Therefore the causes of these ‘past life memories’ can vary widely. They can be actual memory of a previous physical incarnation. However, it can also be that someone in the Afterlife is ‘telling’ them their story through sharing their experience. The recipient shares in the thoughts, feelings, smells and sounds of the shared experience and then assumes it is their own story, though it might not be. Such false past-life memories can be triggered by Earth Bound people staying around historical sites. Their experiences can be picked up by sensitive people, as if they are their own. Going somewhere and then having an experience like, ‘I lived here and this is what it was like’ may or not be their own personal experience. It may have been a communication from an Afterlifer sharing their experience.
Physical-Centric
It is important, when thinking of our life experience, to try and see the bigger picture. The Earth is much more than physical structure and processes. The subtle worlds behind the formation of the Earth were in existence for eons before the Earth became a physical manifestation. These subtle worlds will exist for eons after the Earth ends its physical manifestation. Our relationship with the Earth is not only physical, but includes subtle realms, one of which we think of as the Afterlife.
"Reality is something that exists. We exist, mind exists, and all the things created by mind exist as long as the mind holds them in existence. We exist, but not in material form. But spirit is higher in the scale of existence than matter; therefore, we are more real than we were in our material forms. Life here is reality , and we have spiritual forms far better than the earthly ones. All the finer qualities of mind and soul are expressed by us in greater degree than before we lived the spiritual life.” — Spirit World and Spirit Life
It is understandable that we have a Physical-Centric point of view as we are looking at life from within the perspective of being incarnate on the Earth. It helps to gain a wider view if we allow for the fact that we have this Physical-Centric bias and try and think beyond it.
The term 'reincarnation' is arguably a Physical-Centric perspective. We are seeing life in regard to coming and going from physical incarnation. From an Afterlife perspective, things look very different. We spend a lot more time in the Afterlife than we do in physical incarnation, so the perspective we have from there will be very different and we will place a lot less value on the incarnational experience. When we are in a physical body, then physicality is the basis of most of what we know - till we begin to learn that there is more to life. Physical life naturally seems all-important and consumes much of our energy and attention. Initially, this is good as it helps us 'arrive' and participate in the life here. Yet, it is also good for us to look beyond the physical and begin to see that although our time in the physical is important, our real sense of self is based on the non-physical - especially in the Afterlife, as that has permanence.
Many in the Afterlife pay scant attention to what is happening on Earth, as they find their life there so absorbing and interesting. Even the ones who are interested in what is going on here say that the real life is in the Afterlife rather than on the Earth. When we move over there, things that seemed so important to us here lose their importance as we gain a wider perspective. Therefore, while we are physically dwelling on the Earth, we tend to have a much narrower view of life than when we pass on to the next life.
"The life you are now living is but a shadow of the real,—the earth experience as compared to this life. We are trying to show you the reality, but impressions are hard to give… the reality is so incredibly more beautiful that we cannot make the impression convey to you a true picture of the reality.” — Spirit World and Spirit Life
Sometimes people who are interested in Reincarnation may be too Physical-Centric for their own good. They see the time in an earthly body as what is important, and use that as their reference point; when in fact our time in our Afterlife, which really needs to be our reference point, is our ultimate reality. Some feel comforted by the idea of reincarnation as it means they get to return to a familiar place. That is why it is so easy to think of Earth life as the reference point. However, the Earth, and all it contains, will eventually pass away, but the Afterlife will not pass away – and neither will we. Of course, life in the physical has its importance, or we would not bother experiencing it. Yet, it should not overly dominate our perspective.
Some are so intoxicated with physical life that they get caught in the ‘orbit’ of Earthly existence even in the Afterlife and this is possibly one of the factors which determines whether the person will reincarnate or not.
Karma
Our conception of karma can be another way that Physical-Centricity can show itself. The idea of reincarnation may make us tend to think of karma, the Law of Cause and Effect, as being about something that affects our return to an earthly existence. We tend to see it as something that will affect the conditions of our next physical incarnation. Yet, life is a continuum. Karma plays out in our Afterlife experience too, because what we do on earth is a reflection of our state of consciousness and our state of consciousness creates our Afterlife experience. That Afterlife experience can also affect our next incarnation, if we choose to take rebirth.
We grow and mature in whatever level we are on. We grow and mature on the Afterlife, indeed since we spend much longer in the Afterlife than we do in a physical body, we can progress more there than here. It is not a matter of waiting around for our next physical life before we can do something interesting or useful. The Afterlife is not some kind of void state or floating on clouds, it is very real - and in fact, it is in some ways more real than physical levels as it is more permanent.
We can and so work of and resolve karma in the Afterlife. However, it does seem to be the case that some things are more readily resolved in physical incarnation.
In a sense, we create and shape our consciousness by how we respond to the events in our daily life. Our life experiences may also tend to shape our consciousness in various ways. In this way, we create our karma and our karma creates us, until we learn freedom of choice.
