About "the other side," William Atkinson in his book "Life beyond
death" wrote the following:
« One
of the questions most frequently asked the teachers of the Wisdom of the East
is this:
“What do you teach
regarding ‘the other side’ of the river of death?”
To the trained and
developed occultist, this question never seems to lose its strangeness. To
such, it would seem as the question: “What do you teach regarding the ‘other
side’ of the street?” would seem to the ordinary man on the street. The latter
would naturally feel surprised that there should be any question of “teaching”
on the subject, for the inquirer would have but to use his own eyes to obtain
the answer to his query.
The Oriental teacher
never fails to wonder at the many evidences of the result of mere theory and
dogmatic teaching on the part of the majority of the teachers and preachers of
the Western world. These so-called teachers are like the “blind leading the
blind,” for they have no means of verifying their statements, and merely pass
on what they have blindly received from others, who, in turn, have received
their own instruction in the same way.
In the Orient, on the
contrary, one meets with so many persons of developed higher psychic and
spiritual sense, to whom the phenomena of “the other side” is as familiar as is
the phenomena of “this side,” that the “other side” seems as real and actual as
does the ordinary environment of earth-life.
(This is false, and the proof is that the explanations give
by the Orientals about what happens after death and what is in the afterlife,
also in their vast majority are very distorted, although that if, less than in
the West. And this is because it is necessary to be a very high
initiate to be able to perceive the "other side" with complete
clarity, but currently there are very few humans who have already reached that
level of development.)
Among developed
Orientals “the other side” is no uncharted sea, but has its currents, depths,
islands, and general facts as clearly stated and understood as is the Atlantic
Ocean by the Western mariner. Moreover, every educated Oriental is taught from
youth that the phenomena of “the other side” need not be taken on faith, but
may be actually known to those who will expend the time and study required for
developing the higher senses which are possessed by all of the race.
But, from the same
reasons, the developed Oriental occultist finds himself confronted with a most
perplexing, not to say discouraging task when he attempts to convey his
knowledge on this subject to Western students. The Western mind instinctively
refuses to accept truth in the manner of the mind of the Oriental student. Not
having realized by actual experience certain fundamental psychic and spiritual
facts, which serve as a basis for the detailed teaching, the Western mind
naturally demands “actual proof” of these basic facts before being willing to
proceed further.
Inasmuch as these
facts must first be experienced to be known, no amount of argument ever serves
to bring that conviction of truth which should serve as the fundamental basis
for the detailed teaching. Consequently by the Western student, the general
basic statements of the teacher are accepted either purely on faith, or else
regarded as mere guesses or speculation on the part of the teacher. And, as
there are thousands of such guesses and speculative theories advanced in the
Western world, the student may well be excused from refusing to accept any of
them as truth, for, as he often argues, “one guess is as good as another.”
In the presentation
of the facts of “the other side” to which the present volume is devoted, the
student must realize from the beginning that there can be no actual physical
proof afforded him, in the absence of a highly developed state of his higher
psychic and spiritual senses. In his case, the proof demanded is akin to that
asked of the blind man, who demands proof of scarlet or any other color of the
article; or like that asked by the deaf man, who demands proof of the existence
of harmony in music. From the very nature of things, the proof cannot be
afforded in such case. Imagine the attempt to explain the sensation of the
taste of sugar to one who had never experienced the taste of anything sweet. How
and where could one begin? How, and where could one proceed?
So let us understand
each other thoroughly, teacher, and students. Let us understand that the
teachings of this book are not offered as proof of the phenomena of “the other
side,” but merely in the spirit of the traveller returned from some new and
strange country, and who tells the tales of his journeying and the sights seen
therein. As we said to the students of our first lessons, given to the Western
world nine years ago:
« We do not mean
that the Eastern teachers insist upon the pupil blindly accepting every truth
that is presented to him. On the contrary, they instruct the pupil to accept as
truth only that which he can prove for himself, as no truth is truth to one
until he can prove it by his own experiments. But the student is taught that
before many truths may be so proven, he must develop and unfold. The teacher
asks only that the student have confidence in him as a pointer-out of the way,
and he says, in effect, to the student:
“This is the way;
enter upon it, and on the path you will find the things of which I have taught
you; handle them, weigh them, measure them, taste them, and know for yourself.
