WHAT IS AN EARTHBOUND SOUL?

The term "earthbound," is usually applied to a person who commits suicide and is also based on the supposition that there is a specific "time" for everyone to pass through transition to the other side; a time when the separa­tion of soul and body is "scheduled" to happen.

At this "time," the separation is supposed to be definite and complete. If you take this point of view, a separation by suicide does not happen at the “right time” or is not scheduled, and therefore the division of the soul from the body is delayed. A natural resistance to separation is set up, and the aura of the soul sometimes accompanied by thoughtforms and emotional content, lingers in the vicinity of its physical counterpart, although eventually it too separates completely, if not by natural withdrawal over a period of time, then by the time that the soul and body were “due” to separate. So, even according to this point of view, there is an end to being earthbound, and the soul continues its development through further learning, though somewhat belatedly.

There are those who hold other viewpoints on this subject and one in particular disagrees with the idea that there is a "scheduled" time for passing to the other side. Some are of the opinion that there are “various windows of opportunity” for this to occur. The opinion is that there is no predetermined time for passing over for those persons who feel that they are the masters of their own destiny.

The belief is that during the course of a lifetime, a person is constantly adjusting this time of passing by acts, thoughts, prayers and decrees. As the person develops and learns, the karma is adjusted to each new cause that the person puts into his individual Akashic record. Thus, the "time" of such a person's transition is not a factor in being earthbound.

From the standpoint of metaphysics, nothing is ever separated in the universe, and so the whole question of an earthbound soul is clearly academic. Soul is universal and ever present in its mani­festations. As for the apparent separation of soul from the body, this is as effectively complete when the body ceases to function regardless of the manner in which the body reached its demise.

The concept of being earth­bound was, in the past, an allegorical description of a mystical law, and as allegorical descriptions so often go, it came to be regarded literally as some physical habitat. The point in question often relates to what is commonly termed a ghost, a phantom, or a phantasm which has been created in memory of the one who has passed over. It is not the actual soul of the person who has passed.

As it is written in the Holy Books, the Masters teach by parables and allegory because it is often easier to make an impact upon the consciousness of people through allegory than it is to make any impact upon them by the explanation of a natural law. So the concept of "earthbound" evolved as a way to make suicide appear undesirable and as a way to prevent people from committing suicide.

ARE YOU MAKING YOURSELF SICK?

Many students of Metaphysics are wondering why it is sometimes that sickness still occurs to those who have been meditating for a long time. It would be better to look at sickness or illness as an opportunity to clear old states of consciousness or a purging that takes place to rid the body of impurities. This benefits not only yourself, but the overall planetary consciousness and helps everyone to move up a little higher in consciousness.

Most students don’t make a big deal about their problems; everyone has them and their prime purpose is for learning. We look into the area where the problem is occurring and this can give us a clue as to what is going on in our sphere of consciousness.

Take kidney complaints for example. Like some of the other organs arranged in pairs, kidneys represent something to do with partnerships. Usually we attract people into our lives who represent our shadow side; that is that side of ourselves that we have repressed or pushed down. This happens as an opportunity for us to look at ourselves and clear that repressed energy. Those traits we do not like in our partner are usually the very things we need to look at within ourselves.

Now energy will not be repressed, it must flow through. If we have an energy blockage, we soon find out about it in the form of a mental or emotional upset. If we refuse to deal with it at these levels, eventually it becomes a physical problem and we are forced to deal with it because it becomes uncomfortable not to do so. If you have problems with your kidneys, it is a possibility that you project your inadequacies and/or your problems onto your partner or someone else close to you because you either can’t or don’t want to look at that which you have repressed. If your partner tries to help you look at these problems and you are not ready to listen and block out that which you do not want to hear, you may end up having ear problems as well.

The body is a marvelous expression of what is going on in the soul and what needs to be corrected at a deeper level. When my husband was alive, many years ago we did a lot of work with people suffering from anorexia nervosa. Some interesting facts that were uncovered in some cases included a past life in a concentration camp where all human privileges were denied and cruel and inhumane abuse experienced, to the point where the body became almost a living skeleton. Now in this life, the feelings associated with those experiences were triggered off again by some traumatic experience. Those suffering from bulimia have another cause that is just as interesting as it also may involve a prior life experience.

A lot of people are still experiencing fear and a fear of physical pain. Even after all the teachings about being a spiritual being inhabiting a physical body, we still have this fear. If you look at the things you fear, you would see that almost all of them are connected with the idea that you are just a body. If you were just a body, there would be many reasons to fear; but if you can see that you inhabit a body then many possibilities open up for you.