The Life Beyond the Veil Volume I: The Lowlands of Heaven - George Owen, Kenroy Hunter, Geoff Cutler (best novels for beginners .TXT) 📗

are sharper then by reason of the contrast which they see between the light and the darkness.5 So he remains; and there are multitudes such as he whom a kind of dull and numb despair prevents coming over. Also in his time of hatred and frenzy he is cruel. He had tortured and ill-treated this same man whom you saw with him from time to time, and that with the cruelty of a cowardly bully. But, as you saw, that wore itself out, and, when the man pleaded this last time, some soft chord in the heart of the other vibrated just a little, and, on the impulse, fearing

 

a reversal of his intention, he liberated the victim who wished to make the journey, and pointed out to him the way, no doubt thinking in his heart that he was a fool and yet, perhaps, a wiser fool than he, after all.”

 

This was new to us. We had not realized that there was any goodness in those dark regions before; but now we saw that it was but natural that there should be, or, if every one were totally bad, no one would ever desire to come to us here.

 

But what bearing has all this on the discerning between the things which matter and those of lesser importance?

 

All that is of good is of God, and light and darkness, as applied to His children, are not, and cannot be, absolute. They are to be understood relatively. There are, as we now know, many “angels of darkness” who are in the darkness because of some twist in their natures, some obstinate trait which prevents the good in them having its effect. And these one day may pass us on the road of the ages, and become greater in the Kingdom of the Heavens than we who now are more blessed than they.

 

Good night, dear son. Think over what we have written. It has been a very wholesome lesson to us, and one which it were well if many in your present life could learn.

1 The reference to the feast should not be take literally. In the Spirit Spheres spirits have no need of food, although they do enjoy water and are able to absorb the essence from fruit and nuts. But as they do not have digestive organs, they don’t eat as we know it.

 

2 Note by G.V.O.—While writing the first part of this message I could not see the drift of the argument, which seemed to me to be rather thin and muddled. On reading it over, however, I am by no means sure of my estimate.

 

Taking what is said of the vibrations of sorrow as merely a hint on “fundamentals,” and applying to it some such reasoning as that by which the wave theory is applied to the radiation of light and heat, the result would be something like this: In dealing with that combination of vibrations which cause sorrow, the method is not so much that of substitution as of readjustment. By directing on the sorrowful soul other classes of vibrations those of sorrow are, some of them, neutralized; and others are modified and converted into vibrations the effect of which is joy or peace.

 

Viewed thus the above message does seem to hold some significance, and may perhaps throw light on the way in which troubles are actually dealt with in life. It certainly does seem to be part of the divine method, not that the outer aspect and circumstances of sorrow should be remedied (except in extremely rare cases), but that other elements should be infused which should have the effect of converting that sorrow into joy. This is merely a matter of everyday observation. To the unscientific mind this will probably seem to be drawing a very long bow. To others it may not seem so unreasonable to suggest that these “other vibrations” are really vibrations of other classes or “values.”

 

The passage referred to is John xvi. 20: {Greek} η λυπη υµων εις χαραν γενησεται. —G.V.O.

 

3 See chapter 3.

 

4 See the 1921 Preface.

 

5 This is a very curious issue which is also covered in other books. The moment a spirit decides to change and try to get out of the hells, they become more at the mercy of the other evil spirits. This is because it is a battle of wills, and as soon as a spirit has turned to God, it cannot any longer engage effectively in the battle. For this reason mostly, more advanced spirits come to their assistance to extricate them and it is their spiritual brightness that protects them.

Chapter 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scenes that are Brighter

 

 

 

 

The Home of Music—“They stand, those Halls of Sion, all Jubilant with song, and bright with many an Angel”— The Halls of Colour—The heavenly life—A story with a moral—After death, realization and first experiences—A parting and a meeting—A children’s school, progressive botany—A Manifestation—The child and the globe of light—All creation one—Creative thinking.

 

 

Tuesday, September 30, 1913

 

YOU would scarcely realize all that we feel when we come to Earth in this way, and commune with one still wending his way through the valley.

 

We feel that we are of those who are more than ordinarily privileged, for, once we are able to convince people how much lies to their hand that they might use for the uplifting of the race, there seems to be no bounds to the possibilities of good and enlightenment. Still, we are but able to do a little, and must rest content until others will co-operate with us, as you have done, fearlessly, knowing that no evil can come to those who love the Father, and serve Him in His Son, our Saviour Lord.

