What Life is Like in the Afterlife

What we do after we’ve died and have gone home to the spirit world.

Bob Olson is the host of Afterlife TV, author of two books, Answers About The Afterlife and The Magic Mala, and creator of the reputable directory of psychics and mediums, BestPsychicDirectory.com.

Photo by Danist Soh on Unsplash

It’s a challenge for us physical beings to fully comprehend what it’s like in the spirit world. How are we supposed to imagine existing as a spirit? It’s not easy for us to wrap our minds around the idea that spirits don’t have physical bodies, communicate only by thought, and live in a dimension without fear, danger, or mortality. It’s no wonder we get so puzzled by this subject. Add to this the idea that there’s no time or space in the afterlife, and we have a recipe for blowing minds and creating confusion.

In this article, I will cover the most common beliefs about the afterlife, and then I’ll cover what I learned later in my investigation about life after death over the past 26 years. Interestingly, common beliefs are not always supported by evidence, so we’ll take a deeper look to provide a more expansive view.

COMMON BELIEFS AROUND LIFE AFTER DEATH

When we initially cross over to the spirit world after dying, some believe there’s a period of transition where our spirits get reacquainted with the spirit world. In this phase, the recently crossed over are said to imagine themselves as they were in their physical (human) lives until they are reacclimated to their spirit-world reality.

Since we can do, be, and have anything we desire in the spirit world, imagining life as it was on earth might become a spirit’s temporary existence. From this perceived reality, they might feel like they have a body that seemingly needs food, sleep, shelter, and clothing.

During this early stage of reintegration back into the spiritual realm, some spirits imagine themselves in the last home they knew in their physical life, some imagine being in their childhood homes (because they felt most comfortable and happy there), and some invent the home of their dreams that they could never afford during their physical life. The choice is yours for the making. Wherever you wish to be, whatever you want it to look like, you can have it. Your only limit is your imagination.

Since we can do, be, and have whatever we want in the afterlife, this is also true for what we eat, wear, and are capable of doing. Want to drive a Maserati? Want to wear Armani? Want to be a talented gymnast? Want to eat chocolate all day and never gain weight? Whatever you want and can imagine, that can be your life in the hereafter.

This was my early understanding of life in the afterlife, but it didn’t hold up with a deeper investigation.

LOOKING DEEPER: A MORE EXPANSIVE VIEW

As good as all of that might seem, my investigation into the afterlife has taught me that imagined realities are not our true nature as spiritual beings. Food, cars, clothing, and houses are possessions of physical beings. Spiritual beings have no interest in such belongings. So once our reentry back home is complete and we’ve had the opportunity to readjust, our desire for such things disappears.

Moreover, the idea of the transitionary phase (mentioned above) for spirits is a subject of debate. If it truly exists, it is likely more for people who haven’t learned anything about the afterlife before their death or have belief systems contrary to what the afterlife is really like. In these cases, since we get whatever we focus upon in spirit (and whatever we expect), these newly arrived spirits might be holding on to their physical memories and, therefore, experiencing what they expected to experience, which is more of the same (more human life).

Furthermore, the transitionary period implies that time is involved, which doesn’t exist in the afterlife. So if time doesn’t exist in the spirit world, the existence of a transitionary period sounds like a fictional story that a human made up to understand or describe the afterlife. After all, some humans tend to believe (or want to believe) that the spirit world is just like the physical world, which is understandable given that many folks don’t like change.

ANOTHER CAUSE FOR CONFUSION: MEDIUMSHIP

I can also understand why humans would assume that life in the spiritual realm is just like life in the physical realm if they’ve had readings with mediums. I’ve had readings where my relatives in spirit claimed through mediums that they were doing human activities. This can certainly lead one to think spirit life is just more of the same as physical life.

For example, an uncle told me through a medium that he was fishing in the spirit world. Considering that he’s a being of light, his claim is likely not literal. As a spirit, it’s also unlikely that he would do anything that would harm a fish. What’s more likely is that my uncle is telling me that he’s fishing because I know that fishing made him happy when he was physically alive. So he’s showing rather than telling me he’s content in the spirit world.

So why do people in spirit communicate through mediums that they are still fishing, playing bridge, or painting in the afterlife? Because they are conveying a message to their loved ones through that medium that they are okay and happy. Because we remember our loved ones being happy while doing these activities, those messages ease our minds by conveying that they are in a joyful, peaceful afterlife.

These types of messages are more symbolic than exact descriptions because it’s incredibly difficult to explain to us what they’re really doing in the spirit world (especially during a brief reading). Given that mediumship is a challenging means of communication anyway (although one of the best we have), communicating using symbols is the most straightforward way for them to express the point they’re trying to make. In other words, the symbolism paints a picture the person in spirit wants to convey.

These types of messages tend to comfort the grieving and convey to us that our deceased loved ones are okay. So they do serve a good purpose even if they’re a bit misleading about the reality of what it’s like in the afterlife.

REVIEWING THE LIFE JUST LIVED

I do believe there is a review after our physical death where we continue to learn and grow in the spirit world by reviewing our experiences in our last human lifetime.

