Separation
One of the biggest temptations we face is the sense of being separate from everyone and everything: The Illusion of Separation, which some call it, is the root of much that troubles us. It can tempt us to scorn the good, whether within ourselves or in others, and to live with an attitude of ‘me first!’ This can lead to a very selfish lifestyle that is a denial and rejection of the underlying unity of all life. Yet, even this has its saving grace, as it tends to make people who live that way deeply unhappy. No matter what they do and how they try and compensate, they eventually have to face up to the feeling that something is missing. That is true as something is missing. God, or goodness, is missing and that is a lot to be missing!
Individuality
“We are on earth, as it were, with blinkers on. We must not see or hear or know much that surrounds us. The physical consciousness, which is part of us, needs for its development the temporary seclusion of life from the realities of the world of spirit into which it is ushered at death. Hence, when we close our eyes in the sleep of death, it is more of a laying down of the blinkers that limited and confined our vision than almost anything else. I am speaking of the conscious change to our senses.” — After Death: Letters from Julia
“Personality goes on and on, otherwise spirits would not have been created with personalities. What is all the discipline of earth for, if not for the development of individual character? No! The individual may go on to unthought-of intelligence, or glory, or perfection; but remains the individual spirit still." – Spirit World and Spirit Life
Though deeply challenging, the sense of separation offers us a gift. It plays a vital part in us experiencing ourselves as individuals. Just like a child has to experience itself as being separate from its mother to begin to experience itself as an individual adult; we need to temporarily experience ourselves as separate from God to experience ourselves as individual beings.
Once a person has established their own identity as an adult, they then have the chance to develop a healthy, and interdependent relationship with their parents. Likewise, we grow through the phase of rebellion and hiding from God and then later we learn how to have a healthy relationship with the Supreme as we understand that at any given time.
Afterlifers constantly say they can experience the presence of God there much more easily than we can while in Earth. Yet, we do not just gain an Astral Body and a Spiritual Body when we pass over. We have them all the time, it is just that we get swamped by the senses of our physical body and don’t notice their subtle input. We have the faculties we need so it is possible to begin to experience God as a benign presence here on Earth, though it takes more work to do so here than over there. Coming back to the gym analogy, the attempt to do so develops a particular set of spiritual muscles that stand us in very good stead when we go to the Afterlife. Being willing to have ‘faith’ and develop a belief in the goodness of life, and the goodness within ourselves and each other - despite all the evidence to the contrary - brings us to a level of self-mastery that is more difficult to achieve in any other way.
“There is a plan, never doubt that, for the final perfection of human life. The suffering will not last forever, and through that suffering good may come—will surely come, we believe. Character, self-control, wisdom, overcoming evil with good, the power of choice, free will: Are not these worth suffering for? Would you be an automaton instead of a thinking being, capable of choice and capable of choosing the right to an eternity of knowledge and growth?" – Spirit World and Spirit Life
Astral Detox
Many people seem to go through an ‘Astral Detox’ as they get ready to pass over via an intense process such as an illness or dementia. They seem to remember and recapitulate their way through some of the heavier aspects of the life they have had in order to let them go. This lightens their Astral Body so that they can go to a more pleasant part of the Astral Realms than would otherwise be the case. Therefore, an illness that may seem to us to be serving no useful purpose may be proving real benefits to the person about to depart.
As people become more self-aware, they look at the causes of their aliments and the causes of problematic life situations. They are in effect going through an Astral Detox too. In some ways, large sectors of the planet are currently going through an Astral Detox with various upheavals as the true state of the humanities’ Astral Body becomes more apparent. Some are more deeply embedding themselves into the mire of hatred, vengeance and prejudice. It is a like an Astral War going on as different groups battle it out with each other via the Internet. It is happening on the Social Networks and with the disclosure of previously hidden or secret information. Some, seeing this play out, are deciding to throw their weight on the side of the good rather on the side of egoism. As we become conscious of the sometimes subtle ways we can be tempted to harm others, especially via the relative safety or anonymity on the Net, we can become more able to cleanse ourselves of things that would otherwise have remained hidden.
Any outputs from a detoxing processing tend to look messy, (and sometimes smelly and disgusting!) but it needs to happen and in due time, humanity will be healthier and happier for it. As the Astral Plane Detox process continues, it will allow beings from higher realms to more easily access the Earth and bring their light, love and inspiration more directly to us. Those open to this will find it easier to draw upon these higher and find it easier to embody it themselves.
The Long Train
Humanity is like a long train turning around, on a wide curve, one hundred and eighty degrees from the direction it was going in. Since the forces of light are now in the ascendency, the front of the ‘train’ is heading upwards towards the light. For millennium, we have been descending into matter. We have been coming to terms with material substance and the limitations that are imposed on us. Now our direction is forward towards the spiritual, towards the light. The turning point was mainly the World Wars from 1914 to 1945. This was the big clash between the forces of light and the forces of materialism. The forces of light won! This means the front of the ‘train’ is now headed toward spiritual values and releasing the hold of materialistic values.
