Bigelow Institute essays on life after death in PDF

It's more that many of these "aliens" may actually be spirits taking on forms in line with the sparked interest in extraterrestrials, in the same way spirit guides take on the form of loved ones during an NDE.

Of course this leaves us with the question of what a "spirit" is...

You seem to be saying that the experience of an nde'er of a loved one is not the actual person they percieve.  Are you refering only to a loved one who is still living?

You seem to be saying that the experience of an nde'er of a loved one is not the actual person they percieve.  Are you refering only to a loved one who is still living?

I think it depends on the case, but I was thinking specifically of figures of light or unclear features that resolve into loved ones, religious figures, and possibly even still living persons.

Admittedly I probably need to re-check the NDE literature on this...

It's more that many of these "aliens" may actually be spirits taking on forms in line with the sparked interest in extraterrestrials, in the same way spirit guides take on the form of loved ones during an NDE.

Of course this leaves us with the question of what a "spirit" is...

Okay, I see where you're coming from, Sci, up from the rabbit hole, so to speak. I think it's almost a certainty (given the unimaginable size of the universe) that there will be life elsewhere, it's probably teeming with it.

But wouldn't aliens just also have spirits (souls like we do). I mean do we show up in their NDE's ? How can we know, we can't of course. As to what a spirit is or what mind is or consciousness, that is the question, isn't it. It's a substance that we can't account for or approach but it's there, there's nothing we know more intimately.

It's more that many of these "aliens" may actually be spirits taking on forms in line with the sparked interest in extraterrestrials, in the same way spirit guides take on the form of loved ones during an NDE.

Of course this leaves us with the question of what a "spirit" is...

I'm not sure that "spirit" conveys the concept clearly, Sci. When we think of spirit we tend to think "dead people" ... those that have "passed over".

What I'm suggesting is that consciousness can take many forms, especially when not physically constrained. I am not aware that those who meet other beings, either in alien encounters or in ayahuasca, peyote or shamanic excursions would describe those beings as the spirits of the dead. 

I'm quite open to the idea that spirit forms are just manifestations of consciousness whethere they be former humans or non-physical forms from other dimensions. Or maybe they are also physical in their dimensions but are also "out" on an excursion. 

It seems to me that the filter mechanism of the physical brain can be bypassed, either by drugs or by training (or because some are just born with so-called "gifts"). Like "The Sixth Sense", some see dead people.

I'm open and sympathetic to the view that fairy sightings and alien/UFO encounters are descriptions of the same thing. I wonder though whether one is more 'correct' than the other. That is, are both equally right and equally wrong, in taking something we cannot understand and overlaying it with a packaging or wrapping according to current-era tastes and expectations? I'm tending to the view that since Sputnik in 1957 and even before, since the invention of powered flying machines earlier in the 20th C, mechanical or technological ideas have dominated people's thoughts and expectations, in effect drowning out a possibility of directly perceiving what is 'really' there. Actually we could go back at least as far as Jules Verne (De la terre à la lune, 1865) and H G Wells (The First Men in the Moon, 1901).

Wasn't there a study done which tracked the similarity of UFO descriptions from witnesses to the popular fictional concept of the day. Time was when they were all saucer shaped, more or less conforming to the 1950s comic book drawings. In the 70s we had the movie Close Encounters which changed the popular portrayal of UFO craft radically. Is this art imitating life or vice-versa?

Mishlove's Award Speech:

This video was recorded on my 75th birthday, December 4, 2021, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The location is the facility of the Bigelow Aerospace company. You will see in the background large objects that are actually inflatable space station components manufactured at this facility.

In 2021, Robert Bigelow established the Bigelow Institute for Consciousness Studies and sponsored an essay competition on the topic of the best evidence for the survival of human consciousness after permanent bodily death. Some 1,200 people applied to enter this event. My entry was unanimously selected by a panel of six judges as the grand prize winner. The award was $500,000. 28 other essays received prizes totaling an additional 1.3 million.

The ABC affiliate station in Las Vegas described this event as “maybe the biggest essay contest of all time to solve the biggest question of all time.”

The video you are about to see is my acceptance speech at that event. Before I switch over to that video, I would like to acknowledge Patricia Fripp, the professional speaking coach who assisted me in my preparation for this momentous occasion.

Mishlove's Award Speech:

Once one gets past the obligatory thanks to the benefactor, I thought this was quite an interesting though high-level speech. He did highlight how progress is being made despite the field being less well-supported than other areas such as space flight. Though I don't hold out much hope for his appeal at the end to various billionaires to play their part by contributing to further research - an exploration of inner space and the far reaches of consciousness was his suggestion.

Jeffrey Mishlove will be fielding your questions concerning his Bigelow Institute competition Grand Prize essay, Beyond the Brain: The Survival of Human Consciousness After Permanent Bodily Death.

[Ninshub]

This interview with Mishlove by Rich Archer at BATGAP just got posted today.

I just started it so I don't know the contents but Rick at the beginning says they're going to talk about his prize-winning essay a lot.




EDIT: They start talking about the essay at 28 minutes.