death,” she added, “as well as personality traits, feelings, and physical traits. This transfers over to another body, another life, different circumstances, but it’s all connected. There’s a continuum from one life to another.”
After Stevenson passed away, his successor, Dr. Jim Tucker, a Bonner-Lowry professor of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences and the director of the Division of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia, continued his mission to study PLM.
Dr. Brian L. Weiss and Dr. Bruce Greyson also work on past life memory research. Weiss is a renowned psychiatrist, a graduate of Columbia University and Yale Medical School, and chairman emeritus of psychiatry at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami. Greyson is a professor emeritus of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences at the University of Virginia.
The accumulation of evidence in the first three articles of this series alludes to the possibility that consciousness extends beyond our physical reality.
Everyone eventually dies. However, if our consciousness is eternal and memories of our past life experiences persist, it could potentially hold significant meaning for our well-being in this life and in the future.
If memories can traverse lifetimes, it begs the question: Where does our consciousness reside amid different lives? Where is the initial origin or ultimate home of our consciousness?
Next, we will continue to explore the potential origin of consciousness in light of multiple lines of scientific research.
How many coincidences need to occur to substantiate a single case PLM when documented facts align with the memories expressed? The more detailed and verifiable the connections are, the harder it becomes to dismiss such claims as coincidence.
Dr. Eben Alexander is a renowned neurosurgeon who has studied the brain for decades and had a near-death experience. In a previous interview, he told The Epoch Times, “I would say our human consciousness can be quite limited because of our prejudices and assumptions when we think we understand things but are not paying attention to all the evidence.”
Past - Life Regression
When people have a traumatic memory in an earlier stage of their current lives, it can have implications on their physical or mental health, often contributing to post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD).
Psychologists may use talk therapy to help patients release the traumatic injury in their bodies to heal mentally and physically. Such psychotherapeutic approaches complement pharmacologic treatment prescribed by a psychiatrist.Similarly, some health practitioners have explored past-life regression therapy, a type of hypnotherapy, to treat diseases.
Like the treatment of PTSD, past-life regression therapy relies on guided dialogue under hypnosis, with the therapist helping the patient explore what they believe are memories from past lives.
While there is ongoing debate surrounding the robustness of the efficacy of past-life regression therapy, there are documented patients who have benefited from this treatment.
Dr. Jason Liu, a holistic health practitioner in California with a doctorate in neuroscience, told The Epoch Times that he witnessed one patient with fibromyalgia who went back to normal life after past life regression therapy.
Marilyn, a 46-year-old woman, had been suffering from constant, debilitating chronic pain for years, which led her to attempt suicide. In addition to fibromyalgia, she struggled with coexisting conditions, including chronic fatigue syndrome, anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
Though her husband was a medical doctor, conventional treatment didn’t help her. Liu decided to try past life regression therapy.
Under hypnosis using theta brainwaves, Marilyn entered a peaceful trance state. In the hypnotic state, she accessed a fragment of memory where she was a soldier in a war and under attack.
Through a series of conversations with Liu, she came to understand that the intense fears she had experienced in her past life were linked to the physical pain she was enduring in her present life.
With Liu’s gentle guidance, Marilyn was able to separate the emotional trauma of her past life from her current reality. Since then, she has felt significantly more at peace and hopeful. Her physical and mental symptoms improved dramatically, leading to a full recovery.
Bowman’s son also had past life memories. He developed chronic eczema and a phobia of loud noises when he was five years old.
“When we asked him what this was about, he proceeded to tell us, in first person account, that he had been a soldier and he was killed on a battlefield behind a cannon,” said Bowman.
After her son talked about his past life memory, his physical condition of chronic eczema disappeared, and his phobia of loud noises went away.
“There is some [kind of] body memory, somatic memory, related to these memories,” Bowman said, suggesting that the past life may be stored in our consciousness and body.
Flowing River
A river transports sand, nutrients, and aquatic life as it flows gracefully from the peaks of the mountain to its destination. Similarly, studies related to past life memories suggest that our consciousness is like a flowing river, carrying memories, experiences, and the essence of our souls from one life to the next, connecting us to the tapestry of existence.
“I think [it] is fascinating because, as Ian Stevenson [talked] about too—our current situations, our current personalities, can have origins in past life experience,” Bowman told The Epoch Times. “Consciousness survives death,” she added, “as well as personality traits, feelings, and physical traits. This transfers over to another body, another life, different circumstances, but it’s all connected. There’s a continuum from one life to another.”
