| PAGE | |
| INTRODUCTION | [1] |
| CHAPTER THE FIRST. | |
| MAN IS THE RESULT OF THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE OF THEBODY, THE SOUL, AND LIFE.—OF WHAT DOES DEATHCONSIST? | [6] |
| CHAPTER THE SECOND. | |
| WHAT BECOMES, AFTER DEATH, OF THE BODY, THE SOUL,AND LIFE? | [9] |
| CHAPTER THE THIRD. | |
| WHERE DOES THE SUPERHUMAN BEING RESIDE? | [16] |
| CHAPTER THE FOURTH. | |
| DO ALL MEN PASS AFTER DEATH TO THE STATE OF SUPERHUMANBEINGS?—RE-INCARNATIONS OF PERVERSE SOULS.—RE-INCARNATIONOF CHILDREN WHO HAVE DIED ININFANCY | [24] |
| CHAPTER THE FIFTH. | |
| WHAT ARE THE ATTRIBUTES OF THE SUPERHUMAN BEING?PHYSICAL SHAPE, SENSES, DEGREE OF INTELLIGENCE.—FACULTIESOF THE SUPERHUMAN BEING | [30] |
| CHAPTER THE SIXTH. | |
| WHAT BECOMES OF THE SUPERHUMAN BEING AFTER DEATH?—DEATHS,RESURRECTIONS, AND NEW INCARNATIONS INTHE ETHEREAL SPACES | [55] |
| CHAPTER THE SEVENTH. | |
| PHYSICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE SUN | [61] |
| CHAPTER THE EIGHTH. | |
| THE SUN.—DEFINITIVE SOJOURN OF SOULS ARRIVED AT THEHIGHEST DEGREE OF THE CELESTIAL HIERARCHY.—THESUN IS THE FINAL AND COMMON SOJOURN OF THE SOULSWHICH COME FROM THE EARTH.—PHYSICAL CONSTITUTIONOF THE SUN.—THIS HEAVENLY BODY IS A MASS OF BURNINGGAS | [89] |
| CHAPTER THE NINTH. | |
| THE INHABITANTS OF THE SUN ARE PURELY SPIRITUALBEINGS.—THE SOLAR RAYS ARE EMANATIONS FROMSPIRITUAL BEINGS THAT LIVE IN THE SUN.—THESEBEINGS THUS PRODUCE VEGETABLE AND ANIMAL LIFEON EARTH.—THE CONTINUITY OF SOLAR RADIATION, INEXPLICABLEBY PHYSICISTS, EXPLAINED BY EMANATIONSFROM THE SOULS OF THE INHABITANTS OF THE SUN.—THEWORSHIP OF FIRE, AND THE ADORATION OF THESUN IN DIFFERENT NATIONS, ANCIENT AND MODERN | [104] |
| CHAPTER THE TENTH. | |
| WHAT ARE OUR RELATIONS WITH SUPERHUMAN BEINGS? | [122] |
| CHAPTER THE ELEVENTH. | |
| WHAT IS THE ANIMAL?—THE SOULS OF ANIMALS.—MIGRATIONSOF SOULS THROUGH THE BODIES OF ANIMALS | [138] |
| CHAPTER THE TWELFTH. | |
| WHAT IS THE PLANT?—THE PLANT CAN FEEL.—HOWDIFFICULT IT IS TO DISTINGUISH PLANTS FROM ANIMALS.—GENERALCHAIN OF LIVING BEINGS | [149] |
| CHAPTER THE THIRTEENTH. | |
| DOES MAN EXIST ELSEWHERE THAN ON THE EARTH?—DESCRIPTIONOF THE PLANETS.—PLURALITY OF THEINHABITED WORLDS | [177] |
| CHAPTER THE FOURTEENTH. | |
| THAT WHICH TOOK PLACE ON EARTH FOR THE CREATIONOF ORGANIZED BEINGS MUST HAVE EQUALLY TAKENPLACE IN THE OTHER PLANETS.—SUCCESSIVE ORDER OFTHE APPEARANCE OF LIVING BEINGS ON OUR GLOBE.—THESAME SUCCESSION MUST HAVE TAKEN PLACE INEACH PLANET.—THE PLANETARY MAN.—THE PLANETARYMAN, LIKE THE TERRESTRIAL MAN, IS TRANSFORMED,AFTER DEATH, INTO A SUPERHUMAN BEING,AND PASSES INTO THE ETHER | [195] |
| CHAPTER THE FIFTEENTH. | |
| PROOFS OF THE PLURALITY OF HUMAN EXISTENCES, ANDOF RE-INCARNATIONS.—WITHOUT THE AID OF THISDOCTRINE THE PRESENCE OF MAN UPON THE EARTH ISINEXPLICABLE, LIKEWISE THE UNEQUAL CONDITIONS OFHUMAN LIFE, AND THE FATE OF CHILDREN WHO DIEIN INFANCY | [202] |
