To Die… When?

FRI., JULY 3, 1992, 6:55 AM
FARM, STUDY

Next week you will begin a familiar course, one that is truly yours, with a reputation that is almost too good for your purposes. It has to do with dying and with death, both part of the total life experience. As you say in your explanation of the ecological perspective, everything that comes into being and has life must eventually die. But then I tell you that the essence of each human, the spirit in the immortal soul, does not die, but simply moves to another form.

Thus, We have a poser – do you die or not? The body obviously dies, though, with modern methods of resuscitation, those who have clearly been on their way to death are revived, and some do live longer and productive lives. What is the spirit “doing” while a “dead” body is being brought back to life?

As I told you years ago during your Mother’s illness the spirit may leave the body during times of trauma, but never permanently until revival is impossible. Away from the physical body, the spirit often perceives itself in a spiritual body, even clothed. This is a kind of protection, a transition to existence as pure spirit. Some need to hang on to this spiritual body longer than others… and in some realms and for some tasks this spiritual body is acceptable, even useful. Yet others may be quite comfortable as just spirit.

The focus for this morning’s Teaching, however, is the when of dying. Now you know, from many previous Teachings, that I do not exactly determine when and how each individual will die. In some instances and with some individuals I am a factor, in allowing death to occur or, in a few cases, actually causing the death. Conversely, in other instances I help rescue a person from death or prolong a life for My purposes. I can have these effects, and occasionally I do. In general, however, I let the natural forces act as they will.

The power that some persons have to affect their own deaths is rather amazing. And it works both ways. Some have tremendous capacities to heal and recover. In circumstances in which most even healthy individuals would be dead, these “special folks” simply will themselves to live, and the body responds. At the other extreme some can will themselves to die. They give up on life, and the body “cooperates.” With some of these the motivation is highly spiritual… they want to move on or they want to prevent hardship and expense to and for loved ones. These are just examples of the diversity that characterizes the humans I designed and created.

Another ecological premise is that, in any species, there is an average length of life, but some individuals die young, some average, and some live quite long. Many factors affect this “when to die”, and I am included. Within this Punahou class, with whom you celebrated, averaging 8 years younger than you, 17 have already died… young, for they aren’t even close to the average for their age group. One of your sons died young, in the crash of two automobiles. In other parts of this earth young people are dying from bullets and the other dangers of war. Still others die young from lack of food. Young persons die of AIDS, in numbers that are both significant and inconsequential.