The True Story of a Man Who Died Twice and the Profound Revelations He Received.

In 1975, Dannion Brinkley was hit by lightning while talking on the phone. He was dead for twenty-eight minutes before being revived in hospital. What 'happened' for the duration is recounted here. He tells of visiting a Crystal City where he was met by thirteen Beings of Light who gave instructions and information for his return. Prior to this event, Dannion was a self-confessed bad boy Vietnam veteran with negligible spiritual inclinations. Revived, he was an incoherent, babbling, half-cooked believer in life after death.

He was a changed man in many ways - far less self-absorbed, unnervingly clairvoyant, filled with determination to deliver on his instructions from the other side, and adamant about what he'd experienced, seen and heard. Dannion took to hospice work setting up a non-profit organisation, The Twilight Brigade, to provide comfort, reassurance, and compassionate support to dying war veterans and their loved ones. He believes that if we can dispel our fear of death, we can dispel our fear of life; few know better than he the truth behind that.

In 1989 he underwent surgery on his lightning-damaged heart and again travelled to the Crystal City, receiving further information and guidance to be passed on. In 1997 he again had surgery, this time for a brain aneurysm, and had several out-of-body experiences.

Dannion Brinkley is an extraordinary man who relates experiences that defy belief. His second book, At peace in the light, contains stories about his hospice work, while his third book, Secrets of the light , explains his 'spiritual strategies to empower your life.' The last is rich in practical instruction, my personal favourite being that, in any given situation, you should act as if God's busy right now so you were sent instead. While that may sound cheesy, it serves to remind us not only of our responsibility to strive to be a blessing to all we encounter, but also that the Divine genuinely needs us to serve as living examples of its love in action on Earth.