by Yogi Ramacharaka

There is a question which ever comes to the mind of those who indulge in speculations regarding “the other side”—that question which is voiced in the words of the familiar old hymn: “Shall we know each other there?” This query is rooted in the very heart of human love and affection. Heaven, even if it furnished every other joy and satisfaction, would not be heaven to the average person if it did not also furnish companionship and association with those loved in earth life. The soul instinctively craves for the society not only of those close to it by ties of the love of man and woman, but also of those to which it is bound by the relationship of parent and child; brother and sister; friend and friend. Without this assurance of continued companionship and association, heaven would seem a very bleak and cold place to the average human soul. (more…)

by William T. Stead

On April 10, 1912, W. T. Stead boarded the S.S. Titanic bound from Southampton to New York, to take part in a peace congress at Carnegie Hall. On the morning of April 15 the ship struck an iceberg and Stead, along with hundreds of others, drowned. Ten years later, Stead’s daughter Estelle published this book which purported to be a communication with Stead via a medium, Pardoe Woodman. In the book, Stead described his death at sea and discussed the nature of the afterlife. The manuscript was produced using automatic writing.

The Arrival

MANY years ago I was attracted by an article on the subject of spirit communication, and, after reading it carefully several times, I was forced to admit its soundness. I was struck by the plain and practical ideas of the writer. This was the first cause of my becoming actively interested in this big and amazing work. From that time onward I did all in my power to prove and then forward the movement. Many people know this; and those who do not, can become acquainted with the details if they wish. Therefore I am going to pass at once from my first earth interest in the occult to my first interest in the earth.

Just as I was overcome with astonishment and satisfaction on first reaching conviction on earth, so I was astonished almost equally on my coming to this land and finding that my knowledge of this subject gained on earth was strikingly correct in nearly all the chief points. There was a great satisfaction in proving this. I was at once amazed and delighted to find so much truth in all I had learned; for although I had believed implicitly, I was not entirely without grave misgivings upon many minor details. Hence my general satisfaction when I recognized things and features which, though I had accepted whilst on earth, I had scarcely anticipated would be as I now found them. This must sound somewhat contradictory, but I want you to understand that my earthly misgivings were based on fear that perhaps the spirit world had a formula of its own which was quite different from our earthly mentality, and that, therefore, the many points were transmitted to us in such a form and in such expression as we on earth would be able to grasp and appreciate, and were not in themselves the precise descriptions, owing to the limitations of earth word-expression. (more…)

by Stafford Betty

The medium Geraldine Cummins was an Irish woman who authored 22 books, 15 of them automatically while in a light trance. She described her method in this way:

I am a mere listener, and through my stillness and passivity I lend my aid to the stranger [spirit] who is speaking. It is hard to put such a psychological condition into words. I have the consciousness that my brain is being used by a stranger all the time. It is just as if an endless telegram is being tapped out on it. The great speed of the writing suggests actual dictation, as though some already prepared essay were being read out to my brain. (more…)

by Margaret Vivian

Question: You often say that we are just the same after passing over. Does this mean that they are angry, jealous, stupid and greedy people on your side?

Answer: It would be dull indeed if everybody were made on the same pattern. We all have our own characteristics, otherwise we should not be individuals, but merely animated dummies out of the same mold. As you grow older on the earth, you usually become more level-headed and less apt to lose your temper. In a similar way we progress over here. Let us take some of the common causes of quarrels on your side. Political views are often the source of bitter disputes. They do not exist in the same sense in the Summerland. (more…)

by Jurgen Ziewe

What is it like to be “dead”? – Common Misconceptions and Reality

We are not floating bubbles or globes of light drifting through vaporous mists when we die. We are just as real with proper bodies as we are on the physical plane.

People frequently think of the dead as disembodied spirits in the shape of balls of light or fuzzy ghostly apparitions when they contemplate a life after death.

When I read some of these reports (not all) by well known regressionists using deep hypnotic trance in order to lead their subjects into afterlife states, I have been surprised to discover that many of the accounts consist of seeing disembodied orbs of light, specks of awareness without eyes drifting in a sea of hazy mists surrounded by other energies, being pulled by certain currents and conglomerating in hives of souls. (more…)

by Jurgen Ziewe

One day every one of us will have to pass through the portals of death. We don’t have to reach a state of enlightenment in order to enter the pleasant lands, but we can’t ignore the fact that where we are now, emotionally and spiritually, will determine where we will go to spend the next leg of our infinite future. We can push the idea of death from our awareness via distractions or entertainments of various kinds, by leading a hedonist lifestyle as if there was no tomorrow, but we will have to bear in mind that what is in our sub-consciousness will become our new external reality when we die. There is no doubt that the best way to prepare ourselves for the future is by conducting our life from a place of calmness and inner stillness, here and now in our present, which becomes our instant link to our infinity. We can embrace the infinity of our existence by pursuing a life where every moment counts, and living it by being mindful and aware of our thoughts, feelings and actions, informed by kindness and the loving heart.

We can learn to look at our conflicts and crisis points as learning opportunities for building a better base, and treat our inner demons as our educators. We can look at our enemies as our teachers to learn compassion and harness our own authentic strength in order to liberate ourselves from the rule of others. Instead of putting self-interest first, we can learn to appreciate how our actions are experienced by others. The easiest way to accomplish this is by acting, thinking, speaking and experiencing reality by employing the heart in everything we do.

