Tibetan Buddhist Lingza Chokyi's Near-Death Experience - Near-Death Experiences and the Afterlife

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1. Introduction to Tibetan Near-Death Experiencers

One of the strongest historical parallels between Tibetan Buddhism and modern near-death experiences (NDEs) involves the Tibetan tradition of deloks. The Tibetan word delok is commonly translated as “one who has returned from death.” Deloks are individuals who, according to traditional accounts, appeared to die or entered a deathlike state before returning to ordinary consciousness. After recovering, they reported extraordinary journeys through other realms of existence. Their accounts sometimes include encounters with deceased relatives, spiritual beings, heavenly or hellish environments, and messages concerning the moral consequences of human behavior. Some deloks also reported being instructed to return to the living world to share what they had learned.

The delok experience resemble modern NDE reports in which people describe entering another realm, meeting deceased individuals, receiving spiritual teachings, and returning to their bodies. The delok tradition is particularly important because it demonstrates that accounts resembling certain modern NDE narratives existed within Tibetan Buddhist culture long before contemporary medical research began studying NDEs.

Dawa Drolma

Often the deloks have great difficulty making people believe their story, and they spend the rest of their lives recounting their experiences to others in order to draw them toward the path of wisdom. The biographies of some of the more famous deloks, such as Dawa Drolma, one of the great lamas of the century. At the age of 16 she fell ill and died, but returned to her body after five days. For the benefit of others she recorded every detail of her experiences in the bardo and pure realms.

The experiences of deloks were often sung all over Tibet by traveling minstrels. A number of aspects of the delok correspond not only with, as you would expect, the bardo teachings, such as the Tibetan Book of the Dead (Bardo Thodol). Dawa Drolma is the author of the book, Delog: Journey to Realms Beyond Death, the source for the information in this article.

2. Lingza Chokyi’s NDE

Lingza Chokyi was a famous delok who lived in the sixteenth century. In her biography she tells how she failed to realize she was dead, how she found herself out of her body, and saw a pig’s corpse lying on her bed, wearing her clothes. Frantically she tried in vain to communicate with her family as they set about the business of the practices for her death. She grew furious with them when they took no notice of her and did not give her a plate of food. When her children wept, she felt a “hail of pus and blood” fall, which caused her intense pain. She tells us she felt joy each time the practices were done, and immeasurable happiness when finally she came before the master who was practicing for her and who was resting in the nature of mind, and her mind and his became one. After a while she heard someone whom she thought was her father calling to her, and she followed him. She arrived in the bardo realm, which appeared to her like a country. From there, she tells us, there was a bridge that led to the hell realms, and to where the Lord of Death was counting the good or evil actions of the dead. In this realm she met various people who recounted their stories, and she saw a great yogin who had come into the hell realms in order to liberate beings.

Finally Lingza Chokyi was sent back to the world, as there had been an error concerning her name and family, and it was not yet her time to die. With the message from the Lord of Death to the living, she returned to her body and recovered, and spent the rest of her life telling of what she had learned. The phenomenon of the delok was not simply a historical one; it continued up until very recently in Tibet.

There are many similarities to the teachings of the afterlife as revealed by the Tibetan Book of the Dead and the NDE. In the NDE, the mind is momentarily released from the body, and goes through a number of experiences akin to those of the mental body in the “bardo of becoming.” NDEs very often begins with an out-of-body experience: people can see their own body, as well as the environment around them. This coincides with what the Tibetan Book of the Dead describes. In the bardo of becoming, the dead are able to see and hear their living relatives, but are unable, sometimes frustratingly, to communicate with them. The mental body in the bardo of becoming is described in the Tibetan Book of the Dead as being “like a body of the golden age,” and as having almost supernatural mobility and clairvoyance. NDErs also find that the form they have is complete and in the prime of life. They find also that they can travel instantaneously, simply by the power of thought.

