Welcome to the strange and delightful world of life in the afterlife. We will begin with the basic question of why one should even wonder or believe in such a thing. A couple of reasons to consider: An intelligent consideration of life after death based on experiential evidence can empower people in their everyday affairs by helping them to better prepare for the greater part of eternity. Also, one can identify what is truly important in this life. Through Spiritualism one comes to the understanding that the world and the whole material universe exists for the sole (soul’s) purpose of developing spiritual beings. Profound thoughts, indeed! Death is but a doorway into a new world where life continues both in expected and unexpected ways.
As has been done in previous essays, following is a look at the interpretation of life after death by earlier cultures. It’s always so interesting to find how closely early native peoples belief mirror those of Modern Spiritualism. The picture of continued existence that the early native people conceived of closely resembles the life they lived in the physical world. The primary difference in that one world is seen and the other unseen. Also, the prevalent belief both in animal and human sacrifice at the time was supported by the understanding that life would continue in much the same, if not the same, as it did before the sacrifice. In China and Japan, there was a pervasive belief in ancestor worship in which it was believed that the spirits of the dead were in communication with the living and held some influence too, and that their “help” required sacrifices. Though this belief has gone through some refinement through the ages, the belief essentially remains. And Brahmanism introduces one to the belief in the transmigration of souls, or the idea that a soul may have a subsequent life in any other life form be it animal, plant, or human in order to develop spiritually.
A further exploration is given from the intellectual and scientific points of view. Professor William James speaks of his “transmission theory” in which consciousness is transmitted in the same way that matter is transmitted. Science has shown that all matter is made up of atoms that may also be broken down into neutrons, electrons, and protons. By their nature as electrical forms of energy, they can be considered ethereal both in nature and function. Sir Oliver Lodge insisted that all matter had an etheric double, which suggests a world both seen and unseen. Returning to the concepts of Natural Law, James Hyslop writes that death is a simple law of nature and that if one can assure themselves that it is a mere transitional process to a new environment, one would gain an entirely new perspective on life.
The Spiritualist perspective comes naturally through mediumship as it is through communication with the higher order of beings, those residing in the Spirit World, that we are to learn of its existence and properties. While communication between the two different states of being is difficult and somewhat experimental on both sides, much knowledge is still to be gained. In most cases, the subconscious mind is the only point of contact between the two worlds. The contact received comes in the form of impressions made upon the subconscious mind that must be interpreted by the medium. Sometimes coloring or distortion of the message occurs, but through repeated experiences and comparing experiences of other mediums, the truth is seen.
Primary to the philosophy of Spiritualism are two basic concepts regarding life after death. First that spirits are real people, just like you. They are men, women and children who have left their flesh bodies behind through the door of death while still retaining recognizable bodies known as spiritual bodies. And, second, that the Spirit World is a real world. It is just as real to spirits as our world is to us.
Life after death comes down to a matter of learning to expand one’s own awareness. It’s the departure from one state of consciousness into that of a greater one. The primary difference being one of vibration. One learns that in the physical sphere, we are aware and exist in a limited range of vibrations within which our existence is real to us. However, consider that the universe is vibrating within an unlimited range of motion creating worlds within worlds and states of being beyond our comprehension. Therefore, life after death is a range in vibration different from that which one currently experiences. The key is expanded awareness.
Once one becomes acclimated to the Spirit World, what might they expect? Here one learns that the Spirit World is similar to our own though with landscapes more awesome than those seen on Earth. Furthermore, one finds that spirits themselves continue living and growing through similar activities to those in physical life, but with the primary difference being that service to others is paramount and the primary focus for further growth. Additionally, occupations in the Spirit World tend to be more about personal development and ridding oneself of misintruction gained on the Earth plane. Also, the acquiring of greater knowledge is greatly emphasized.
Andrew Jackson Davis, a prominent Spiritualist of the late 1800s, describes what one might expect to encounter on the other side. He writes of three specific degrees of form that spiritual beings develop on Earth, which are the young and unmatured; the advanced stages of these (young and unmatured) up to manhood; and the perfected form and most developed of them all. Davis also describes three planes of spirits that almost seem conceptual in nature. There is a plane of natural thought; a plane of causes; and a plane of effects. Each plane bringing greater wisdom into the workings of the universe.
From all the history, accounts, investigations and knowledge gained through the Spiritualist approach to death, one has the opportunity to come out of it with, indeed, an expanded awareness and, perhaps, a new sense of being.