After Stevenson passed away, his successor, Dr. Jim Tucker, a Bonner-Lowry professor of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences and the director of the Division of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia, continued his mission to study PLM.
Dr. Brian L. Weiss and Dr. Bruce Greyson also work on past life memory research. Weiss is a renowned psychiatrist, a graduate of Columbia University and Yale Medical School, and chairman emeritus of psychiatry at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami. Greyson is a professor emeritus of psychiatry and neurobehavioral sciences at the University of Virginia.
The accumulation of evidence in the first three articles of this series alludes to the possibility that consciousness extends beyond our physical reality.
Everyone eventually dies. However, if our consciousness is eternal and memories of our past life experiences persist, it could potentially hold significant meaning for our well-being in this life and in the future.
If memories can traverse lifetimes, it begs the question: Where does our consciousness reside amid different lives? Where is the initial origin or ultimate home of our consciousness?
Next, we will continue to explore the potential origin of consciousness in light of multiple lines of scientific research.
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Health Viewpoints
How Consciousness Opens Doors
to Higher Dimensions
Multiple lines of research, including medicine, perinatal psychology and physics,
suggest that our consciousness links to higher dimensions.
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By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
January 23, 2025
Updated:January 26, 2025
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How Consciousness Opens Doors
to Higher Dimensions
Multiple lines of research, including medicine, perinatal psychology and physics,
suggest that our consciousness links to higher dimensions.
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By Yuhong Dong M.D., Ph.D., Makai Allbert
January 23, 2025
Updated:January 26, 2025
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This is part 4 in “Where Does Consciousness Come From?”
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
Dr. Eben Alexander was at the height of his career as a neurosurgeon. With a doctorate in medicine from Duke University and a residency from Harvard, he believed he understood consciousness and the brain. However, on Nov. 10, 2008, a rare and severe bacterial infection attacked his brain, challenging everything he thought he knew.
He fell into a coma and, seven days later, awakened with a complete physical recovery. Yet, while asleep, his mind was not idle. He recalls that his consciousness had gone to another dimension—a place furnished with clouds, shimmering beings, and ethereal sceneries.“I was in a place of clouds.
Big, puffy, pink-white ones that showed up sharply against the deep blue-black sky. Higher than the clouds—immeasurably higher—flocks of transparent orbs, shimmering beings arced across the sky, leaving long, streamer-like lines behind them,”
Alexander wrote in his book, “A Proof of Heaven.”
“I witnessed all of that realm in all of its majesty,” Alexander recounted during an interview with The Epoch Times. “Though I didn’t know where I was or even what I was, I was absolutely sure of one thing: This place I’d suddenly found myself in was completely real,” he said.
Similarly, Dr. Sam Parnia, a medical doctor and research scientist, observed that seven percent of resuscitated patients recounted visits to an unearthly dimension during their near-death experience (NDE)—an experience people sometimes have on the precipice of death and may remember after recovery.
Further, Dr. Pim van Lommel, a cardiologist from the Netherlands, reported that 29 percent of people with NDEs describe entering a vast, beautiful realm beyond our physical reality.
This series delves into research by renowned medical doctors to explore profound questions about consciousness, existence, and what may lie beyond.
Dr. Eben Alexander was at the height of his career as a neurosurgeon. With a doctorate in medicine from Duke University and a residency from Harvard, he believed he understood consciousness and the brain. However, on Nov. 10, 2008, a rare and severe bacterial infection attacked his brain, challenging everything he thought he knew.
He fell into a coma and, seven days later, awakened with a complete physical recovery. Yet, while asleep, his mind was not idle. He recalls that his consciousness had gone to another dimension—a place furnished with clouds, shimmering beings, and ethereal sceneries.“I was in a place of clouds.
Big, puffy, pink-white ones that showed up sharply against the deep blue-black sky. Higher than the clouds—immeasurably higher—flocks of transparent orbs, shimmering beings arced across the sky, leaving long, streamer-like lines behind them,”
Alexander wrote in his book, “A Proof of Heaven.”
“I witnessed all of that realm in all of its majesty,” Alexander recounted during an interview with The Epoch Times. “Though I didn’t know where I was or even what I was, I was absolutely sure of one thing: This place I’d suddenly found myself in was completely real,” he said.