Karma can also play out in families and this can include members of a Group Soul incarnating as part of the same family. Different members of the same Group Soul may incarnate in the same generation or over multiple generations.
Life as A Continuum
I hope you can gather from the earlier part of this chapter that we get a much better understanding of Reincarnation by taking into account that our Afterlife experiences are also a key part of our life. Even while in a physical body, we spend our sleep time in the Afterlife realms. In fact, our true life, our real incarnation, where we are most completely present, is in the Afterlife state. We are more fully ourselves in the Afterlife than we can be while limited to a physical experience. From another perspective, we could say that the earth experience is a pre-life experience and we only really get going, and live to the full, in the Hereafter. This is not to diminish the life we have in a physical body, but to enhance it by imbuing it with a deeper sense of our identity as beings on an evolutionary journey that includes non-physical as well as physical experiences.
Doubtless, there are challenges in trying to understand the Afterlife. Some Afterlifers say that describing their experience is like attempting to explain a fourth dimensional reality to temporarily third dimensional beings. Sometimes these things can only be explained in a paradox where two completely opposite answers are equally true depending on who asks the questions and who answers it. Therefore, sometimes the answers to questions such as whether there is Rebirth can sometimes be "Yes" and sometimes it is "No” — yet, both are true from different perspectives.
To compound the issue even further, the Afterlifer answering might be responding to a deeper question in the person's mind and not to the one they think they are asking. Sometimes, the communication boils down to something like, “We can’t explain it to you, but don’t worry about it as all is well. In fact, life is much better than you can possibly imagine.
Be patient and you will see for yourself.”
However, if we raise ourselves above our naturally Physical-Centric views and make an effort to see the bigger picture, we have a chance to at least have glimpses into that larger reality. At the same time, we can stop trying too hard to understand things that might not make sense until we have left behind this physical experience.
It seems to be the case that the veil between this world and the next is breaking down and that psychic experiences are becoming more common. As contact between the realms increases, and as more people awaken to their Afterlife experiences during sleep and during Near Death Experiences, it will become easier for us to view life more as a continuum. We will be able to gain a much less Physical-Centric view of our existence and gain a wider perspective.
What seems to be true is that reincarnation is a choice; some choose it and some don't. Also, it is not always necessary to undergo a physical incarnation to gain the benefits of that experience. By becoming part of a Group Soul (call it 'Soul Team' if you prefer), we can gain from the experiences of all the other members of that group. This includes what they learned in any physical incarnations and what they learn from their Afterlife experiences too.
Reincarnation is big topic. It is such a big topic that even Afterlifers sometimes have trouble figuring it out. To grasp it properly, we need to take into account our sense of identity or personality, our relationship with our own Soul, our connection with a Group Soul, our progress in the Afterlife as well as our experiences during our Life and Earth. Also, a Soul may well be able to incarnate as more than one personality, Soul Mates in other words. The real answers (and there may be more than one answer) to questions about Reincarnation may well be that it is a matter of choice for the more evolved, a matter of compulsion (from within themselves through desire) for the lesser evolved. It may also depend on the needs of the Earth and of the needs of Humanity as a whole at different stages of evolution for each.
“I am told by friends here, that souls are sometimes reborn, reincarnated, in order to gain further experience, learn more life-lessons, or work out past sins and failings. Each earth life leaves its mark on character, and its lessons are forever imprinted on the subconscious mind, which registers everything that has ever happened to the soul from the beginning. This, they say, explains much of the pain and trouble you see on earth. The sufferers are learning lessons, which are necessary for their souls’ growth, for man was put into the world to develop the spiritual. They may have lived before, and neglected to learn then, or they may be new souls going through these experiences in one or other of the stages of their existence; it is all on the road of their evolution. Families, friends, sections of nations in the revolving cycle of time reincarnate together very often, as they require the same experiences.” — Claude’s Book
Chapter 15: The Big Questions - God, Sin, Religion…
In this chapter we look at some of the big questions in regard to the Afterlife. We will explore more in-depth some issues which came up earlier and also other issues such as the role of religion in the Afterlife, suicide, ‘sin’ and so on. As mentioned earlier, the material I have come across about the Afterlife has mostly a Western and Christian bias, therefore, this will be reflected in the views expressed here. I assume that those from other cultures and religions have their own parallel evolutionary path till they reach the spheres where cultural and religious differences are not relevant.
