What To Make Of Near-Death Experiences?

A recent spike in accounts of near-death experiences by some of my patients has led me to re-examine this fascinating phenomenon. For those of you unfamiliar with it, it is described as a process occurring when one is dying or already dead. It usually consists of a feeling of painlessness and happiness accompanied by seeing an intense white light at the end of a tunnel. Some people who have experienced it report meeting religious figures or long deceased loved ones before being called back on earth after being successfully resuscitated.

It is amazing to think that this phenomenon occurs in almost the same way across all cultures. Of course, this doesn't address the question of whether it is only a physiological process or a spiritual one. Wikipedia has a very interesting entry on this topic which I can only encourage you to read.

I was just recently struck by a very vivid experience related to me in which a person was in contact with their recently deceased daughter. Of course, it could all be attributed to their imagination but what if it were "real"?

Sunday Burger Xanadu Sunday

Tonight's attempt at burger Xanadu was 96,66 % successful. I can safely say that the burgers pictured in this post were the best I ever made. They consisted of two slices of melted cheddar cheese, fried bacon, one slice of Buffalo Mozzarella, onion, pickles, one slice of tomato, mayonnaise, two beef and pork patties and either Harissa (a.k.a. the traveling condiment) or Jalapeño mustard.

In my mythical quest of the perfect burger, I believe that I have, so far, managed to elevate my soul and my sauces to new heights. Tonight, I was blessed with a glimpse of the divine and through the fulfillness of my taste buds I was ascended, if only for a fraction of a second, to an alternate plane of existence where the complete knowledge of the universe seemed to be at grasp. Back on earth, my beliefs are now shaken and I'm thinking there must be a God or at least a Burger God.

Note: Forgive the blurry pictures but it seems that such beauty induced tremors in my earthling hands.

The Structural Antagonism Between Oral Pleasure And Health

As disappointing as this may sound to the reader, this post is not about oral sex but rather surprisingly about food (another form of oral pleasure). Has it ever occurred to you that most pleasurable food or dishes are usually not good for your health? Whether it is cholesterol-filled tasty sauce or rich nutrients, experiencing fine food at its climax is usually associated with the intrinsic notion of putting our health in a transient state of jeopardy. Refusing to acknowledge this fact can result in an increased risk of cardiovascular or metabolic diseases and hence premature death.

This leads to a rather profound question. Is our world or universe structured in a way that pleasure has to be linked with guilt or danger? Or do we, as human beings, find pleasure in risky behaviors? Should we see in this realization the essence of God or merely the perverted nature of our condition struggling to disavow the castration perpetuated by religion or education? Do we have to sin to experience transient happiness followed by prolonged guilt? Or was our universe so ill-conceived that most good things are bad for us?

What Matters In The End?

I haven't updated my blog in a long time as I have been facebooking and twittering hectically!

Anyway, I'm in the mood for blogging today so let's hope my words will make sense! Today's post isn't going to be about food, technology or travel but rather about the human condition.

I, indeed, can't help but notice how little we think about our human condition on a day-to-day basis. We actually avoid to do so as the anxiety generated by any metaphysical questioning can be overwhelming or at least unwelcome. We all live our lives hiding from reality. We go from one insignificant thing to another, oblivious to the fact that we know nothing about our origins, what we are in the universe or what might become of us after what we call "death".

Of course, religion is an answer which only certainty comes from faith rather than actual proof. Faith is a powerful anxiolytic and in a way those that truly experience it must avoid some terrifying anxieties.

I, for myself, have a hard time believing in God or at least any religion created by humans. If not for something that most might consider insignificant, I wouldn't even consider believing in God... What is making me contemplate such an act of faith happened more than a year ago when my 10 year old dog was diagnosed with a myeloma and was in a lot of pain. At that point and I remember it with great accuracy, I turned to my wife and asked her "'If there is a God, why would he/she make such a harmless little dog suffer like this?" I don't think I had ever asked that question with such defiance and hatred for nothing seemed to make sense to me in this world. My parents having passed away, one might be shocked that I would only ask this question when confronted with the suffering of a dog. I think that there was something unbearable for me in seeing my dog suffer like that as I saw it as pure and pointless suffering.

When it comes to human beings, we all tend to try and make sense of death eventhough, I'm pretty convinced of it, it absolutely doesn't make any. The death of my mother when I was 21 and more recently of my dad, have at least made me realize that our presence on earth is transient and very insignificant. Whatever we hold dear doesn't last and the elusive feeling of happiness or our quest for it is just a mirage.

We all have certitudes. We all think our life is going in one direction eventhough it's going the opposite way. We all tend to think we'll do the important things tomorrow. But in the end, we miss many things and often the most important ones.

When we get to that defining and final moment, at the very time that our eyes are going to close for the final time, what is left? What mattered? What a terrifying and unbearable question, right?

My answer is that everything might seem pointless... This little masquerade that we call life, these moments of happiness that don't last... Our pride in the fact that some of our genes will be living on in the form of our children? Aren't we contributing to more insignificant lives? Or is there really a point? Will humanity ever reach a Nirvana or a state of higher wisdom with complete understanding of our very own existence and the fabric of the Universe?

In the end, we're only left with questions and that terrifying and defining moment when our eyes close for the last time......

To end this rather dark post, I must write about my dog, that one year later and thanks to chemotherapy is still alive and actually well. Should I consider this a miracle? Should I believe in God? Who knows? I just might...

Does God Have Narcissistic Personality Disorder?

I haven't been able to stop thinking about it for a few weeks now but I can't seem to understand why in so many religions, God is seen as someone who must be worhsipped and feared.

How is it possible that such an almighty being as God would need the narcissistic reassurance of being worshipped?

If God created us, wouldn't it be to give us freedom rather than have us spend our short lives in fear and with the necessity of worshipping our creator?

How could God be so weak as to need our reassurance ?