The basis of any religious movement is faith. And while true believers do not question the miracles described in the holy books, scientists are trying to explain them from the point of view modern science.
1. Jinns
In Islamic theology, it is generally accepted that humans were created from water and clay, angels were created from light, and jinn were created from smokeless fire. Although many believe that jinn are simple spirits, a theory has emerged that the word "jinn" actually means "foreigner." This allegedly indicates their extraterrestrial origin. Some researchers suggest that genies may be a form of plasma life existing in the sun, which fits perfectly into the concept of "smokeless fire."
Another theory is that it is a form of life based on the interaction of magnetic fields, where positive and negative ions interact like proteins and nucleic acids on Earth, and are supported by the energy of the Sun.
Ufologist Chris Line put forward a completely unusual hypothesis. He suggests that jinn exist in the infrared spectrum and angels exist in the ultraviolet spectrum. This theory also supposedly explains why UFOs began appearing in the skies after the 1940s. Apparently, the explosion of technology has led to the fact that the Earth's atmosphere has become literally overflowing with microwave radiation, which has become "annoying the genies that exist in the infrared spectrum."
2. Reincarnation
Buddhists tend to be very respectful of science. It is therefore not at all surprising that many Buddhist thinkers have tried to explain the concept of reincarnation from a scientific point of view. University of Virginia psychiatrist Jim Tucker has spent years collecting data on children who claim to have memories of past lives.
Surprisingly, there was little criticism of his research, since Tucker was able to identify some interesting patterns. Most children who claim to remember past lives are 2-6 years old, and they allegedly died at an average age of 28 during a previous life. About 70 percent of the children claimed to have died a violent or unnatural death, and 90 percent claimed to have been the same gender in their previous life.
Some quantum physicists believe that the material world is derived from consciousness, and not vice versa. If this is true, then consciousness does not need a physical body to exist.
3. Immaculate Conception
The miracle of the virgin birth of Jesus is one of the most important milestones of the Christian faith. Most people assume that it happened with the help of God. But there are also those who are trying to develop a scientific explanation for this fact.
On the one hand, there is such a phenomenon as parthenogenesis - one of the forms of sexual reproduction of organisms, in which female reproductive cells (eggs) develop in an adult body without fertilization. But then the question arises, where did Jesus get the Y chromosome, thanks to which he was born a man?
According to one theory, Mary's X chromosome carried a mutation that made her body resistant to testosterone. Consequently, although she developed like a woman, her genes were practically a man. According to another theory, Mary had different genes because before her birth, twin embryos in her mother's womb merged into one (with one of them having a Y chromosome).
4. Holy Trinity
Another of the main mysteries of Christianity is the three aspects of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Some modern scientists believe that the answer may be found in quantum mechanics. They suggest that God created the physical world with scientific laws modeled after his divine nature, so the interconnections of subatomic particles can be viewed as the interaction of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
5. Heaven and Hell
In 1972, scientists tried to apply the principles of thermodynamics to the concept of heaven and hell. As a result, they got a rather interesting result. In the Book of the Prophet Isaiah it was said, “And the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days.” This supposedly suggests that heaven will receive 49 times more heat from the Sun than Earth.
According to the laws of thermodynamics, paradise should heat up to 525 degrees Celsius. Moreover, in the Revelation of John the Theologian it is said that “the fearful, the unfaithful, the abominable, murderers, adulterers, sorcerers, idolaters and all liars will have their fate in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone.” In order for the sulfur to be molten and not evaporate, the temperature in the lake must be maintained at 444.6 degrees Celsius. Thus, heaven must be hotter than hell.
However, if we take into account the fact that Hell contained about 29 billion souls in 2000 (at least, this is what a certain mathematician claimed back in the 19th century), and the area of the hellish lake of fire is only 7 square kilometers (this was also calculated by him ), then at this pressure sulfur will be able to remain in liquid form at temperatures well above 525 degrees Celsius.
6. Gift of Tongues
In 2006, researchers at Pennsylvania State University became interested in "glossolalia" (speech consisting of nonsense words but having all the hallmarks of meaningful speech) practiced by some Pentecostal sects around the world. After scanning the brains of five women who spoke in a trance state in an unknown language, the researchers found that the frontal lobes (which control conscious action) as well as the language centers in the brain were inactive.
In contrast, activity was observed in areas of the brain responsible for maintaining self-awareness. These results confirmed what Pentecostals have long argued: glossolalia is a unique conscious experience that occurs without conscious awareness. Believers interpreted the results this way: people get the opportunity for glossolalia from the outside, from outside their mind.