In the Tibetan teachings, the mental body in the bardo of becoming meets other beings in the bardo. Similarly, NDErs are often able to converse with others who have died.

In the bardo of becoming, as well as many other kinds of visions, the mental body will see visions and signs of different realms. A small percentage of those who have survived an NDE describe visions of inner worlds, paradises, and cities of light with transcendental music.

Of course, the most astounding similarity is the encounter with the Being of Light, or the “Clear Light” as described in the Tibetan Book of the Dead. According to the Tibetan teachings, at the moment of death, the Clear Light dawns in all its splendor before the dying person. It says:

“Oh son/daughter of an enlightened family … your Rigpa is inseparable luminosity and emptiness and dwells as a great expanse of light; beyond birth or death, it is, in fact, the Buddha of Unchanging Light.”

Tibetan teachings stress that by recognizing yourself as this Clear Light, you will attain liberation from the cycle of reincarnation. Many NDErs are convinced the Being of Light is their Higher Self. This is certainly in agreement with the Tibetan teachings.

The life review appears again and again in NDE reports, and demonstrates so clearly the inevitability of karma and the far-reaching and powerful effects of all our actions, words, and thoughts.

The central message NDErs bring back from their encounter with death, or the presence of the Being of Light, is exactly the same as that of Buddha and of the bardo teachings: that the essential and most important qualities in life are love and knowledge, compassion and wisdom.

The bardo teachings tell us that life and death are in the mind itself. The confidence which many NDErs seem to have after this experience reflects this deeper understanding of mind.

Not all NDE reports today, however, are positive, and this corresponds to the Tibetan teachings as well. Some people report terrifying experiences of fear, panic, loneliness, desolation, and gloom, all vividly reminiscent of the descriptions of the bardo of becoming.

In many NDE reports, a border or limit is occasionally perceived; a point of no return is reached. At this border the person then chooses (or is instructed) to return to life, sometimes by the presence of light. Of course in the Tibetan bardo teachings there is no parallel to this, because they describe what happens to a person who actually dies. It has been said the NDE can be viewed as an evolutionary device to bring about a transformation in humanity as a whole, over a period of years, in millions of persons (Ring, 1985).

Whether this is true or not depends on all of us: on whether we really have the courage to face the implications of the NDE and the bardo teachings, and by transforming ourselves we transform the world around us, and so, by stages, the whole future of humanity.

3. Tibetan Buddhism and NDEs

a. Introduction

Tibetan Buddhism offers one of the world’s most detailed spiritual explanations of death, consciousness, and the afterlife. For centuries, Tibetan Buddhist teachings have described what happens when a person dies, including the separation of consciousness from the physical body, encounters with spiritual beings, visions of brilliant light, and experiences in other realms of existence. Many of these descriptions have striking similarities to modern accounts of NDEs.

The Tibetan Book of the Dead, also known as the Bardo Thodol, is translated as “Liberation Through Hearing During the Intermediate State.” This text provides spiritual guidance intended to help the dying and deceased recognize the true nature of their consciousness and achieve liberation from the cycle of reincarnation. Although Tibetan Buddhism and modern NDE research come from very different traditions, both explore the possibility that consciousness continues beyond death of the physical body.

b. The Bardo: The Intermediate State Between Death and Rebirth

In Tibetan Buddhism, the word bardo refers to an intermediate or transitional state. Although Buddhist teachings describe several bardos during life, dreaming, meditation, and death, the bardos associated with dying and rebirth are especially relevant to NDE research.

According to the Bardo Thodol, consciousness may pass through several stages following death.

The Bardo of Dying (Chikhai Bardo): During the process of death, a person may experience the dissolution of ordinary physical awareness and encounter a brilliant, clear light. This light represents the fundamental nature of awareness and reality. If consciousness recognizes this light as its true nature, liberation may become possible.

The Bardo of Reality (Chonyid Bardo): Consciousness may experience visions of peaceful and wrathful deities, brilliant colors, extraordinary sounds, and other spiritual appearances. Tibetan Buddhist teachings explain that these visions are manifestations of the nature of mind rather than necessarily independent beings.

