By Banji Ayoola
Without exception, all men and women everywhere on earth believe in the certainty of death. We are all convinced that death shall come calling one day to put an end to our earthly existence regardless of our power, wealth, fame, position, or belief.
This universal conviction is clothed in several witty expressions which are treasured by the various peoples on earth.
In the various earthly languages, there exist many of these wise expressions which are often employed to warn, counsel, admonish and guide human beings towards higher recognition of the need to shun evil, and harmful ways and strive only towards the ideal, towards swinging always in thoughts, words, and deeds that are pleasing to the Almighty Father.
Unfortunately for the generality of human beings on earth today, this is where the true recognition of this one of the two most significant events in the earth-life of every human being, stops. The other is birth.
Sorrowfully, we generally go about our earthly existence with a delusion that is fatal for us. Some even believe erroneously that life ends at physical death; and that this settles everything. On this wrong foundation, many base and build their earth lives, meting out horrors, injustice, pains, sufferings, wickedness, and similar other evils to their fellow men, believing wrongly that with physical death everything is settled and that thereafter we would not be held accountable or responsible for our deeds or the evils we perpetrated while on earth.
Surprisingly he who believes that everything or life ends at death will discover that he continues living even after his physical death but in a finer body.
Indeed, an indefinable fear prevails among human beings almost everywhere over the subject: Death. It is an abominable topic almost everywhere. Parents are frightened to discuss it and they discourage their children from touching the subject.
Some even avoid mortuaries, cemeteries, and funerals or dodge funeral trains for that matter. It is usually a subject we so much like to parry or avoid altogether. It calls forth fright almost everywhere. Yet death is inevitable.
Whenever the news of the death of relatives, friends, or acquaintances is broken to us, we are shocked, touched, and moved. We often break down in grief for days, weeks, months, or even years mourning the departed who really are alive. We are then confronted with the certainty of our own inevitable death, though we had been carefully avoiding the subject like a plague.
All these are aggravated when we sight their dead bodies. Some are even moved to brief pathos. At such moments, we often ask deep and serious questions but seek no further. And because we do not seek, we do not find the truth. Therefore falsehood, erroneous opinions, and confusion blossom. Needlessly.
The other equally significant event which is closely linked with death is birth; for one is the natural and lawful result of the other. Both events, life, and death, which indeed are the two extreme poles of every Earth life, are the true mirrors of whatever happens to every human being on Earth. Both contain or bear within and between them the true explanation of the actual fate of every man, of every woman, his or her weal and woe, the so-called inexplicable mysteries of his or her life.
But until now, there were no total or complete true recognitions on earth as far as birth and death are concerned.
What had hitherto existed were mere snippets, which in most cases were distorted, mutilated, muddled up, and exaggerated.
Erroneously, physical death is even presumed by many to be the final end of life on earth. According to this widely held opinion, once a human being sheds his or her earthly physical cloak, existence ends. In other words, according to this wrong opinion, once the heart of a man or woman stops functioning and breathing ceases, everything also ceases for the man or woman.
Thankfully, however, we now understand by virtue of new knowledge that is spreading on earth today that such a view or opinion is absolutely wrong, dangerous, and harmful. This is to the great relief of only those human beings who are earnestly seeking an understanding for a way out of the falsehood and confusion, which had hitherto prevailed on earth over this serious subject as over many others.
Gratefully, we now understand that our usually fearful and evasive attitude or response whenever the subject of death is broached in our presence is pointless, unhealthy, and unhelpful. We now understand that we should face the facts boldly and seek real knowledge in this matter.
The truth is that there is life after this earth-life and the human being continues existing even after physical earthly death or after shedding the physical body used while on earth.
What is the connection between the real human being and his or her physical body? The physical body of a man or woman is not the real human being just as the hood does not make the monk. The real human being is the human spirit within the soul cloaked by the earthly physical body. This cloaked spirit is the one who feels pains and comfort, who cries and laughs, who reacts to emotions, instincts, and senses, who often says ”my body”.
In other words, the human earthly physical body is just a covering for the real human being or human spirit within the soul inhabiting the physical body.
On its own, the soul is a covering or cloak for the human spirit, the actual human being on earth. But the kernel within the soul is the human spirit. Therefore the real human being is the human spirit which is cloaked by the soul and further by the visible physical body.
The physical body is just a gift woven as a tool from the gross matter of this Earth – the dust – for the real human being or human spirit inhabiting the human soul to exist, live and work here on and in the gross material Earth for his or her own development and maturity, as ordained by the creative Holy Will of the Almighty Father.
The soul is loosely connected with the physical body as if with a navel cord. Repeatedly, the physical body is woven from the dust or gross matter of this earth as an ordinary tool or instrument. And the human body is of a different consistency to the human soul and the inhabiting human spirit which journeys down to the earth for a sojourn on this earth to gain necessary maturity and development through experiencing.