7. Koran
Some Muslims believe that the basis for modern science can be found in the Koran. Dr. Joe Lee Simpson, an expert in gynecology, obstetrics and genetics, said that two hadiths about the Prophet Muhammad describe the process of embryogenesis. In one of them, the Prophet said: “Each of you has all the components of his creation gathered together in his mother’s womb for forty days.”
In another hadith, he said: “If forty-two nights have passed since conception, Allah sends an angel to the embryo, who gives it the form of a man and gives it hearing, sight, skin, flesh and bones.” Also, the Koran allegedly mentions the orbits of planets, the protective properties of the atmosphere, the Earth’s magnetic field, the relativity of time, etc.
8. Genesis
In 1994, scientists at the Jerusalem College of Technology and the Hebrew University analyzed the book of Genesis for equidistant letter sequences. (For example, "HXOXUXSXE" could be spelled "house"). Using this method, researchers hoped to find special words and phrases left to humanity by God.
They based their research on previous work by Rabbi Weissmandel, who found similar patterns in the Hebrew Pentateuch (the five books of Moses). As a result of statistical analysis, the names of 32 Jewish figures from the 9th to 19th centuries were allegedly discovered, along with their dates of birth and death.
9. Stars
Creationists believe that the universe, including the Earth, is only 6,000 years old. However, the most distant objects (quasars) discovered by astronomers are 13 billion light years away. How do we see these objects? Australian scientists Trevor Norman and Barry Setterfield, after analyzing 163 experimental values for determining the speed of light from the mid-18th century to the present day, concluded that the speed of light is constantly decreasing by about 40 kilometers per second every year. Accordingly, since the creation of the Universe, light has traveled a much greater distance than at its current speed.
10. Obsession
In 2005 year dr. Stafford Betty, a professor of religious studies at California State University, published an article in which he proved the possibility of "demon possession." He argued that there is ample evidence in all world cultures from ancient to modern history that demons could possess people, and that exorcism is effective method treatment.
At the same time, Betty clarified: such possession does not necessarily mean that people were possessed by classic Judeo-Christian demons with horns and pitchforks, but these were “more or less intelligent creatures, invisible to people, who have their own will and who can be subdued in various ways.” He also believes that exorcism should be accepted as an alternative form of treatment for mental illness.
Continuing the theme, striking with its postulates.
Select chapter
Stafford Betty
Discovery of life beyond the line:
what the departed say about their world
Russian Association of Instrumental Transcommunication (RAIT), 2016
Translation: Irina Potapova
Preface to the Russian Internet publication
The book, written by the American scientist and theologian Stafford Betty, is devoted to the most important topic that concerns every person living on this planet - what awaits us beyond the boundaries of earthly existence. It analyzes the main sources of the most reliable and evidentiary posthumous communications received through mediumship at different times and by different people. Despite the inevitable discrepancies in minor details caused by the personalities of the communicators themselves, it is clearly shown that there are no significant contradictions in the main content of the given descriptions.
To make the picture presented whole and complete, two key examples have been added to the original version of the book, providing the clearest evidence in history of the reality of life after death: the case of Raymond, the son of physicist Oliver Lodge, and the pilot, Captain Walter Hinchliffe. Both cases are harmoniously included in the general context.
Such a volume of information, combining a detailed display of the everyday realities of the Subtle World, but at the same time - literacy in analysis and reliability of the sources used, is perhaps presented in Russian for the first time. The list of sources at the beginning of the book (page 5) gives their correct division into chapters, as well as links to Russian translations, if any.
The picture of life that emerges from the stories of people who have crossed the line inspires optimism and confidence in the future. Bright, lively and exciting transmission of images of life and everyday life in Subtle world, received first-hand from its representatives, will not leave anyone indifferent.
Artem Mikheev, Ph.D. physics and mathematics Sciences, Associate Professor, Head of the Russian Association of Instrumental Transcommunication (RAIT) Irina Potapova, translator.Reviews
“There are few, if any, questions that are as important as the question of life after death. This book contains information presented to us as the stories of deceased people, telling us in what conditions they live, and how they can move from one sphere to another. Be that as it may, this topic is of great interest to each of us.”
“After painting a detailed picture and analyzing in detail the information about the other world transmitted from spiritual sources through the mediation of trustworthy mediums, Dr. Betty identifies 44 characteristic features of the other world, most of which contradict the views of the major world religions. The belief that our other-worldly existence will depend on how we use our free will to evolve spiritually, finding love and wisdom in this world, is the core idea of this book.”
