274. Do the different degrees which exist in the advancement of spirits establish among the latter a hierarchy of powers? Are there, among spirits, subordination and authority?
"Yes; the authority of spirits over one another, in virtue of their relative superiority, is very great, and gives to the higher ones a moral ascendancy over the lower ones which is absolutely irresistible."
– Can spirits of lower degree withdraw themselves from the authority of those who are higher than themselves?
"I have said that the authority which comes of superiority is irresistible."
275. Do the power and consideration which a man may have enjoyed in the earthly life give him supremacy in the spirit-world?
"No; for in that world the humble are exalted and the proud abased. Read the Psalms."
– In what sense should we understand exalting and abasing?
"Do you not know that spirits are of different orders, according to their degree of merit? Therefore, he who has held the highest rank upon the earth may find himself in the lowest rank in the world of spirits, while his servitor may be in the highest. Is not this clear to you? Has not Jesus said that 'Whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased, and whosoever humbleth himself shall be exalted?"
276. When one who has been great upon the earth finds himself occupying an inferior place in the spirit-world, does he feel humiliated by this change of position?
"Often exceedingly so; especially if he have been haughty and jealous."
277. When a soldier, after a battle, meets his general in the spirit-world, does he still
acknowledge him as his superior?
"Titles are nothing; intrinsic superiority is everything."
278. Do spirits of different orders mix together in the other life?
"Yes, and no; that is to say, they see each other, but they are none the less removed. They shun or approach one another according to the antipathies or sympathies of their sentiments, just as is the case among yourselves. The spirit-life is a whole world of varied conditions and relationships, of which the earthly life is only the obscured reflex. Those of the same rank are drawn together by a sort of affinity, and form groups or families of spirits united by sympathy and a common aim – the good, by the desire to do what is good, and the bad, by the desire to do evil, by the shame of their wrong-doing, and by the wish to find themselves among those whom they resemble."
The spirit-world is like a great city, in which men of all ranks and conditions see and meet one another without mixing together; in which various social circles are formed by similarity of tastes; in which vice and virtue elbow each other without speaking to one another.
279. Are all spirits reciprocally accessible to one another?
"The good go everywhere, as it is necessary that they should do, in order to bring their influence to bear upon the evil-minded. But the regions inhabited by them are inaccessible to inferior spirits, so that the latter cannot trouble those happy abodes by the introduction of evil passions."
280. What is the nature of the relations between good and bad spirits?
"The good ones endeavour to combat the evil tendencies of the others, in order to aid them to raise themselves to a higher degree; this intercourse, is, for the former, a mission."
281. Why do inferior spirits take pleasure in inducing us to do wrong?
"From jealousy. Not having earned a place among the good, their desire is to prevent, as far as in them lies, other spirits, as yet inexperienced, from attaining to the happiness from which they are excluded. They desire to make others suffer what they suffer themselves. Do you not see the working of the same desire among yourselves?"
282. How do spirits hold communication with one another?
"They see and comprehend one another. Speech is material; it is a reflex of spirit. The universal fluid establishes a constant communication between them; it is the vehicle by which thought is transmitted, as the air, in your world, is the vehicle of sound. This fluid constitutes a sort of universal telegraph, which unites all worlds, and enables spirits to correspond from one world to another."
283. Can spirits hide their thoughts from each other? Can they hide themselves from one another?
"No; with them everything is open, and especially so with those who have attained to perfection. They may withdraw from one another, but they are always visible to each other. This, however, is not an absolute rule, for the higher spirits are perfectly able to render themselves invisible to the lower ones, when they consider it to he useful to do so."
284. How can spirits, who have no longer a body, establish their individuality, and cause it to be distinguishable from that of the other spiritual beings by whom they are surrounded?
"Their individuality is established by their perispirit, which makes of each spirit a separate personality, distinct from all others, as the body does among men."
285. Do spirits recognise one another as having lived together upon the earth? Does the son recognise his father, the friend, his friend?
"Yes; and from generation to generation."
– How do those who have known each other on the earth recognise one another in the world of spirits?
"We see our past life, and read therein as in a book; on seeing the past of our friends and our enemies, we see their passage from life to death."
286. Does the soul see, immediately on quitting its mortal remains, the relations and friends who have returned before it into the world of spirits?
"Immediately is not always the right word; for, as we have said, the soul requires some time to resume its self-consciousness, and to shake off the veil of materiality."
287. How is the soul received on its return to the spirit-word?
"That of the righteous, as a dearly-beloved brother, whose return has been long waited for; that of the wicked, with contempt."
288. What sentiment is experienced by impure spirits at the sight of another bad spirit, on his arrival among them?
"Such spirits are gratified at seeing others who resemble them, and who, like them, are deprived of the highest happiness; just as a band of scoundrels, upon the earth, are gratified at meeting with another scoundrel like themselves."
289. Do our relatives and friends sometimes come to meet us when we are leaving the earth?
"Yes, they come to meet the soul of those they love; they felicitate it as one who has returned from a journey if it have escaped the dangers of the road, and they aid it in freeing itself from the bonds of the flesh. To be met thus by those they have loved is a favour granted to the souls of the upright; while the soul of the wicked is punished by being left alone, or is only surrounded by spirits like itself."
290. Are relatives and friends always reunited after death?
"That depends on their elevation, and on the road they have to follow for their advancement. If one of them is further advanced, and progresses more rapidly than the other, they cannot remain together: they may see one another occasionally, but they can only be definitively reunited when he who was behind is able to keep pace with him who was before, or when both of them shall have reached the state of perfection. Moreover, the privation of the sight of relatives and friends is sometimes inflicted on a spirit as a punishment."
The Spirits' book » BOOK SECOND -THE SPIRIT-WORLD, OR WORLD OF SPIRITS » CHAPTER XI - THE THREE REIGNS » Animals and men » 594