His fearless view of death as just another transformation may, in fact, have helped raise the nation's consciousness in regard to its inability to deal with the notion of dying. Whether it's a near-death experience of the classical kind, where someone is in an accident and then moves out of their body, or through a loved one dying, either a child or a parent. People have been miraculously transformed through such experiences. Metzner's work seems to suggest that there is a built-in desire to transform ourselves into better, or perhaps only different, human beings. We all desire personal growth and change.
People go on vision quests in search of change.
They involve themselves in various spiritual practices. It's a very general, very human thing. To seek a spiritual vision, to have a desire to experience spiritual healing, that is something that is inherent in every single individual.