This is the second of a series by this author, previously reviewed here in December 2010, called Journey of Souls. Using case studies from 67 out of hundreds of hypnotherapy sessions with clients, in this next book Dr. Newton reports upon the nature of the afterlife and the work (or, as is emphasized, the destiny) of these souls. Bearing in mind that he has culled unusual or extraordinary samples from his many sessions, he uses these studies to extrapolate what the universal experience of the afterlife is.

 

Among the many topics that are covered are the initial experiences after dying, when souls meet familiar figures in their group or cluster, especially soul mates with whom they share key relationships in past lives. This topic covers techniques of healing weary or damaged souls from difficult life experiences. A further topic speaks of souls who want to be involved with their soul groups, and others who wish to spend time in seclusion. Energy types are discussed. The role of different souls, are investigated such as Incubator Mothers who tend to newly birthed souls, Nursery Teachers, Explorers, Watchers, Harmonizers, Gamekeepers, and others who run the gamut from Personal Guides to Masters of Designs, working, for instance, on different planets, manipulating creatures' DNA. He talks at length about the meaning of colors in the afterlife, names, sounds, and symbols that are often worn by those in the Council of Elders, all of which pertain to the interviewee's life on Earth.

 

The overall sense of what goes on in the afterlife seems like endless class-"rooms" where kindly mentors encourage the growth of wisdom, explore the purpose of that life, show the soul how to connect with and comfort the living, and other particulars such as why we choose certain bodies. If the afterlife seems too boring for the student soul, there is also discussion of soul recreation, playing games of energy including hide-and-seek, leapfrog, tag, and a type of dodgeball using balls of pure energy. Towards the back of the book, some clients are described as advanced souls, specifically Levels IV and V, whose capabilities mainly involve working with energy.

 

At this point in this review, I feel I must interject my personal experiences, not of a near-death, but of astral travel, channeling from mentors of evolved consciousness, and certain direct experiences with energies and out-of-body knowledge. It is through these personal experiences that I have been taught that the evolution of consciousness expands the mind, with the result that the small identity dissolves more and more into a greater unity, and that ascended masters no longer see any division between self and other, or self and external manifestation. This, as I have been shown, is the path to the godhead, to wisdom, to love and peace, and to the next stage of human evolution. That being said, I must take issue with the description in this book of "highly advanced souls" who are still describing separation and duality very strongly, i.e., "us and them", groups vs outsiders.

 

Has Dr. Newton really discovered in his clients the experience and pathway to the next level, or is this just imagined mentions of interdimensional travel, extraterrestrial worlds, teachers who have odd made-up-sounding names who instruct souls as to their next life's choices, and so forth? I found very little in the book that speaks of karmic consequences for heinous acts to one's fellow man or the animal kingdom; instead, there was much mention of the soul - any soul - being embraced, cleansed, and then choosing to undertake what is frequently alluded to as hard lives on Earth, a planet it would seem designed specifically to offer such physical experiences to the soul who wants to achieve greater wisdom. Nowhere do we hear of people who may have maimed, tortured, beheaded, or otherwise perpetuated horrible acts upon one's fellow man. Not that the afterlife has to be a place of hell and punishment, but we could see a thread of karma being required by the errant soul to experience his/her victim's pain and thus learn compassion - the real destiny, in my mind, of the soul. "Souls," Newton says instead, "have this right of refusal to return to Earth." So, no karma for the murderers?

 

I guess that such a utopian description is not to my current liking because it both conflicts with the teachings I've been given, and circumvents the consequences of brutality. These weaknesses from my reviewing perspective leave me with the decision to give only 3 Stars.