Death and After [Hardcover]

Annie Besant (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1972

Death--and After?

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 100 pages
• Publisher: Theosophical Pub House (June 1972)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0835670392
• ISBN-13: 978-0835670395
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,073,101 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Death is Not so Simple, May 25, 2003

By 

Robert S. Corrington (Madison, New Jersey United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Death And After (Paperback)

In this brief, but brilliant, text on the afterlife, the third in a series of Manuals written by Besant and Leadbeater between 1892 and 1896, Besant presents the theosophical perspective on the various stages undergone by the soul after the death of the body. Her writing is clear, focused, and careful as it introduces technical terminology from the Sanskrit. The basic model is straightforward: first the body dies as its energy system (the etheric double) leaves it behind; as this body in turn dissipates, the astral body solidifies into seven layers that must each in turn dissipate before the soul can move on (all of this in the realm of Kamaloka--the desire realm); finally, the soul rises up to its highest mental level and enters a realm of peaceful dreaming (Devachan) where it regathers its energies before becoming incarnate yet again. Besant raises the question: if reincarnation is true, why can't we remember our past lives? Her answer is fascinating; namely, that we can only remember the unconscious potencies of our past lives and deeds when we attain the highest levels of awareness in this life--levels that give us access to the hidden material that can only appear when the conditions for useful memory permit. The analogy here is to the life of the Buddha in which he was only able to remember his past lives at the moment when his final enlightenment was unfolding.
This Manual is a little gem and it is highly recommended for those who believe that the soul survives the death of the body--for it is one thing to believe in immortality, it is another to attempt to delineate just what the post-death state might be like. Annie Besant has done as well as anyone I know of in doing so. Readers of this volume will certainly want to read the other six in the series.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Masterpiece on the Afterlife, February 13, 2010

By 

James Hobbs (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death-And After? (Paperback)

This is a true masterpiece. I strongly recommend this book. I got so much out of it. The things I liked the most about this book were the points about our immortal consciousness, the afterlife, and the evolution of the soul and how what we do in this life affects the next one. I'm very interested in the afterlife and the evolution of the soul, and I thought the author gave excellent and very knowledgeable explanations for these things. It's good to know that we have nothing to fear when the time comes to shed our bodies, that death is just another way of moving forward, and Besant's advice on what we can do in this life to beneficially affect our soul's evolution in the next life is invaluable. This book answers a lot of very important questions, including ones that I have had for some time. It's been a real blessing to me.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Greatest Mysteries Explained, February 27, 2010

By 

John Drake "Reading, and reading..." (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death-And After? (Paperback)

Besant has lifted the veil off of death and shown us that we have nothing to fear. This is a beautiful work that will help anyone even beginners to understand and grow on their path to their full divine potential. It's is an excellent book for people seeking truth and the perfection that we are all meant to achieve. Besant has indeed found the truth and handed us the keys to the greatest of mysteries in this comprehensive masterpiece.
This excellent book explains death as a process of merely disrobing and details the journey of the immortal conscious part of us once we have left our physical body. It explains the various states we may end up in, and most importantly, tells us how we can affect our ascension after death into a higher state while still in this life. Besant shows us how to truly free ourselves in this life and the next. She explains what life really is, and it is not what most think. She shows us how leaving our physical body is not the end but merely a casting away of our fetters.
I benefitted immensely from this book, which I believe everyone should read. It's absolutely jam-packed with revelations of monumental significance. I learned so much from it. There is always something new to learn and I'm grateful whenever I find a new gem. I firmly believe I was led to this book, which is an amazing and rare find.
This is a book that I intend to recommend to all my friends, and I will have to pick up more books on reincarnation and the afterlife now that I've found so many vital truths in this one. I highly recommend this book if you are serious in any way about the mysteries that lie beyond the veil.