(By Freemason, Gnostic and author, Hank Kraychir) – The term “Immortality of the Soul” should not be a foreign concept to the Enlightened Mason. In fact, Albert Pike, author of Morals and Dogma (1871) wrote about the topic extensively, like on page 622;

“Among all the nations of primitive antiquity, the doctrine of the immortality of the soul was not a mere probable hypothesis, needing laborious researches and diffuse argumentation to produce conviction of its truth. Nor can we hardly give it the name of Faith; for it was a lively certainty, like the feeling of one’s own existence and identity, and of what is actually present; exerting its influence on all sublunary affairs, and the motive of mightier deeds and enterprises than any mere earthly interest could inspire.”

With that quote in mind, when I read the article, “Life after death? Largest-ever study provides evidence that ‘out of body’ and ‘near-death’ experiences may be real,” I was reminded of Pike’s words. In short, the soul does, in fact, exist; denying its existence does not change its presence, it does not require “laborious researches” – as this article will demonstrate.

“There is scientific evidence to suggest that life can continue after death, according to the largest ever medical study carried out on the subject. A team based in the UK has spent the last four years seeking out cardiac arrest patients to analyse their experiences, and found that almost 40 per cent of survivors described having some form of “awareness” at a time when they were declared clinically dead.

Experts currently believe that the brain shuts down within 20 to 30 seconds of the heart stopping beating – and that it is not possible to be aware of anything at all once that has happened. But scientists in the new study said they heard compelling evidence that patients experienced real events for up to three minutes after this had happened – and could recall them accurately once they had been resuscitated.

Dr Sam Parnia, an assistant professor at the State University of New York and a former research fellow at the University of Southampton who led the research, said that he previously that patients who described near-death experiences were only relating hallucinatory events. One man, however, gave a “very credible” account of what was going on while doctors and nurses tried to bring him back to life – and says that he felt he was observing his resuscitation from the corner of the room.

Speaking to The Telegraph about the evidence provided by a 57-year-old social worker Southampton, Dr Parnia said: “We know the brain can’t function when the heart has stopped beating. “But in this case, conscious awareness appears to have continued for up to three minutes. “The man described everything that had happened in the room, but importantly, he heard two bleeps from a machine that makes a noise at three minute intervals. So we could time how long the experienced lasted for. “He seemed very credible and everything that he said had happened to him had actually happened.” Dr Parnia’s study involved 2,060 patients from 15 hospitals in the UK, US and Austria, and has been published in the journal Resuscitation.

Of those who survived, 46 per cent experienced a broad range of mental recollections, nine per cent had experiences compatible with traditional definitions of a near-death experience and two per cent exhibited full awareness with explicit recall of “seeing” and “hearing” events – or out-of-body experiences.  Dr Parnia said that the findings of the study as a whole suggested that “the recalled experience surrounding death now merits further genuine investigation without prejudice”.

Dr Jerry Nolan, editor-in-chief of the journal which published the research, said: “The researchers are to be congratulated on the completion of a fascinating study that will open the door to more extensive research into what happens when we die.”

Therefore, the next time you doubt the presence of your own soul, or the fact you should be purifying it to make yourself more presentable to God, think of this most recent research about its existence after death. Moreover, here is another quote from Pike, and his opinion about Atheism,

“True, the theory of Atheism has been uttered. It has been said, ‘Death is the end: this is a world without a God: you are a body without a soul: there is a Here, but no Hereafter for you; an Earth, but no Heaven. Die, and return to your dust. Man is bones, blood, bowels, and brain; mind is matter: there is no soul in the brain, nothing but nerves. We can see all the way to a little star in the nebula of Orion’s belt; so distant that it will take light a thousand millions of years to come from it to the earth, journeying at the rate of twelve millions of miles a minute.

There is no Heaven this side of that: you see all the way through: there is not a speck of Heaven; and do you think there is any beyond it; and if so, when would you reach it? There is no Providence. Nature is a fortuitous concourse of atoms; thought is a fortuitous function of matter, a fortuitous result of a fortuitous result, a chance-shot from the great wind-gun of the Universe, accidentally loaded, pointed at random, and fired off by chance.

Things happen; they are not arranged. There is luck, and there is ill-luck; but there is no Providence. Die you into dust!’

Does all this satisfy the human instinct of immortality, that makes us ever long, with unutterable longing, to join ourselves again to our dear ones who have gone away before us, and to mankind, for eternal life? Does it satisfy our mighty hungering and thirst for immortality, our anxious longing to come nearer to, and to know more of, the Eternal Cause of all things?“

Feel free to denying the existence of the human soul if you want, but I will continue to seek out gnosis to help me better understand God, and his relationship to the ancient mysteries (Masonry)!!!

So Mote It Be!

Author Credit

This article is by Freemason, Gnostic and author, Hank Kraychir. The original article can be found on his blog, Gnosis Masonry.

Hank is an accomplished writer of 13 books, a historian, lecturer, Master Mason, York Rite Mason, and a Knight Mason. He typicality writes historical stories about Athletic Legends; although he has also written on the topics of American Education, the American Civil War, and California History. Moreover, he has also written one Masonic themed book, which is called Tales from a Masonic Storyteller (2014). His second Masonic book, Masonry and the Three Little Pigs (2016), will be published next year.

Moe

Moe is the founder of GnosticWarrior.com. He is a father, husband, author, martial arts black belt, and an expert in Gnosticism, the occult, and esotericism.