This means that there is no need for as to hold onto thoughts of anger, resentment or vengeance towards others. The natural laws of the Afterlife will cause anyone who has harmed us to eventually face the consequences of that.
If you are a reasonably decent, caring person, then most of what you need to do you are probably doing anyway, but there is always room for improvement. Some Afterlifers looking back on their life on earth sometimes say they wish they had done some things differently. Usually, they wish they had been more loving and a bit less selfish. When they pass over, they realize that the universe, and the whole process of evolution, is based on what we know of as ‘love’. There is a lot more to it. As they are trying to describe something which acts as it is the basis of the laws of the universe, but ‘love’ is the word that comes the closest to the reality of it. Sometimes, it can be in the form of ‘tough love’ or what we might call ’smart love’, but still the intention behind it is to the good.
“When a soul on earth can realize that there are others there who need assistance, who will be the better for aid and sympathy, and can learn to feel that this aid and sympathy can be given by himself, he is in the way to create the life that will mean the most to him when his mortal life is over.” — Life Here and Hereafter
It is the kind of love that is not just a feeling: it includes goodwill, intelligence and wisdom. It is not always soft and fluffy - at least not all the time. It willfully seeks the greater good for all and deliberately, actively and skillfully works to create that. You may wonder, “If the universe is based on love, then why is the earth the way it is?” The short answer is: we are finding our way to love. We do so by trying out things that are not based on love - and discovering how these feel and the effect they have. We are exploring our free will and have blotted out, temporarily, our connection to God. We are learning to make the right choices even when purely based on our own volition.
While encased in a physical body, it is not so easy to love; at least not beyond just feeling that way about a relatively few people. Yet, the attempt to do so develops us in ways that prepare us to enter into the depth of life when we pass over. There are spiritual powers available to us (and these are very real powers in the Afterlife realms) that we are not given access to till we learn to love sufficiently. Since love is the basis of universal laws, we cannot understand those laws until we have some grasp of love. There is some deep mystery in all this to do with how we become self-conscious as individuals, but, if we cultivate the loving side of our nature, we are more likely to be aligned with the fundamental creative forces of the universe and be better placed to flourish in the Afterlife.
Forgiveness
You may have picked up odd sense of guilt about Forgiveness because you feel you ‘should’ be more forgiving, but don’t know how to do it. Forgiveness is simply ‘Letting go of wanting to punish’. It does not mean we have to stay in unhealthy relationships as some people fear. Unforgiveness, holding on to wanting to punish someone, causes us to suffer as it is makes us unhappy to be in a state of wanting to harm another. Forgiveness sets you free and opens the chance for real love, rather than allow mutual addictions to flourish in your life.
Forgiveness is the recognition that nothing on this physical plane is what it seems. Forgiveness helps free us from entanglements with the gravity and limitations of physical existence and allow us to begin to sense our true nature. It also helps us begin to sense the true nature of other people and the deeper significance of life.
Here is a quick and easy way to learn how to forgive using my free eBook: Four Steps to Forgiveness : http://iwp.net/gfi
Breaking Out of the Smog
To break out of unhappy patterns of thinking that make you feel low, try this:
If you notice you are in a situation, or in a mood which is making you unhappy, try questioning it. ‘What if I don’t need to do this anymore? Do I really want to be like this? What if my life all works out for the better? How would I like to be instead of this? How can I feel better right now?’ Cycle through these questions, and any similar ones that come to mind, and see if your mood improves or if you later get ideas about how to change your situation.
Chapter 13: Lost in Translation - Afterlife Communication
Some believe we should not communicate with those in the Afterlife and they profess this for a variety of reasons. Sometimes, their reason has to do with religious beliefs, sometimes they feel that they don’t want to ‘trouble’ people over there, and sometimes they just don’t see any point to it.
Should We Communicate with The Afterlife?
There are those who say we should not communicate with those in the Afterlife and that we should 'leave them in peace’. The thing to keep in mind is that we do not ‘summon’ people to come to us from the Afterlife; we just 'invite' them and they come or not if they want. If they did not want to communicate, they would not do so. The evidence is that many of them not only want to communicate; some of them intensely yearn to do so. Others are not interested at all. Some having recently passed on need to take a break from their connection with the Earth (or don't realize such communication is possible) so they don't show up.
Some give 'religious' reasons not to communicate with the Afterlife. However, when we look at their reasoning, we can see they are just superstitions. Some church leaders claim that any return visitors from over there are ‘devils’. What an odd notion! That's about as superstition a statement as anyone could come up with. Imagine you had a kindly grandmother, grandfather, or anyone with whom you have a mutual fondness, and who has passed on to the next life. Is it any wonder that they might want to let you know that they are alright? Wouldn’t it be strange if they did not want to do so? Is it likely that your granny has suddenly become a 'devil' just because she wants to say ‘Hello!’ from the other side?
