the body dies the soul lives
on. All the differing degrees of created physical beings are limited, but
the soul is limitless!

In all religions the belief exists that the soul survives the death of the
body. Intercessions are sent up for the beloved dead, prayers are said for
their progress and for the forgiveness of their sins. If the soul perished
with the body all this would have no meaning. Further, if it were not
possible for the soul to advance towards perfection after it had been
released from the body, of what avail are all these loving prayers, of
devotion?

We read in the sacred writings that 'all good works are found again'.(10)
Now, if the soul did not survive, this also would mean nothing!

The very fact that our spiritual instinct, surely never given in vain,
prompts us to pray for the welfare of those, our loved ones, who have
passed out of the material world: does it not bear witness to the
continuance of their existence?

In the world of spirit there is no retrogression. The world of mortality
is a world of contradictions, of opposites; motion being compulsory
everything must either go forward or retreat. In the realm of spirit there
is no retreat possible, all movement is bound to be towards a perfect
state. 'Progress' is the expression of spirit in the world of matter. The
intelligence of man, his reasoning powers, his knowledge, his scientific
achievements, all these being manifestations of the spirit, partake of the
inevitable law of spiritual progress and are, therefore, of necessity,
immortal.

My hope for you is that you will progress in the world of spirit, as well
as in the world of matter; that your intelligence will develop, your
knowledge will augment, and your understanding be widened.

You must ever press forward, never standing still; avoid stagnation, the
first step to a backward movement, to decay.

The whole physical creation is perishable. These material bodies are
composed of atoms; when these atoms begin to separate decomposition sets
in, then comes what we call death. This composition of atoms, which
constitutes the body or mortal element of any created being, is temporary.
When the power of attraction, which holds these atoms together, is
withdrawn, the body, as such, ceases to exist.

With the soul it is different. The soul is not a combination of elements,
it is not composed of many atoms, it is of one indivisible substance and
therefore eternal. It is entirely out of t