Dear Readers. The subject of Life after Death fascinates many of us. Concepts like : What happens to us when we die? What do we experience when we die? Are we reborn? Where do we go from here after we die? Is our soul independent from our body? What happens to our soul?
The enclosed excerpt deals with all the above questions and answers our most basic question "What happens to us when die". Is there an Afterlife? To know more I invite you to read the following explanation (the first of many series of articles ) from the book "Life Beyond Physical Death" authored by Shriram Sharma Acharya.
Quoted Text:
"Life is like an eternal stream. Each of us has been living since time immemorial and would continue to do so for millions of years in future. Ignorance of the actual facts makes us believe that life begins in the womb of the mother during pregnancy and ends with cessation of functions of the heart and brain.
This is a limited point of view– a misleading concept. Modern medical science would make us believe that the soul has no independent existence of its own, and that the body itself is the totality of a living entity and the being is lost forever on death of the body, But Alas ! Physical sciences themselves are even today in their infancy.
Take for instance the subject of velocity of electricity. So far, over three dozen theories have been advanced in this context each contradicting the earlier ones. No doubt man has learnt to make use of electrical currents, but he is still uncertain about its mode of propagation.
To the material world the ever-changing theories of physical sciences may not matter much but it would be unfortunate for mankind to apply the same norms to research in spirituality.
Whereas scientists consider body itself as the total existence of a living being, a research scholar of spirituality puts forward evidences of paranormal activities of the departed, defying explanation by material sciences. Then there are authenticated versions of small innocent children, who have identified places and people of their past lives proving beyond doubt that a being goes through cycles of birth and death again and again. Sucking milk from mother's breast immediately after birth, itself indicates the presence in the infant of a memory from previous life. Extraordinary talents of many young children too are indicative of knowledge acquired in an earlier existence.
The enclosed excerpt deals with all the above questions and answers our most basic question "What happens to us when die". Is there an Afterlife? To know more I invite you to read the following explanation (the first of many series of articles ) from the book "Life Beyond Physical Death" authored by Shriram Sharma Acharya.
"Life is like an eternal stream. Each of us has been living since time immemorial and would continue to do so for millions of years in future. Ignorance of the actual facts makes us believe that life begins in the womb of the mother during pregnancy and ends with cessation of functions of the heart and brain.
This is a limited point of view– a misleading concept. Modern medical science would make us believe that the soul has no independent existence of its own, and that the body itself is the totality of a living entity and the being is lost forever on death of the body, But Alas ! Physical sciences themselves are even today in their infancy.
Take for instance the subject of velocity of electricity. So far, over three dozen theories have been advanced in this context each contradicting the earlier ones. No doubt man has learnt to make use of electrical currents, but he is still uncertain about its mode of propagation.
To the material world the ever-changing theories of physical sciences may not matter much but it would be unfortunate for mankind to apply the same norms to research in spirituality.
Whereas scientists consider body itself as the total existence of a living being, a research scholar of spirituality puts forward evidences of paranormal activities of the departed, defying explanation by material sciences. Then there are authenticated versions of small innocent children, who have identified places and people of their past lives proving beyond doubt that a being goes through cycles of birth and death again and again. Sucking milk from mother's breast immediately after birth, itself indicates the presence in the infant of a memory from previous life. Extraordinary talents of many young children too are indicative of knowledge acquired in an earlier existence.
The Soul (not the mind which is recognized
as soul in the west) and the body are not one and the
same entity. Just as one is required to change clothes according
to the requirements of the occasion, the soul too changes bodies. As it is not possible
to wear the same clothes throughout one's life, the soul with its infinite continuity
in time, cannot dwell in the
same body. That is why it seeks to find a new body again and again. Though,
generally, one discards the old worn and torn clothes only, at times it becomes necessary
to do so prematurely, when they are accidentally damaged, torn or have become unusable
on account of some other reason. Likewise,
though the soul continues to live in the
body till
The moments of death
How does one die? In this context Indian Yogis (saints) having paranormal perception hold the view, that for a short duration preceding death,
man experiences a great deal of
restlessness, pain and writhing.
There are a few reasons for this phenomena. The event of
death necessitates total withdrawal of the current
of bio-energy (Praañ) from all over the
body. Before death this bio energy gets accumulated
at that particular part of the body, from
where the soul is about to make its exit (discussed later), however in usual/normal times the body has a prevailing biological function and disposition to ensure that this current flows back to respective neurons instead of accumulating on a specific spot. The impact of this struggle
creates the agony or the spasm at the moment of death.