Those from traditional religions might claim that it’s not really your granny who is communicating, but someone pretending to be her trying to lead you astray. Yet, in such communications, she will usually come out with things that only you and she know, and also things you need to verify with another family member (and so could not be ideas picked out from your thoughts) and all in her normal style of her communication. Besides why would God allow a 'devil' a form of communication that was not allowed to people?
However, the main objection to the ‘devils’ superstition is the content of the messages. Why would such supposed 'devils' consistently encourage people to live more kindly, less self-centered lives? Perhaps the real problem those in traditional religions have against Afterlife communications is because such message sometimes dismiss most religious doctrines as irrelevant. They say it is the quality of how we relate to our fellow human beings that matters most.
I prefer to learn about the Afterlife from those who know about it – who are actually there – rather than those who just speculate about it. The facts of people’s experiences of the Afterlife are available for all to examine and make up their own minds.
Should We Bother to Even Try?
Some think that is best to leave matters of the afterlife till they get there, but this is not a good idea for most of us. If you were going to immigrate to another country, surely you would make an effort to find out about what it was like before you got there? Common sense tells us it is wise to investigate beforehand – especially since it is a place we will have to go to sooner or later. A little bit of preparation goes a long way, even if all it does is reassure your mind that you are at least a little prepared. It is not a matter of preparing out of a sense of fear, but out of a sense of anticipation that life goes on and gets progressively better. Once that idea feels, at the very least, in the realms of possibility, then it makes transition much easier.
Rigid religious ideas, ignorance and materialistic thinking all act as barriers between this world and the next.
“The materialism which is so rampant on the earth plane today is plainly reflected in the dark auras which raise a dense wall of fog be
tween us. Remembering that the astral plane is a thought world where only moral values count, you will realize the extent of the barrier which has to be removed before we can get any of our influence felt. The [Earth] aura is useful as a guide to the spiritual state of the millions living on the earth plane, but oh, we wish in our hearts that its color was of a brighter hue.” — Children of Evolution
No one is forced into facing the truth of the Afterlife - even when they are in it - and so there are some who shut themselves off from friends, family and those who would guide and help them. They refuse to accept where they are and refuse to take up their new life and so they wander around as if in a daze for a long time (possibly a very long time). This can be either because they strongly rejected the idea of an Afterlife while they lived on earth, or because what they are seeing and experiencing does not match how they believe the Afterlife is supposed to be – so they retreat into their own self-created little world till they are eventually ready to come out again. Learning what we can about the true nature of the Afterlife before we get there can help as adjust more easily to life there when the times comes.
Challenges & Dangers in Afterlife Communication
“A discarnate being is invisible to the human eye because the etheric body or vehicle of expression is vibrating at a more rapid rate than the physical body. When the soul passes to higher levels of consciousness, its form, or outward expression of itself, becomes more and more ethereal. That is to say, it is vibrating with greater rapidity and with a far greater intensity.” — Beyond Human Personality
It is sometimes assumed that Afterlifers can see everything going on in our daily life. This is not true; you may be relieved to know. There is a very definite boundary between this world and the next and it is only really breached when there is a bond of harmony of thought (either matching good thoughts or matching harmful thoughts), ties of affection, or deliberate intention between the two communicating parties. Except for a few days after they pass over, Afterlifers usually need special training in order to see and hear what is happening on the Earth. This is one of the challenges they face as they have their equivalent of psychic powers, which require development, and that also depend on how gifted they are, to enable them to see into this world.
“Not all here are equipped with the power to perceive your mortal life… You are nearly as invisible to us as we are to you, for our vibrations are too high to be of use in earthly material. But we do dimly perceive, and by practice we can get a fair idea of human beings and earthly material.” — Life Here and Hereafter
“I see your soul or spirit selves, and do not discern the physical very clearly except as a shadow of the soul. It is like seeing your true self through a veil; the material flesh is the veil. A picture does not have the inner spirit. It is only an impression of a material body, and that is hard for us to see. Some can see perfectly all material things, but my own power is at present limited." – Spirit World and Spirit Life
A person on Earth can undergo psychic development, but not match this with moral development. Even if the person has a certain amount of genuine psychic ability, it does not mean they won’t try to dupe people if their livelihood depends on it. Mediums and psychics need to eat and so need to earn a living, but that leaves some of them open to temptations that they may not be able to overcome. Some pretend mediums, ones having a bad day, will pump their clients for information and then feed it back to them later as ‘spirit communications’. Some give only vague or very general information that does not really prove anything. But distressed clients, who are desperate enough, will cling to almost anything as proof of the ongoing existence of their loved ones.
Some with psychic skills are gifted, well trained and are excellent. Others have poor skills, virtually no training and are not good at all. Some like the idea of being ‘special’ and so put on an act of being ‘sensitive’ and even dress for the part. However, that bears no relation to the level of skill they have except to indicate that they might be dressing up to compensate for a lack of them.
