Brinkley, Danion (1950-)

Danion Brinkley, a contemporary personality in the post-New Age community, has attained a level of fame as the result of his best-selling autobiography centered upon his near-death experiences, a dramatic narrative that rivals the account of psychiatrist George Richey in its impact. Brinkley grew up in the 1950s in South Carolina. He emerged in school as somewhat of a bully who was proud of his ability as a fighter. After high school he joined the Marines and was assigned to an intelligence unit in Cambodia and Laos. For a time he worked as an assassin. After his tour of duty, he retured to Aiken, South Carolina, where he entered into several business ventures.

Brinkley's life changed on September 17, 1975, when a bolt of lightning struck the telephone line as he was engaged in a conversation. He was electrocuted. His wife, Sandy, called an emergency unit, but on the way to the hospital, he was pronounced dead. He revived some 28 minutes later in the morgue. As he later recounts the story, he was initially thrown out of his body by the electrical jolt and saw the arrival of the CPR unit and their attempts to revive him in what was a classic out-of-the-body travel experience. However, as he was pronounced dead, he began a more spectacular adventure.

According to Brinkley's later account, he was whisked through a dark tunnel to an encounter with a spirit being and was taken into a crystal light city. He also was engaged in a re-view of his life and met with 13 angelic beings who told him of events that were to occur over the next quarter of a century. Included were the nuclear accident at Chernobyl, the Gulf War, and the economic crisis during the Bush administration. The lengthy recovery from the effects of the lightning wiped him out financially even as the near-death event profoundly affected his spiritual life.

A short time after returning home, he learned of the work of Raymond Moody on near-death experiences and made an effort to meet him on the occasion of Moody's delivering a lecture at the University of South Carolina. His meeting with Moody helped him deal with the trauma of his death and gain some perspective on his life. He also learned that many others had had similar experiences. Following the publication of Life after Life, the book that turned Moody into a celebrity figure, Brinkley went to work assisting him. During this time he discovered that he was also experiencing a psychic awakening.

In 1989 Brinkley had a second near-death experience when his heart gave out while he was sick with pneumonia. He again visited the crystal city. He was given a vision of a new direction in his life that resulted in his going to work in a hospice caring for and helping dying people. He published the story of his life in 1994 and has subsequently become a popular guest on radio and television talk shows, including multiple appearances on the popular late-night show hosted by Art Bell. He now lectures widely on the near-death experience, works with various forms of alternative medicine, and heads Compassion in Action, an organization to train volunteers to assist the dying founded in 1997.

Sources:

Brinkley, Danion. At Peace in the Light. New York: Harper, 1996.

——, with Paul Perry. Saved by the Light. New York: Villard Books, 1994.