Allan Kardec: The Spirits’ Book

Essential Quotes

82. Is it correct to say that spirits are immaterial? “How is it possible to define a thing in regard to which no terms of comparison exist, and which your language is incompetent to express? Can one who is born blind define light? ‘Immaterial’ is not the right word; ‘incorporeal’ would be nearer the truth, for you must understand that a spirit, being a creation, must be something real.”

150. Does the soul, after death, preserve its individuality? “Yes, it never loses its individuality. What would the soul be if it did not preserve it?”

—How does the soul preserve the consciousness of its individuality, since it no longer has its material body? “It still has a fluid peculiar to itself, which it draws from the atmosphere of its planet, and which represents the appearance of its last incarnation—its perispirit.”

153. —Would it not be more correct to apply the term eternal life to the life of the purified spirits; of those who, having attained to the degree of relative perfection, have no longer to undergo the discipline of suffering? “The life of that degree might rather be termed eternal happiness; but this is a question of words. You may call things as you please, provided you are agreed among yourselves as to your meaning.”

154. Is the separation of the soul from the body a painful process? “No; the body often suffers more during life than at the moment of death, when the soul is usually unconscious of what is occurring to the body. The sensations experienced at the moment of death are often a source of enjoyment for the spirit, who recognizes them as putting an end to the term of his exile.

155. —Is this separation effected instantaneously, and by means of an abrupt transition? Is there any distinctly marked line of demarcation between life and death? “No; the soul disengages itself gradually. It does not escape at once from the body, like a bird whose cage is suddenly opened. The two states touch and run into each other; and the spirit extricates himself, little by little, from his fleshly bonds, which are loosed, but not broken.”

159. What sensation is experienced by the soul at the moment when it recovers its consciousness in the world of spirits? “That depends on circumstances. He who has done evil from the love of evil is overwhelmed with shame for his wrong-doing. With the righteous it is very different. His soul seems to be eased of a heavy load, for it does not dread the most searching glance.”