He grabbed his chest, gasped, fell to the floor and felt himself speeding down a long tunnel -

The pain disappeared, he saw a brilliant light ahead of him. He became the light filled with a giant sense of peace, ecstasy -

It was like arriving at a home which you had completely forgotten -

He had died.

He heard a voice, not audibly, but almost as if it were inside him. It said - "You must return". He knew this meant back to earth, back to being alive, back to being a human in a struggling world.

"Oh, no - why can't I stay ?" as he felt a tremor fill his ecstatic being.

"Because you have sinned", answered the voice.

He couldn't believe what he was hearing - Sins! - The whole concept was forgotten since religious training- adolescence. What sins? - He never murdered. He didn't steal anything big.

The voice answered his unasked question, it was clearly aware of everything he thought and felt. "There is only one sin that results in return - the abuse of innocence."

"But there are more serious crimes" he objected , "like genocide".

"Yes, but for those the penalty is far more severe. For those at the moment of the crime, the spirit dies. The criminal continues his life with a dead spirit, no spirit and when he dies he dies finally and forever - That is the meaning of Hell - not fire and brimstone but finality, true death without a spirit.

"Evil people, those who's spirit is dead, do not return. Only the abusers of innocence return. They can learn from each return experience and if they do, each time they become better.

For a while they become the protectors of innocents and then they become truly innocent themselves and are allowed to stay here, in perfection, for eternity.

"Eliminating the spirit of evil and recycling the abusers of innocence is a great gift for mankind. It will eventually result in a world of harmony, beauty and peace. The ultimate goal is to recreate a universe where there is no separation between heaven and earth. It was this way at the beginning.

"Where you are now is similar to what you have always thought of as heaven. Unlike most of mankind's religious concepts however, God is not a separate entity . Here, one can become God, a part and the whole of God.

"You will return to enter the body of a newborn, randomly selected determined by the matching of the moment of your death with the moment of someone's birth. You will grow with all of the pains of being human. If your spirit has developed you will be somewhat conscious. You will have a sense of fairness. You will give and love and be loved with less fear or hesitation than in your previous existences. If you are ready, you will live your last human struggle and you will end your life in peace. Heaven will be your new domain."

"The return is another chance, it is a purgatory of learning.", the voice said.

He hurried a question sensing that he was running out of time: "When I arrived, I felt a sense of familiarity. Have I been here before?"

" You've been here many times before. In one lifetime you were a merchant, at first selling wheat from your farm. You enjoyed knowing that people were buying a wholesome product you knew well - you nurtured it from seed. Then you learned you could sell the produce of other farmers - not as good as yours but easily saleable because of your past reputation of high quality. You were so busy you didn't have time to check quality - you lost control of quality. Some of what you sold was infected with disease and generated illness among those that trusted you.

" At another time, you were once a sailor whose family was left to nurture themselves. Once you were a physician who found that treatment of hypochondriacs was simple and lucrative.

" One other time, your spirit almost died. As a soldier you were faced with the command to destroy a village of civilians. You were moments away from following the command when you were wounded and removed from the scene.

" You were also a teacher whose adoring students became sources of sexual pleasure and a priest who capitalized on the fear and despair of the congregation.

" But now you must return. - You will not remember these past lives when you return."

"But if I have no memory of my past sins, how do I know not to abuse again, " he asked.

"When you return you will not consciously remember having been here but there will be a sense of heaven and a sense of the penalty for abuse of innocence. This memory is felt - it is what you know of as conscience. Conscience is the felt memory of the penalty for abuse of innocence."

" Please, " he implored , "One final question before I return, Who are the innocents?"

"They are the oldest of the spirits - many lifetime repeaters. They are the highly developed people who live lives of fairness, trust and love. They are very near their final human lifetime. You will, before you enter heaven become an innocent yourself and your innocence will be abused by others and you will face the ultimate decision."

"Some abused innocents when they return. become abusers of other innocents. If they do this, without true malice, they get more chances.

Others "play" innocent so that no one will hurt them. This is a rather natural course of events. Many animals have learned that if they bear their naked bellies to those who overpower them, they will not be attacked. Although they seem helpless these people have the power to control their lovers by seeming to be very fragile. The lover has to be either careful or guilty. Anything can be perceived as damaging. The protector is completely at the mercy of the apparent innocent.

Others who have returned for the final incarnation. These innocents feel the hurt when they are abused but accept the pain as part of their god consciousness. They no longer cower or fight back. they weep but do not cry. Many of them have been personified by mankind as saints or martyrs. - They are often in pain but they do not give up their innocence. Ghandi was a one of these. . He led his last life as a true innocent and did not compromise the integrity of his innocence.

After the final visit, they come here and stay - to be one with God, to be God, in love, forever. God is the ultimate innocent. "

Suddenly, He felt himself going backward through the long tunnel - away from the light, into the greyness. His sense of peace gave way to excruciating pain. He couldn't breathe. He was struggling to get somewhere. He heard loud noises, voices - outside himself. The pain grew, every nerve ending hurt. He screamed - he was born.

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