When you reach any point of the path you will know as much of it as did I or
any other soul at that particular stage of the journey; but until you reach a
particular point, you must either accept the statements of those who have gone
before or reject the whole subject at that particular point.
Accept nothing as
final until you have proven it; but if you are wise, you will profit by the
advice and experience of those who have gone before. Every man must learn by
experience, but men may serve others as pointers of the way. At each stage of
the journey it will be found that those who have progressed a little farther on
the way, have left signs and marks and guide-posts for those who follow. The
wise man will take advantage of these signs. I do not ask for blind faith, but
only for confidence until you are able to demonstrate for yourselves the truths
I am passing on to you, as they were passed on to me by those who went before.” »
The skeptical Western
student may object that we offer no “scientific proofs” of the phenomena of
“the other side.” If by “scientific” he means the proofs of physical science,
we agree with him. But to the advanced occultist, the term “scientific” has a much
broader and wider meaning.
The person who
expects to weigh, measure and register spiritual things by physical standards
has nothing but disappointment and failure before him, for he will never
receive the proof he seeks. Physical apparatus is intended for physical objects
only — the world of spirit has its own set of apparatus, which alone is capable
of registering its phenomena.
Therefore we wish the
matter clearly understood by the reader who is undertaking the study of this
book. No physical proofs are offered. There are none such, strictly speaking,
to be found anywhere. Moreover, there is no attempt at argument — for there is
no basis for argument between the seers of “the other side” and those whose
vision is limited to the earth-plane.
But this does not
mean that we are offering you a mass of irrational statements, and insisting
that you take them on faith. Far from this is our intent. For while the reason
alone can never hope to pierce the veil separating the two sides of Life-Death,
nevertheless the reason, if allowed to follow its own reports divested of
prejudice and blind adherence to teaching, will perceive a certain
reasonableness in a true statement of the facts of the unknown — it will seem
that the teachings square with other accepted facts, and that they explain in a
reasonable way phenomena otherwise unexplainable.
In short, the reason
will seem that the teachings of truth reconcile apparently opposing sets of
facts, and join together many obscure bits of truth which one finds accepted by
his reason, but which, heretofore, he has not been able to place together and
join in a connected structure of mental concept.
The student is urged
to suspend judgment until he has read carefully, and then as carefully
considered, what we have to say. Then let him re-read, and reconsider the book
as a whole. Then let him ask himself the honest question:
Does not this seem
reasonable and probable?
If he can do no more than
to accept it all as a “working hypotheses,” by all means let him rest satisfied
with that position — although to us the term may evoke a smile when we realize
that the teaching is built upon the experience and testimony of the wise of the
ages. But, if the teaching is carefully read and considered, it will prove to
be regarded as more and more reasonable as the years pass by with the
individual. Fact after fact will be seen to fit into the general teaching, and,
as older conceptions are discarded from time to time, these teachings will be
found to take their place.
It is not easy to
escape from a truth, once it has been presented to you. It has a way of itching
your mental ear, once it has lodged there. For behind that ear is a part of
you, hidden though it may be, by many sheaths, which knows — which Knows! Deny
it though you may, you cannot escape from Truth once its seed has been lodged
within your consciousness, for it will draw sustenance from your sub-consciousness,
and will in time sprout and put forth leaf and blossom.
So, after all, it
matters little whether or not the student can fully grasp the teaching at this
time. For Time is long, and one has all the time there is in which to master
the lesson. All teachings, at the last, is but a process of seed-sowing. »
(Chapter 1)
OBSERVATION
I agree with William
Atkinson that although humans do not currently have the instruments to be able
to know for sure what happens after death, we can analyze the different
explanations that have been given on this matter in order to evaluate how valid
they can be. But unfortunately it turns out that the explanation that Atkinson
himself gave is very bad, because although he based his book in part on what
Master Kuthumi taught, Atkinson unfortunately did not understand it, and Atkinson
also based on what two huge charlatans affirmed (Charles Leadbeater and Max
Heindel).