It looks like the back of the train, and the engines powering it, which have yet reached the turn, are headed away from the light. However, the tracks have been laid toward the light. Our direction is now set. No matter how hard the engines at the back try to power the train towards the dark, they are just pushing it even more towards the light. This phenomenon, of parts of the train going different ways as we turn the curve, creates a time of confusion and uncertainty. Some rather dark tendencies and situations are emerging and taking hold of parts of humanity, but even those will ultimately help power the back of the train around the corner. The job of those orientated towards the light is to do what we can, where we can, to help to keep things moving forward and not give into despair or a sense of disempowerment.
Some born at this time, and in recent times, seem to be more aware of their subtle bodies and more able to connect with subtle realms than previous generations. They are not necessarily psychic in the usual sense, though some are. They may have a strong sense of purpose in regard to something they want to offer to others, they may have a feeling of the ‘there is something I am supposed to do’ or a sense of ‘there is something I am supposed to remember’. They may have an intense sense of empathy and find the suffering of others very hard to bear. They may have a refined sensitivity, which makes physical life challenging for them, and that they need help to learn to handle.
Some of these people have trouble fitting into the mainstream and when they are children, this can cause them to be labeled as ‘problems’. Yet, when they start to align with their sense of purpose, they usually find themselves doing something for the greater good of all. It does not need to be a grand project: just a very well intentioned one with practical benefits.
Light
I have heard that the increase of physical light all over the planet is one of
the many things that are breaking down the barriers between the physical world and the subtle worlds. Physical light is said to stimulate the glands within our physical bodies that awaken latent powers.
Psychic powers and abilities are ‘disruptive technologies’ that threaten the position of those who claim authority over us. This is all to the good, yet it needs to be balanced with the fact that development of psychic abilities is not dependent on the person’s wisdom, or moral development. A psychic can be morally corrupt, ruthless or egotistical. On the other hand, they may be morally upright, but have a poorly trained intellect leaving them unable to properly understand, communicate or interpret what they see. Therefore, psychic development needs to go hand-in-hand with moral development and cultivating of strong mental capacities.
What we need are new organizations, possibly in the form of religions, which accept, encourage and cultivate psychic abilities. Yet, do so in ways that also encourage the development of wider moral and social values. These would include ecological values and the recognition of the need to balance masculine and feminine qualities in the individual.
Automatic Enlightenment
“We undoubtedly make more rapid progress in the acquirement of knowledge than do those we left behind. And if we can help them to understand a little of what we have learned, it may help the world through some of its difficulties.” — Life Here and Hereafter
Life is a continuum. We are born into this physical world and we return to the Afterlife, which is our true home. Some say the purpose of life is to escape from the physical reality we experience on Earth into a personal sense of ‘heaven’ in the form of ‘enlightenment’; some say the purpose of life is to bring Heaven down to Earth. Spiritual truths are often expressed as paradoxes so the real truth is realized in being able to hold both these positions. In our attempts to escape from the limitations of Earth, we can do so without resorting to a self-centered rush towards a purely personal ‘enlightenment’ and include an intention to play our part in transforming the world we live in. Our intention to help transform an aspect of society brings us more ‘enlightenment’ automatically, as we call upon inner resources to use in meeting the challenges we experience in the task at hand. Such resources, including new forms of awareness, may only become available when we seek to serve others and not from seeking something for our own benefit, no matter how elevated.
“To love, therefore, any one really, truly, means that we are putting ourselves in his place, loving him as ourselves, that we desire for him the best, and give up ourselves and our own pleasure in order to secure it for him. This is true love, and wherever you find it you find a spark of God. That is why mothers are so much nearer God than anyone else. They love more - that is, they are more like God...” — Beyond Human Personality
Service
“Do not think we are constantly thinking only of the acquirement of knowledge. Development without service is apt to lead to selfishness.” — Life Here and Hereafter
One of the core things that Afterlifers say in their message is the importance of the idea of love and service to others. In these modern times, that can sound like a recipe for co-dependency, maintaining low self-esteem and becoming a compulsive rescuer of other people – possibly leading to burnout.
However, if we look more deeply we can begin to see what they mean. I have often met people with a shell around them. You probably have done so too. It is a shell of self-absorption like they cannot see life as being about anything other than themselves. I can also get like that sometimes which is probably why I can recognize it so easily in others.
It is not just the materialistically-minded who create this shell around themselves as they pursue their earthly goals. Even spiritually-minded people can create such a shell around themselves. Their life becomes a theme of ‘my enlightenment’, ‘my happiness’, ‘my fulfillment’ and they lose sight of the principle that we need to ‘lose our life in order to find it’. Such people create a strong belief system, or are attracted to such strong belief systems, and their life becomes all about them and that belief system. Their life becomes a search for Nirvana, or the like, and nothing else and nobody really matters to them.