Similarly, Dr. Sam Parnia, a medical doctor and research scientist, observed that seven percent of resuscitated patients recounted visits to an unearthly dimension during their near-death experience (NDE)—an experience people sometimes have on the precipice of death and may remember after recovery.
Further, Dr. Pim van Lommel, a cardiologist from the Netherlands, reported that 29 percent of people with NDEs describe entering a vast, beautiful realm beyond our physical reality.
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These shared elements have prompted experts to discuss the origin of consciousness. Can our consciousness be linked and travel to a dimension imperceptible to human eyes? While people of faith say they’ve had answers all along, medical doctors are still probing, and physicists claim they are close to finding the answer.
Multiple Dimensions
Physicists recognize that there may be numerous dimensions. Modern physics embraces the concept of multidimensional space and parallel universes as a serious scientific idea.Leading theories include string theory and M-theory. String theory posits that the fundamental building blocks of the universe are not just particles but tiny, vibrating filaments, or “strings.”
Imagine analyzing an apple. As you magnify it, you discover layers of structure down to cells, molecules, and atoms. Conventional theories usually stop at subatomic particles. String theory posits that the infinitesimally small subatomic particles are actually strands of energy vibrating in different patterns, much like the strings of a violin. Each distinct vibration produces unique particles, creating a cosmic symphony that constitutes all matter.
String theories are given credence because they provide a framework to unify the fundamental forces of nature—gravity, electromagnetic force, and nuclear force—into one consistent theory. However, string theory posits a universe with at least 10 dimensions, which is integral to its formulation and mathematical consistency.
On a related note, M-theory is a concept in physics that combines different theories about tiny strings, which are thought to make up the fabric of the universe. It suggests 11 dimensions instead of the four we experience (three spatial dimensions of space—width, height, and depth—and one of time).
M-theory aims to explain how the forces of nature, including gravity, work together in a single framework, making it a potential “theory of everything.”While the string and M-theories are mathematically rich and elegant frameworks that help explain certain aspects of particle physics and gravity, they do not have empirically verifiable predictions.
Nevertheless, in the aggregate, these phenomena open the door to ideas about multi-dimensions. Other dimensions, though invisible, may exist simultaneously among us.
Out of the ‘Painting’
John Burke, who has a degree in engineering and authored multiple books on NDEs, offered an analogy: Imagine we lived inside a flat, two-dimensional black-and-white painting. In such a scenario, we would experience only length and width—up and down and side to side—but not depth.“We couldn’t even conceive of it,” he told The Epoch Times in an interview.
Burke suggested that NDEs might be like our two-dimensional consciousness peeling away from that flat painting and entering a three-dimensional world—a realm that has always existed beyond our perception. From this new viewpoint, we could look back at our flat world and understand it as part of a greater dimensional reality.
When our consciousness leaves the body, it’s likely to enter these wider, multi-dimensional spaces, Michael Pravica, who holds a doctorate in condensed matter physics from Harvard University and is a professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told The Epoch Times.
The Tunnel
Individuals with NDEs often describe passing through a tunnel-like expanse with a light at the end before entering the other dimension.
Ned Dougherty, a former director of the International Association for Near-Death Studies, wrote about his personal tunnel experience in his book, “Fast Lane to Heaven.” In it, he explains that after losing physical consciousness, he was drawn to an immense tunnel. At the distant opening of the tunnel, he saw another universe.“I pondered the purpose of the tunnel. It seemed to stretch from Earth into the universe for a distance measured in light years,” Dougherty wrote.
Interestingly, the tunnels described by people who have had NDEs bear a striking resemblance to a concept explored in string theory, where wormholes connect different dimensions.
Additionally, as discussed in Part 1 of this series, physicist Roger Penrose and anesthesiologist Stuart Hameroff proposed that microtubules in the brain may serve as quantum receivers of consciousness. These microtubules also have a unique structure akin to tunnel-like objects.
Multiple Dimensions
Physicists recognize that there may be numerous dimensions. Modern physics embraces the concept of multidimensional space and parallel universes as a serious scientific idea.Leading theories include string theory and M-theory. String theory posits that the fundamental building blocks of the universe are not just particles but tiny, vibrating filaments, or “strings.”
Imagine analyzing an apple. As you magnify it, you discover layers of structure down to cells, molecules, and atoms. Conventional theories usually stop at subatomic particles. String theory posits that the infinitesimally small subatomic particles are actually strands of energy vibrating in different patterns, much like the strings of a violin. Each distinct vibration produces unique particles, creating a cosmic symphony that constitutes all matter.