Psychology teaches us that we cannot hide our unresolved issues or inner demons if we wish to lead a healthy and balanced life. The foundation of happiness is to be found in a life of balance and psychological hygiene, free from the toxins of negative and destructive attitudes. We are aided by our ability to respond dynamically to situations by not remaining stuck in rigid constructs and hardened beliefs, which are unable to adapt to the flowing forces of nature.

Religions of old have tried to make it simple do good things and you’ll go to Heaven, do bad things and you’ll go to Hell. Reality is more complex than that and works on multiple levels. We will need to find our own way to our inner heart and authenticity, often via trial and error rather than by following prescriptions. We don’t need to read books about ethics and morality, about what is good and what is bad, we simply need to read the book of wisdom laid out within us and read in a state of calm and reflection. We can find out how we can love and serve, how we can enhance the world rather than impoverish it, how we can add value rather than devalue it.

By living through the heart we no longer have to figure out for ourselves what effect our actions will have on others, we simply open our inner channels to allow the most positive energy to flow into us and guide our actions. We can trigger love by appreciation, out of which a loving, empathic and compassionate heart is much more likely to rise. It will be a guarantor for a rewarding life rather than a mind calculating our effects, torn by conflict, obsessed with self-gratification and motivated by greed and self-importance. Too keep these channels open and connected to our authentic self close to our Source we can practice regular meditation, engage in selfless service and live life by fostering inner wisdom in calm reflection.

Every religion has brought forward their shining lights of sages who provide inspiration and encourage in us the right attitude to develop a powerful connection to our Source. It doesn’t matter whether we follow Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Sikhism, Taoism, Buddhism, Zen or any other faiths, as long as we don’t get blinded by dogma and fanatical stances. Mindfulness, which focuses attention on the sensations, thoughts and emotions, while remaining rooted in the present moment with an accepting and non-judgemental attitude, can be practiced whichever religion we follow, because it will put us in a position of ‘being’ rather than ‘becoming’. This attitude will keep us in touch with reality and will cleanse our channels for a positive downflow of creative energy. Whatever cultural context we use as our basis, we are best served by looking at the core aspects of our faith, where it connects us to the Core Consciousness it springs from rather than diluted interpretations and evolved dogma.

Even if we don’t believe in God or any form of spirituality whatsoever, we can still rely on the simple acceptance that we ARE and inquire into the mystery of our Being. Deep meditation does not require belief, it just requires a focus on ‘what is’, on the reality of ‘Now’, and this way we also can find stillness, even as atheists. It is simply narrow-minded propaganda that preaches atheists will go to hell because they don’t believe in God. Nothing could be further from the truth, and many atheists are in a better position to reach enlightenment than many devout followers of religious beliefs. Buddha himself did not believe in God and yet he is the figurehead of one of the most enlightened ways of living on the planet. Fanatical subscribers to religious belief will no doubt be quick to condemn such a liberal stance, but they will have remember that there is not a single person, life form or atom that is not intimately connected to God or Core Consciousness, whether they may believe it or not.

In the end we will discover that, whatever our beliefs, actual first-hand experience will deliver the final proof for continuous existence and we will no longer have to rely on the testimonies of others. Nothing is more powerful in delivering proof than first-hand experience.

We will have to decide for ourselves which teachers, if any, to enlist and how to open the inner channels to the seat of Consciousness. The simple rule to be guided by is to avoid anything that cuts us off from the free flow of love energy, such as narcissism, dogma, selfishness, fanaticism, hatred, bigotry, intolerance and all the negative feelings related to our own self-importance, which will restrict the free flow of creative energy. All the energy we set in motion and which enriches the world without diminishing others is energy stacked in our favor.

By focusing on the things in life that truly matter, embracing reality rather than denying or running away from it, and by nurturing our authentic self, fertilized by the generosity of the heart, we create the best conditions not only for the afterlife, but for our current life as well, because life is a continuum.

Excerpt from Vistas of Infinity

See Part II here.

by G. Vale Owen

This volume (what follows is a short excerpt) contains the first of a series of communications from beyond the veil, received and written down by the Rev. G. Vale Owen, Vicar of Oxford, Lancashire.

It should be clearly understood that these messages, while complete in themselves, deal chiefly with the “Sphere of Light” nearest to the earth in which the Vicar’s mother, who is the principal communicator, states that she dwells, and that her impressions are chiefly individual to herself and are thus those of a newcomer and learner whose experiences are limited to a restricted area. Wider regions and greater heights and depths are explored, the interrelation of this and the afterlife is more fully explained, and both narrative and exposition of aims and principles are more vigorous, clear and comprehensive in succeeding messages, contained in other volumes of the series. ~ H. W. Engholm (more…)

by Stafford Betty

As I drove down to Mission Viejo to give a talk on the afterlife, I thought back to the article in Newsweek I’d read a few days before. Brilliant scientists, including Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, thought it possible to someday “cure death,” and Dmitry Itskov, the “godfather” of Russia’s Internet, predicted that the technology that would allow him to live for 10,000 years would be in place by 2045.

Wow. And here I was about to tell 70 seniors that death was no big deal because all it involved was the shedding of the body — the same body that these scientists would go to any length and expense to keep running. (more…)