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introduction: William James translated by: Mary C. Wadsworth Weiser Books 2005 ISBN #1-57863-333-8 At 4 1/2" by 5 3/4", and 108 pages, this "Little Book" is literally a little book. Despite its size, it makes a huge impact, focusing on one of the most important issues facing mankind - life after death. Originally published in 1836, under the pen name "Dr. Miser", by the author's friend, book-dealer and composer Ch. F. Grimmer. A second edition was published by another publishing house, under the author's own name, with a dedication to Isidore and Elizabeth, the daughters of his now departed friend, Ch. F. Grimmer. In his preface, Fechner indicates that this is his way of acknowledging his friend, and his friend's influences on him and on his work. An interesting note from Fechner's introduction is that his hopes in issuing a second edition of his book are twofold: to renew interest int he book, and to renew an interest in his friends songs, as he feels that the creation of both went hand in hand. Gustav Theodor Fechner (1801-1870) was what we might consider a Renaissance man. He influenced the worlds of physics, psychology, philosophy, metaphysics, and music with his work. The Little Book of Life After Death addresses the changing world-view of how God and nature were understood, and acts as a template for not only living well, but accepting dying as a part of that life. In his introduction, James credits Fechner as being the first person to use experimental methods in psychology, one of the earliest determiners of electrical constants in physics, as well as being a systematic defender of the atomic theory. In cosmology, James speaks of Fechner as making consciousness correlative to coeval with the physical world. In the world of literature, Fechner published under the name of Dr. Miser half-humorous, half-philosophical essays. James credits Fechner with being the earliest systematically empirical student. In theology, Fechner is credited with being the author of an independently reasoned ethical system that is worked out in great detail. From this, my thoughts of Gustav Fechner are that he was interested in, and participated in, the whole of life. The gifts that he left to this material world are without end. James goes on to discuss the material presented within this book, noting the concept of inner experience being regarded as reality, and that matter is only a form in which inner experiences may appear to one another when they affect each other from the outside. James notes that Fechner considers the physical body as a wavelet on the surface of the earth, our consciousness arising from that of the whole-earth consciousness. One of the premises of this book is that the spirits of the dead continue to live on in the living as individuals. Fechner sees the life of man as developing in three stages: the first stage being a continuous sleep (time spent int he womb); the second stage being an alternation between sleeping and waking (physical life - life between birth and death); the third stage being an eternal awakening. It is quite interesting how Fechner portrays this: in the first stage, man is alone, and in the dark; in the second stage, he lives in a community of others, with the focus on the external; in the third stage the life of man is merged with other souls into the higher life of the Supreme Being, where he discerns the reality of ultimate things. Fechner emphasizes the idea that each individual influences others through his or her thoughts, actions, writing, and deeds. The seeds of these ideas enter into the souls of others and grow. In this way, no one is ever "lost" in death, as they live on in the memories, thoughts, and actions of the living. The thought of an energy "family" came to me when I read this passage: "All men who have any spiritual fellowship with each other belong to the body of one and the same spirit together, and follow the ideal which has thereby been born within them, as members one of another." The translation to this book is excellent. Fechner's words flow freely, idea building upon idea. He writes not in the language of the metaphysician, but in the language of everyday man. The ideas he espouses are a complete and valid system of belief in and of themselves. The reader would not have to agree completely with the system to understand it. For anyone who wishes to live a better life, and to take the mystery from death, The Little Book of Life After Death is an excellent resource.
Bonnie Cehovet
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