Earth-Style Religion
“You have too narrow an idea of the Great Power; somewhere in all of you there remains a notion of a taskmaster or unwearying inquisitor of all your words and ways, sternly distributing his approval and disapproval… I cannot too earnestly exhort you to believe that the Great Power seeks (if I may use that term) to do you good and make you happy, and in so far as you aim at a good and useful life… [in offering] happiness to others you are meeting your God and co-operating with him.” — As One Ghost to Another
What is the role of religion in the Afterlife? Once you have used a boat to cross the ocean, you do not need to drag it along with you when you get to the other shore. The boat has done its job, so it is best to leave it behind. Some are like shipwreck survivors and, on arrival, heave their boat on to the shore and make their spiritual home in it while they explore this new country. Provision is made for those who need time to adjust, as is always the case in the Afterlife. Initially, some want to practice their Earth-style religion even over there. This is understandable because it gave them such a sense of comfort and security in their life on Earth that they like to continue with it for a while. Therefore, in parts of the Afterlife Realms, there are various buildings, such as churches, temples, synagogues, mosques and the like, suited to meet the needs of those practicing the different religions. They meet as a congregation, or whatever form of worship they are familiar with.
“The members of these communities know that they have passed on, and they think that part of their heavenly reward is to continue with their man-made forms of worship. So they will continue until such time as a spiritual awakening takes place. Pressure is never brought to bear upon these souls; their mental resurrection must come from within themselves. When it does come they will taste for the first time the real meaning of freedom.” — Life in the World Unseen
"God is! He has wisdom, intelligence, beneficence, and is above all, in all, and through all, in his knowledge and wisdom, but not in his personal presence. We do not know God even here by sight or touch; but the power and the wisdom that come to us, most certainly come from an intelligence and power infinitely beyond our own, and we here look to this superior wisdom and benevolence and call it God, the Father of us all.” — Spirit World and Spirit Life
Beings from the higher realms will over-light these religious buildings, and the congregation, as such beings are always involved when there is any kind of sincere prayer or worship taking place. Some of the more advanced ones in the congregation will be able to see or sense these advanced beings. This will lead these more advanced ones to realize that there is more going on in their ‘heaven’ than their limited beliefs previously allowed and they begin to expand their beliefs and naturally grow into a wider view of life. Eventually, they realize that although there are some things which are true and lovely at the core of their religion, they gradually expand beyond it to accept the truth and loveliness at the core of all religions.
“[Beings from higher realms] mingle with the spirits whom they wish to help, and use their influence in persuading them that true spirituality is broader than any one belief. They eventually drop their unnecessary rituals and peculiar ideas, and join those who are progressing.” — Life Here and Hereafter
People attending such Earth-style services later tend to increasingly go to ones of a more universal character. Usually, a visitor from a higher sphere will make an appearance during these Afterlife Ceremonies and offer a message and a blessing to those gathered which might be a small group or vast numbers. Such blessings are very much felt and received by the participants and it is one of the things that adds to their sense of delight in life.
“We have our [own type of] communal worship here, but it is purged of every trace of meaningless creeds, of doctrines and dogmas. We worship the Great and Eternal Father in truth, absolute truth. We are of one mind, and one mind only. And no one is called upon to believe blindly - or to profess to do so - something which is utterly incomprehensible to any mind. There are many, many things here which we do not understand - and it will take eons of time before we even have a faint gleam of understanding them. But we are not asked to understand them; we are asked to take them as they are. It makes no difference whatever to our soul's progression.” — Life in the World Unseen
There is no particular harm in people practicing their Earth-style religion, except if they go on too long, they are holding themselves back from progressing. Therefore, although they are given free reign up to a point, they are not allowed to proselytize or try to seek converts.
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br /> The equivalent of religious worship in the Afterlife takes many forms. In a sense, their enjoyment and appreciation of life is a form of worship as they so delight in the life they have and the opportunities open to them. In a way, their chosen line of work is a form of worship and so even is their form of leisure as their sense of the Presence of God is very real to them and can celebrate that whatever they are doing. However, there are specific forms of worship that are as much celebrations as they are ceremonies.
"We are active with a freedom unknown on earth because of added powers; we are happy with a joy unknown on earth because of increased sense of appreciation, and we worship with an infinitely greater reverence because we are more in touch or communion with the divine." – Spirit World and Spirit Life
Afterlife Ceremonies
Spiritual expression and praise is a natural part of life over there, Yet, often this is more of spontaneous expression of a happy person, having left the cares of the world behind and experiencing the love they felt had been missing. The ability, having passed over, to feel the Divine Presence much more easily, means it is not always necessary to have specific forms of worship; though these often happen too.
The Spiritual Ceremonies specific to the Afterlife, usually to mark a special event, or if there is a visitation from the higher realms, will often happen in a special building, or Temple of some kind. Such events are usually very short duration (about 15 or 20 minutes was one estimate) and include a short message or blessing, music, colors and so on. The ‘message’ may be delivered in symbolic form as images or a short play rich with symbolic meaning. The spiritual bodies of the inhabitants are able to fully feel and experience the event and they deeply enjoy the effect of these ceremonies. Being blessed by a being from a Higher Sphere very much adds to an already fulfilling life.
Afterlife Adventures Page 20