The Bardo of Becoming (Sidpa Bardo): If liberation has not occurred, consciousness may experience karmically influenced visions and emotions that eventually lead toward rebirth.

These teachings resemble certain NDE reports in which individuals describe leaving their bodies, entering otherworldly environments, encountering spiritual beings, and experiencing an extraordinary light.

c. The Clear Light and the Being of Light

One of the most fascinating similarities between Tibetan Buddhism and NDEs involves encounters with brilliant light. The Bardo Thodol teaches that a clear, luminous awareness may become apparent during the process of death. This Clear Light is not simply an external object or spiritual being. It represents the fundamental nature of mind, beyond ordinary thoughts, emotions, and personal identity.

Many NDErs describe encountering an extraordinarily bright light that does not hurt their eyes. Some report that the light radiates overwhelming love, peace, wisdom, and acceptance. Others describe meeting a Being of Light that appears to possess intelligence and communicate directly with them.

These experiences share certain features, but they are not identical.

In Tibetan Buddhism, recognizing the Clear Light means recognizing the ultimate nature of consciousness. In Western NDE accounts, the light is frequently interpreted as God, Jesus Christ, an angel, or a loving spiritual presence.

Both traditions suggest that encounters with extraordinary light can lead to profound spiritual transformation.

d. Out-of-Body Experiences and the Separation of Consciousness

Many NDErs report leaving their physical bodies and observing their surroundings from a position above themselves. Some describe watching medical personnel attempt resuscitation or seeing events they believe occurred while they were unconscious. Tibetan Buddhist teachings also describe forms of consciousness that are not limited to ordinary bodily awareness.

In certain Tibetan traditions, practitioners train in dream yoga and other advanced meditation techniques to recognize the dream state and explore the nature of consciousness. Some teachings describe a subtle or mental body associated with experiences during the intermediate state after death. These ideas resemble NDE reports in which people describe possessing a spiritual body that can move freely, pass through physical objects, or travel instantly to distant locations.

However, Tibetan Buddhist teachings do not necessarily interpret this subtle body as an eternal soul. Buddhism generally rejects the existence of an unchanging, permanent self. Instead, it teaches the continuity of consciousness and karmic processes without requiring an immortal personal identity. This distinction is important because many Western NDErs interpret their experiences as evidence that their individual personality or soul survives death.

e. Peaceful and Wrathful Beings in the Afterlife

The Bardo Thodol describes encounters with peaceful and wrathful deities during the intermediate state after death. Peaceful deities may appear surrounded by beautiful colors and brilliant light. Wrathful deities may have frightening appearances, including fierce expressions, flames, and unusual physical features. Tibetan Buddhism teaches that these appearances should ultimately be recognized as manifestations of enlightened awareness rather than feared as external enemies.

Similar contrasts appear in NDE research. Some NDErs report beautiful spiritual beings, heavenly environments, and overwhelming love. Others describe frightening entities, darkness, threatening environments, or distressing encounters. Researchers such as Nancy Evans Bush have studied distressing NDEs and the ways individuals interpret and respond to them.

An important similarity is that both Tibetan Buddhist teachings and some NDE accounts emphasize the role of fear, recognition, and spiritual understanding in how extraordinary experiences unfold.

f. The Life Review, Karma, and Moral Responsibility

One of the most frequently discussed features of Western NDEs is the life review. During these experiences, individuals may report witnessing significant events from their lives and understanding how their actions affected other people. Some describe experiencing the feelings of people they helped or harmed. Others report that the life review takes place in the presence of a loving spiritual being rather than a condemning judge.

Tibetan Buddhism teaches that actions, intentions, and habits have consequences through the law of karma. During the process of death and rebirth, karmic tendencies are traditionally understood to influence the experiences of consciousness. Some Tibetan Buddhist accounts also describe judgment-like scenes involving the consequences of a person’s actions.

