Authors: Michael Newton
However, many other souls want to hover around the place where they died for a few Earth days, usually until after their funerals. Time is apparently accelerated for souls and days on Earth may be only minutes to them. There are a variety of motivations for the lingering soul. For instance,
someone who has been murdered or killed unexpectedly in an accident often does not want to leave right away. I find these souls are frequently bewildered or angry. The hovering soul syndrome is particularly true of deaths with young people.
To abruptly detach from a human form, even after a long illness, is still a jolt to the average soul and this too may make the soul reluctant to depart at the moment of death. There is also something symbolic about the normal three-to five-day funeral arrangement periods for souls. Souls really have no morbid curiosity to see themselves buried because emotions in the spirit world are not the same as we experience here on Earth. Yet, I find soul entities appreciate the respect given to the memory of their physical life by surviving relatives and friends.
As we saw in the last case, there is one basic reason for many spirits not wanting to immediately leave the place of their physical death. This comes from a desire to mentally reach out to comfort loved ones before progressing further into the spirit world. Those who have just died are not devastated about their death, because they know those left on Earth will see them again in the spirit world and probably later in other lives as well. On the other hand, mourners at a funeral generally feel they have lost a loved one forever.
During hypnosis, my subjects do recall frustration at being unable to effectively use their energy to mentally touch a human being who is unreceptive due to shock and grief. Emotional trauma of the living may overwhelm their inner minds to such an extent that their mental capabilities to communicate with souls are inhibited. When a newly departed soul does find a way to give solace to the living-however briefly-they usually are satisfied and want to then move on quickly away from Earth’s astral plane.
I had a typical example of spiritual consolation in my own life. My mother died suddenly from a heart attack. During her burial service, my sister and I were so filled with sadness our minds were numb at the ceremony. A few hours later we returned to my mother’s empty house with our spouses and decided to take a needed rest. My sister and I must have reached the receptive Alpha state at about the same time. Appearing in two separate rooms, my mother came through our subconscious minds as a dream-like brush of whiteness above our heads. Reaching out, she smiled, indicating her acceptance of death and current well-being. Then she floated away. Lasting only seconds, this act was a meaningful form of closure, causing both of us to release into a sound sleep of the Delta state.
We are capable of feeling the comforting presence of the souls of lost loved ones, especially during or right after funerals. For spiritual communication to come through the shock of mourning it is necessary to try to relax and clear your mind, at least for short periods. At these moments our receptivity to a paranormal experience is more open to receive positive communications of love, forgiveness, hope, encouragement, and the reassurance your loved one is in a good place.
When a widow with young children says to me, “A part of my husband comes to me during the difficult times,” I believe her. My clients tell me as souls they are able to help those on Earth connect their inner minds to the spirit world itself As it has been wisely said, people are not really gone as long as they are remembered by those left on Earth. In the chapters ahead, we will see how specific memory is a reflection of our own soul, while collective memories are the atoms of pure energy for all souls. Death does not break our continuity with the immortal soul of those we love simply because they have lost the physical personhood of a mortal body. Despite their many activities, these departed souls are still able to reach us if called upon.
Occasionally, a disturbed spirit does not want to leave the Earth after physical death. This is due to some unresolved problem which has had a severe impact on its consciousness. In these abnormal cases, help is available from higher, caring entities who can assist in the adjustment process from the other side. We also have the means to aid disturbed spirits in letting go on Earth, as well. I will have more to say about troubled souls in Chapter Four, but the enigma of ghosts portrayed in books and movies has been greatly overblown.
How should we best prepare for our own death? Our lives may be short or long, healthy or sick, but there comes that time when we all must meet death in a way suited for us. If we have had a long illness leading to death, there is time to adequately prepare the mind once initial shock, denial, and depression have passed. The mind takes a short cut through this sort of progression when we face death suddenly. As the end of our physical life draws near, each of us has the capacity to fuse with our higher consciousness. Dying is the easiest period in our lives for spiritual awareness, when we can sense our soul is connected to the eternity of time.
Although there are dying people who find acceptance to be more difficult than resignation, caregivers working around the dying say most everyone acquires a peaceful detachment near the end. I believe dying people are given access to a supreme knowledge of eternal consciousness and this
frequently shows in their faces. Many of these people realize something universal is out there waiting and it will be good.
Dying people are undergoing a metamorphosis of separation by their souls from an adopted body. People associate death as losing our life force, when actually the opposite is true. We forfeit our body in death, but our eternal life energy unites with the force of a divine oversoul. Death is not darkness, but light.
My clients say after recalling former death experiences they are so filled with rediscovered freedom from their earthbound bodies that they are anxious to get started on their spiritual journey to a place of peace and familiarity. In the cases which follow, we will learn what life is like for them in afterlife.
FOR thousands of years the people of Mesopotamia believed the gates into and out of heaven lay at opposite ends of the great curve of the Milky Way, called the River of Souls. After death, souls had
to wait for the rising doorway of Sagittarius and the autumn equinox, when day and night are equal. Reincarnation back to Earth could only take place during the spring equinox through the Gemini exit in their night sky.
My subjects tell me that soul migration is actually much easier. The tunnel effect they experience when leaving Earth is the portal into the spirit world. Although souls leave their bodies swiftly, it seems to me entry into the spirit world is a carefully measured process. Later, when we return to Earth in another life, the route back is described as being more rapid.
The location of the tunnel in relation to the Earth has some variations between the accounts of my subjects. Some newly dead people see it opening up next to them right over their bodies, while others say they move high above the Earth before they enter the tunnel. In all cases, however, the time lapse in reaching this passageway is negligible once the soul leaves Earth. Here are the observations of another individual in this spiritual location.