Boyce Batey, Executive Director of the Academy for the Study of Spiritualism and the Paranormal
“The basis of any organized religion is life after death. Yet religion has failed to paint an attractive picture of the other world. However, there are many stories about the afterlife, transmitted through mediums who managed to penetrate the veil that separates the worlds. In his book, Professor Betty collected the most interesting and fascinating of them, presenting us with a realistic picture of the higher and lower spheres.”
“If you are looking for a book about the other world seen through the eyes of a medium, this is what you need. Dr. Stafford Betty has carefully studied the most famous mediums and presented us with a collection of information obtained from various sources. You will find here the most exciting and controversial stories about the essence of the other world, presented in ordinary non-academic language. There's so much to think about and discuss that you won't be able to put this book down."
Stafford Betty Discovery of life beyond the line: what the departed say about their world
Russian Association of Instrumental Transcommunication (RAIT), 2016
Translation: Irina Potapova
Preface to the Russian Internet publication
The book, written by the American scientist and theologian Stafford Betty, is devoted to the most important topic that concerns every person living on this planet - what awaits us beyond the boundaries of earthly existence. It analyzes the main sources of the most reliable and evidentiary posthumous communications received through mediumship at different times and by different people. Despite the inevitable discrepancies in minor details caused by the personalities of the communicators themselves, it is clearly shown that there are no significant contradictions in the main content of the given descriptions.
To make the picture presented whole and complete, two key examples have been added to the original version of the book, providing the clearest evidence in history of the reality of life after death: the case of Raymond, the son of physicist Oliver Lodge, and the pilot, Captain Walter Hinchliffe. Both cases are harmoniously included in the general context.
Such a volume of information, combining a detailed display of the everyday realities of the Subtle World, but at the same time - literacy in analysis and reliability of the sources used, is perhaps presented in Russian for the first time. The list of sources at the beginning of the book (page 5) gives their correct division into chapters, as well as links to Russian translations, if any.
The picture of life that emerges from the stories of people who have crossed the line inspires optimism and confidence in the future. A bright, lively and exciting transmission of images of life and everyday life in the Subtle World, received first-hand from its representatives, will not leave anyone indifferent.
Artem Mikheev, Ph.D. physics and mathematics Sciences, Associate Professor, Head of the Russian Association of Instrumental Transcommunication (RAIT)
Irina Potapova, translator.
Reviews
“There are few, if any, questions that are as important as the question of life after death. This book contains information presented to us as the stories of deceased people, telling us in what conditions they live, and how they can move from one sphere to another. Be that as it may, this topic is of great interest to each of us.”
“After painting a detailed picture and analyzing in detail the information about the other world transmitted from spiritual sources through the mediation of trustworthy mediums, Dr. Betty identifies 44 characteristic features of the other world, most of which contradict the views of the major world religions. The belief that our other-worldly existence will depend on how we use our free will to evolve spiritually, finding love and wisdom in this world, is the core idea of this book.”
Boyce Batey, Executive Director of the Academy for the Study of Spiritualism and the Paranormal
“The basis of any organized religion is life after death. Yet religion has failed to paint an attractive picture of the other world. However, there are many stories about the afterlife, transmitted through mediums who managed to penetrate the veil that separates the worlds. In his book, Professor Betty collected the most interesting and fascinating of them, presenting us with a realistic picture of the higher and lower spheres.”
“If you are looking for a book about the other world seen through the eyes of a medium, this is what you need. Dr. Stafford Betty has carefully studied the most famous mediums and presented us with a collection of information obtained from various sources. You will find here the most exciting and controversial stories about the essence of the other world, presented in ordinary non-academic language. There's so much to think about and discuss that you won't be able to put this book down."
Gratitude
I would like to thank Brett Books for the opportunity to quote from Ruth Mattson Taylor's Evidence From Beyond, Stephen Chism for the opportunity to quote from The Afterlife of Leslie Stringfellow, and the publishers of America Magazine for permission to reprint my article Life After Death Is Not a Red Hering.”
I would also like to thank Thomas Berry, my advisor at Fordham University, for opening up the vast world of comparative religion to me; John Hick, the renowned religious philosopher whose views I found irrefutable from the very beginning; Huston Smith, the founder of the study of religion, anew who revealed forgotten truths that kindled a thirst in me that I could not quench until I wrote this book, and Makl Timn, who studied mediumship as carefully and scrupulously as anyone else.
Introduction
“Maps are symbols, and even the best of these symbols are approximate and imperfect. However, for those who seriously intend to reach their destination, the map serves as an indispensable aid, since it indicates in which direction the traveler should go and which paths to take.”