There are some difficulties and even dangers in communicating with Afterlifers. To keep this in perspective, even crossing a road can be dangerous, but we still do it even just to get some chocolate from the shops. We just need to be aware of what we are doing to manage it safely.
Although there are good and kindly spirits active around the Earth, there are also those who are a bit lost, some are mischievous and there are even downright malevolent ones too. Just like you would not leave the front door of our house open in a large city, when communicating with the Afterlife, it is best not just to open yourself to whoever is around. This is why such meetings usually start with a prayer for protection. Sometimes, a happy song of some kind is included as that works wonders in putting people into a good mood and therefore closer to the state of being of more evolved people in the Afterlife. (The singing can tend to make people like me cringe with embarrassment, but it seems to work anyway).
Ouija Board?
The movie The Exorcist gave the Ouija Board a bad name, and that is perhaps good if it warns off people using it in a trivial way. Some even within the Spiritualist movement warn against using the Ouija Board for contacting Afterlifers while others don't. The main problem is the unfortunate attitude of mind that uninformed people may adopt while using it. Like attracts like and when there is no skilled Medium, and associated Spirit Guide to handle the communications, the quality is dependent purely on the attitude of the seekers.
A low-level attitude in people on the Earth attracts low-level people from the Afterlife. Neither the attitude of being too fearful, or of being too flippant, is likely to attract the right kind of Afterlifer to communicate with. Any Afterlifers who do turn up in such situations are likely to be the wrong type. The flippant will attract the flippant from the Afterlife; the fearful will attract the fearful, the morbid will attract the morbid and the mischievous will attract the mischievous. The lower type of Afterlifer tends to be closer to the Earth and can more readily show up at a psychic session.
Unless precautions are taken, it is the nature of the Ouija board to attract those close to the Earth, who are the lesser-evolved ones. The need for protective prayer at the start of any such communication session cannot be over emphasized. Prayer creates a definite barrier that only allows the better-intentioned Afterlifers to come close. Also, such prayers cut through the psychic smog that is common in many parts of the world - especially in cities. This smog is composed of the thoughts and feeling of those living in that area. As the prayer cuts through the smog, it lets in spiritual light. This is a very real and definite experience in the Afterlife.
Some people do manage to start with the Ouija Board and move onto better methods later. Yet it is important to be aware of the dangers. Some of these dangers arise if one or more participants have latent psychic abilities, but they are approaching Afterlife communication in a frivolous or immature manner (i.e. being slightly drunk at a party). This would mean that they would be opening themselves to various psychic influences (in the worst case, possibly even possession) by dabbling in something they are by no means ready to handle. The dangers increase if some of the sitters have a very negative attitude, as they would attract negative spirits.
Approaching spirit communication as if it were a party trick attracts the wrong kind of Afterlifers. Unfortunately, the Ouija Board looks so much like a game that it can bring out the wrong attitude in people. Only ever attempt it with sincere seekers. If mischievous spirits are attracted, they can manipulate the participant’s unconscious fears and phobias and the whole thing can descend into shambles. If those involved are not willing to start with a respectful prayer, then their motives are wrong, and they have no idea what they are getting themselves into. They would be better off to abandon any such attempt.
It is beyond the scope of this volume to give instructions on how to communicate with people in the Afterlife. What I suggest is that, in the beginning, you do not try and have any direct
contact yourself, especially not on your own, and that you seek out a reputable Medium instead. Usually, you can find them via a Spiritualist Church or the like.
Means of Protection
"Always aim at a prayerful atmosphere, and, whenever in doubt as to the identity of someone who is trying to communicate, challenge him boldly [and ask] 'Do you believe in God?' If he does, he will readily and willingly assure you of the fact, but if he does not; not even an evilly inclined spirit will dare to tell you an untruth on the most vital subject from the Great Beyond.” — Children of Evolution
Prayer is a form of focused and directed thought. This makes it a powerful and effective way of shaping even the substance of the Afterlife. In a sense, when we pray in the context of the Afterlife, we are commanding something into being – it can become real. Even though we are on the Earth, we still have all the faculties that we will have in the Afterlife. It is just that we are not aware of them because our physical senses swamp the more subtle ones. When we pray, we use and strengthen the capacities of our subtle bodies. (See the section on Prayer in the Chapter, God, Religion and the Big Questions).
Communications Challenges for Afterlifers
“You must understand that the psychic power here is as necessary for communication as it is there. Not all here have that gift. We do not have it in full degree, and you say of yourself that you are not strong in psychic power; so you may understand that we are not perfect senders and you are not a perfect receiver. But if you are patient and conscientious, we may get much truth to you.” — Spirit World and Spirit Life
Afterlife Adventures Page 17