Your understanding of what Tom says is very limited and there is much more than you are consdiering. In simple terms, the real you does not die. This present consciousness is just that, the present short term consciousness being experienced by the real you. There is also a continuous consciousness being experienced simultaneously by the real you and that continuous consciousness is what your present short term consciousness merges back with when it ends rather than actually dying. The real you continues. Later it will return to earth to experience a new and different short term consciousness starting with birth as a baby. These awarenesses go on simultaneously in parallel, like a computer running more than one program at a time.

Ted

The way I look at that is the same way as a dream, when we wake up we realize we have gone no where. When we wake up from the so called awaken reality (die) we realize we have gone nowhere. Its just (data) an illusion giving us a reality. Our awareness never dies it just has different experiences to become aware of. Fred searching for truth

I've always been partial to the interpretation in the movie ..."What dreams may come". Where so much of what you experience is the result of your beliefs and culture. (Which doesnt really conflict with Toms descriptions)

_________________
LOVE is the answer

peace
patrick

Your life experience packet data is saved as if in a file folder after your bit of Consciousness has gone over it at "death" and is what loved ones access when they need to after your "gone" as well as is what you could pull up in your next life experience packet if you have a past life regression done then as I see it. The Evolution or Quality of Consciousness that has been raised or even lowered during the life experience packet is saved too in something I call "Conservation of Quality of Consciousness" and what one grow into in their next life experience packet and then help Evolve hopefully rather than DeEvolve towards Fear.
Love
Bette

_________________
All That Is
what is?
Consciousness.

There are a lot of very interesting NDE stories on the internet, Many interesting books also, Tom gives one the best description of the wide variations of the personal experiences they have. Nanci Danison parallels close with Toms model on a lot of fronts, She has several books and a website Nanci Danison .com. Dutch Cardiologist Pim Van Lommel does real science on NDE Another one to check out. He writes books also, you can Google him, They are both very interesting Fred searching for truth

To clarify, Nanci L. Danison is a practicing attorney who became a writer about the NDE and spirituality after her own experiences. Her web site nancidanison.com is entirely about her law firm and legal practice so unless this is your interest, go to other sites such as her publisher. http://www.backwardsbooks.com/index.html or her presentations on Youtube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFDI-jgFVqs which are in fact about her NDE history and insights.

Pim Van Lommel does have a web site and write ups there about his book: Consciousness Beyond Life http://www.pimvanlommel.nl/?home_eng

IANDS, the International Association for Near-Death Studies http://iands.org/home.html is one of the premier organizations involved in the study of the NDE phenomenon.

NDERF, the Near Death Experience Research Foundation http://www.nderf.org/ is also a premier organization involved in the study of the NDE phenomenon.

All of this information has been previously and multiply referenced on the Bulletin Board and can be found by searches.

Ted

I just found this site from an IANDS posting elsewhere http://selfconsciousmind.com/. There is a video and pdf. Here is an extract:

A Theory of Mind and Brain that Solves the ‘Hard Problem’ of Consciousness
June 20, 2011; revised December 5, 2011
ROBERT G. MAYS AND SUZANNE B. MAYS
5622 Brisbane Dr, Chapel Hill, NC 27514 e-mail: mays@ieee.org
Abstract—We propose that the “mind” is an energetic, spatially extended, nonmaterial entity that is united with the brain and body. The mind is a separate entity having the character of a structured energy field, which can interact with physical processes including brain neurons. The nonmaterial mind is also the seat of conscious experience. The mind interacts directly with cortical neurons, probably via electrical interaction, resulting in both subjective phenomenal experience and causal influence on neurological processes. All cognitive faculties reside in the mind but ordinarily need the brain’s neural activity for conscious awareness. When brain structures are damaged, mental faculties dependent on them are partially or totally impaired. The main evidence for this view are phenomena from near-death experience and various neurological phenomena, in particular phantom limbs. This theory solves the “hard problem” of how phenomenal experience can arise from physical brain activity: conscious experience depends on a second entity with physical attributes—the conscious mind—which interacts with the brain to produce phenomenal experience. Experiences of qualia, such as redness, are an effect in the mind resulting from electrical activity in specific regions of the brain. The unity of consciousness results from the unity of the mind’s “field of consciousness”: phenomenal states are unified in the mind as subject. Causal closure of the physical is maintained but the domain of “the physical” must necessarily be expanded. Mind is a fundamental entity, a new dimension of reality.

Dickison,

Thank you for that information. I took advantage of the e-mail link to invite the Mays to come here and possibly participate as well as providing links to the Wiki and Tom's books.

Ted

I've long thought of the mind as the interface between the "physical" brain and Consciousness. I also like it when couples work together. I think that would be so cool to do that.
Love
Bette

_________________
All That Is
what is?
Consciousness.