Aldous Huxley.
You are holding in your hands a book dedicated to one of the most interesting topics in literature, about which even the most educated readers often know nothing. Initially, its authors are those whom we call “dead”. Those who come into contact with him are known as mediums, and we call them "living". If you want to buy one of these books, you should look for it by the name of the medium, although most of them claim that the true authors are spirits - messengers who speak through them. The contacts with the other world that will be discussed in this book are the best examples of this genre, the richest, most revealing and fruitful that I have had the opportunity to deal with in a quarter century of researching this sometimes controversial material. Considering them as a whole, you can get a picture of the other world - a place where we will all go after some time.
You will get acquainted with nine stories about the other world, conveyed by its inhabitants. These are souls that were once, like us now, in a physical body. Some of them “died” several centuries ago. Others got in touch within a few days or months after the “death”. The inhabitants of the invisible world do not have a physical body, so they usually cannot physically act in our world directly, as we do. That is why they resort to the help of mediums.
Some religions are skeptical of mediums and warn that messages from them from the other world are “the work of the devil.”
On the other hand, many scientists advise us not to pay attention to such messages, because such things as the soul and life after death, according to their unfounded statements, do not exist. There are also those who occupy an intermediate position, including some world-renowned scientists. They approach this issue from a critical but unbiased point of view. These are the views I myself hold, and I urge you to follow my example.
Stafford Betty
Discovery of life beyond the line:
what the departed say about their world
Russian Association of Instrumental Transcommunication (RAIT), 2016
Translation: Irina Potapova
Preface to the Russian Internet publication
The book, written by the American scientist and theologian Stafford Betty, is devoted to the most important topic that concerns every person living on this planet - what awaits us beyond the boundaries of earthly existence. It analyzes the main sources of the most reliable and evidentiary posthumous communications received through mediumship at different times and by different people. Despite the inevitable discrepancies in minor details caused by the personalities of the communicators themselves, it is clearly shown that there are no significant contradictions in the main content of the given descriptions.
To make the picture presented whole and complete, two key examples have been added to the original version of the book, providing the clearest evidence in history of the reality of life after death: the case of Raymond, the son of physicist Oliver Lodge, and the pilot, Captain Walter Hinchliffe. Both cases are harmoniously included in the general context.
Such a volume of information, combining a detailed display of the everyday realities of the Subtle World, but at the same time - literacy in analysis and reliability of the sources used, is perhaps presented in Russian for the first time. The list of sources at the beginning of the book (page 5) gives their correct division into chapters, as well as links to Russian translations, if any.
The picture of life that emerges from the stories of people who have crossed the line inspires optimism and confidence in the future. A bright, lively and exciting transmission of images of life and everyday life in the Subtle World, received first-hand from its representatives, will not leave anyone indifferent.
Artem Mikheev, Ph.D. physics and mathematics Sciences, Associate Professor, Head of the Russian Association of Instrumental Transcommunication (RAIT) Irina Potapova, translator.Reviews
“There are few, if any, questions that are as important as the question of life after death. This book contains information presented to us as the stories of deceased people, telling us in what conditions they live, and how they can move from one sphere to another. Be that as it may, this topic is of great interest to each of us.”
John Hick author of the book "Death and Eternal Life" famous religious philosopher.“After painting a detailed picture and analyzing in detail the information about the other world transmitted from spiritual sources through the mediation of trustworthy mediums, Dr. Betty identifies 44 characteristic features of the other world, most of which contradict the views of the major world religions. The belief that our other-worldly existence will depend on how we use our free will to evolve spiritually, finding love and wisdom in this world, is the core idea of this book.”
Boyce Batey, Executive Director of the Academy for the Study of Spiritualism and the Paranormal“The basis of any organized religion is life after death. Yet religion has failed to paint an attractive picture of the other world. However, there are many stories about the afterlife, transmitted through mediums who managed to penetrate the veil that separates the worlds. In his book, Professor Betty collected the most interesting and fascinating of them, presenting us with a realistic picture of the higher and lower spheres.”
Michael Timn, author of The Articulate Dead, Vice President of the Academy for the Study of Spiritualism and Paranormal Phenomena“If you are looking for a book about the other world seen through the eyes of a medium, this is what you need. Dr. Stafford Betty has carefully studied the most famous mediums and presented us with a collection of information obtained from various sources. You will find here the most exciting and controversial stories about the essence of the other world, presented in ordinary non-academic language. There's so much to think about and discuss that you won't be able to put this book down."