Case 3
Dr. N: You are now leaving your body. See yourself moving further and further away from the place where you died, away from the
plane of Earth. Report back to me what you are experiencing.
S: At first … it was very bright … close to the Earth … now it’s a little darker because I have gone into a tunnel.
Dr. N: Describe this tunnel for me.
S: It’s a … hollow, dim vent … and there is a small circle of light at the other end.
Dr. N: Okay, what happens to you next?
S: I feel a tugging … a gentle pulling… I think I’m supposed to drift through this tunnel … and I do. It is more gray than dark now, because the bright circle is expanding in front of me. It’s as if… (client stops)
Dr. N: Go on.
S: I’m being summoned forward …
Dr. N: Let the circle of light expand in front of you at the end of the tunnel and continue to explain what is happening to you.
S: The circle of light grows very wide and … I’m out of the tunnel. There is a … cloudy brightness … a light fog. I’m filtering through it.
Dr. N: As you leave the tunnel, what else stands out in your mind besides the lack of absolute visual clarity?
S: (subject lowers voice) It’s so … still … it is such a quiet place to be in … I am in the place of spirits
Dr. N: Do you have any other impressions at this moment as a soul?
S: Thought! I feel the … power of thought all around …….
Dr. N: Just relax completely and let your impressions come through easily as you continue to report back to me exactly what is happening to you. Please go on.
S: Well, it’s hard to put into words. I feel… thoughts of love companionship … empathy … and it’s all combined with … anticipation … as if others are … waiting for me.
Dr. N: Do you have a sense of security, or are you a little scared?
S: I’m not scared. When I was in the tunnel, I was more … disoriented. Yes, I feel secure … I’m aware of thoughts reaching out to me of caring … nurturing. It is strange, but there is also the understanding around me of just who I am and why I am here now.
Dr. N: Do you see any evidence of this around you?
S: (in a hushed tone) No, I sense it-a harmony of thought everywhere.
Dr. N: You mentioned cloud-like substances around you right after leaving the tunnel. Are you in a sky over Earth?
S: (pause) No-not that-but I seem to be floating through cloud stuff which is different from Earth.
Dr. N: Can you see the Earth at all? Is it below you?
S: Maybe it is, but I haven’t seen it since I went in the tunnel.
Dr. N: Do you sense you are still connected to Earth through another dimension, perhaps?
S: That’s a possibility-yes. In my mind Earth seems close … and I still feel connected to Earth … but I know I’m in another space.
Dr. N: What else can you tell me about your present location?
S: It’s still a little … murky … but I’m moving out of this.
This particular subject, having been taken through the death experience and the tunnel, continues to make tranquil mental adjustments to her bodiless state while pulling further into the spirit world. After some initial uncertainty, her first reported impressions reflect an inviting sense of well-being. This is a common feeling among my subjects.
Once through the tunnel, our souls have passed the initial gateway of their journey into the spirit world. Most now fully realize they are not really dead, but have simply left the encumbrance of an Earth body which has died. With this awareness comes acceptance in varying degrees depending upon the soul. Some subjects look at these surroundings with continued amazement while others are more matter-of-fact in reporting to me what they see. Much depends upon their respective maturity and recent life experiences. The most common type of reaction I hear is a relieved sigh followed by something on the order of, ” wonderful, I’m home in this beautiful place again.”
There are those highly developed souls who move so fast out of their bodies that much of what I am describing here is a blur as they home into
their spiritual destinations. These are the pros and, in my opinion, they are a distinct minority on Earth. The average soul does not move that rapidly and some are very hesitant. If we exclude the rare cases of highly disturbed spirits who fight to stay connected with their dead bodies, I find it is the younger souls with fewer past lives who remain attached to Earth’s environment right after death.
Most of my subjects report that as they emerge from the mouth of the tunnel, things are still unclear for awhile. I think this is due to the density of the nearest astral plane surrounding Earth, called the kamaloka by Theosophists. The next case describes this area from the perspective of a more analytical client. The soul of this individual demonstrates considerable observational insight into form, colors, and vibrational levels. Normally, such graphic physical descriptions by my subjects occur deeper into the spirit world after they get used to their surroundings.
Case 4
Dr. N: As you move further away from the tunnel, describe what you see around you in as much detail as possible.
S: Things are … layered.
Dr. N: Layered in what way?
S: Umm, sort of like … a cake.
Dr. N: Using a cake as a model, explain what you mean?
S: I mean some cakes have small tops and are wide at the bottom. It’s not like that when I get through the tunnel. I see layers … levels of light … they appear to me to be .. translucent… indented…
Dr. N: Do you see the spirit world here as made up of a solid structure?
S: That’s what I’m trying to explain. It’s not solid, although you might think so at first. It’s layered-the levels of light are all woven together in … stratified threads. I don’t want to make it sound like things are not symmetrical-they are. But I see variations in thickness and color refraction in the layers. They also shift back and forth. I always notice this as I travel away from Earth.
Dr. N: Why do you think this is so?
S: I don’t know. I didn’t design it.
Dr. N: From your description, I picture the spirit world as a huge tier with layers of shaded sections from top to bottom.
S: Yes, and the sections are rounded-they curve away from me as I float through them.
Dr. N: From your position of observation, can you tell me about the different colors of the layers?
S: I didn’t say the layers had any major color tones. They are all variations of white. It is lighter … brighter where I’m going, than where I have been. Around me now is a hazy whiteness which was much brighter than the tunnel.
Dr. N: As you float through these spiritual layers, is your soul moving up or down?
S: Neither. I am moving across.