String theories are given credence because they provide a framework to unify the fundamental forces of nature—gravity, electromagnetic force, and nuclear force—into one consistent theory. However, string theory posits a universe with at least 10 dimensions, which is integral to its formulation and mathematical consistency.
On a related note, M-theory is a concept in physics that combines different theories about tiny strings, which are thought to make up the fabric of the universe. It suggests 11 dimensions instead of the four we experience (three spatial dimensions of space—width, height, and depth—and one of time).
M-theory aims to explain how the forces of nature, including gravity, work together in a single framework, making it a potential “theory of everything.”While the string and M-theories are mathematically rich and elegant frameworks that help explain certain aspects of particle physics and gravity, they do not have empirically verifiable predictions.
Nevertheless, in the aggregate, these phenomena open the door to ideas about multi-dimensions. Other dimensions, though invisible, may exist simultaneously among us.
Out of the ‘Painting’
John Burke, who has a degree in engineering and authored multiple books on NDEs, offered an analogy: Imagine we lived inside a flat, two-dimensional black-and-white painting. In such a scenario, we would experience only length and width—up and down and side to side—but not depth.“We couldn’t even conceive of it,” he told The Epoch Times in an interview.
Burke suggested that NDEs might be like our two-dimensional consciousness peeling away from that flat painting and entering a three-dimensional world—a realm that has always existed beyond our perception. From this new viewpoint, we could look back at our flat world and understand it as part of a greater dimensional reality.
When our consciousness leaves the body, it’s likely to enter these wider, multi-dimensional spaces, Michael Pravica, who holds a doctorate in condensed matter physics from Harvard University and is a professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, told The Epoch Times.
The Tunnel
Individuals with NDEs often describe passing through a tunnel-like expanse with a light at the end before entering the other dimension.
Ned Dougherty, a former director of the International Association for Near-Death Studies, wrote about his personal tunnel experience in his book, “Fast Lane to Heaven.” In it, he explains that after losing physical consciousness, he was drawn to an immense tunnel. At the distant opening of the tunnel, he saw another universe.“I pondered the purpose of the tunnel. It seemed to stretch from Earth into the universe for a distance measured in light years,” Dougherty wrote.
Interestingly, the tunnels described by people who have had NDEs bear a striking resemblance to a concept explored in string theory, where wormholes connect different dimensions.
Additionally, as discussed in Part 1 of this series, physicist Roger Penrose and anesthesiologist Stuart Hameroff proposed that microtubules in the brain may serve as quantum receivers of consciousness. These microtubules also have a unique structure akin to tunnel-like objects.
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In a 2022 study published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, Sam Parnia and a team of medical experts from prominent universities provided the first comprehensive medical consensus documenting the existence of NDEs.Notably, the team identified tunnel experiences as one of the main characteristics of NDEs.
The tunnel, according to the study, appears to be a connection to another dimension, where people report seeing magnificent, luminous beings and relive their entire lives in a way unconstrained by time—a phenomenon called the “life review.
Timeless ‘Whole Life’
Of 617 near-death experiences collected by the Near-Death Experience Research Foundation published in a 2014 study,
14 percent of the near-death experiencers experienced a life review. This experience felt like watching a stereoscopic movie of their life.
Overall, 50 percent of near-death experience survivors in the 1976 Tangshan earthquake were reported to have experienced a life review.
According to Bernard Carr, emeritus professor of mathematics and astronomy at Queen Mary University of London, many elements of NDEs, such as the tunnel phenomenon, intense light, and life reviews, align with the idea of transitioning through or interacting with higher dimensions. He interprets these experiences not as hallucinations or brain-generated phenomena but as glimpses into the true multidimensional nature of reality.
In his book, “Evidence of the Afterlife” Dr. Jeffery Long, a practicing radiation oncologist, and researcher who has studied NDEs for more than 25 years, recorded a case of a man named Roger who was returning from Quebec City when he had an out-of-body experience during a car crash.“I then began to see my whole life unfolding before me like a film projected on a screen, from babyhood to adult life. It was so real!” Roger recalled.
He said the experience was more realistic than a 3D movie, as he could sense the feelings of the people he interacted with over the years and the good or bad emotions he made them feel.
Those who experience a life review during a near-death experience often recount it with a deep sense of realism. This includes re-experiencing long-forgotten events often confirmed to have occurred, as well as a deep understanding of the thoughts and feelings of others during past interactions.
