Trust in a beneficial universe, creator, or religious faith regarding life after death satisfies many people.

Some inquirers are more detail-oriented.

For instance, what precisely survives physical death? Will there be a delayed resurrection of a finer flesh body, or as St. Paul and others suggest the possibility of a “spiritual, angelic,” or subtle body?

Will our new form possess a conscious, persistent personality, with continuous memory? Will there exist the possibility of enjoying the kind of pleasurable experiences known on Earth?

Or will one’s new form be more subtle, refined, pure and mentalized?

More importantly: Does the notion of personal survivor after death mean that everyone will attain to a kind of immortality? Are we all granted such certainty, without further “becoming” through strenuous effort, increased perfection, higher knowledge, self-sacrificing acts, expanded consciousness or more illumined refinement?

Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and Taoism recognize an afterlife, whether to be earned, promised, expected, contingent or scientifically achieved.

I have been most curious about the substance of this super-earthly form, where and how in the physical body is it accumulated and stored? And how is it organized and propelled from the physical when it destructs and decomposes? Can it be extracted by alchemical or occult means?

Could a subtle, interdimensional form preserve the functions of mind and consciousness, and sustain a simulated brain?

How much will depend upon the state of consciousness during and immediately after transition?

Raphael O’Suna

Haiku