REAL LIFE TN THE SPIRIT WORLD.
My object in writing these pages is to give mortals an idea of the real
life that is constantly passing in the spirit world, and to inform them
of the conditions, surroundings, duties, labors, and pleasures of the
denizens of the immortal state. The unsightly and desolate places I
shall describe are as real to their inhabitants as are the dark alleys
and gloomy by-ways of your own large cities. But while city lanes and
alleys have been occupied, and made unpleasant and unsightly by
carelessness and the neglect of physical comfort, these spiritually dark
spots have been hedged in and rendered squalid and barren because of the
sin and selfishness gathered around the inner life of those who linger
here, at the expense of the beautiful qualities of the soul that should
shine out and make all places bright.
Thus, spirits whose earthly lives have been impure and selfish find
themselves surrounded by darkness and gloom when they enter the other
world. The objective scenes around them represent the wild, chaotic
state and barren results of their past lives, and present an appearance
of great disorder. But as soon as they fully realize their terrible
condition, begin to mourn over their past errors and follies, and
struggle to arise out of such an unhappy state, the darkness commences
to vanish, light dawns upon them, they find sweet fields where before
appeared sterile rocks and sandy wastes; and they dimly feel and
perceive the presence of ministering spirits, where previously all had
appeared lonely and desolate.
Then begins the struggle to break from old ties and associations that
still fetter the soul; then repentance and reformation commence, and the
spirit pauses not until he or she has arisen out of old errors, and
gained knowledge, light, and peace. Spirits of this class who have
passed through the cleansing waters of suffering and trial, who have
felt the purging fires of tribulation, remorse, and contrition, do not
pause and rest content with their own deliverance from temptation and
evil, but invariably become grand and efficient co-workers with those
sweet missionary angels who delight to do good, and as messengers of
light spend their time in seeking to aid other unfortunates out of the
slough of error or despondency.
In the spirit world there are many beautiful spots that present an
appearance of peace and loveliness, even of grandeur and enchantment to
those who linger therein. Of these places I will speak to you
by-and-bye, and you shall learn of the life and doings of their
inhabitants. But first, I desire to devote a portion of this chapter to
scenes and incidents I have witnessed among the unlovely and darksome
haunts and resorts of those spirits who have not yet arisen into the
light.
What I am about to describe to you is far from being a heavenly scene,
and yet it is a scene I myself have witnessed, when in company with a
beloved aunt, a veritable angel-missionary, I visited one of the many
fields of her angelic labor.
A DARKENED SPIRIT LED TO SEE THE LIGHT.
A barren waste of sand and rocks spread out far and wide before us; no
blooming plants, no lofty trees, no singing birds, to awaken music with
their melody; all was silent, profound, deep desolation. At a distance I
could perceive the white foam and the dashing waves of angry waters
breaking upon a great line of cragged, dreary-looking rocks. Oh, what an
appearance of unrestfulness was here!
At first I could perceive no signs of human life, not even a vestige of
animal existence. The place was too sterile, barren, and forbidding for
even the very lowest form of conscious being.
I turned to my companion in surprise at having been brought to such an
unhallowed spot; perceiving which, she silently pointed to an object
slightly in advance of us, which appeared to me but one of the many
rocks about us, so thickly was it enveloped in a cloud of darkness; but
which in a little time I discovered to bear a resemblance to a human
form.
The figure was crouching down in the sand, its head bowed upon its
knees, presenting a most abject and despairing appearance. It was
evidently a male, and he seemed to be suffering intensely. I shall never
forget the terrible pang that shot through me at the sight; nothing more
than that experience would I need through all my life, to pity,
sympathize with, and seek to assist the miserable and unfortunate.
I clearly saw that this unhappy soul could not perceive our approach.
His senses were absorbed in his own condition and discordant
surroundings; but we could trace upon the cloud-like vapor enveloping
him lines indicating that his had been a hard and bitter life. Misery,
intemperance, impurity of life, had marked his way; unmourned and
unregretted on earth, he had entered spirit life, engulfed in
degradation and despair. And then and there I learned that this place,
appearing so terribly desolate, was typical of the earthly lives of
those who came here for a time, because of their unhallowed existence
through mortality.
Drawing closer, the angel with me spread her hands above the
unfortunate’s head, and presently little lines of light streaming from
her white fingers began to permeate the darkness, and the being before
us groaned and stirred restlessly.