“...the flow of knowledge rushes towards non-mechanical reality. The universe begins to look more like a great thought than a great machine. The mind is no longer presented as something that accidentally invaded the material world; it should rather be called the creator and ruler of the world of matter.”
Sir James Jeans
The following conclusions are not exhaustive, but they seem to me the most important and interesting.
- The other world is not a fantastic vision in which souls are frozen in a state of ecstasy, contemplating the Lord. No one here is floating in the clouds playing the harp. This is a place with seas and landscapes, cities and houses, reminiscent of our material world, differing only in a higher frequency of vibrations. There are gardens, universities, libraries and shelters for new arrivals from Earth, but there are no factories, fire stations, garbage dumps or smokestacks. There is no dirty work here. All stories describe a world of extraordinary beauty.
- The other world begins at the surface of the Earth and goes into infinity. The earth, as follows from the descriptions, is the “center” of their world.
- Those who have departed do not usually call their world "heaven." Their world is a variety of realms, ranging from the most familiar and pleasant for newcomers who have just made the transition, to realms of indescribable splendor and perfection that they have only heard of or at best visited, and the dark, dismal zones where the souls of the lower order live. .
- Slow earth vibrations dull our ability to sense the presence of the spiritual and Divine. More frequent vibrations of the other world, or what we call the “astral”, increase our receptivity to the spiritual. The Divine is no more separated from our world than from the astral, but souls perceive it more sensitively.
- People who leave remain themselves after they make the transition. Their personality, habits and character, whatever they may be, good or bad, are preserved. After the transition, no miracles happen to them. The astral body is not “resurrected” flesh; it has always existed and served as the “inner shell” of the soul while it was embodied in the physical body. When the physical body dies, the inner body naturally becomes the outer body, just as a snake does when it changes its skin.
- Souls are not omniscient. After death, they do not receive answers to all the questions that occupied them on Earth. Many don't even understand what happened to them. Some, especially those who were convinced that death is a complete disappearance, refuse to believe that they are dead, since everything that surrounds them in the astral world is very similar to the earthly world that they just left.
- Although souls remain themselves, life in the astral world is brighter and richer, and not at all “ghostly”. Astral entities are not constrained by any restrictions. They can communicate telepathically with greater precision than awkward speech allows. They can move from place to place with their minds, although they can also walk if they so choose. Their minds are sharper, their emotions are more deeply felt, both positive and negative. They see and hear as before, but with greater acuity.
- The old, decrepit or damaged bodies they leave behind do not follow them into the other world. And yet they have a body that makes them recognizable to those who knew them on Earth. A personality carries with it the “imprint” of its unique vibration, the radiation of the aura, by which others recognize it.
- The Creator places souls in difficult conditions on Earth because He loves them. He wants them to grow spiritually, increasing their wisdom, love and strength. He knows that the only way To give the soul the opportunity to show the best that is in it is to set difficult tasks for it, just as a teacher does in school. Ultimately, the Creator wants us to become godlike entities as similar to Him as possible. The formation of the soul, the development of personality is the main goal of our life on Earth and in life beyond the line. The ability to exercise free will is absolutely essential to the progress of the soul on all levels.
- The other world is a motley community, in which a variety of personalities are represented, most of whom are flawed and imperfect. Many of them are no more interested in growing spiritually than they were on Earth, but the best of them strive for progress.
- Souls in the astral world can only be where they are allowed to be at the moment. Their progress must be gradual. They will not be able to cross the boundaries of the sphere with higher vibrations if they are not ready for this. Justice reigns here. This is undoubtedly the law of karma. They themselves are “attracted” to the place where they should be according to their level of development. They cannot move forward until they change enough to take that step.
- Many of them set ambitious goals for themselves in terms of self-development, until they incarnated into a physical body and the density of earthly matter made them forget about what they came to Earth for. Subject to principles material world, they lost their orientation. After death, they found to their disappointment that they could not achieve the goals they had so striven for. Many of them have come to terms with this because they achieved growth in a different way.
- The other world provides opportunities for any reasonable interest and hobby: science, music, theology, astral architecture, construction, and much more. This is happy fascinating world, full difficult tasks for those who want to grow spiritually.
- In the astral world there are no physical dangers or diseases. Food is not necessary here, and sleep is not necessary. Natural needs are not even mentioned.
- Many inhabitants of the astral world show a keen interest in events on Earth and strive to contribute to its progress. They claim that many or even most of the most ingenious inventions on earth were suggested by souls transmitting their ideas telepathically. The departed do not forget their relatives, whom they often try to help with what we can call “reverse prayer.”
