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A visit with the Great Spirit in pre-1847 “Utah”

A visit with the Great Spirit in pre-1847 “Utah”

Last updated on: April 12, 2020 at 3:06 pm by Dan Peterson

A visit with the Great Spirit in pre-1847 “Utah” 2020-04-12T15:06:59-06:00 Dan Peterson

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In the Uinta Mountains of Utah, looking south toward Kings Peak from above the Henry’s Fork Basin. Taken by Hyrum K. Wright (Hkw2 at the English language Wikipedia) on 25 August 2004.

From Lee Nelson, Visions from Beyond the Veil (Springville, UT: Council Press, 2014):

In doing research for a biographical novel on Walkara, a Ute Indian chief, I uncovered what appeared to be a classic out-of-body experience. Walkara told the story to early trappers and later to the pioneers who settled in his homeland.

As a young man, Walkara went high into the Uinta Mountains in search of the Great Spirit, Towatts. The chief said his soul was troubled following the killing of some men from a neighboring tribe. He went to the mountains fasting, hoping for some kind of communication with Towatts, possibly to receive a medicine dream.

After several days of prayer and meditation, Walkara describes leaving his body and traveling to the world of spirits, where Towatts greeted him, wearing flowing white robes instead of buckskins. The Great Spirit gave Walkara a new name, and told him that someday a tribe of white people would come to settle in the Ute lands, and he should not make war with them.

Walkara was happy in the world of spirits and did not want to return to mortal life, but Towatts told him he must, so he did. Later, when the settlers arrived in Ute lands, Walkara led a band of two-hundred well-armed warriors, and probably could have driven the white settlers out, but he didn’t because of his medicine dream, or what appears to be a near-death experience. (xix-xx)

Some very brief notes from Visions from Beyond the Veil:

1-4 — a veridical dream of the dead conveying information that was subsequently confirmed

I was overwhelmed with a feeling of utter blissfulness. Beautiful people — many of them old friends — gathered around me. (6)

My life flashed before me. I was experiencing judgment. Among other things I learned that the most important thing we can do on this earth is to show consideration, love, and kindness to others. There are no bonuses for position alone, nor power and wealth. We are judged by how we treat people and what we do for others. I learned that heavenly judgment is a learning experience and nothing to fear. It was wonderful. (6)

The following five references come from a story told by a friend and former ward member, now retired from the faculty of Brigham Young University:

20 — mysterious light seen by the dying person

20 — mysterious light observed in the room of the dying person

21 — cats flee the room when unseen “spirits” enter the room of the dying person

21 — cat seems to be watching visiting spirits

21 — “cheerful women’s voices,” evidently of unseen visiting spirits, heard in the dying person’s room

near-death experience

near-death experiences

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