Continuing her work, my blessed companion made rapid passes over the
form before us, the light still flowing down upon him from her fingers.
He trembled, great tears coursed down his cheeks, and at last he cried:
“Oh, Lord, save me! Help me, and I will be a better man!”
It was the cry of a spirit, struggling through the darkness, the
degradation and sin of years, yearning for light and praying for
assistance.
To me the place began to grow bright and beautiful. The gloom became
permeated with streaks of rosy light. Sweet music floated through the
air, which had lost its stinging sharpness. I lost sight of the barren
rocks, the desert sand, and the dashing waves. Only the praying, tearful
being before me, bloated and disfigured as he was, and the shining
spirit at my side, were visible to me. The man’s tears redoubled, great
sobs shook his frame, heavy sighs came welling up from his heaving
breast; broken murmurs of remorse, contrition, and despair fell from his
lips.
Still he did not see us; but to me the place grew brighter and brighter,
until no ray of gloom remained.
Still continuing her magnetic passes, my friend cast a beam of light
over the man’s face, and, looking up, he discovered her angel form bent
in pity above him. Stretching out his hands with an imploring gesture,
but with no sound, the miserable being gazed and gazed, as if to drink
in hope, encouragement, even life itself, from the beautiful sight.
I soon became conscious of another presence beside me; an elderly
female, bright, shining, beautiful, yet sad, very sad.
Catching sight of this new face bending over him, the suffering spirit
cried: “My mother, oh, my mother!” and bowed his head from sight.
Drawing me away, my companion said: “We will leave him now to his
mother’s tender care; she will help him to redeem himself. He is in the
valley of tribulation, but soon he will arise to liberty and happiness.”
In company with that angel-missionary, my dear aunt, who passed from
earth many years ago, a sweet, innocent maiden, I have many times
visited these dark by-ways where undeveloped spirits, surrounded by
gloomy clouds, remain, many of them perhaps indifferent to their
condition. Yet we are always sure of finding one or more among them, who
has grown weary, and become anxious for more light and goodness; and
when we find them in this frame of mind, it is a beautiful task to talk
to them, show them how they may grow better, and little by little lead
them up to more pleasant conditions of existence.
AN OUTCAST FROM EARTH RETURNS TO AID THE FALLEN.
But to go on with my description of places I have seen: A thick, almost
impenetrable forest, stretching out far and wide before us, its deep,
dark undergrowth of shrubbery growing up in great thickets; tangled
vines covering the trunks of the trees, and so interlaced that no
sunbeams strayed through the leafy covert. No sound of singing bird, no
scent of beautiful flower, could there be found. All was so dark, so
lonely, so impervious, it seemed that not even a spirit might enter the
confines of the gloomy place. But as we approached, the seemingly
objective wood became subjective only; I found that we could pass
through readily. In the depths of this forest, we came upon a female
spirit, apparently asleep; wan, pale, and haggard, she presented an
appearance of deep suffering.
My companion explained to me the meaning of this scene. This spirit had
shortly before inhabited a mortal form. Tossed about here and there on
the waves of poverty and misfortune, scorned and neglected and despised,
she had felt herself an outcast from the human family, and in a fever of
despair had ended her mortal life by poison.
Her wild longing for solitude, the hatred of society of any kind, her
dislike to the city, and her desire to bury herself and her griefs in
some uninhabited spot, had surrounded her spirit with this deep forest,
within which no step disturbed her lonely vigils. She had realized that
she could not kill the soul; she had found herself in this wild spot,
alone and unclaimed, and for a time was thankful that no eye could look
upon her.
But the silence, gloom, and solitude produced such an effect upon her
spirit that a terrible reaction set in. She had had time to reflect, to
realize her past life, and the cause of much of her misery. She had
wept, and at last even prayed; and here alone with herself she had
recognized her dependence upon humanity, and the duties she owed to it
and to her own immortal nature. Then came a longing for companionship, a
desire to leave this dreadful place, and a wish that she might go away
where she could begin a new life, and be happy, innocent, and good like
others.
Weary with contending emotions, she had sunk down exhausted, and her
guardian spirit, who was no other than her own mother, and who had never
left her, threw her into a deep trance, in which we found her, still
attended by that mother-soul.