- Souls are surrounded by an all-pervading Divine Light, full of compassion and love. This Light does not condemn them, at least it seems so. Rather, they judge themselves. As souls move forward in their development, they become closer to the heart of their Creator.
- They glorify the Light in solemn ceremonies, accompanied by majestic music and light displays, which are described in amazing language. Music appears to be the highest art of the astral world, with most spirit communicators citing its inspiring influence. Music and light are closely related. Painting, dance, theater and architecture also find worthy mention. It is safe to say that the more refined aesthetic taste a person has in this world, the freer and more comfortable he will feel in the higher spheres of the astral world.
- There is a theater of the astral world where historical performances are constantly performed. Particular pleasure comes from productions in which, in parallel with history, as earthlings imagine it, they show what actually happened. This is only possible in the astral world.
- Reading occupies the most important place in the life of souls. Knowledge, intuition, wisdom - you need to work on this in the astral world, it must be deserved. On the other hand, the mind here becomes more acute, learning occurs faster, what has been learned remains in memory and is not forgotten.
- In the astral world there are spheres of darkness where a large number of souls live. What is sometimes called the Land of Darkness is a huge world with different living conditions. Its landscapes range from squalid, dirty slums to gloomy, lifeless deserts. There is no light here that reigns in the higher spheres. Instead, everything is shrouded in dull darkness. This is where souls who are lost, who have gone astray, or who stubbornly refuse to repent live.
- Some of them are aggressive and try to harm people on Earth. They gather in groups to interfere with everything that can benefit humanity.
- Missionary souls provide assistance to the inhabitants of the Land of Darkness. These lost souls can become free if they acknowledge and repent of their errors and crimes. Some people do this, and in the end, this is what most people do. But many only mock those who wish to help them, and prefer their miserable lives to the opportunity to achieve progress in the higher spheres of which they fear.
- One of the forms of sensations in the lower astral spheres is immersion in gross pleasures devoid of spiritual content. However, what begins as pleasure ends up causing disgust and rejection.
- We learn that no soul is doomed to remain in the realms of darkness forever. However, God will never interfere or interfere with our free will. He will call upon us tirelessly, but He will never force us to do anything.
- There are three main ways to make progress in the other world: recognition own shortcomings, service to others and the desire to advance to higher realms. Serving others requires work, effort, sacrifice. Nowhere is there any talk of a divine essence demanding that it be exalted and glorified in prayer - this will not help our progress.
- In the astral world there are no strict creeds or religious doctrines that souls must accept. You can be Baptist, Catholic, Mormon, Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim or Anglican - it doesn't matter. In any case, many of the earth's favorite religious dogmas are wrong, and the sooner we admit this, the better it is for us. The experience of the other world, as a rule, creates a new system of ideas that better reflects the order of things than any earthly theology.
- In the astral world, you cannot hide behind a mask: the nature of the aura that surrounds you will tell everyone who you are. Even the house in which the soul lives reflects its position in the spiritual world. At first glance, this may seem humiliating, but it serves as an incentive to make more efforts to improve yourself.
- The feeling of earthly time quickly disappears. Time is here, but it is not like earthly time with its dates, deadlines and schedules.
- Spouses, relatives, friends, former teachers and students, from recent lives, or long forgotten, can meet again and resume previous relationships. If two people who loved each other on Earth want to continue their relationship after death, and they have similar levels of development, nothing can prevent them.
- Many souls are members of larger spiritual families—groups of souls that await them after they transition. Accepted into this family, they feel like they have returned home.
- Souls in the astral world meet god-like beings, far advanced in their development, teachers who descend from higher spheres to facilitate progress to spheres of incomparably greater knowledge and greatest happiness.
- Moving into each subsequent sphere, the soul changes its subtle body in the same way as it did at the moment of physical death. She receives a body that is less dense and endowed with a greater ability to perceive Knowledge and be happy.
- Souls have clothes. Astral clothing is created by the mind; there is no wardrobe as such.
- Our prayers for the departed are very effective and are met with gratitude. Souls forgotten by their earthly friends and relatives may experience loneliness.
- Children of all ages are raised in the astral world. They don't magically turn into adults just because they died prematurely. One of the noblest professions in the astral world is raising orphans. A large number of souls are engaged in this work, which brings them great moral satisfaction.
- The astral world is not a sad place where there is no laughter and joy. For example, the astral theater makes good-natured jokes about the worries of the earthly world, which now seem funny. Entertainment is also more spiritual in nature. As for the souls of young children, they like to listen to stories about the mysterious planet Earth, which almost became their home.
