Death & Beyond

What happens when you die? (James Van Praagh)

By  | 

This is THE show for anyone who ever wondered where they go after they die, who goes where within the Spirit World, and how to prepare for an easy transition to the next life.  Join CJ as James Van Praagh shares his experiences of communicating with the Spirit World for the past 30 years as a medium and reveals findings from his newest book “Adventures of the Soul” on what happens when you die.

YouTube Interview with James Van Praagh – What happens when you die?

 

Transcript of Interview: What happens when you die? – James Van Praagh

Transcript Edited and condensed

 Q:What happens when we die? 

A: At the end of our lives we look at our lives in a life review and we see all those influences that we gave to that overall matrix of everyone. We see how we influenced the world, positive or negative.

 

Q: Tell us about your Near Death Experience.

A: With my near death experience, I saw a ribbon that was attached at the crown of the head to what seemed like a tapestry or matrix.  And I remember that every thought was transferred to a color in that ribbon. Happy thoughts were light colors like pastels.  Angry negative thoughts had more muted and darker colors. I had this realization that when I get to the end of my life, I can look back at that tapestry and see how I influenced it, did I make it more beautiful or not. There was a multi-awareness that we are responsible for everything that we do and that we’ve done.

 

Q: What happens during your life review, if you were a nasty person during most of your life? 

A: Most religions teach about karma and energy.  What I often say is that we are ALL God.  To me, God is the creator, which means we are the creator.  We are part of the big force of creation and that we are constantly creating with our thoughts, and our thoughts are things, so our thought is energy. So at the end of your life, you see how you used that energy. It’s not those great grandiose gestures, like giving money to a foundation that count.  Instead, it’s the things you do like opening the door for somebody, smiling at somebody, or honoring somebody.

 

Q: Is there a heaven or hell? 

A: Yes, but it’s not religious. It’s not like a hell with fire and brimstones, and a heaven with harps and angels. It’s based on what you created in this life. If you led a decent life and you did the best you could with what you had, or at least you attempted to, that will determine your experience in the Spirit World. If you attempted to bring love and compassion, then you’ve done your job.

 

Q: This whole thing makes me worried.

A: It’s good that people have a sense of the life review.  It’s to realize that what I give out, I get back, and that what I give out, I’ll see that again when I pass over. It forces us to stop and rethink what we do and how we respond and treat other people.  It begins the process of mindfulness. We can become mindful of our thoughts and realize that our thoughts create energy.

 

Q: I’m not good and loving every moment of the day, how does this register in the final analysis? 

A:None of us are perfect, but you have awareness and that counts a lot.  We can change. We can take the time to become more mindful, aware, and compassionate. We have that choice and have free will to do that. We can go and help someone across the street or let them suffer on their own.  We have that ability to choose every day.  Life is a series of choices and that’s really what we are down here to learn about — choices, and all choices are either based upon love or fear.

 

Q: Do we continue evolving in the Spirit World?

A: You bet we can. But you can also stay in a certain belief system for as long as you choose to. If you don’t want to grow, you won’t grow.

 

Q: Can we travel within all the realms within the Spirit World?

A: You go to the level based on your thoughts and deeds, and we exist on many levels. You get to higher levels through the energy of love. There are many regions within the Astral plane and you can take tours.  My mother came through and she said that she went to the lower astral world and she said it was a shame because people are not aware there and they are living in little hovels or houses. People don’t love each other. There are different realms. It’s like here in many ways where you can go down an alleyways or into a mansion.

 

Q: What happens once I leave my body? What form will I take? 

A: You are light. You identify more with a light being than a physical being when in the Spirit World.  We have this rule in the 3D world that we gotta be in a box and that we are limited.  We are not in the Spirit world, it’s the opposite, we are limitless.

 

Q: What are ghosts? How are they related to the bardo?

A: Many religions have that there is a place that is purgatory or the bardo. I do believe there is an adjustment period after you die, no doubt about it. I think that every individual has a different experience. For instance, there may be one person that goes directly to the light without passing GO. And another person whose mindset is so connected to family and unfinished business that they stay close to the earth atmosphere in order to influence.  You can call these Spirits ghosts.

 

James Van Praagh- Medium, NY Times Best Selling Author

jvpJames Van Praagh is considered a spiritual pioneer and one of the worlds’s most celebrated and respected spiritual teachers working today.  He has brought a mind-full awareness to the subject of “communication with the dead” into the public psyche for the past thirty years.  Mr. Van Praagh is known as a “survival evidence medium,” meaning that he provides evidential proof of life after death via detailed messages from the spiritual realms.

His work has brought spiritual insights to millions with his numerous guest appearances on such shows as Oprah, Dr. Phil, Larry King Live20/20, The View, The Today Show, Chelsea Lately, Beyond Belief, Biography, Coast to Coast, 48 Hours,and a multitude of others.  He is also the number one New York Times best-selling author of Talking To HeavenReaching To HeavenHealing GriefHeaven and Earth,Looking BeyondMeditationsGhosts Among Us, Unfinished Business, How to Heal a Grieving Heart and his soon to be released Adventures of the Soul. 

In 2002 he hosted his own television show, Beyond with James Van Praagh and went on to produce one of the most watched mini-series in CBS network history; Living with the Dead, starring Ted Danson,  portraying James in a biography of his life. He also developed and produced The Dead Will Tell, starring Eva Longoria as well as the hugely successful Friday night series, Ghost Whisperer starring Jennifer Love Hewitt. Currently, James can be seen on the web hosting Gaiam TV’s live streaming show Spirit Talk, which has quickly become one of the network’s most viewed original shows.  Weekly he can also be heard around the world on his weekly radio show Talking To Spirit, on the Hay House Radio Network.

Mixing his compassion and sense of humor together with his skilled teaching abilities, James is sought out by students around the world for his tutelage.  He has been a faculty fixture for the past fourteen years at the prestigious Omega Institute for Wellness in Rhinebeck, New York. He also travels around the world leading conferences and workshops on self-development and intuition.  He is also a regular contributor to the Huffington Post.

During his career, his reputation and profession have seen him work with International Heads of State, religious world leaders and known entertainment celebrities such as Cher, Goldie Hawn, Shirley Maclaine, Ellen DeGeneres, Joan Rivers, Katie Couric, Loretta Lynn, Chelsea Handler, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Wesley Snipes, and many more. He is famous for bringing through evidential details from many famous deceased personalities like Marilyn Monroe, Slim Pickins, Rock Hudson, Frank Sinatra, Roy Orbison, Lucille Ball, Andrew Carnegie, Liberace, Princess Diana, Michael Jackson, Johnny Carson, Ghandi, Edgar Cayce, Benjamin Franklin and even Abraham Lincoln. This proves the standard and the versatility of his abilities.

Through his work, Van Praagh shares his life experiences and insights so that others will benefit in opening up their hearts and gain a connection with their own spiritual self.  “The books, live stream events, seminars, classes, web site, social media outlets and television projects are ways to share my abilities and the message that we all are eternal spirits and the love we create on this earth is what we take with us when it is time to venture back home to the Spirit world.”

 

#What happens when you die,Death,die, Where do you go when you die,What do you see when you die,What do you feel when you die, When will we die, How will we die, Hell