According to a study published in Missouri Medicine, these life reviews are consistently accurate. Life reviews appear to access a dimension where all events are recorded in their entirety, and time flows differently—allowing the person to review their entire life instantly.
The book “Lessons From the Light,” co-authored by Kenneth Ring, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Connecticut, who published nearly 100 papers on NDEs, recorded a case of a man who reported re-experiencing every event in 22 years of his life.
“The brightness showed me every second of all those years, in exquisite detail, in what seemed only an instant of time,” he said.
“It’s a reliving of events, not just a remembering of events,” said Alexander. He explains that during the life review, if you had acted selfishly toward others during your lifetime, you would experience those events again, but now from the viewpoint of the people who experienced the suffering.
He believes this is where the concept of “hell” originates—those who inflicted pain and suffering during their lives would have to confront and experience that same pain during the life review.
This should nudge people to realize that “We’re really all in this together and need to take care of each other and get along,” he said.Memories Before BirthAs near-death experiences suggest evidence of other dimensions, studies on prebirth memories have also yielded intriguing insights.
Dr. Akira Ikegawa is an obstetrician-gynecologist in Japan. Between 2002–2003, Ikegawa surveyed 3,061 parent-child pairs in Nagano, Japan. His research into prenatal memories aimed to provide guidelines for prenatal care and education.
During his investigations, he interviewed many children and parents across Japan, collecting reports of memories from before birth. He discovered that 33 percent of the children interviewed
remembered being in the womb before their birth, while 20.7 percent recalled their birth experience.
Most children with memories were 2–3 years old, with the memories seeming to fade over time, with virtually none reported after 6 years old.To his surprise, a recurring theme in the recollections was that the children described coming from a place “above the colorful clouds,” where they coexisted with angels and fairies.
Ikegawa recorded these findings in his research books, such as “When I See My Mom on the Clouds.”
Children recalled being on a cloud in a higher dimension and coexisting with angels and fairies. When they found their mothers, they left the clouds and flew into their mothers’ wombs.
For example, a boy named Yuichi was three years old when he stared at a wedding picture of his parents and told his mom, “I was watching it from the sky.”
The boy added that he saw his mom and dad spending time at the beach at that time. Her mother confirmed that after the wedding ceremony, they had gone to the beach.
A girl named Natsumi recounted that before birth, she was one of the angel-like cherubs flying above clouds and searching for their future mother.
“There were six of them, including me,” she said. “The mom I saw at the time was walking down the sidewalk wearing a dress with a navy blue background and a white water droplet pattern.” Natsumi’s mom confirmed that she did have a maternity dress with that pattern and color.
Higher Dimensions
Dr. Peter T. Walling, from Baylor University Medical Center, told The Epoch Times that to really understand human consciousness, “We shall consider higher dimensions.”Similarly, Pravica also endorses the idea that considering higher dimensions is a reasonable way to understand consciousness.
“I can explain just about everything in this universe with one exception, and that’s consciousness.” He elaborated that while physical principles can describe much of our reality, they fail to explain our simultaneous awareness of the past, present, and future.
According to Pravica, we can also understand multidimensionality through another approach.
“The mind is the playground of the infinities,” Pravica told The Epoch Times. “Our ability to conceptualize higher dimensions—beyond the four we experience—suggests their existence. If we can think about these dimensions, they likely have a basis in reality, even if we cannot directly perceive them.”
Pravica argues that we can think outside the box about multidimensionality through cross-discipline approaches, including mathematics, philosophy, and contemplation.
Although the discussion may sound purely philosophical, a particular type of empirical brain measurement suggests a link between consciousness and higher dimensions.
The tunnel, according to the study, appears to be a connection to another dimension, where people report seeing magnificent, luminous beings and relive their entire lives in a way unconstrained by time—a phenomenon called the “life review.
Timeless ‘Whole Life’
Of 617 near-death experiences collected by the Near-Death Experience Research Foundation published in a 2014 study,
14 percent of the near-death experiencers experienced a life review. This experience felt like watching a stereoscopic movie of their life.
Overall, 50 percent of near-death experience survivors in the 1976 Tangshan earthquake were reported to have experienced a life review.
According to Bernard Carr, emeritus professor of mathematics and astronomy at Queen Mary University of London, many elements of NDEs, such as the tunnel phenomenon, intense light, and life reviews, align with the idea of transitioning through or interacting with higher dimensions. He interprets these experiences not as hallucinations or brain-generated phenomena but as glimpses into the true multidimensional nature of reality.