- Many souls continue to practice man-made religious practices, as they did on Earth, until they discover a deeper spirituality, free from meaningless creeds, doctrines and dogmas.
- And yet, Christians in the other world continue to celebrate Christmas and Easter, but interpret their meaning in accordance with their new understanding of the person of Christ - not as God, but as a great Teacher, deeply revered in all spheres. Some say they saw Christ. Every believer sees Christ as he imagines him. Apparently, the same applies to the personalities of the Saviors in other religions.
- When a person commits suicide, he sends himself into a world where a place has not yet been prepared for him, and takes away all his negative feelings and experiences with oneself. Therefore, most sources warn about the dangers of suicide. Yet there is hope for these souls, especially if they are prayed for on Earth. Suicide cannot end earthly “hell” and does not solve problems.
- In the astral world, the same human dilemmas arise as on Earth. Those who have passed on through mediums and hypnologists talk about a man who was sought after by two of his ex-wives. Solving problems in the astral world is just as necessary as on Earth.
- Souls happily indulge in their hobbies, which can be very different. There is a lot of free time in the astral world, so stories sometimes mention boredom and longing for the earthly world.
The future of some souls is amazing. One of our sources says: You maintain your individuality and are aware of the presence of God. You are aware of the entire earthly history from A to Z. The entire planetary existence belongs to you.
What does it say about reincarnation? This topic requires separate consideration. One of the sources says nothing about this and even hints that this does not happen. The remaining stories mention reincarnation, and five of them confirm its existence. Reincarnation is seen as the key to spiritual growth and therefore occupies an important place in the Divine plan. If this is true, how could the source be "out of the loop" on such a fundamental issue? Or perhaps his medium or hypnologist has “contaminated” the messages from the depths of his soul with his prejudice against reincarnation? But if this is so, then why does this source continue to trust its intermediary? Or maybe it’s the other way around, and the mediums through whom other spirits act tend to believe in the existence of reincarnation, and this affects the messages transmitted from the other world?
It is worth noting that among spiritualists the issue of reincarnation has always been very sensitive; it has many supporters and opponents. Spiritualists are professionals from whom we expect unanimity of opinion, assuming that uniform laws apply in the other world. However, in reality this is not the case.
All of our sources agree on most issues, and this is vital to getting an idea of what happens after death. However, reincarnation is an exception in this regard.
Why?
One possible answer is to be found in the fact that souls come to us from different spheres, more different from each other than we can imagine. Reincarnation may be common for Hindus, but not for Protestant Christian souls. The latter never believed in reincarnation while on Earth and do not consider it an attractive option after death. Our source emphasized: “I presented to you some facts that became known to me from my own experience, so everything I told you concerns only the area where I live.” He does not deny reincarnation, in fact he does not even mention it one word. He only says that death is parting with the old body and entering the world of the spirit forever. This is his point of view. It is possible that sometime in the future he will change his mind and wish to be born again. Souls do not claim to be able to see far ahead. And why should this soul know more about its future than we know about ours? We don't know what will happen to us, and neither does our source.
One thing is clear: our other sources acknowledge the existence of reincarnation and have encountered examples of it. It is also possible that this apparent certainty is the result of the influence of an intermediary medium.
Ian Stevenson's research seems to me very important in this sense. Stevenson, a parapsychologist at the University of Virginia who became famous for his studies of young children with memories of their supposed past lives, makes a scientific case for reincarnation. Anyone who reads his books will wonder how thousands of children around the world could have information that corresponds to facts relating to a supposed past life. In addition to Stevenson, there is mediumistic literature published in the second half of the 20th century that confirms the existence of reincarnation.
My views on this issue in the best possible way summarized by A.D. Matson:
"You can decide not to return, and many do so after reaching a certain level of spiritual progress. However, the physical world is a kind of school for learning and development, and many souls express a desire to return for several reincarnations."
Souls who decide to reincarnate understand that a new birth will not be a holiday for them. They want to return to the conditions of the earthly world not because it will be easier and more pleasant for them, but because they hope that earthly difficulties and obstacles will help them prove themselves. For more mature souls, returning to Earth will resemble the feeling of a teacher starting a new semester after summer vacation.
I would like there to be a consensus on this issue, but the facts speak against it. Therefore, I admit the possibility - albeit a very slight one - that the literature on this topic is rather a product of the subconscious of the medium, rather than emanating from the other world. There are many reasons to think otherwise, and they impress me much more than this fly in the ointment, but this spoon cannot be ignored.
