Added: 29.10.26

There are endless spiritual practices out there. One way to see which ones matter is to look at what people bring back from the edge of death. An analysis of 224 publicly shared near-death accounts kept returning to the same messages:

✨ love

✨ gratitude

✨ forgiveness

✨ compassion

✨ authenticity

✨ being who you really are

✨letting go of fear & judgment

✨living with purpose & presence

✨ seeing yourself in the people around you.

Many relived their whole life in a moment. Not only what they did, but what they thought, and how each of those thoughts rippled into someone else’s life. Every act and every thought, they say, reaches everyone.

So the practice isn’t only the letter or the prayer. It’s what you think about someone when they’re not in the room.

Xxx

Sources:

- Sheldrake R. Science and Spiritual Practices. Coronet, 2017; Ways to Go Beyond and Why They Work. Coronet, 2019.

- Seligman MEP, et al. Positive psychology progress: empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 2005;60(5):410-421.

- Kuyken W, et al. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy compared with maintenance antidepressant treatment (PREVENT). The Lancet, 2015;386:63-73.

- Bernardi L, et al. Effect of rosary prayer and yoga mantras on autonomic cardiovascular rhythms. BMJ, 2001;323:1446-1449.

- Weitzberg E, Lundberg JON. Humming greatly increases nasal nitric oxide. Am J Respir Crit Care Med, 2002;166:144-145.

- Pilgrim’s Reception Office, Santiago de Compostela: annual pilgrim statistics.