Raising the stricken being in our arms, we three spirits bore her away
from the solitude, gloom, and darkness out into a beautiful valley,
where the sun shone warmly, the birds warbled in the branches of the
trees, the blue waters of a stream gurgled playfully between green
banks, where flowers bloomed in fragrance and beauty, and laying her
gently upon one of the mossy beds, we assisted the mother-spirit in
bringing back the senses of her child.
Soon the blue eyes opened, and as they began to take in the scene around
her, they filled with a happy light, and a peaceful smile played around
her pallid lips. Very weak was this child of God, and we left her upon
the fragrant couch, where balmy breezes bore new healing to her weary
frame.
But not long; again and again we visited her, and shortly after found
that she had been taken to a tiny, white cottage by her mother, where
she was constantly growing stronger and better.
At times, thoughts of the old life would cause her cheek to blanch and
frame to shudder; but as she was so thoroughly regretful for whatever
had been wrong in her life, and was filled with such a desire to atone
for past errors, and to learn the laws of her being, to perform whatever
work my friend and teacher appointed her to do, she was so willing to
learn and so anxious to aid others, that the memory of earth at last
ceased to pain her, and now only serves to deepen in her soul a tender
sympathy, and gentle, helpful love for the suffering and sin-tried souls
who dwell on earth.
We call her “Charity,” and she has become a tender helper wherever a
poor soul is in need of strength or encouragement; she goes out alone
into the darkness, where others are suffering, and with her spirit love
dispels the gloom, and sends rays of hope and mercy into the lowly
depths of degradation and sorrow.
Above I have described scenes I have witnessed in the inner or soul-life
of individuals, whose moral perceptions were but insufficiently
developed, or had been warped and limited in action during their
residence in the material form. Let me attempt to convey to you an idea
of a scene I not long since witnessed in connection with a terrible
disaster occurring upon the earthly plane.
UNSEEN HELPERS AT A CONFLAGRATION.
A terrible conflagration was raging in one of your large cities. Down
among the business portions of the place, tenement houses, to be filled
with families of human beings, had been erected. They had grown brown
and unsafe with age, yet were swarming with human beings—a family of
children, as well as grown persons, on every floor; and in this place a
fire had broken out in the night, and had been raging for an hour before
discovered. At last, relief came, but too late to save the lives of all
those poor, helpless creatures. The bodies of a number of children, as
well as men and women, were burned to a crisp in that holocaust of
flame.
Attracted to the scene by the sufferings and necessities of human
beings, hosts of invisible spirits penetrated the smoke and flame
(which, though having no power to destroy disembodied beings, yet caused
a darkness and gloom to surround them), and in company with dear
spirits, whose work is ever for the amelioration of suffering and
distress, I was privileged to approach with the hope of being of use to
those who were passing out from mortal life in the midst of fiery
flames.
And what a sight was there! Half-developed spirits, not realizing the
grandeur of the triumph of right over wrong, were gathering around, as
if to gloat over the sufferings of the stricken ones before us; gathered
together by the fascinating attractions emanating from the spirit of
that incendiary who had created this terrible blaze; and it seemed as if
they were delighted at the calamity taking place before us. But a noble
band of spirits, drawn together by the ties of sympathy, and attracted
to the place by the tender pity in their souls for the suffering,
approached, and with them brought such a radiant light that the
evil-disposed influences speedily departed.
And then we turned our attention to the spirits struggling out from the
flesh; by gentle magnetic passes we released them from the flame and
smoke and bore them away to pleasant scenes and blooming places in the
spirit world, where nothing can destroy.
Three little children it was our good fortune to release from a terrible
sense of suffocation and fear—dear little children, whom we bore away to
the Summer-Land, and placing them in a bower of blooming roses, we left
them in the charge of a kind mother-spirit, whose tender love and
soothing care would hush all grief and fear which might overtake them
when they awoke from the deep magnetic sleep cast upon them by spirit
power, in order to remove all traces of suffering and anguish.
Oh, could you witness from the spirit side of life the results of such a
terrible conflagration as this, you would never rest until your streets
were so laid out, your buildings so constructed, and so remote from each
other, that it would be impossible for a fire to spread among them and
carry such deadly mischief in its blazing folds.