There’s a lot of ground to cover when reviewing a life that’s expanded 20, 30, and especially 60 or 80 years, meaning anyone who dies at these ages is left with a whole lot of choices and actions to reexamine. Thus, reviewing one’s life is quite an emotional undertaking. On the other hand, I have a story to tell you that puts the life review into perspective. I’ve told this story before because it is such an insightful example.

I once had a reading where my father in spirit came through expressing regret and sadness for things he’d done in his life. Yet at the exact same moment, my wife, Melissa, was getting a reading with a different medium where my father came through expressing joy, love, and excitement regarding his human life.

Interestingly, Melissa and I were in the same building when my father came through to each of us. We could even see one another from across the room as my father was giving us drastically different messages at the same moment.

Since both mediums gave us compelling evidence that they were, in fact, communicating with my father, what this taught me is that my father was able to choose his point of reference depending on the person getting the reading (in this case, depending upon whom he was communicating with—Melissa or me).

With Melissa, he was referencing experiences in his life that made him joyful. With me, he was referencing experiences in his life that made him regretful. He presented himself differently to convey his distinct message to each of us. He wanted Melissa to know that she was like a second daughter to him whom he loved and adored. He wanted me to know that he had regrets regarding his alcoholism and felt sad about how that affected me.

We can learn a lot from these simultaneous readings that Melissa and I experienced. For instance, one might have quickly interpreted my reading by saying that my father was still in a transitionary period in the afterlife because he was feeling regret for things he’d done that had negatively affected me. But when considering the two readings together, it leads one to conclude that my father is learning and growing from all the events of his life concurrently. He’s neither in a regretful and sad transition nor a joyful and excited transition; he’s simply experiencing it all at the same time—no transitionary period necessary.

CONCLUSION: WHAT WE DO IN THE AFTERLIFE

Life in the hereafter is different for everyone, but there are some common things that people in spirit have mentioned through various evidence to give us an indication of the possibilities.

When a person dies and crosses over to the other side, they’ll initially meet with loved ones in spirit who are there to greet them and welcome them home. It’s basically like having a welcome-home party.

Sometimes, these loved ones on the other side even greet a person who is dying to comfort their fears and let them know they are waiting to greet them. We call these deathbed visions or predeath visions. If you’ve ever been with a person who was dying, you might have seen them smile at someone in the corner of the room.

Then they’ll process the life they just lived with the assistance of advanced spiritual beings. This, as mentioned, is called a life review, and this is where they’ll take away the lessons and growth that they gained from their physical life.

While all this is underway, they’ll also catch up on what’s happening with their surviving loved ones back on the physical plane. They’ll be fully aware of all that’s going on with these family members and friends, especially related to people’s grief due to their loss. As I wrote about in my article on spirits attending funerals, they’ll attend their own memorial services, will attempt to ease their loved one’s suffering, and might try sending loved ones a signal that they still exist, what is called an after-death communication.

After-death communications might include the spirit filling someone’s room with a fragrance that reminds that person of them, perhaps the smell of their cologne or the scent of cigars, banana bread, or a favorite flower. Other forms of after-death communication include lights flickering, candles blowing out, birds or other animals looking into their window, or perhaps even the spirit showing up in a loved one’s dream.

Once the newly deceased has become reacquainted with the spirit world, they are likely to want to visit with loved ones in spirit whom they haven’t seen in some time. This might be a family member or friend who died before they did. Yes, these people in spirit probably greeted them at their welcome-home celebration, but now they can be together individually rather than at a large gathering.

They might also attend classes to learn about fear, forgiveness, or emotions more generally associated with the physical incarnation (human life). As odd as it might seem, many people in spirit have communicated this idea that schools exist in the afterlife.

But spirits aren’t learning reading, writing, and arithmetic. The classes in the spirit world have more to do with lessons that assist with our spiritual growth. For example, I learned during a life-between-lives regression that my soul teaches about fear. Since we don’t feel fear in the spiritual dimension, it’s something that many people in spirit are interested in understanding, especially if they haven’t yet experienced human life.

Spirits also have the equivalent of jobs in the spirit world, although spirits don’t work for pay as they don’t need money in the afterlife. Some people in spirit help the newly crossed over, while others help with specific circumstances, such as sudden deaths, suicides, mass murders, or child deaths. There are even people who work with the spirits of animals that cross over. Although these are sometimes referred to as jobs, they are more like callings or passions that provide spirits with fulfillment, understanding, and spiritual growth.

How spirits spend their time (for lack of a better word since time doesn’t exist in the afterlife) has infinite options. They might choose to serve as someone’s spirit guide. They might act as counselors, helping people in spirit process their last life. They might even coordinate coincidences for people (nudges) on the physical plane to help guide them toward the experiences they preplanned for their life.

The possibilities for what any spirit does in the hereafter are almost as endless as the spirit world itself. To fully know what any particular spirit is doing, one would need to ask that spirit directly since every spirit’s experience will be different. What all of this teaches us is that there is one thing that doesn’t exist in the afterlife, and that would be boredom.

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Love,
Bob

Bob Olson is the host of Afterlife TV, author of two books, Answers About The Afterlife and The Magic Mala, and creator of the directory of psychics and mediums, BestPsychicDirectory.com. His newest venture is Bob Olson Connect, where you can read Bob’s articles before they become books.

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