 

Now, in order to help those who still doubt us and our mission and message, let me say that we do not lightly leave our beautiful home to come down into the mists which surround the Earth sphere. We have a mission and a work in hand which some one must do, and there is joy in the doing of it.

 

A little time since—to speak in Earth phrase—we were sent into a region where the waters were collected into a large lake, or basin, and round the lake, at some distance from each other, were erected buildings in the form of large halls with towers. They were of varied architecture and design, and not all built of one material. Spacious gardens and woods surrounded them, some of them miles in extent, and full of beautiful fauna and flora, most of the species known on Earth, but also some which would be strange to you now, although I think that at least a proportion of them lived once on Earth. That is a detail.

 

What I wish to explain to you is the purpose of these colonies.

 

They are for nothing else than the manufacture of music and musical instruments. Those who live there are engaged in the study of music and its combinations and effects, not only as to what you know as sound, but also in other connections. We visited several of the great houses and found bright and happy faces to welcome us and show us over the place; and also to explain what we were able to understand, and I frankly confess that was not much. Such as I personally did understand I will try to explain to you.

 

One house—or college, for they were more like colleges than manufactories, when I come to think of it— was devoted to the study of the best methods of conveying musical inspiration to those who had a talent for composition on Earth; and another house gave attention rather to those who were clever at playing music, and others to singing, and still others made a special study of ecclesiastical music, and others concert music, and others operatic composition, and so on.

 

The results of their studies are tabulated, and there their duty ends. These results are studied again by another class, who consider the best method of communicating them to composers of music generally, and then another

 

body do the actual work of transmission through the Veil into the Earth sphere. Here are pointed out to them the objects of their endeavours, namely, those who are likely to prove most ready of response to their inspiration. These have been carefully selected by others who are trained in selection of such. All is in perfect order; from the colleges round the lake to the church or concert hall or opera house on Earth there is a chain of trained workers who are constantly active in giving to Earth some little gift of heavenly music. And that is how all your best music comes to you….

 

Yes, you are quite correct. Much of your music is not from us; and much is sullied in its passage. But that is not the fault of the workers from those spheres, but lies at the door of those on your side of the Veil, and those on this side who are of the gloomy regions and whom the character of the composer gives a foothold to tamper with that which comes from us here.1

 

What were the towers for?

 

I was just going to explain that to you.

 

The lake is of vast extent, and the buildings at some little distance from it on all sides. But at certain times, previously arranged, the workers of some of these colleges, and now and again of all of them, send certain of

 

their company to the towertop and, when all are assembled, then a concert, literally true to its name, is held. They all practise something they have previously agreed upon together. On one tower will be instrumentalists of one class, on another those of another class, and on the third vocalists; and on another, another class of vocalists; for there are many classes, not only four, as usually with you, but many toned voices. And other towers are devoted to other workers whose actual duties I could not understand.

 

From what I could make out, some of these were expert in harmonizing the whole, or part, of the volume of sound combined from the different towers.

 

But I want to get on to the description of the thing itself —the concert or festival, or whatever you like to call it. We were taken to an island in the midst of the lake, and there, in a beautiful scene of trees and grass and flowers and terraces and arbours of trees and little nooks and seats of stone or wood, we heard the festival.

 

First there came a chord, long and sustained, growing louder and louder, until it seemed to invade the whole landscape and waterscape and every leaf of every tree. It was the key given to the musicians on the various towers. It died into silence and all seemed very still. Then gradually, we heard the orchestra. It came from many

 

towers, but we could not tell any single contribution apart. It was perfect harmony, and the balance of tone was exquisite.

 

Then the singers took up their part, It is of no use for me to try to describe this music of the heavenly spheres in Earth language, but I may perhaps be able to give you some idea of the effect.

 

Briefly, it made everything more lovely—not only beautiful, but lovely, too—for there is a difference in meaning of these two words as I use them here. All our faces took on a more lovely hue and expression, the trees became deeper in colour, and the atmosphere gradually grew into a vapour of tints like a rainbow. But the vapour did not obscure anything; it seemed to bring everything nearer together rather. The water reflected the rainbow tints, and our clothing also became intensified in colour.

 

Moreover, the animals and birds about us also responded. One white bird I remember especially. Her beautiful milky feathers gradually grew brighter and, when I saw her last, before she flew into a grove, she shone