Page 115 of The Secret of Secrets

He pictured the ancient letters on his forehead. The truth of his purpose in this realm was to protect a beautiful soul who lacked the strength to protect herself. The truth was that she would not be safe until The Golěm carried out his acts of retribution.

“There are only two paths,” the wind whispered in the trees. “Truth or Death.”

The Golěm had already made his choice.

I choose both.

Chapter 74

The limousine was approaching the posh neighborhood of Bubeneč, and Langdon knew the ambassadorial residence was not far off. Transfixed by Katherine’s revelations, he was eager to hear the rest.

There’s a reality around us that we can’t perceive?

“The idea first dawned on me,” Katherine continued, “while I was researching the postictal experiences described by epileptics,” she explained. “I suddenly realized that their blissful experiences were remarkably similar to the accounts of another group.” She paused, her eyes alight. “Those who have died…and come back.”

Near-death experiences, Langdon thought, realizing she was right. Following the trauma of near death or a seizure, both groups reported an untethering from the body, a deep connection to all things, and a profound sense of peace.

“So I ran with that idea…and I devised an unusual experiment.” Katherine gave him a quiet smile. “And this is where things really got interesting. First, I located a terminally ill patient not too far from my lab—a retired neurologist himself—who agreed to undergo his death process while enclosed inside a new kind of imaging machine—a real-time magnetic resonance spectroscopy device. I explained that I would be able to watch his brain chemistry moment by moment as he died. He felt gratified by the chance to provide accurate data like we’ve never been able to measure previously. With his family and hospice staff gathered around on a lovely afternoon, he passed away while being scanned inside the massive machine.

“Throughout the dying process,” Katherine continued, “I saw rapidly rising levels of key neurotransmitters—including adrenaline and endorphins, which function to subdue pain and help the physical body through the stress of the death process. In other words, a shutdown of the sensory systems. It followed logically that GABA levels would also increase—to filter out the death experience as the brain shut down.” Katherine smiled. “But that’s not what happened.”

“No?”

“What happened was the exact opposite! As he died, his GABA levels dropped precipitously! In his final moments, GABA levels approached zero, meaning all of his brain filters were gone. The entire death experience was flowing in—with nothing blocked out!”

“Is that…good or bad?”

“Robert, I would say it’s wonderful! It means that during the dying process, our brain’s filters open up, and we become a radio that hears the entire spectrum. Our consciousness witnesses all of reality!” Katherine took his hands and held them tightly. “That is precisely why people who have near-death experiences describe a feeling of total connection, of all-knowing bliss. The chemistry proves it! As we die, our bodies shut down…and our brains wake up!”

Langdon flashed on the opening line to one of his favorite novels. It is said that in death, all things become clear.

“What’s more,” she continued, “in the sixty seconds before the patient’s heart stopped, his brain flooded with high-frequency oscillations that included gamma waves! These are associated with intense memory retrieval, and his levels were off the chart.”

“So he was…remembering something?”

“No, at these levels, he was remembering everything. The gamma numbers definitely suggest there is truth to the enduring legend that your life passes before your eyes before you die.”

The concept of a “full life recall,” Langdon knew, appeared in many religions; the Angel of Death showed the soul all its life choices as a form of enlightenment and karmic teaching.

“At some point,” Katherine said, “the brain itself dies, and our receiver is gone. And my belief, based on my experiments, is that the dying process foreshadows what lies ahead—a kind of preview of coming attractions—an ability to perceive so much more than we normally can.”

“So, when the brain finally dies and can no longer perceive anything at all…is that not the end?”

Katherine smiled thoughtfully. “We already know from near-death experiences that death involves a breaking free from our physical form…combined with an intense feeling of joy and connection to all things. If we know our individual consciousness comes from outside our brain—as so much noetic research now shows—then to my ear, it sounds like consciousness simply abandons the physical realm at the moment of death…and reintegrates back into the whole. You no longer need your body to receive the signal…you are the signal.”

Langdon felt a chill. The soul returns home. The concept was an ancient one. The dust returns to the ground it came from…and the spirit returns to God who gave it.—Ecclesiastes 12:7.

Despite his uncertainty that consciousness continued beyond death, Langdon had no doubt that if Katherine was correct about brain filters limiting our perception of reality, her discovery was life-altering. In essence, she was positing that all humans were equipped with the hardware required to perceive the true nature of the universe…and yet we were chemically protected from using it…until the moment of death.

“This is all amazing,” he said. “Even if it presents a cruel, cosmic Catch-22.”

“How so?”

“We have to die to see the Truth…and when we do, it’s too late to tell anyone what we saw.”

Katherine smiled. “Robert, death is not the only path to enlightenment. History is filled with great minds that have enjoyed a momentary glimpse of some divine light that nobody else could see. Consider Newton, Einstein, and Galileo, religious prophets…These brilliant minds had scientific epiphanies and spiritual revelations that, as it turns out, can be explained in scientific terms.”

“You mean their filters got lowered?”