Did I Leave My Body, or Was Consciousness Simply Expanding?

Exploring the Nature of Consciousness

Dr. Raymond Moody’s book, Proof of Life After Life, is a fascinating read for those of us who enjoy discussions around continued consciousness, as I do. For those unfamiliar with Raymond Moody, he is the one who coined the term Near-Death Experience (NDE). In this, his latest book, Moody presents seven categories of evidence for survival of consciousness after death. Out of Body Experiences (OBEs) are top of the list.

Extensive research over 50 years, puts Dr. Moody in a place of authority on the matter of OBEs. One example of an OBE would be a person who describes an experience of hovering above themselves in say, an operating room, following a cardiac arrest. Though documented as clinically deceased, they are, upon revival, able to describe in intimate detail things that happened following their death.

Most people with OBEs say they have the sensation of leaving their body. In the operating table scenario, individuals are said to give physical descriptions of the people and events that happen following their passing and prior to their subsequent return to the living. From a vantage point near the ceiling, they recount who was in the room with them, unusual things they said, equipment on a table nearby, actions taken by various people.

While in this out of body state, people speak of moving through the air, down the hall to a waiting room, for example, where their loved ones are in conversation which the deceased later speak knowingly of. Dr. Moody’s research shows time and again that the human mind, awareness or consciousness of those who have an OBE are not only present outside of the physical body but also have continued awareness of themselves after death.

Remote viewing is genuinely defined as the attempt of an individual to describe a distant location or hidden object without using the physical senses. Unlike an Out of Body experience, the individual here does not necessarily have the sensation of leaving their body. Instead, their awareness is opened to see, sense and/or know information they have not previously known while remaining fully conscious of their physical self. As their awareness shifts, information is revealed allowing the individual to describe in detail all manner of information for a location they have never been to before the moment of their conscious arrival, as it were.

Reading Proof of Life After Life prompted me to take a closer look at my own encounters and ask an important question: Did I leave my body? Were they out-of-body experiences, as described by Dr. Moody, or did they belong in another category altogether? As I reflected on instances involving remote viewing with a willing acquaintance in India, communication with the soul-self of a spirit relaying information, and conversations with the consciousness of a beloved pet dog, I began to notice both similarities and important distinctions.

At first glance, these events appear quite different. One involves a living person on the other side of the world. Another involves communication with someone no longer physically alive. The third involves connecting with an animal. Yet despite these differences, the underlying pattern is remarkably consistent.

In each case, I remain aware of my physical surroundings. I know I am sitting in my living room. I can hear the sounds around me. I am capable of writing notes in my journal and carrying on a conversation. Yet at the same time, another aspect of awareness seems to engage with information beyond my immediate environment.

When working with a willing acquaintance in India, I often found myself perceiving details of his surroundings in real time. During one session, I accompanied him on a train journey across town. Although he described the train as being packed “like sardines,” the scene presented to me differently. I saw him standing comfortably in front of me with space around him. As we travelled, I became aware of other passengers and was able to describe them: whether they were male or female, whether they were sitting or standing, what they were wearing, and even details such as a white bag resting on a passenger’s lap. These observations were confirmed as the journey unfolded.

Later, as he walked across campus, my perspective shifted. I was no longer observing him from the outside but seeing as though through his eyes. I described stone steps rising ahead, a doorway into a building, a left turn followed by a right turn down a hallway, and a bulletin board with papers pinned to it. I was aware of a warm breeze moving through the corridor and then found myself in a classroom unlike those commonly seen in Canada. Instead of individual tables and chairs, the room contained long, sloped wooden desks stretching across the space, with students seated side by side in rows. Throughout the entire interaction, I remained comfortably seated in my living room. I was aware of his surroundings while remaining equally aware of my own.

Looking back, I find it interesting that the information often seems filtered through my own frame of reference. A crowded train would make me claustrophobic, yet I did not perceive the crowding he described. Instead, I was shown what I needed in order to recognize and describe the location. It is as though the information arrives in a form that I can comfortably process and understand.

