We continue today the methodical study of “Heaven and Hell, or Divine Justice According to Spiritism” by Allan Kardec. The first edition was published in August 1, 1865. This work is part of the Kardecian Pentateuch. The answers to the questions suggested for discussion are at the end of the text below.
Questions for discussion
A. A strange fact occurs when someone faces the death trance. What is it?
B. When the Spirit is disembodying, what makes the detachment more or less easier?
C. When someone is very much attached to material life, how does his disembodiment occur?
D. After death, what becomes of the Spirit?
Reading Text
114. Turmoil is the normal state of the soul at death, but death itself is almost never painful. Before, the soul suffers the disintegration of matter, in the throes of agony, and then comes the turmoil. This condition, however, is not general, because the intensity and duration of suffering are in accordance with the connection between the body and the perisprit. Thus, the stronger the connection the more painful, and prolonged are the efforts for the soul to free itself. (Second Part, Chapter I, section 7.)
115. The less the Spirit sees beyond physical life, the more he clings to it and, thus, feels that life is fleeing and wants to retain it, instead of letting it go. He resists with all his might and may even extend the struggle for days, weeks, and months. (Second Part, Chapter I, section 10.)
116. The situation is different regarding the Spirit that does not care for matter. Since the fluidic ties are fragile, they break gently; confidence in the future makes the Spirit face death as redemption and a resigned calmness takes over relieving his suffering. After death, when the ties tear, he feels no painful reaction; his awakening is fast, clear; his feelings are unique: relief, joy! (Second Part, Chapter I, section 11.)
117. In violent death, the feelings are different. There is no initial disintegration when the perisprit starts to separate itself; organic life in full exuberance is suddenly annihilated. The detachment begins only after death, and it does not complete itself quickly. Caught unaware, the Spirit is as if stunned and thinks, feels, believes he is still alive, and this illusion goes on until he understands his real state. Then there is a singular fact during which the Spirit thinks his fluidic body is still material and at the same time experiences all the sensations of the organic life. (Second Part, Chapter I, section 12.)
118. There is, in this case, an infinite number of modes that vary according to the knowledge and the moral progress of the Spirit. For those who have a purified soul this situation lasts very little, because they already have in them a kind of an early detachment and sudden death only hastens it. For others this situation goes on for years. Specially, regarding the suicidal, the situation exceeds all expectation since, attached to the body through all its fibers, the perisprit reflects all these sensations on the soul, with excruciating suffering. (Second Part, Chapter I, section 12.)
119. The State of the Spirit at death can be summarized as follows: The greater the suffering, the slower the release of the perisprit. The promptness of this detachment is proportionate to the moral development of the Spirit. For the dematerialized Spirit, in pure consciousness, death is like a light sleep, free from agony, and the awakening is sweetest. (Second Part, Chapter I, section 13.)
Answers to the proposed questions
A. A strange fact occurs when someone faces the death trance. What is it?
During the transition from physical to spiritual life turmoil occurs. At that moment, the soul experiences a stupor that shortly paralyzes his faculties, neutralizing, at least in part, the sensations, so that the soul almost never consciously witnesses the last breath. We say almost never, because there are cases in which the soul can consciously contemplate the detachment. Therefore, turmoil can be considered the normal state at death and it lasts indefinitely, ranging from a few hours to several years, depending on the Spirit's degree of evolution. (Heaven and Hell, Second Part, Chapter I, section 6.)
B. When the Spirit is disembodying, what makes the detachment more or less easier?
What makes the detachment easier is the moral state of the soul. The connection between the body and the perisprit is proportional to the attachment to matter, which reaches its maximum in the man whose concerns relate exclusively and solely to life and material pleasures. On the contrary, in the pure souls, that identify themselves with spiritual life, the attachment is almost none. In the materialized and sensual man, who lived more through his body than through his Spirit, and to which the spiritual life means nothing, not even having thought about it, everything contributes to increase the material ties, and, when death approaches, the detachment, although it also operates gradually, it demands continuous efforts. The convulsions of agony are signs of the struggle of the Spirit, which sometimes seeks to break the resilient links, and other times it clings to the body from which an irresistible force snatches with violence, molecule by molecule. (Ibid, Second Part, Chapter I, items 8 and 9.)
C. When someone is very much attached to material life, how does his disembodiment occur?
The less the Spirit sees beyond physical life, the more he clings to it and, thus, feels that life is fleeing and wants to retain it, instead of letting it go. He resists with all his might and may even extend the struggle for days, weeks, and months. At that moment, the Spirit is not sure about what is happening, since turmoil anticipates death. However, he does suffer less, and the vacuum in which he is, and the uncertainty of what is going to happen to him increases his concern. Finally, death occurs, and even so, it is not all over yet. Turmoil goes on and the Spirit feels that he is alive, but cannot make out if spiritually or materially, and thus he fights, and fights, until the last connections of the perisprit become free. Death puts an end to the effective sickness, however, it does not put and end to the consequences, and, while there are points of contact of the perisprit with the body, the Spirit resents and suffers. (Ibid, Second Part, Chapter I, section 10.)
D. After death, what becomes of the Spirit?
The State of the Spirit at death can be summarized as follows: Both the greater the suffering, the slower the release of perisprit; promptness of this detachment is in direct proportion to the moral advancement of the Spirit: for the Spirit dematerialized, of pure consciousness, death is like a brief sleep, free from agony, and whose awakening is sweetest. (Ibid, Second Part, Chapter I, section 13.)
