Life in Spirit — The Eloists — from Radiance — (37 pages) — [1928-1999]

Life in Spirit The Eloists from Radiance

(1983-1999)

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Within Radiance flows the spirit of the Eloists. It is an expression of Light, and speaks with the Voice of the Living Spirit as It has come to be known through the Eloist family. 'Eloist' means a 'doer of the Creator's will.' The objective of Radiance is not so much to educate as it is to strike a keynote or set a tone that will help the reader to become attuned to 'the realm of thought in which angels dwell,' and in that harmony to learn how to rise in spirit to embrace a higher purpose.

Radiance, a publication of The Eloists, a religious non-profit organization, incorporated in 1918. Radiance has currently ceased publication but back issues are available at a reasonable cost. Other inspirational writings are in the process of being prepared for publication. Please direct back issue requests to:

theeloists@gmail.com

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THE REALMS OF EARTH AND EARLY LIFE IN SPIRIT (1992)

The heavenly realms about your planet are as varied and sundry as are the countries and cultures that have resided under its canopy, only multiplied many times over to allow for the many levels and tiers of existence, which cover ever broader spheres than that of the corporeal earth, and include many races and cultures that had long since quit the earth plane before your recorded histories began.

Life on the lower atmospherean plane is as varied in experience as are the number of individuals inhabiting it. All have their own peculiar experiences and stories to tell. Suffice it to say that on arrival here the individual's initial change is far less substantial than you, dear mortal, would think. The transformation called death does involve the transition from one dimension of existence to another, but the process involves more of a shedding of a dull and coarse exterior than it involves any change in wisdom, virtue, or understanding.

All of us find ourselves on arrival here relatively unchanged, at least from our point of view. For though you cannot see us, to ourselves we feel every bit as real and solid as ever we felt in the past; and though some never lose their consciousness for a moment in the passing while others may sleep for weeks or years in their transition 4

before regaining consciousness, yet on their awakening they feel every bit as whole and human as they did in the past.

To many the transition is a painful experience emotionally, for once they realize they are dead as to mortal existence and yet as alive and alert as ever, the sudden comprehension of that truth and all the unspoken implications that this fact entails, often causes pains of remorse for all that was left undone due to one's shortsighted misconception of the true meaning of life.

Once the person realizes the great truth of immortality – not because anyone has told them so, but because they know it from personal experience - a flash of enlightenment steals over their being (if they are at all in touch with their "conscience") and that sudden awareness can be quite a shock to one's sensibility. One suddenly begins to look to the past with a completely new perspective and to the future with a far broader understanding. Those who have given of themselves unselfishly and generously, those who have not been pretentious, calloused or egotistical, meet with this realization with little remorse, but others we fear often become quite dejected and require a great deal of counseling and assistance. Loving mentors who specialize in this service take personal care of their charge and with great understanding and sensitivity guide them to find peace in

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their hearts and help them find the means to mend whatever wounds may pique their souls.

Some souls, it is true, are either too coarse to care about the errors of the past or the lack of promise in their future. Others still are not aware that they have passed the portal of death at all and cannot be made to understand. Many of these must be left to go their way until they are ready for assistance. Beings always development at the time of passing, for that will determine whether that individual's constitution is adaptable to a given atmospherean grade or plateau.

Those who are of a lower grade of development naturally gravitate to the plateau which is relatively more dense in atmosphere and therefore at an elevation that is closer to the earth where the lumens of spiritual light are more subdued (by the greater proximity to an earthly plane). Those who have, through assimilation to the I AM within their being, nurtured greater love, kindness, compassion and good works throughout their lives will find themselves naturally assimilated to a higher plateau where the atmosphere is lighter, brighter, more rarefied (as are their very beings) and as a consequence more radiant with higher lumens of spiritual light that emanates from within them, and around them, yet from no apparent central source.