And yet, in spite of the awful scene of blackening smoke and lurid
flames, the presence of evil-disposed influences attracted thither by
the destroying elements, the suffering, the misery and despair,—in spite
of these, the sight of high and exalted intelligences, whose interior
life brilliantly illuminated their features, and dispelled the darkness,
abashed the evil-disposed, and stimulated the sympathizing efforts of
mortals to aid the suffering, was a scene to be witnessed with joy;
creating within us a sense of thankfulness, that above and beyond all
sorrow, evil and pain, there is a life peopled with unselfish, holy
beings, who glorify their Father by alleviating the pangs of the
sorrowful and distressed. And I observed that around those kind souls in
mortal, who were working with herculean efforts to save the lives and
property of the tenants of these houses; around the noble firemen; the
crowd who were putting forth powers and desires to be of use; around
those who opened their homes for the destitute and suffering, a golden
light shone, and bands of helpful, shining spirits gathered, aiding with
strength and sympathy; and a light shone in the darkness of despair, a
star gleamed brilliantly above the light of human sympathy,—the star of
heavenly love.
The unpleasant, disagreeable, desolate places I have seen in my
experience of spirit life have been few indeed compared with the many
beautiful spots I have visited, and the scenes of grandeur, sublimity,
or sweetness I have been privileged to look upon. I find that the
natural scenery of the spirit world far transcends in beauty of forms
and coloring everything of the kind which exists upon the earth; for,
though the glowing sunset, the fairy-like sunrise, the exquisite
blending of colors in fragrant flowers, the blooming vales, the
luxuriant forests, the grand old mountains and foamy oceans belonging to
earth combine to make up many a scene of indescribable beauty, yet these
same forms and tints, existing as they do in the spirit world, are so
refined, so delicate, yet so grand, majestic and glowing, that it is
impossible for mortals upon earth to comprehend their beauty, or to
experience the emotions of reverential delight and solemnity that a
spirit feels while gazing upon the wonderful forms of nature, and
listening to the rapturous melody of sound rising from birdlings’
throats, gurgling waters, and rustling leaves.
ADVENT OF A MORTAL INTO SPIRIT LIFE.
I will now describe to you, as well as I can, a beautiful scene I once
witnessed, the memory of which runs through my spirit experience like a
strain of music.
Not a great while ago, there dwelt on earth a young girl of about twenty
years of age. Of delicate organization and slender mold, one could see
that want and suffering had been no stranger to her. Her home was in one
of your large cities, where, in an humble dwelling, she lived alone with
her invalid mother, whom she supported by the fruits of her needle.
For years she had plied that slender instrument—which has indeed proved
an instrument of torture to many a toiling, suffering woman—patient,
resigned, and cheerful, as long as she could earn the necessities of
life for her dear mother, who was unable to do much of anything for
herself. It was thought that the mother would depart from the mortal
life long before the daughter; but exposure to a heavy storm had given a
severe cold to the poor girl, and in a few days she was pronounced dying
with pneumonia.
Who can describe the terrible grief of the stricken mother as the
labored breathing of her child told only too well that the end was near!
But angels watched beside that humble bed, and when the last breath was
drawn, they mercifully cast a spell of unconsciousness over the mother’s
senses, while they gently bore the arisen spirit to a haven of rest.
In the midst of a charming spirit vale, where beautiful flowers bud and
bloom, and fill the balmy air with fragrance, where the stately trees
cast a pleasant shade over many a mossy bank, where glistening waters
dash musically along between beds and thickets of roses, and where birds
make music as they glance here and there in the soft and mellow light,
there is a bower composed entirely of roses, red and white, which lift
their regal heads and offer incense to the breeze. This bower has been
constructed by loving angels for the resting-place of that beautiful
spirit, whose illness and death I have just described.
Within the bower, upon a bed of dewy May-flowers and violets, the spirit
form of the maiden reclines; she is robed in garments of white, arranged
about her by ministering spirits.
She has been resting, drawing long draughts of health and strength from
the flowers beneath and around her; the paleness disappears from her
cheek, which loses its thin, attenuated appearance; the eyes no longer
appear dim and sunken from exhaustion, but as they flash open, reveal a
luster and beauty untold.
She starts, looks around, but perceiving the flowers, utters a low cry
of rapture, and grasping the roses, May-flowers, and violets in her
arms, she presses them to her bosom and buries her face in the rich
fragrance of their leaves. Never before has she seen so many fresh and
beautiful flowers together; never has she possessed so great a quantity
of blossoms in her life; and she revels in their fragrant beauty with
unmitigated delight.
But she is not long allowed to remain thus alone; loving spirits, gentle
women, whose souls are all love and tenderness, enter the bower, and,
taking the maiden by the hand, give her loving welcome in kindly words.