In his book, “Evidence of the Afterlife” Dr. Jeffery Long, a practicing radiation oncologist, and researcher who has studied NDEs for more than 25 years, recorded a case of a man named Roger who was returning from Quebec City when he had an out-of-body experience during a car crash.“I then began to see my whole life unfolding before me like a film projected on a screen, from babyhood to adult life. It was so real!” Roger recalled.
He said the experience was more realistic than a 3D movie, as he could sense the feelings of the people he interacted with over the years and the good or bad emotions he made them feel.
Those who experience a life review during a near-death experience often recount it with a deep sense of realism. This includes re-experiencing long-forgotten events often confirmed to have occurred, as well as a deep understanding of the thoughts and feelings of others during past interactions.
According to a study published in Missouri Medicine, these life reviews are consistently accurate. Life reviews appear to access a dimension where all events are recorded in their entirety, and time flows differently—allowing the person to review their entire life instantly.
The book “Lessons From the Light,” co-authored by Kenneth Ring, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of Connecticut, who published nearly 100 papers on NDEs, recorded a case of a man who reported re-experiencing every event in 22 years of his life.
“The brightness showed me every second of all those years, in exquisite detail, in what seemed only an instant of time,” he said.
“It’s a reliving of events, not just a remembering of events,” said Alexander. He explains that during the life review, if you had acted selfishly toward others during your lifetime, you would experience those events again, but now from the viewpoint of the people who experienced the suffering.
He believes this is where the concept of “hell” originates—those who inflicted pain and suffering during their lives would have to confront and experience that same pain during the life review.
This should nudge people to realize that “We’re really all in this together and need to take care of each other and get along,” he said.Memories Before BirthAs near-death experiences suggest evidence of other dimensions, studies on prebirth memories have also yielded intriguing insights.
Dr. Akira Ikegawa is an obstetrician-gynecologist in Japan. Between 2002–2003, Ikegawa surveyed 3,061 parent-child pairs in Nagano, Japan. His research into prenatal memories aimed to provide guidelines for prenatal care and education.
During his investigations, he interviewed many children and parents across Japan, collecting reports of memories from before birth. He discovered that 33 percent of the children interviewed
remembered being in the womb before their birth, while 20.7 percent recalled their birth experience.
Most children with memories were 2–3 years old, with the memories seeming to fade over time, with virtually none reported after 6 years old.To his surprise, a recurring theme in the recollections was that the children described coming from a place “above the colorful clouds,” where they coexisted with angels and fairies.
Ikegawa recorded these findings in his research books, such as “When I See My Mom on the Clouds.”
Children recalled being on a cloud in a higher dimension and coexisting with angels and fairies. When they found their mothers, they left the clouds and flew into their mothers’ wombs.
For example, a boy named Yuichi was three years old when he stared at a wedding picture of his parents and told his mom, “I was watching it from the sky.”
The boy added that he saw his mom and dad spending time at the beach at that time. Her mother confirmed that after the wedding ceremony, they had gone to the beach.
A girl named Natsumi recounted that before birth, she was one of the angel-like cherubs flying above clouds and searching for their future mother.
“There were six of them, including me,” she said. “The mom I saw at the time was walking down the sidewalk wearing a dress with a navy blue background and a white water droplet pattern.” Natsumi’s mom confirmed that she did have a maternity dress with that pattern and color.
Higher Dimensions
Dr. Peter T. Walling, from Baylor University Medical Center, told The Epoch Times that to really understand human consciousness, “We shall consider higher dimensions.”Similarly, Pravica also endorses the idea that considering higher dimensions is a reasonable way to understand consciousness.
“I can explain just about everything in this universe with one exception, and that’s consciousness.” He elaborated that while physical principles can describe much of our reality, they fail to explain our simultaneous awareness of the past, present, and future.
According to Pravica, we can also understand multidimensionality through another approach.
“The mind is the playground of the infinities,” Pravica told The Epoch Times. “Our ability to conceptualize higher dimensions—beyond the four we experience—suggests their existence. If we can think about these dimensions, they likely have a basis in reality, even if we cannot directly perceive them.”
Pravica argues that we can think outside the box about multidimensionality through cross-discipline approaches, including mathematics, philosophy, and contemplation.