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The second factor, though somewhat dependent upon the first factor, is the individual's sum total state of mind, for the quality of one's thoughts tend to create an environment or landscape that is somewhat symbolic or representative of that individual's quality of thought. Those who enter the lowest planes of existence, for example, having lived a life filled with crime, hatred and deceit, will find the world about them to be dark and decayed, distorted and desolate. Those who have been selfish and self-serving will find themselves very much alone with themselves in a stark and barren plane. Those who were progressive, loving and kind may find their abode on first arrival to be composed of grassy hills and gardens filled with trees, flowers and birds. The possibilities are almost endless, but these examples propose to illustrate the truth that our thoughts do play a greater role in our lives when we are in spirit, for we are more ruled by our thoughts and feelings than you are in mortality. At least on your plane of existence the effects and power of thought are not so blatantly apparent as here in spirit. The fact remains that all souls who are not bound in darkness, who are in ascension regardless of grade, are met and nurtured on first arrival here by helpers or guides who may or may not be known to the new arrival. Such helpers are at that person's disposal to give assurances, guidance, to answer any questions and guide them on their way. But at all times one is given complete freedom to accept assistance or reject it as one wishes, and, seen or unseen, there is always 7

someone nearby to give aid as soon as the desire for it is thought or vocalized.

When help is desired, there occurs a fundamental change in thought, and just as suddenly there will appear those who are ready to help.

This is not necessarily because assistance was far away but because the unprogressive mind of the troubled soul was prevented from seeing those who were nearby all the time. Many who are particularly troubled in spirit believe when they have wakened from death that they are alone in a darkened cave or closet, when all the while the darkness and solitude existed only in their state of mind and their own limited vision. Those who have passed over in a bitter or angry state of mind may find the world they have created within their immediate environment is all rocks and cliffs and chasms, and little do they realize that the barrier between them and a happier environment is more a product of their state of mind than it is one of physical transportation.

The lower atmospherean planes are more sensitive by nature to illusions of mind and mood, and this is why those angels who are of a more exalted state of mind and authority are easily able to create subjective heavens on the lower planes to please and stimulate earthbound es’yans into a more progressive attitude, even though these heavens are an illusion and a façade.

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Such were the “happy

hunting grounds� that have been popularly described in the Native American culture. Once one has been elevated to a higher state of awareness within the more organic second resurrection plateau, such “playground� deceptions are no longer needed to prod newborn spirits into the pathway of growth and so they are no longer employed at those levels. However, the angelic beings who reside on these planes do actively participate together to create, through their combined thoughts and will, an environment of landscapes and buildings that best suit their purpose.

FEAR NOT THE LIGHT (1990)

Do not allow yourselves to be drawn into the negative vortex of the purveyors of impending doom. The truth remains just what we have expressed it to be on many occasions in the past, namely, that there will be some hard times environmentally and socially but in "small pockets" or at least not on the cataclysmic scale that some predict.

Those who have chosen to live out of fear and tune into the hosts of horrors that the survivalists choose to express, are really reflecting the fears and confusion of the first and sub-first resurrection "sea of thought". These realms of darkness are stirred into discordant and 9

chaotic activity by the changes in light and vortex'yan tide that accompany any dawn of dan.

Do not allow yourselves to be drawn into the level of such thought forms, but rise above them to dwell in the "sea of light" where all is free from darkness and limitation. In our realm we act with courage and confidence, not fear and insecurity. We radiate possibility and abundance, not limitation, lack and want. We understand the change of light that is upon us and we are radiant with the light, ever ready to partake of the joy and abundance that it will generate for those who are willing to rise above the masses and harmonize with the All One and enjoy the fullness of All Light.

HEAVENLY LIBRARIES (1989)

Search your soul every day to discern the highest Light, realizing that it is there for the taking. Only your immaturity and lack of harmony and development limits your perception or taints the impression you receive. There are a diversity of subjects you need to understand to make the leap forward in comprehension.

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All the accumulated spiritual and metaphysical knowledge that is now at your disposal has been compounded over countless centuries and has become corrupted and filled with so many inaccuracies and errors that, when compiled together, can lead to much confusion and misunderstanding. We wish to give you a new synthesis of knowledge covering a wealth of information embracing both spiritual (metaphysical) and scientific (empirical) subjects which will be blended in such a way as to provide a more comprehensive understanding of your universe, one that recognizes the fact that spirit and corpor are part of one glorious whole and not separate and distinct planes of existence and experience. This is what Kosmon is all about. We want you to have a more comprehensive understanding of the reality of spirit and the illusion of reality reflected in corpor. We want you to understand the tangible control and power of thought and that it is the controlling Power of the Universe and a distinct portion of the essence of the Creator within every soul. We will cover all these subjects in detail through future volumes. It will clear away clouds of misunderstanding in the minds of all those sincere but misguided seekers who have become so lost in the confused quagmire of occult literature that they can no longer distinguish the good from the bad, the truth from the error. We will offer a clarifying light in many volumes from our heavenly libraries.

