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Kellehear, Allan. "An Hawaiian Near-Death Experience." Journal of Near-Death Studies 20, no. 1 (Fall 2001): 31-35. Originally from: Thrum, Thomas G. Hawaiian Folk Tales: A Collection of Native Legends. Chicago: A.C. McClurg, 1907. Case: Kalima
7
Weak Evidence
6
Low Compatibility
Pele's Pit (volcano as entrance to afterlife), ancestral/cultural afterlife concepts
This Hawaiian NDE from the early 1900s reflects strong cultural and ancestral beliefs rather than biblical themes. The experience centers on Kalima's journey through transformed earthly locations populated by deceased individuals living in perpetual happiness. The destination of Pele's Pit, a volcano serving as the traditional Hawaiian portal to the afterlife, represents a distinctly non-biblical cosmology. While the experience shares some universal NDE features like the out-of-body experience and encountering deceased beings, these are framed entirely within Hawaiian spiritual traditions rather than Judeo-Christian concepts.
The absence of any biblical elements such as God, Jesus, angels, heaven, hell, or judgment scenes is notable. Instead, the afterlife is portrayed as a continuation of earthly existence in an enhanced, joyful state, with the volcano serving as the gateway between worlds. The forced return to life by unnamed beings who determine it is "not her time" lacks the personal divine encounter often found in biblically-compatible NDEs. While not directly contradicting scripture, the experience operates within a completely different spiritual framework that emphasizes ancestral presence and cultural geography over biblical themes of salvation, judgment, or divine encounter.
Kalima, a woman from Kona, Hawaii, had been seriously ill for many weeks before she appeared to die. Her family prepared her for burial and laid her beside her grave for funeral rites when she unexpectedly sighed and opened her eyes, returning to life after several days of recovery.
During her apparent death, Kalima experienced leaving her body and observing it from outside, recognizing herself as alive while her physical form appeared dead. She then began an involuntary journey, walking from village to village across Hawaii, encountering thousands of people in what she knew as small settlements. All the people she met were joyous and happy, and she recognized many as deceased individuals she had known in life. The atmosphere was one of complete happiness, with no troubles or cares evident among the inhabitants. Kalima felt compelled to continue walking toward Pele's Pit, the traditional volcano site where souls of the dead were believed to leap into the afterlife. Despite wanting to stop and stay with the happy crowds, she could not resist the pull toward the volcano. Upon reaching her destination, she was intercepted by a small group who told her she must return to her body as it was not yet her time to die. Despite her protests and desire to remain, Kalima was forcibly driven back along the sixty-mile journey she had traveled. The previously welcoming people now helped drive her back when they saw she was not permitted to stay. She was beaten and pushed until she reached her body and re-entered it, subsequently recovering with some regret at having to return. |