She gazes upon them in delight; they appear to her the embodiment of all
that is lovely and pure; and as they kindly greet her in her heavenly
home, her spirit becomes filled with affection and gratitude for all
that she sees.
Now she has recovered strength and is rested; her gentle companions bear
her away from the bower of roses to a beautiful little cottage,
embowered in flowers, which stands at the edge of the lovely valley. It
is surrounded by a tiny flower garden, abounding with delicate colors
and redolent with exquisite perfumes.
The cottage is open on the side, being composed of snowy lattice work,
through which the golden sunbeams and the tender rose leaves stray. The
interior of this little dwelling is daintily though simply furnished in
white and azure, and all betoken it to be an abode of purity and
simplicity. The new-comer is greeted at the entrance by a motherly,
loving face, kindly hands out-stretched in greeting, and made to feel
that she is indeed at home.
The ministering band of spirits who have thus far cared for the
newly-arisen one, now leave her in the care of the motherly soul who has
been awaiting her in the cottage home; and she immediately learns that
this new friend is her own grandmother, who has been dead for many
years. This is a home never dreamed of by the poor, working girl, and it
seems almost like enchanted ground to her.
But a short time had passed since the spirit departed the body; she had
lain in the bower of roses, tended by gentle missionary spirits; sunk in
a semi-unconscious condition, but wrapped in a sense of ecstasy, very
exquisite to the weary soul, until after the burial of her body, when
she had been aroused and borne to her spirit home by her attendants.
Oh, how she enjoyed the sweet song of the birds, the balmy air and the
fragrant flowers. The house she inhabited possessed no grand adornments;
only white drapery, rustic yet graceful furniture, polished floors, here
and there a tiny picture or bit of color within; climbing vines and
fragrant flowers without; yet all was beautiful and sweet; and best of
all, this pretty home had been reared bit by bit from the daily life of
its occupant. Patience, self-sacrifice, devotion to an invalid parent,
cheerfulness, and a spirit of perseverance, that faltered not in the
midst of suffering, poverty, and affliction, together with an almost
passionate love of the beautiful, had thrown out material from the life
of this young girl that had been eagerly seized on by her spirit guides
with which to rear her cottage home.
And within a tender grandmother had been domiciled to give her greeting
and companionship. From the entrance of this little home, its occupants
could look out, beyond the blooming garden, into the glowing valley,
with its stately trees, its rippling brooks and mossy dells, with here
and there a white homestead, around which gardens spread, and before the
doors of which children made glad music. Nestling between two massive
mountain ranges, the crags of which glowed in the sunlight like bronze,
or deepened into purple radiance at twilight, the valley presented a
scene of smiling peace and tranquility.
But you are not to think the girl, who had been borne from the cares of
material life to this beautiful spot, had forgotten that invalid mother
whom she had left to suffer earthly sorrow and care. Not so; her whole
soul went out in love, sympathy, and longing toward that lonely parent,
and guided by a slender cord of silvery light which, though invisible to
others, yet was always visible to herself, and which extended from her
own spirit home to the spot where her mother lay, she constantly
returned to the side of her she loved so well, and by her ministrations
soothed many a weary pain, and eased her mother’s passage to the spirit
land.
She found that her mother had been removed from her former habitation to
one of the wards of a hospital, and she—the spirit child—found among the
nurses one whom she could influence to act tenderly towards the invalid
under her care.
But it was not long that tenderness of earth was needed. The shock of
her daughter’s sudden illness and death was too much for the poor
invalid, and in one month from the decease of that daughter the mother
joined her in the spirit world.
As I was privileged to be with the guardian band who had attended the
younger spirit into the Higher Life, so I also had the privilege of
being present at the spirit birth of the elder woman; but the first to
greet her was that daughter who had preceded her to the immortal realms,
and who now, radiant as an angel of light, returned to bear her mother
to rest in her own sweet, little home.
The expressions of delight at her appearance from her mother first
called the attention of the daughter to herself; for the first time
since her change she discovered that she was no longer pale, wan, and
weary-looking, but radiant, bright, and beautiful. With the
self-devotion so natural to her, she had been so absorbed in her
mother’s condition that she had no idea of the beauty which now
enveloped her own being like a halo of light. These spirits,—mother and
daughter,—with the noble grandmother, dwell happily together in their
valley home; and their time is spent in doing good, and in influencing
others to assist the needy and suffering.