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OUR RELATION TO ADVANCED IMMORTALS (1989)

When you were in the first grade at school you looked up to those elder brothers and sisters who were in higher grades. They sometimes helped you to work out your problems. You received the benefit of their larger knowledge and experience.

In exactly the same way we look up to the elder brothers and sisters of humanity who have attained to the higher grades in the great spiritual University whose head teacher is the Creator. We recognize that they have had a longer experience in life than we, and that we can learn from their experience. They can teach us the principles of spiritual existence, the knowledge of which will enable us to solve our problems more successfully.

We do not worship the Angels or pray to them. We worship Jehovih, the Creator of all. But we do not keep our minds closed to the reality of the great spiritual universe in which we, as spirits, now live, move and have our being.

We have learned that human life goes on developing on the spiritual side of existence in the same natural way that it begins to develop in the physical world. We see nothing unnatural about the spiritual 12

universe, nothing supernatural. It is the very natural sequence of the life which has its beginning and lowest and crudest manifestation in this physical world. We are spiritual forms while here, but we are clothed with a material counterpart through which we very imperfectly manifest our spiritual nature. In the next state of our existence we shall continue to be the same spiritual forms that we are here, but we shall also become aware that we are complete as individuals in the spiritual form and that the physical form is only a temporary necessity while we are functioning in time and space.

As to our methods of meditation and affirmation, we commune and talk with our Creator in secret and He rewards us openly. He brings to us the teachers and helpers we need in the physical world; and when we gain a fuller knowledge of His Providence, He also brings to us the teachers and helpers more advanced in the spiritual world.

These can teach us the laws of spiritual existence and help us, with their greater power, to overcome conditions which, if we were unaided, would overwhelm our infantile souls.

Our realization of the Creator's presence is a subjective experience which we cultivate by the practice of meditation or communion. This practice of communion deepens our consciousness and makes us aware of the intuitive powers of our souls. We take with us words and turn unto the Ever-Present. The use of creative affirmations gives us 13

control over our thoughts, so that we can keep thinking deeper and deeper into the depth of our inner consciousness.

Then we deal with the objective side of the mind by making and singing our affirmations of faith and love. Using the spiritual power which we have felt within our souls in deep communion with the Creator, we exercise it to change the constitution of our conscious mind. We thus attune our outer mind to the same feelings which we have had in our inner communion. In this way we master the destructive and discordant qualities of the outer mind.

This method of making affirmations also strengthens the vibrant quality of the personality. In the act of affirming, the mind generates feelings which become dominant spiritual forces within its nature. As one's life is only as great as one's ability to feel love for humanity, any method of intensifying feelings will enlarge the sphere of one's spiritual consciousness.

Affirmations strengthen and build up the qualities of the soul. They help to eradicate those destructive and weakening qualities of mind which are the spiritual causes of disease and even death. They are the great means of protecting oneself from the fears and worries which cause mental and physical breakdowns. They are a most effective means of self-mastery.

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Another value of making affirmations is in an increase of radiant personal influence. As a person is a magnet for all the good and ill that comes into his life, and as he attracts good or ill according to the inherent qualities of his mind, it is essential that he learn how to eradicate the qualities that bring destructive conditions into his life, and how to build up the qualities which attract good and constructive conditions.

The tone or spiritual radiance of a personality can be increased by the constant use of the affirmations of faith and love. His influence for good can be increased, and his ability to assist friends and all good experiences can be developed by this means. He can also tune in with the benevolent Immortals who are exalted souls organizing the Providence of Divine Love, and he can keep attuned to their exalted States of mind from which they vibrate their love and power to all the world.

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A LESSON ON LIFTING (1987)

Adamantine walls of crystallized pumice border the knots we work on.

