I study hellish near-death experiences – now I know what they mean | Science | News

A controversial theory linking visions of hell in near-death experiences to the idea that reality is a simulated world was put forward by a doctor who studied the phenomenon.

New Zealand-based health researcher Dr. Orson Wedgwood says the accounts of people who report so-called negative near-death experiences often contain strikingly similar characteristics, including foul odors, demonic figures, and violent images.

He argues that these recurring themes suggest that such events are not merely hallucinations, but may reflect experiences occurring in what he describes as a God-created “simulation” designed to test human souls.

In his view, simulation serves as a structured environment in which the choices individuals make throughout their lives are effectively evaluated.

“We are in a created environment or a ‘simulation’ where we are tested. Our consciousness, our behaviors, our experiences are real, but the rest is not,” he said.

“The simulation is designed to sort us into those who will be with God after the simulation is over and those who will not, in a safe environment where we can do no harm.”

More broadly, the simulation hypothesis suggests that what people perceive as reality can be artificially produced, a concept popularized in fiction such as The Matrix.

The issue has also been publicly discussed by the likes of Elon Musk, who has previously suggested that reality could resemble an “alien Netflix series” run by an advanced creator.

Wedgwood combines this idea with religious interpretations of near-death experiences, suggesting that those who reject God may either lose their eternal bearings or find themselves in a dark afterlife realm.

“A lot of this is biblical and also somewhat consistent with the simulation theory explained by people like Elon Musk who have concluded that life is not a random natural phenomenon,” he said.

He also claims that individuals can be “saved” from such experiences if they call out to God.

One of the cases he points to involves New Zealand surfer Ian McCormack, who said he went through hell after being stung by a jellyfish in 1982.

“I could feel the evil; it was all around me,” McCormack reportedly said.

He then described a vision in which his mother encouraged him to call out to God.

“I felt like a speck of dust being pulled towards a bright light and being rescued from the kingdom of darkness,” he said.

Wedgwood says negative near-death experiences are rare and typically characterized by intense fear and despair.

The research he cites shows that about 14% of out-of-body experience reports are negative, and about half of them involve demonic or hell-like images.

However, a 2019 study published in the journal Memory found little difference in brain activity between positive and negative near-death experiences; this suggested that both may arise from similar neurological processes, but the emotional interpretations may be different.

The study concluded that this may explain why some people report terrifying, life-changing experiences as vivid as positive ones.

Wedgwood used these ideas in his Near-Death Experience and AWARE studies: Evidence of the Soul and God? He researches in his book; This book describes negative near-death experiences.

In one example from a 2019 study, a woman described encountering disturbing presences as she approached death.

“I begin to distinguish forms in this incredibly thick fog. Human, animal, monster. I am swimming in a stench full of scary and insidious creatures and I feel overwhelmed with pain,” he said.

Wedgwood argues that although many scientists are skeptical of religious interpretations of near-death experiences, such accounts are often interpreted by those who experience them as truly hell-like.

“Many of my colleagues, PhDs, physicians, and many others with whom I have worked over the years, perhaps privately rather than publicly, agree that they cannot provide explanations for the origin of the universe, the origin of life, and where consciousness comes from,” he said.

“Many now embrace the simulation theory that we live in a simulation, and it’s like a serious Ph.D.”