The
other reason for the misery preceding
the moment of death are diseases, shock or other physiological factors rendering the body unqualified
for retention of the soul.
Whether or not the dying person is able to express this or not , the being does suffer for a few moments before death. However,
soon thereafter, the person falls into a kind of coma and the soul departs in this state of senselessness. When death becomes imminent, all external
functional powers of man become introverted and then cumulatively escape along with
the soul through any exit in the physical body (Sthool Sharir).
The Yogis of the West are
of the view that the soul (Sukshma & Karañ Sharir) of the being comes out of the body as a
violet shadow, whereas the Indian spiritualists see it as a brilliant white aura akin to
luminescence of a burning lamp escaping at the moment of death. Because of cumulative
withdrawal, all forgotten memories of life lying buried and dormant in the finer cells of
brain are stimulated and revived.
This phenomena proves the extraordinary capability of human mind, when the dying person relives all experiences of life in a short moment
like a playback of a cine-film, whereas while living it is impossible to remember
even fifty percent of life's events in a long time. Each activity
of a person, whether mental,
verbal or physical, leaves
an imprint on the soul, The sum and substance of these events, deeds accompanies the soul as its Samskaras (impressions) at the time of its departure
from the physical body. In this process, it is said, one feels unimaginable pain-like that inflicted by a thousand scorpion bites. While looking at the activities
of bygone human
existence the soul feels extremely miserable-like a devoted father who beheads
his own son by mistake and looks at his body writhing
in pain. It is because the soul feels extremely repentant for not having utilized
life's precious moments fruitfully.
As mentioned earlier, the body becomes insensitive
to all feelings of pain and disease much before death when the energy of sense-perception
becomes introverted. Thus all sufferings of body end before death.
The bond between the body and soul with diseases,
shock or old age begins to
loosen. The fruit drops to the ground when it is ripened and its stem is unable to bear its weight. In the same
manner, an individual
dies when the body and
its functional capabilities loosen their grip on the soul. The soul generally
departs from the apertures
in the upper part of the body, principally from the mouth, eyes, ears or nostrils. Sinners
have been found losing their souls through
the anus or organs
of sex. The soul of Yogi leaves through the Brahmarandhra (Near
the top of the cranium).
The habitat of the departed soul
On coming out of the body, the soul finds itself in a strange environment. Just as after a
prolonged period of hard work one seeks a comfortable bed, in order to relax after the
lifelong engagement with the
body, the soul needs rest and
sleep (a period of inactivity).
This period of sleep provides the soul a great deal of rest. (Hence the prayer for the
departed soul to rest in peace). However, the soul does not fall asleep immediately after death but takes some time in doing so. Generally, the duration lasts about a month. It is
because the habits and memories
of earlier bodily attachments are fresh and strong at the time of
death and only gradually loosen their hold. As an analogy, consider the state of body after hard labor.
The circulation of blood
is fast and one cannot
fall sleep even on a comfortable bed till it becomes normal.
After its separation from the physical body (Sthool Sharir) on death, the soul assumes an astral
body (Sukshma Sharir). The form of this body is somewhat similar to that of the physical body. The being is pleasantly surprised to find a sudden acquisition
of levity. Now it can move freely in space like a bird and reach anywhere simply
by willing to do so. After abandoning the physical
body, the soul hovers around the mortal remains.
Finding the near and dear ones mourning,
it makes an attempt to communicate with them or re-enter the dead body, but does not succeed. The following
narration of a departed soul illustrate
the point. "After death, I found myself in a strange situation. On account of my previous
attachments with my physical body and dear ones, I wanted to
Death, rebirth, spirits, ghosts and apparitions:
http://guidingthoughts.blogspot.com/2012/09/death-and-rebirth-ghosts-spirits-and.html
Death, rebirth, spirits, ghosts and apparitions:
http://guidingthoughts.blogspot.com/2012/09/death-and-rebirth-ghosts-spirits-and.html
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References and credits to the above article:
To read the book "Life beyond Physical Death" please click the link below:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/58833184/the-Life-Beyond-Physical-Death
To know more about the author Shriram Sharma Acharya please click the link below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shriram_Sharma
References and credits to the above article:
To read the book "Life beyond Physical Death" please click the link below:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/58833184/the-Life-Beyond-Physical-Death
To know more about the author Shriram Sharma Acharya please click the link below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shriram_Sharma