We interview people who survived near-death experiences: ‘I was told to go back and heal my people’

702’s Clement Manyathela speaks with Sarah Bullen and Godfrey Madlalate, who came close to death and lived to tell the tale.

Listen below:

Godfrey Madlalate and Sarah Bullen, South Africans with very different backgrounds, are connected by an extraordinary experience.

Both of them survived a near-death experience and came out the other side completely changed.

Sarah Bullen

Bullen fell ill and was placed in a coma on life support.

At the same time, her husband was dying of brain cancer.

She says that during that time she crossed over to ‘the other side' and travelled through spiritual realms.

Initially, she says her ‘spirit’ stayed on the recognisable earth, feeling a deep sense of unease, but eventually moved beyond this.

“I was not a person. I had no idea of my name. I had no idea I was a mother, a sister, a daughter. I was just a being floating aimlessly.”

- Sarah Bullen, survivor of a near-death experience

After some time, she went into what she describes as a different energetic plane of existence.

Even though she still did not know who or what she was, she knew that she was there to say goodbye to her husband, who died a few days after she woke up.

Over time, she says she moved further away from anything recognisable into what she calls the 'deep universe'.

“There was awareness within me that I was a part of all of it.”

- Sarah Bullen, survivor of a near-death experience

“I did not see God. I did not see angels. I did not have a beloved familiar face walk me over the line… and that disturbed me for a long time.”

- Sarah Bullen, survivor of a near-death experience

Eventually, she returned to the living plane after her loved ones had a group prayer and meditation session, which called her back.

She says coming back was not easy, and she had to fight her way back into consciousness.

When she returned to the hospital, she says there was a ‘spirit guide’ with her, who told her that now that she had returned, she must have more fun in life.

Godfrey Madlalate

Madlalate was working at a corporation in the 90s, but began to fall ill and got progressively worse over the years.

He and his partner visited Mozambique in 2000, and upon returning, he began to fall into involuntary spiritual trance states.

When he left the trance state, he began to feel he was choking every time he went indoors, and he slept outside.

At this point, he was severely underweight from years of being ill and no longer wished to be alive because of how much pain he was in.

After three days, he had an out-of-body ‘near-death’ experience and received instructions about his future from a powerful, silent voice.

“The voice played me clips of what would be happening in 10, 15, 20 years in my life, and gave me instructions. The final instruction was to go back and heal my people.” 

- Godfrey Madlalate

When he returned from this, he began his training to become a spiritual healer.

He says that after these experiences, he has come to believe in reincarnation and believes that during his near-death experience, he was travelling between lifetimes.

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