74. The Riddle of Death as a Riddle of Life

This is somewhat different for souls which are still here on earth and which the dead person sees from the spiritual world than souls which still live on earth, which therefore have not yet died. The dead person also perceives such souls that have not yet died, but in such a way that he does not need to form the mental images himself, but that these images confront him as imaginations. Thus, even after death, one knows, for example, whether one is dealing with an inhabitant of the same world who has already passed through the gate of death. You imagine him through activity; the one who still lives in the physical body appears before you as an imagination, as a picture, as a finished image. That is the significant difference. And everything that lives in such a soul, especially if it is related to the spiritual world, can also be perceived by the other world. Hence the advice, isn't it, to send loving thoughts to the deceased or to read aloud such things that relate to the spiritual world. Reading aloud is something like spiritual nourishment for the dead or a spiritual breathing process. They take part in this when we direct our thoughts to them.