When the time is ripe for the human being to be called away, or when the radiation of the physical body is so weak to the extent that it can no longer supply the vitality or strength needed by the human spirit within the soul for its necessary existence and activity here on earth, the glue of their union that enables the existence and working of the spirit on earth, then it is time for the spirit cloaked by the soul to take leave of the particular physical body and journey back to the Beyond in continuation of its existence.
Here his works while on earth whether good or evil await him. Here he will be compelled to reap the fruits of every seed he had sown through his thoughts, words, and deeds while on earth whether sweet or bitter. And there is no escape. No bribing the Natural Laws. No being clever with Them as is done with human laws here on earth.
Here, the Words of Christ: ”What a man soweth that shall he reap” shall apply to the fullest and last speck. And those whose works while on Earth qualify them for it shall live in real hell until they change inwardly for the better and supplicate for help. And real help can come only from the Light.
How death occurs: The human body can be enfeebled and weakened by virtue of natural aging, or if it is destroyed by an ailment, accident, abuse through food, drink, drug or any other intake, neglect, lack of necessary care, or violent external attack as in wars, killings, assassinations, and executions.
Earthly departure is a solemn moment and death can claim any human being at any hour. Whether the time is ripe for this or that individual is beyond man. It is left only for the Natural Laws to determine. But death will certainly come knocking at the door of every earthly human being one day.
For simplicity’s sake, and to avoid unnecessary confusion, we wish to keep to the word soul for the moment. At the time of physical death, the human soul is either determined to exit the physical body, detach itself soonest from the physical earthly cloak or ties, and continue its journey.
Or it is reluctant, and as such it locks itself in a desperate death struggle to resist being taken or called away from its physical body, earthly ties, enjoyments, pleasures, or comfort though its time is up. It thus binds itself more strongly to the earth. And this struggle, a self-imposed unnecessary suffering that actually delays, hinders, and harms such a soul may take days, weeks, or even months to resolve within the Natural Laws.
These two conditions of the soul at the time of departure from the earth or physical earthly death are determined by the level of inner maturity of the human being or soul concerned. By the extent to which man clings to, ties, or binds himself to anything earthly; to earthly possessions, enjoyments, pleasures, or comforts; to this or that person. By the extent to which it strives inwardly and outwardly after the mere earthly or even the Darkness, or towards what is more ennobling and leading upwards to the Light.
At death, the connection between the soul and the physical body of the human being depicted in the first example is so loose and free that the soul may already be standing outside the discarded body it used while on earth. As such, it is free of the pains experienced by the physical body it just exited.
The natural muscular twitching at such a moment could not be called a death struggle for such a light soul who is already yearning to embark on its journey back home.
This is a very serious moment calling for the utmost consideration by the relatives or well-wishers standing by the deathbed. At this moment, pity may awaken within the departing soul and he may be deeply touched and moved by the grief which is usually so strongly expressed by relatives or well-wishers standing by the death bed or in the death chamber who usually break down in loud wailings.
A wish may awaken in the departing soul to pacify, comfort, and assure the wailing relatives that strange as it seems, he is still alive and alright but in a different body. And to do this, he needs the earthly brains and thus the physical body he had just discarded. Thus it drags itself down to re-enter the discarded cloak. Rather than face its new path.
This is a sad retrogression for this particular soul. A hindering. A disturbance lacking in the necessary consideration neither for the departing soul nor for the seriousness of this inevitable moment. And those who attract the departing soul from its natural journey into the Beyond back to this earth with their grief are to blame.
However, this effort of the departing soul to help which is borne of good but wrong volition is in vain, as he often finds it difficult to reach any of his dear earthly relatives in his new body which he now wears. This is a punishment for the dying person. And this should be prevented.
Departure from the earth is a solemn moment when the soul is in the process of detaching itself from the physical body it used while on earth to enable it to move on to continue its experiencing, existence, or life in another part of Creation called the Beyond, in accordance with the Holy Will of the Almighty Father. It is normal.
With the right knowledge, the subject of death will lose the fright it usually calls forth generally in human beings on earth.
Notably, birth and death are both moments of gratitude. Death is a natural process in the development of the human being, the human spirit. Just as birth is. Death is the birth of the human soul from this earth into the other world, the Beyond. Just as earthly birth is the birth of the human soul from Beyond into this world, the physical gross material earth.
As newly born babies are warmly and joyfully welcomed here on Earth, so are souls departing this Earth heading for necessary experiencing in a new environment in the Beyond.
Both birth and death are sacred moments of Mercy granted by the Almighty Father to a human spirit to continue its experiencing, development, and maturity in the various mansions, planes, and realms of His wonderful Creation. Both moments, solemn as they are, should call forth gratitude and prayers rather than wailings, grief, or sorrow. Life does not end at physical death. There is continuity of life after this earth-life.