Although the discussion may sound purely philosophical, a particular type of empirical brain measurement suggests a link between consciousness and higher dimensions.
Gamma Waves
The human brain electroencephalogram (EEG) has five common types of waves, of which gamma waves have the fastest frequency (up to 32–100 Hz) and the smallest amplitude.Gamma waves are associated with higher-level cognitive functions, including perception, problem-solving, and consciousness. They often emerge when a person is in a highly concentrated state of profound mental peace and tranquility.
A study published in PNAS by Jimo Borjigin, an associated professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of Michigan School of Medicine,
reported an unexpected surge of gamma waves in the dying brain of two patients—a subsequent event after the withdrawal of their ventilatory support.Notably, both patients showed bursts of brain activity in different frequency ranges in a specific area at the back of the brain, which is thought to be essential for our conscious awareness.
The human brain electroencephalogram (EEG) has five common types of waves, of which gamma waves have the fastest frequency (up to 32–100 Hz) and the smallest amplitude.Gamma waves are associated with higher-level cognitive functions, including perception, problem-solving, and consciousness. They often emerge when a person is in a highly concentrated state of profound mental peace and tranquility.
A study published in PNAS by Jimo Borjigin, an associated professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of Michigan School of Medicine,
reported an unexpected surge of gamma waves in the dying brain of two patients—a subsequent event after the withdrawal of their ventilatory support.Notably, both patients showed bursts of brain activity in different frequency ranges in a specific area at the back of the brain, which is thought to be essential for our conscious awareness.
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However, the origin of these gamma waves cannot be explained by brain activity, as the patients’ bodies were dying, and their brains were hypoxic—deprived of oxygen.
In Alexander’s view, the brain “is serving as a transceiver,” receiving signals from another dimension to which the consciousness is connected. It is plausible that the spurt of gamma waves seen when people are dying indicates a change in the dimension that consciousness is linked to.
Gamma waves are common in talented musicians, top athletes, and other high achievers. Studies have also shown that long-term meditators exhibit significantly more dominant gamma waves in their brain EEG readings.
According to Hameroff’s microtubules theory, however, consciousness-related information is transduced from a quantum realm at frequencies much higher than gamma rays. (Article 1 in this series)
Heavenly ‘Home’
In the previous three articles in this series, we have provided large volumes of modern biomedical research on people living with minimal brain matter, near-death experiences, and past life memories, suggesting that our brain is not a prerequisite of our consciousness and that consciousness is nonlocal, non-physical, and continuous. All these reports and studies offer valuable insights into the origin of consciousness, which appears to be intricately linked to a higher destination.
In the 2022 study published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, in addition to the tunnel and life review, many people with NDEs reported returning “home”—a place often described as having heavenly-like entities and celestial landscapes.
In Alexander’s view, the brain “is serving as a transceiver,” receiving signals from another dimension to which the consciousness is connected. It is plausible that the spurt of gamma waves seen when people are dying indicates a change in the dimension that consciousness is linked to.
Gamma waves are common in talented musicians, top athletes, and other high achievers. Studies have also shown that long-term meditators exhibit significantly more dominant gamma waves in their brain EEG readings.
According to Hameroff’s microtubules theory, however, consciousness-related information is transduced from a quantum realm at frequencies much higher than gamma rays. (Article 1 in this series)
Heavenly ‘Home’
In the previous three articles in this series, we have provided large volumes of modern biomedical research on people living with minimal brain matter, near-death experiences, and past life memories, suggesting that our brain is not a prerequisite of our consciousness and that consciousness is nonlocal, non-physical, and continuous. All these reports and studies offer valuable insights into the origin of consciousness, which appears to be intricately linked to a higher destination.
In the 2022 study published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, in addition to the tunnel and life review, many people with NDEs reported returning “home”—a place often described as having heavenly-like entities and celestial landscapes.
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Where Does Consciousness Come From?
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Part 1
Can Consciousness Exist Without a Brain?
Part 2
Consciousness Does Not Go to the Grave—So Where Does It Go?
Part 3
The River of Consciousness: An Exploration Through Time and Space
Part 4
How Consciousness Opens Doors to Higher Dimensions
Where Does Consciousness Come From?
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Part 1
Can Consciousness Exist Without a Brain?
Part 2
Consciousness Does Not Go to the Grave—So Where Does It Go?
Part 3
The River of Consciousness: An Exploration Through Time and Space
Part 4
How Consciousness Opens Doors to Higher Dimensions
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