Communication with those who reside in spirit presents somewhat differently yet shares many of the same characteristics. During one sitting, a spirit who had passed over one hundred and twenty years before our conversation began describing a disturbing scenario connected to his plea to tell his story. Curious to understand more, I asked the spirit to share further details. In no way was I attempting to perceive a distant location, as defined by the phenomenon of remote viewing. In contrast, I invited the soul-self of the gentleman in spirit to share something within his knowing. I did not have a location in mind but the spirit did. In response to my request for more information the following extraordinary experience unfolded.

As I listened, I became aware of myself rising above the area where I live in Victoria, British Columbia. My consciousness shot up into the air to hover above the earth. From this vantage point, high above the planet, I could see the curve of the globe and the land of my entire country laid out before me. Within seconds, I felt myself racing across the earth as I watched the blur of lakes, rivers, forests, and prairies moving at a spectacular pace below. Moments later, I found myself hovering once again, this time in Central Canada.

Unlike the India sessions, this felt as though my entire body was participating in the movement. I experienced the sensation of travelling through space and observing the landscape from above. Yet at the very same time, I remained fully conscious of sitting in my living room, pen in hand, recording what I was being shown. I knew I had not physically moved, yet another aspect of my awareness seemed to be travelling. Both perceptions existed simultaneously.

What fascinated me most was that while researching the story shared by the gentleman in spirit, I discovered a century-old Quebec newspaper article describing the exact event he had recounted. The consciousness of the spirit knew where I could learn more and was able to lead me to find it. The incident he spoke of was so shocking to the nation that newspapers from coast to coast reported on it. Additional details appeared in books documenting the significant period in history the gentleman had described.

The newspaper article convinced me that my mind was not simply wandering aimlessly or indulging in fantasy but had somehow come across a historic truth unbeknownst to me prior to this extraordinary encounter. The experience led me to not only trust the spirit enough to continue with his story, but also to trust that the impressions I received were rooted in truths beyond my own awareness.

Animal communication shares many of these same qualities. During a session with a dog named Lola, I became aware of her resting in a round dog bed positioned beside a large wooden piece of furniture in what I knew to be a living room. At one point my awareness hovered above her. At another, I seemed to be standing beside her, looking down as she interacted with her surroundings. I could see where the bed was located in relation to the furniture and became aware of details that were later confirmed when her owner provided a photograph of the room. Once again, I remained conscious of my physical surroundings throughout the session while simultaneously perceiving the environment from Lola’s location.

As I compared these accounts with Dr. Moody’s descriptions of out-of-body experiences, one distinction became increasingly clear. In many classic OBE reports, the experiencer describes a shift in the centre of consciousness away from the physical body to another location. My own perceptions do not fit neatly within that description. While there are moments when I feel movement, elevation, travel, or a change in perspective, I remain anchored in the awareness of my present moment and physical surroundings. At the same time, another aspect of perception appears to access different places, times, or perspectives simultaneously.

This has led me to think of these events not as traditional out-of-body experiences, but as a form of dual awareness. One aspect of awareness remains anchored in the present moment and physical environment, while another engages with information beyond the reach of my ordinary senses. Whether perceiving a distant location in real time, communicating with a spirit who lived over a century ago, or connecting with the consciousness of an animal, the common denominator is not the sensation of leaving my body. Rather, it is the simultaneous awareness of two realities at once.

Finding accurate definitions for my personal experiences fascinates and delights me. In the past I avoided reading other people’s accounts because I did not want to be influenced by them during the time I was awakening to such newness. Instead, journaling and asking Spirit for guidance was my preference. Over fifteen years, and a solid and accepted acknowledgement of the phenomenon of looking beyond the attachment of my consciousness to my physical being, I am ready to compare notes.

I am indebted to Dr. Moody and others who have dedicated their lives to scientific research into Near-Death Experiences, Out of Body and the like. I can now confidently say that while my stories may share certain characteristics with out-of-body experiences, they are more accurately described as an expansion of awareness than a complete departure from the body. In that sense, my personal perceptions seem to occupy a space between the classic out-of-body experience and remote viewing, in which awareness remains here while simultaneously perceiving there.

Have you ever had an experience that made you question the nature of consciousness? I’d love to hear your story. Leave a comment or send me a DM.

Have a favourite book or author on continuing consciousness? I’d love your recommendations.

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Curious about the animal communication I mentioned? Read Love According to Lola