That is really the point; nobody else really matters to them. They spend their life in a form of mental isolation - whenever they can - cut off from the rest of humanity to a large extent. They do not realize that spiritual laws dictate that ‘we have what we give’. They give nothing to others so spiritually they have nothing, no matter how much they meditate, pray and chant their life away.
Spiritual advancement must be available to everyone; if it is available to anyone. Someone growing up in a slum has to spend their time just surviving. Yet, they might still share what they have with someone who has even less. Everyone has access to the opportunity of sharing what they have with someone who has less. That is what the Afterlifers say is most important to spiritual advancement: sharing what we can. If yoga, meditation, prayer and chanting help us live in a way which means we are more able to share what we have (time, money, ideas, attention, caring, love), then they are part of our spiritual development. If these things do not help us to share or help us become strong enough to do so, then they are not part of our spiritual development – they are just things we do. They then become spiritual materialism. They become, spiritual baggage, the form of spirituality without any real spirit behind them.
This type of Spiritual Materialism is rife. It appears in those Christians who want to ‘save’ you because they believe that will earn them a high place in heaven, not because they actually care about you. It appears in the gurus who awaken devotion in their followers, but who do not redirect that devotion to the service of humanity. It is seen in the devotees who love their guru, but are not much fond of anybody else. It appears in those who mediate on, or chant, ‘May all beings be happy’, but never do anything practical to actually make someone happy.
This is what one Afterlifer had to say about those who get too determined in seeking enlightenment.
“They cling to the line of thought which was theirs on earth… they are caught in its dream, and are snared in the many errors thereof. For instance, the Indian Yogi and the Oriental sage may still seek only to follow the aspiration of their particular religion or philosophy, the freeing of the soul from matter, ecstatic contemplation of the universe. They appear to gain their aspiration; but in consequence they abide merely on one of the lower rungs of the ladder. They believe that they have attained to Nirvana, that they have passed out Yonder, entered into the Mystery of God. But they have done nothing of the kind… still clinging to their blissful little dream created when they were on earth. They are living in the stagnant pond. They are progressing neither up nor down. They have no contact with the material aspect of the universe, and their state of alleged ecstatic contemplation narrows and limits experience, confines them still in the prison of their own ego.” – Road to Immortality
Since Afterlifers place so much emphasis on service, rather than self-liberation, here are some ideas about service from out of my own writings:
Service is not a desire for approval resulting in a compulsive need to rescue others. The Soul is only served by helping it discover what it is and discovering what it is not. The Soul is not served by supporting others in unhealthy and addicted behavior. The Soul is not liberated by hanging on to relationships too long; or letting others hang on to a relationship with us too long. The Soul is not served by supporting someone in maintaining an illusion of weakness, dependency and dis-empowerment.
When you serve someone, the only thing you want from them, if you want anything, is to see their Soul awakening. In doing so, you are awakening your own Soul. Your Soul awakens, in part, by awaking the Soul in others. The Soul is served by cultivating it in ourselves and cultivating it in those we meet. The Soul is served by being offered a climate of love, or at least respect, for that is its nature. By extending love and respect to others, in ways that are meaningful to us, and certa
inly in ways that are meaningful to them, we awaken the Soul in both.
Sometimes serving the Soul calls for sacrifice. But sacrifice is not a loss; it is the giving up of a small thing for the gain of a much bigger thing. Sacrifice is the loss of something unimportant for the gain of what is truly important. It is the giving up of a small pleasure and in that discovering true delight and fulfillment that is only known by the Soul. Only the Soul truly knows peace and serenity, and knows eternity. Therefore, such sacrifice is the denial of yourself as want, neediness, dependency, lack and the acceptance of yourself as the Soul qualities of fulfillment, love, peace and eternity. In the affirming of yourself as being these Soul qualities, you experience them, and you affirm those qualities in those around you to the extent that they can experience them.
Service brings a sense of lightness, freedom and inter-relationship, not a heavy sense of entanglement and dependency.
Love
Becoming aware of the ultimate purpose of life is not usually within our reach. However, we do have guidelines to operate from and to the extent that we are willing to align ourselves with those guidelines, we can know that we are traveling in the right direction. These guidelines have been communicated to us through the spiritual teachings at the core of most religions. As well as service, the guideline that the Afterlifers emphasize most is love.
Love also needs to include self-love: which is the cultivation of the best within ourselves; not the indulgence of weakest within ourselves. Self-love is not a matter of indulging pettiness and neediness; it is a matter of acknowledging the good qualities we have, especially those that can contribute to the lives of others, and then cultivating them by expressing them. Low self-esteem is not the same thing as humility. No one can cultivate the goodness within himself or herself if they refuse to recognize it exists. We need to esteem ourselves enough to acknowledge what is good about us so that we can encourage, cultivate and develop it. Living life from a wholesome discipline and allowing for cycles and seasons, times for being active and outgoing, and times for withdrawing and reflecting, allow us to better use our will and our intelligence in the service of love.
Afterlife Adventures Page 24