They are so hard from the fires that rage within that there has to be a special "drilling team", so to speak, to make an entrance so that we can view the knot and decide how best to approach it.

The knots themselves are so tortuously writhing that it appears impossible to determine the cause of the misery or what has kept it going for so long. We do, however, have those among us who have suffered in such hells for many years and they help us understand how it is fire, not water, that will finally put out the gnawing flames that grow from the center.

How, you, ask? It is a different type of flame than any on earth and ignited by something as yet invisible to your thoughts, but you can learn from the earth fire just the same. It can rapidly spread, consuming live and inorganic matter before it; it can give off ghastly flames that consume of their own poison; it can rage unstopped for seemingly aching periods of time.

And this is only the beginning. The ones who suffer from its inflictions are none other than people whom you might have known as friends 16

or working companions. They have no control over their actions once in the hellish spot and they depend on the long, determined and inspired efforts of their liberated brothers and sisters to lift them up at long last.

We are victorious, we are the conquerors! Let us not forget that we walk with the Creator forever, spreading love and giving help.

Consider this the supreme gift of all!

TOUCHED BY A SPIRAL OF LIGHT (1983)

The light of realms above is a golden, radiant light that can gently pierce the veil that covers the inner soul. Sometimes the veil of corporeality is so thick and unyielding that it takes a long time for the light to penetrate. There is, on the other hand, a spark of this eternal light within every soul and this light is always seeking to spiral its way to the outer edges of the soul's vortex. So, there is both a constant flow of eternal light forces inward and outward, spiraling toward one another.

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Through the many corporeal and atmospherean layers, these waves of light play upon each other and move the soul in subtle ways. It is the destiny of every soul to travel a path that is ever-changing and transforming to some degree each moment, each day, each year, forever.

The light is Ever-Present because it represents the positive efforts of the Creator's angelic hosts and the seed of eternal life born in every soul. The veil of darkness that drapes itself around the world is part of creation, too, and is caused by many different influences. It is the soul's destiny to discover and to discern the light from the dark: the elements that lead to progression and the elements that weigh the soul into inertia. The path that leads to a better world often seems harder than the one that leads to self- gratification. The soul has, at many times, the opportunity to choose which path to follow. These times come to all; for some, it may seem that it will never arrive, bat the time of awakening will shine its light on everyone and present new options and new paths to follow.

The potential to recognize the light is Ever-Present and the possibilities for soul awakening are there from the very beginning. If you sense it is the time to choose, make the move now. Bring about a change, feel for the light and seek it out. Know that every bit of effort sends a tiny ripple into the sea of life and may indeed help 18

another similar to you feel the need to change and move. Spiraling light from within and without, the energy of life, the spark of the Ever-Present are there for all to feel and to know.

WE ARE ALL FUTURE GODS AND GODDESSES (1983)

Is it too much to think of oneself as being a god or goddess someday? It sounds like an egotistical idea, associated with power and rulership over others. But this is not so. All souls attain to be gods or goddesses someday when they have overcome self and have worked for hundreds or thousands of years with mighty beings of Jehovih to help uplift others out of darkness and suffering. Just as you graduate from schools and colleges and are called "seniors" or attain a high degree of mastery, you are a graduate of Jehovih's college of learning and experience, and so are called a god or goddess. You are in a position to work with others of similar experience and be a mighty force for good in Jehovih's divine plan for all. Now you are in the nursery school of life compared to the experiences ahead of you. You are learning to use your talents in various ways, to discriminate right from wrong, to live with others in this world, and share happy or unhappy experiences. Your teacher is 19

the Creator Who is always there to help you if you but turn to Him and be one with Him instead of being swallowed up by the darkness and selfishness of the mass mind around you. So think of yourself and all souls as potential gods and goddesses of light and love now!

It will lift you up and attune you with the higher ones who are working with enlightened souls on earth to save the planet.

LINES OF LIGHT (1985)

Lightning is a powerful form of energy, concentrated and dangerous.

The power of lightning is nothing compared to the lines of light that reach the earth from the higher plateaus. These lines of light don't carry the deadly qualities of lightning, but the force is ever there and can be disturbing to lower spirits. Think of the power of a lightning bolt and magnify-it a thousand-fold, yet it still is only a small portion of the energy in a line of light.