| CHAPTER THE SIXTEENTH. | |
| FACULTIES PECULIAR TO CERTAIN CHILDREN, APTITUDESAND VOCATIONS AMONG MEN, ARE ADDITIONAL PROOFSOF RE-INCARNATIONS.—EXPLANATION OF PHRENOLOGY.—DESCARTES'INNATE IDEAS, AND DUGALD STEWART'SPRINCIPLE OF CAUSALITY CAN ONLY BE EXPLAINED BYTHE PLURALITY OF LIVES.—VAGUE REMEMBRANCES OFOUR FORMER EXISTENCES | [212] |
| CHAPTER THE SEVENTEENTH. | |
| SUMMARY OF THE SYSTEM OF PLURALITY OF EXISTENCES | [226] |
| CHAPTER THE EIGHTEENTH. | |
| ANSWERS TO SOME OBJECTIONS.—FIRST: THE IMMORTALITYOF THE SOUL, WHICH SERVES AS THE BASIS TO THISSYSTEM, IS NOT DEMONSTRATED.—SECOND: WE HAVE NOREMEMBRANCE OF FORMER EXISTENCES.—THIRD: THISSYSTEM IS ONLY THE METEMPSYCHOSIS OF THE ANCIENTS.—FOURTH:THIS SYSTEM IS CONFOUNDED WITH DARWINISM | [232] |
| CHAPTER THE NINETEENTH. | |
| SEQUEL TO OBJECTIONS.—DIFFICULTY OF UNDERSTANDINGHOW THE RAYS OF THE SUN, MATERIAL SUBSTANCES, CANBE THE GERMS OF SOULS, IMMATERIAL SUBSTANCES | [259] |
| CHAPTER THE TWENTIETH. | |
| PRACTICAL RULES RESULTING FROM THE FACTS AND PRINCIPLESDEVELOPED IN THIS WORK.—TO ELEVATE ONE'SSOUL BY THE PRACTICE OF VIRTUES, AND BY TRYINGTO ACQUIRE A KNOWLEDGE OF NATURE AND ITS LAWSTHROUGH SCIENCE.—TO RENDER PUBLIC WORSHIP TOTHE DIVINITY.—WE SHOULD PRESERVE THE REMEMBRANCEOF THE DEAD.—WE SHOULD NOT FEAR DEATH.—DEATHIS BUT AN INSENSIBLE TRANSITION FROMONE STATE TO ANOTHER; IT IS NOT AN END, BUT AMETAMORPHOSIS.—IMPRESSIONS OF THE DYING.—THOSEWHO DIE YOUNG ARE LOVED BY THE GODS | [269] |
| EPILOGUE. | |
| IN WHICH WE SEEK GOD, AND IN OUR SEARCH DESCRIBETHE UNIVERSE | [284] |
THE DAY AFTER DEATH.
INTRODUCTION.
READER, you must die. You may perhaps die to-morrow. What will become of you? What shall you be, on the day after your death? I do not now allude to your body; that is of no more importance than the clothes which it wears, or the shroud in which it will be buried. Like these garments, like that cerecloth, your body must be decomposed, and its elements distributed among Nature's great reservoirs of material, earth, air, and water. But your soul, whither shall it go? That which was free within you, that which thought, loved, and suffered, what shall become of it? Of course you do not believe that your soul will be extinguished with your life on the day of your decease, and that nothing will remain of that which has palpitated in your breast, vibrating to the emotions of joy and sorrow, to the tender affections, the numberless passions and disturbances of your life.
Where shall that sensible, existing soul, which must survive the tomb, go to? What will it become, what shall you be, my reader, the day after your death?
To the consideration of this question this book is devoted.