Sometimes I ask myself the question, should we know what will happen to us after death? Maybe part of God's plan is for us not to know this? Maybe the souls who tell us about their world violate this plan? Don't they make our life easier in this way? And isn't the Earth a place where nothing should come easy, not even the truth about ourselves and our destiny?
Souls do not agree with this opinion. On the contrary, they believe that life on Earth, even in the most better conditions quite difficult. To add more challenges to this than necessary is to retard our development rather than promote it. Our ignorance of God's purpose is undesirable. It leaves us in the dark about why we fight, why we suffer, fail and finally die. Without penetrating these secrets, we take the path of despair and disintegration of character. Souls know this and therefore strive with all their might to establish contact with us. It is completely natural for them that we should imagine in general terms what lies beyond the line of death; it is part of the Divine plan. And the fact that only a few of us know about this goes against God's plans.
A skeptic may note that if we know what future reward awaits us for our good deeds in this life, we will do good with selfish intent. I don't think so. If I do the right thing, I do it because I think it is right. Believing that some kind of karmic reward will follow just makes things easier. This does not determine my actions, but only serves as an additional impulse. The greatness of Mother Teresa is not diminished because she knew that by her actions she was pleasing the Lord and preparing a place for herself in heaven, and this belief was shared by hundreds of nuns of her order. She was distinguished by the absence of selfish calculation, the clarity of her vision and the generosity of her soul. She did this because she clearly understood that she was doing a righteous deed. Her reward in heaven seemed only pleasant side effect, but it was not the determining motive for her heroic efforts.
I see no reason to keep secret the revelations that reach us from the other world. More clearly than any religion I have studied and taught, they show me why we are on planet Earth and what we need to do to achieve our goal.
Dag Hammerskjöld, the second Secretary General of the UN and a man of great holiness, wrote: “Only those who look beyond the horizon will find the right path.” The horizon is the spiritual world, and what awaits us there depends on which path we choose.
One last question that may be of interest to many readers: how does what we have learned about life “beyond the line” relate to the Christian doctrine of the other world? If all this is true, does it make sense to expect “heaven” or “hell” after death, as most Protestant Christians teach? And is it right to view them as static worlds where there is no forward movement for either the condemned or the saved? When I ask my students this question, many of them answer that they are not interested in further progress. For them, heaven is a place of eternal peace, and that is all they all want. Progress? But for this, apparently, they will have to work hard, and they will finish the work once and for all! Others have a different opinion. They say that such an ending may seem unbearably boring after a while, even if it is “divine.”
In the literature that we examined, there is no confirmation of such ideas about the other world. At each stage, forward movement is assumed. Man has free will both before and after death, and there is an infinite number of possibilities for the soul to develop further. Protestants with their “all or nothing” and “either here or there” ideas are mistaken.
What about Catholics and their purgatory? How does this fit in with what souls are saying? Isn't the other world more like purgatory than hell or heaven? After all, purgatory is still a process, and not the end of everything. This is the place where the soul is cleansed of its bad habits and inclinations and repents of its mistakes. Older Catholics will remember that purgatory was presented by their teachers as “hell with an end,” not just a process, but a long and painful process, classically described by Dante in grim and horrifying detail. Such a purgatory does not correspond at all to what souls tell us about.
None of the classical religious versions of the state of the soul after death is convincing. They all point to some kind of Divine justice, but they are all naive in their ideas about the primitiveness and rudeness of its implementation. All this is unworthy of a wise and loving God, who wants only one thing - that we turn to Good, Beauty and Truth and through our own efforts manifest our inner greatness, which has been hidden for so long in the body, physical, astral and subtle. Souls emphasize that we have the potential to become powerful, compassionate and happy, as different from who we are now as a butterfly is from a chrysalis. However, the process of this evolution takes a very long time and requires constant effort. No soul is forced to make this transition, but those who long to experience the Divine life in all its fullness accessible to creation choose the most difficult path to the goal. Does it have an end point? Does there ever come a moment when the soul merges with God, no matter what the meaning is put into it, and finds eternal peace? Does such a prospect exist? Today we do not know this. All that can be imagined is the growing greatness of the human soul answering the call of its powerful and merciful Creator.
Imagine what our world could be like if all young people got an idea of life "beyond the line" from "out there." Abraham Lincoln worked tirelessly to demonstrate to young Americans that democracy was superior to any form of government known to the world. His goal was to make the masses of people happy - former slaves, immigrants, Catholics, Jews. The souls we have met are inspired by a similar purpose. They know how to make our world a better place, how to lift the masses out of the inactivity and aimlessness of their existence and show them a goal worthy of their inner greatness. And I hope they succeed.
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