The line of light brings protection as well as being a channel for travel from one realm to another. Those that use it are advanced enough to know its many aspects, its strengths and capabilities. Some people while still on earth have the potential to rise under controlled 20

conditions to a higher plateau. There they will be shown the ways and means of life in the spirit world. This will only happen, however, during advanced study. Random travel in the spirit world would not be safe, but in the force field of a line of light, safety is assured. As the lines build and become more numerous, travel will be easier.

There are countless numbers that can see and travel in spirit on the lower planes. It is the rare one indeed who can travel to the second resurrection plateau. This fact will change as soon as more dedicated and developed souls emerge. The lines of light are being established and lessons are being prepared. The students of light will soon be taking new steps in new worlds of awareness for the betterment of their efforts to help transform this world.

THE CHOICE IS OURS (1986)

Each of as has two sides to our natures, the one which strives toward the ideal, and the other which fights against it. Every experience is a challenge; and we, ourselves, determine whether to take the high road or the low. If we choose the high, the Angels of Light strengthen

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and help us; if we choose the low, spirits of darkness egg us on. Who are these angels? Who are these spirits?

We believe that when a person dies, he simply casts aside his old coat, the physical body, and awakens in the next world, which is very similar to the world he left behind. He does not feel different. Friends or relatives who have passed on before him greet him; and after a few days or weeks or months, depending upon his spiritual development, he takes up life again. There are nurseries, schools, colleges, homes and everything we have here. We do not change.

We only lose the physical limitations of earth.

If a person has developed spiritual understanding, and made efforts to live a kindly life, his lot will be happier and more progressive than one who is a miser, a luster or a glutton. Those without spiritual development continue to live close to the earth, trying to influence mortals, and enjoy earth life through them vicariously. Those with high ideals leave the atmosphere of earth to learn more of the laws of progression, and how to help others. We call the low-grade ones, "spirits", and those who aspire, "Angels."

Spirits can wreak havoc in mortals' lives. They resort to pretense and deceit, and embody all the qualities they expressed on earth. Spirits are the cause of nine-tenths of the suffering in the world.

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We unite with the Angels to lift away the spirits into schools where they can learn the joys of being angels, and thus leave mortals free to express their own souls, one with the Creator.

OF BIRTH AND DEATH—FROM WHENCE TO WHERE (1933)

Let us begin your journey through eternity from the only logical starting point, conception. We could begin with the infinite vastness of the All Person because the essence of your being, your soul, is and always has been the very Person of your Creator, and for that reason the essence of your being has always existed through the infinite eons of the past. In that sense your soul being has always had an existence, but in the same sense even the physical body you possess has always existed, for the atoms of hydrogen, oxygen, carbon and so forth of which it is composed have been part of your planet, your sun, your galaxy, your nebula and thence from previous stars and nebulae that have been dissipated and gone from an unfathomable and incomprehensible time long passed. Could the atoms of your physical body speak with a conscious awareness, they could tell you awesome stories of stars and planets, peoples and 23

civilizations in the farthest reaches of space, that were born, struggled with the limitations of corpor for a time and then passed on.

Their histories long forgotten except in the minds of great gods and goddesses high now in etherea who either lived on those birth places of immortal souls or in some way had assisted with their resurrection and growth.

Yes, even if the spiritual "atoms", if we may use the poetic license to call them such, of your soul being could speak, they could tell you tales of life through the numbing distant unlimited past, of a place infinitely far away or so very close, of a time incomprehensibly ancient and yet as recent as the very now, of experience and wisdom whose comprehension and magnitude would leave even the highest raised angel speechless with awe.

But wait, all of this is our fanciful imagination at play, for none of it can be. Your earthly shell cannot speak, nor can the component parts of your astral shell or soul, though that is where the Great Intelligence that created you resides; and neither can you speak of those times, for the you that you are, the self-conscious, self-knowing aware being that you are came into being moment of conception.