Although these ideas resemble the moral insights reported during NDE life reviews, their interpretations differ. In many NDE accounts, the life review emphasizes love, compassion, forgiveness, and personal growth. Tibetan Buddhism places these moral lessons within a broader framework of karma, rebirth, and the possibility of liberation from suffering. Both traditions emphasize that how people treat others has profound spiritual importance.

g. Reincarnation and the Continuity of Consciousness

Tibetan Buddhism teaches that death does not necessarily mark the end of conscious existence. Instead, the continuity of consciousness is traditionally understood to continue through cycles of birth, death, and rebirth. The circumstances of rebirth are influenced by karma, attachment, and the state of mind during death. The ultimate spiritual goal is not endless reincarnation but liberation from the cycle of suffering known as samsara.

Some NDErs describe being shown past lives, learning that they have lived before, or receiving information about why they chose to enter physical existence. Other NDE accounts describe spiritual environments where individuals reportedly prepare for another earthly life. These reports share certain similarities with Tibetan Buddhist teachings about rebirth.

Modern scientific research has offered evidence that reincarnation occurs according to the research of Ian Stevenson who has investigated children who report memories of previous lives.

h. Dream Yoga, Meditation, and NDEs

Tibetan Buddhist traditions have developed meditation practices intended to prepare practitioners for death. One of these practices is dream yoga, in which individuals learn to recognize that they are dreaming while remaining asleep. Through this practice, they attempt to understand the changing and dreamlike nature of ordinary experience. Other practices involve meditation on impermanence, the dissolution of the body, and the nature of awareness. These techniques are traditionally believed to help practitioners remain aware during the process of dying and recognize the nature of consciousness during the bardo.

Some NDErs describe becoming unusually lucid, experiencing a heightened sense of awareness, or feeling that the physical world is less real than the spiritual environment they encountered. These experiences resemble certain descriptions found in Tibetan Buddhist meditation teachings.

i. What Tibetan Buddhism Contributes to NDE Research

Tibetan Buddhism provides researchers with a valuable historical and cross-cultural perspective on extraordinary experiences associated with death. Its teachings suggest that experiences involving light, spiritual beings, unusual states of awareness, and otherworldly environments have been described and interpreted for centuries. The delok tradition is especially relevant because it contains narratives that resemble modern accounts of people returning from apparent death.

At the same time, cultural expectations may influence how individuals interpret extraordinary experiences. A Tibetan Buddhist might understand a luminous figure as a manifestation of enlightened awareness, while a Christian might identify a similar figure as Jesus Christ. Someone without religious beliefs might simply describe an intelligent presence made of light. Researchers must therefore distinguish between the experiences people report and the religious explanations they give those experiences.

4. Conclusion

Tibetan Buddhism and modern NDEs share many fascinating similarities. Both describe extraordinary states of consciousness, brilliant light, encounters with spiritual beings, otherworldly environments, and profound changes in a person’s understanding of life and death. The ancient teachings of the Tibetan Book of the Dead and the historical accounts of deloks are especially interesting because they describe experiences resembling modern NDEs long before researchers began studying them scientifically.

Perhaps the most important connection between Tibetan Buddhism and NDEs is their shared emphasis on the spiritual importance of love, compassion, wisdom, and the way people live their lives. Both suggest that death may involve a profound change in awareness rather than simply the end of personal experience. However, Tibetan Buddhism emphasizes liberation from attachment and the cycle of rebirth, while many Western NDE accounts emphasize the survival of individual identity and reunion with deceased loved ones.

Although neither Tibetan Buddhist teachings nor modern NDE research has conclusively demonstrated that consciousness survives bodily death, their similarities raise important questions about the nature of consciousness and the possibility of continued existence beyond physical life. Together, they offer valuable perspectives on one of humanity‘s oldest mysteries: What happens to consciousness when we die?