Product Description

Reincarnation-the Soul's Rebirth on Earth. Here is the classic book that explains all about the soul and its cycles of reincarnation, in the words of one of the most highly respected mystic-philosophers of our century. Dr. H. Spencer Lewis tells you in plain and understandable language:

The Cosmic Conception of the soul, its nature, its origin, and its purpose.

Where the Mansions of the Soul are, why the soul has these Mansions, and what is accomplished in them.

How the soul comes into the body and how it leaves at transition.

What occurs between incarnations and when the soul is free of the body.

Karma and personal evolution, and the effects of these things from the past and present on our future existence

...and much more!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1098457 in Books
• Published on: 1986-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 229 pages

From the Publisher
This book explains in a remarkable way the relationship of the human mind to the mind of the universe, and shows how your mind can be the greatest and most valuable asset in your life.

About the Author
Dr. H. Spencer Lewis is the author of several books, including The Mystical Life of Jesus, The Symbolic Prophecy of the Great Pyramid, Mental Poisoning, Self Mastery and Fate with the Cycles of Life, and others. Until his transition in 1939, he was Imperator of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC. For many years, students of mysticism and philosophy have been fascinated by his timeless writings. His simple, straightforward style reveals a keen insight into the age-old mysteries of life.

Customer Reviews

Beautiful perspective, difficult syntax
MANSIONS OF THE SOUL is part of the library of the Rosicrucian Order, AMORC. The Rosicrucians are headquartered in San Jose, California. H. Spencer Lewis was the founder of the Order, and most books in their library are written by him.

MANSIONS OF THE SOUL is about reincarnation. I found many interesting things in this book. Perhaps the most interesting being Lewis's perspective on the soul: Lewis points out that if the soul is eternal then it cannot be "created" at a point in history (as is described in the exoteric, i.e., "outer" traditions, of Christianity), and there cannot have been a point in history when the soul did not exist. Further, how can a soul have not been eternal, been created, and then, after a person dies and has been good, go to heaven and *then* live in eternity? As Lewis points out, eternity is eternal! If a soul is eternal then it has always been, and from this platform Lewis builds in theory of reincarnation, even offering intervals of the years a soul usually waits between reincarnations.

The downside to this book is the same as all the others in the Rosicrucian library, particularly the titles by Lewis: they take themselves very very seriously, and they bear the markings of the era they were written in. This book was written at some point in the late 1930s (there are several re-issues out there with varying dates), and so the combination of the language of the era with the haute prose that is the marking of all AMORC works, often makes this book difficult to get through; the style is archaic at best. I wish they would do a re-issue of this book and write it in more current language. The tragedy is that these beautiful insights, ideas, and teachings may never see the light of day in some people's lives all because these texts are so difficult to read and many examples used to illustrate principles are no longer pertinent today.

Eternal is eternal is eternal
This book is perhaps the most lucid and logical presentation of reincarnation ever--far better than the more puerile/credulous and often grossly flawed "New Age" books on the subject. However it is far too deep to distill into a thorough review, so I'll simply touch on a couple of highlights:

1--As Lewis pointed out, eternity is by definition ETERNAL. Therefore if you accept that, then an ETERNAL soul wouldn't be created at birth nor potentially destroyed at death. Rather it would by definition have always existed before physical incarnation, during physical incarnation and after physical transition for,well, literally... eternity.

This isn't such a radical idea as you may think, for Christianity accepted reincarnation until 553 AD, when it was dropped from the doctrine at the Fifth Ecumenical Council at Constantinople for reasons that may have been far more material than divine. The Catholic Encyclopedia itself states, in regard to the Fifth Ecumenical Council, that "anyone asserting the belief in the preexistence of souls (reincarnation) would be anathema."

Before that period of intolerance many dared say what they really thought:

"Know that if you become worse you will go to the worse souls, and if better, to the better souls; and in every succession of life and death you will suffer what like must fitly suffer at the hands of like"

Plato - (582 - 507 B.C.), The Republic

"Every soul... comes into this world strengthened by the victories or weakened by the defeats of it previous life. Its place in this world as a vessel appointed to honor or dishonor, is determined by its previous merits or demerits. Its work in this world determines its place in the world which is to follow this."

Origen - De Principiis (early church father) (185 - 254 A.D.)

"... it is absolutely necessary that the soul should be healed and purified, and if this does not take place during its life on earth, it must be accomplished in future lives."

St. Gregory - (257 - 332 A.D.)

"The message of Plato, the purest and the most luminous of all philosophy, has at last scattered the darkness of error, and now shines forth mainly in Plotinus, a Platonist so like his master that one would think they lived together, or rather, since so long a period of time separates them - that Plato was born again in Plotinus."

St. Augustine - (354 - 430 A.D.

Since the Four Gospels date from 66-74 & 132-135 AD, certain Biblical passages suggestive of reincarnation may indeed be subtle remnants of Christianity's reincarnation doctrine. Furthermore the Samaritans, in their Taheb doctrine, believed in reincarnation, yet Jesus still spoke well of them.

Furthermore, the Zohar, the Manasseh ben Israel & other Jewish books all affirm reincarnation. The Hassidic Jews still believe in reincarnation, as does mystical Judaism (Kabala), yet Jesus never rebuked such a belief.

Moreover, according to Flavius Josephus, Eleazar, commander of the garrison at Masada before it fell to the Romans, gave speeches that radically departed from modern Judaism. They were astonishingly Essene, & even *Gnostic*, in nature with concepts like pre-existing immortal souls & reincarnation. Finally the Koran explicitly asserts reincarnation as true, as does mystical Islam (Sufi)

2--The late Moses Gastor's, an expert on Jewish religion and mysticism, quotes on the relationship of Eastern philosophy to Jewish mysticism, religion and early Christianity are worth the price of purchase all by themselves.

If you liked the Davinci Code you may enjoy this book and H. Spencer Lewis' other two books that he wrote about Jesus.

If this has aroused your curiosity then check out my reader's guide for more startling info. on alternative Christianity.