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at the

The essence of Jehovih's Person that is all knowing and resident in the sperm, and the spark of the Divine Being that is all knowing and resident in the egg came together in a magical transformation within a star-flash of that union and at that moment a new soul was born. At that moment you were a dual being in soul: the very I AM of the All Person and a "blank slate" that was destined to be the sentient, self-aware, reasoning being that you are. Due to the maturity of our age, the you that you are became an immortal soul when those two components cleaved together in the physically primitive embryonic cell. Understand that whether your physical embryo ever reached further stages of development or not, the spiritual being that you are was already assured immortality as a soul and was destined to grow into more expansive realms forever onward. If it had not been allowed to proceed with its growth on the physical plane in the womb, then it would have continued the growth the I AM ordained it to experience but on the spiritual plane instead by special dispensation.

The means by which this is accomplished will be discussed in a later chapter. This then was the birth from whence you came, and this is sufficient understanding to allow us to turn our attention to the places you will be exploring in the days ahead.

Each person born as to life on earth is bestowed with three component attributes, namely a soul or spiritual nature, a corporeal or physical being and the qualities of action, movement, 25

self-expression, metabolism and similar manifestations of energy in motion which we call life. This is why it is said that we are born in the Creator's image, because the Great Spirit also has the same three components which are the Ever-Present All-Spirit, the infinite corporeal creation (composing our universe) and the All-motion or the manifestation of sentient Energy, the All-Life.

Since we are bestowed with those same attributes in a limited form, and since our destiny is an ever expanding comprehension and usefulness as our Creator's "hands" in action, it is logical to begin by experiencing one aspect of creation at a time and thus allowing our infant souls a chance to grow at a tolerable rate, and at the same time provide an anchor through which our immature spirit may be nurtured until it reaches a state where it can comfortably subsist on its own.

The main purpose of corporeal existence therefore is to acquire a basic appreciation of the physical aspects of creation, to provide an elementary education for our newly formed souls, which are like blank slates waiting for the experiences of life to be written upon them, and finally to provide a fetal stage for the embryonic development of our soul-selves, the spiritual being that our earthly shell merely reflects.

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While it is important to put our brief sojourn on this earthly plane to the greatest possible use, and to grow in maturity and wisdom to the best of our ability before our time comes to move on, yet, in the great scheme of things our time here is of minor importance in comparison to the eternity ahead, just as our nine months in the womb is of minor importance when compared to the perhaps 90 or even 100 years of corporeal existence. Life in the womb would probably be of great importance, indeed, to the fetus were it able to comprehend, but that nine months pales in comparison to the life time ahead. It is the same when comparing the earth life to the infinity that lies before us in the world of spirit. Were life in corpor of more importance, would not the Creator have provided greater safeguards to make our physical bodies less vulnerable to premature death as to this life? The simplest and most unexpected mishaps can snuff our corporeal lives out, for the mortal body is so delicate and vulnerable. But the truth is that our corporeal existence is only like a heartbeat when compared to the infinite life ahead, and our corporeal life while important is not paramount and is not crucial to our eventual development.

And so it is, be it soon or late, the time comes for each of us. The delicate bond between spirit and corpor snaps to allow our true selves, the spiritual beings that we are, to emerge like a butterfly from a cocoon and take its rightful place in the greater part of creation. For the world of spirit is not a vague and ephemeral place. It 27

is only the imperfect perception of your mortal senses which gives you these false impressions.

Your whole world consists of the surface of a little ball of corpor, while our spiritual world penetrates all levels of the rest of creation.

We here in spirit can see, hear and feel on levels that you can only dream of, for your earthly shell handicaps the natural spiritual senses that you possess in a blunted form. We are free from your earthly drudgery. We are freer on every level beyond your wildest dreams, for we are the real inhabitants of a real world, a world that you are destined to inhabit as your true and rightful place in an infinite creation.

No two souls describe the act of passage in the same way, for no two individuals perceive through the windows of their separate souls in quite the same way, and the circumstances of each transition differ in detail. Suffice it to say that everyone admits that the actual process that liberates the spirit from corpor is easier and smoother than anyone expected. Some "arrive" with such swiftness that they at first don't realize that the change has taken place at all, while others make the change so gradually that they can describe every detail as a remarkable experience of joy and wonder. Realize that when we say "arrive", that no actual travel necessarily occurs, for when we speak of you being "there", while we are "here" describes not so 28

much the difference of location as it does describe the difference of dimension, which is something that interpenetrates the same place at the same time at a differing level of vibration. This difference in state prevents you from not only perceiving us, but also prevents the interference of one level of experience with that of the other unless extraordinary conditions come into play.

Yet, in spite of the illusion of a great chasm separating us, everyone, soon or late, will make the transition called death, for all your earthly existence is merely preparation for that great event.

All you experience, both good and bad, has been an exercise for your soul to build in strength and perfection so that it may be ready to stand on its own in the more refined states of thought, where your self-control and will must be at a greater stage of maturity than had been required when your being was localized in its corporeal shell.

For while the personality that you are is housed in its earthly shell, the dulling influence of the lower vibrations of corpor allows the "thought being" that you are to subsist with greater safety and efficiency. Realize that your lack of maturity as a young and immortal soul allows your concentration to wander, and your self-control or will is seldom a dominant force in your existence. You are easily distracted by things in your environment and you are often led in your weakness to do things which are not in your best interest or in the 29

best interests of others.

You can see, however, when comparing an

infant to a mature adult, that some degree of progress has been made in this regard, through one's life time. There is more self control.

There is a greater understanding of how your mental powers can be applied to create and accomplish. There is a greater exercise of will to do what is right and necessary even when your lower propensities would have you act differently. Of course, there are great differences in the degree of development even in mature adults, but in most cases it is of a great enough degree to allow that individual after death to subsist in the freer and more refined state of spirit with a great enough degree of competence to keep from being a burden on the rest of the newborn in spirit who are residing on the same plane of existence. Should this newborn be too imperfect, then special provisions must be made, depending on the degree of imperfection and the reason for its occurrence. The innocent soul thrust prematurely into spirit life by being killed through abortion, for example, must be dealt with in a very different manner than a person who has passed over as a result of the fruits of a life of crime. But in all cases, whether it is through natural development in a normal corporeal existence or through special corrective measures applied afterwards, every soul must reach a state of mental development that allows him or her to exist competently in a state of refined vibrations of thought, for the world of spirit requires much greater strength of personality and control of will than is required in the grossness of 30

corporeality. Always remember our basic truth that you are in essence a being of thought. The greater totality that you are is not your corporeal shell but rather your mind, which is thought, and in thought, as a distinct portion of the All-Thought, will you live, move, and have your being for all time to come.

Realizing the fact that the essence of your being resides in the realm of thought or mind, and realizing further that your destiny is an ever increasing comprehension of creation through ever broadening realms of experience, it is logical to conclude that the time will come when you will be ready to move beyond the limited possibilities for growth that life on this small stellar orb spinning in a corporeal universe can offer. Even if we consider just the vast corporeal aspects of creation alone, this planet still remains just a small and insignificant part of the universe. It is only one satellite orbiting a mediocre star, which is only one of millions in your galaxy; and your galaxy is only average when compared to the millions of galaxies that inhabit this small corner of your known universe. How much less significant does it all seem when we also realize that the vast reaches of space that seem so empty to your earthly senses are really an active and inhabited domain for those of us who inhabit the finer dimensions of mind that you refer to as the world of spirit.

This also is a concept that will be examined further at a later point in 31

time, but for the moment let us return to the corporeal realm on your solitary planet and realize that one endowed with the great gift of individualized eternal life and eternal growth could not stay on this limited corporeal plane indefinitely, but must, of necessity, come to rise above it and inherit an existence that would further exercise one's talents, resources and imagination in greater and more exciting ways.

How marvelous to realize that we are destined to inherit finer places of thought where we are offered more expansive opportunities for growth and experience. This should be our focus of thought when we are faced with the passing of a friend or loved one. We must realize that the lifeless form before us is just that, life-less. It is not the personality that we've grown to love. It is not that individualized complex bundle of thought, experience and expression that we have grown to admire and respect for its individualized and unique character. Something has clearly departed.

That which has departed is the mind, and the mind always inhabits the realm of spirit, though for a brief time it exercises the mechanism of an earthly brain, giving it the semblance of life. That which has departed is also the astral body and that resides in spirit, though for a moment in time it animates the earthly shell, giving that the semblance of life. But the reality of life is and always has been a 32

quality of spirit. The physical body is merely the vehicle through which the individualized conscious entity temporarily manifests itself until circumstances cause this less perfect reflection of your true being to be cast aside in favor of a more perfect and complete existence in the realm of spirit. This realm which is as yet unseen to mortals is the greater reality that all souls are destined to inherit soon or late. It is we in spirit who live in reality, while you in mortality live in the "shadow world".

Those who have cultivated their hearts and minds to favor truth and justice, kindness and compassion have but little need to worry about their day of transformation.

In detail the experience of passage is infinitely varied, but in general terms it is all the same. When the time grows near, the bond that anchors spirit to corpor begins to dissolve, because the deterioration of the physical shell initiates a spontaneous process whereby the vital energy of the soul-self begins to withdraw and consolidate within itself. This is an internal process from the physical dimension to the spiritual dimension, both of which subsist in the same place at the same time, or in other words, completely interpenetrate during earth life.

The delirium and convulsive episodes, for example, that often result 33

during great physical debilitation following severe illness and fever is the manifestation of partial separation of the astral body caused by impaired function of the physical shell. When full separation occurs in death, however, it may occur gradually or in stages, and in such cases those who are of even a modestly high grade will often begin to perceive on both planes simultaneously; their physical eyes perceiving the physical plane, while the spiritual senses are perceiving the plane of spirit. Under such circumstances the individual will testify to seeing both loved ones who have passed over standing near the loved ones who are still among the inhabitants of earth.

Other circumstances leading to separation of the astral body from its physical double, the earthly shell, may cause the conscious mind to be temporarily suppressed into a sleep-like or trance state.

Depending on the degree of physical debilitation prior to death, as well as spiritual grade, the sleep of state may last for minutes, days, or even longer. But those who are inclined toward the Light will soon awaken, however, to find themselves in repose within a cheerful environment with familiar faces surrounding them. Friends and loved ones will be there to greet them to help reconcile them to their new condition and to put their minds at ease.

All who awaken to these

pleasant surroundings find that their energy and presence of

mind

returns quickly. They also find that those who have been "assigned" 34

to teach them about the unique qualities of this new dimension of being are just as enthusiastic and anxious to teach as the new arrivals are anxious to learn Still others who are well developed and "ripe" for the transition to the spiritual dimension may pass so quickly and effortlessly that they neither lose consciousness nor do they feel any unusual sensation, but suddenly realize the transition has occurred when they put forth their "will" to move and find that their earthly husk has not moved with them but stayed behind, motionless, in the last position it held before passing. They turn to see their former self left behind, while all else appears as it did before with the only exception being their own sensation of lightness and well-being and of course the swift appearance of friends and loved ones to welcome them.

So, you see the process of transition is as infinite and varied as are the individuals who experience it, but all who have lived a harmonious life uniformly report feelings of renewed freedom, elation and wellbeing that comes when one is able to leave the earth experiences without regret or self-recrimination.

Once the newly arrived es'yan becomes acclimated to the new conditions of spirit, those who have the task of educating new arrivals set to work to enlighten him or her to the principles and "natural laws" that apply in this new dimension, which are in most 35

respects quite unlike life on earth.

Briefly speaking, it is brought to the es'yans attention the fact that the powers of mind and thought are much more tangible and potent.

There are no language barriers for when thoughts are communicated, they are transferred by images that are above the limitations of language and are therefore automatically placed into the appropriate language of the intended recipient of the message. Likewise, secrets and deception are difficult in a world where thoughts are read so easily. Travel is as easy and swift as thought in the atmospherean realms unless one chooses to walk on foot or use an equally slow means of conveyance. Food is available and invigorating but not truly necessary, and while homes are provided, many of the common conveniences such as kitchens and baths are unnecessary and nowhere to be seen.

For those above the plane of the strolling druj, there is no night but an ever-present and pervasive sunlight that glows all about without ever casting a shadow. It is never too hot or too cold and the sweetest breezes fill the senses with delightful fragrances that emanate from flowers and gardens that respond to our thoughts and pleasure with an almost conscious expression of life. Atmospherean birds and animals have no fear, for all live together in harmony and peace. All these things and more are part of the delightful discoveries 36

that await all who begin their infinite journey in this world of greater reality that you call the world of spirit.

THE END

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