(Introduction Portion of Meditation)
The Shining City
Some spiritual groups talk about the Crystal City, or Celestial City, in the etheric realm, where most of the buildings, temples, cathedrals and other enormous structures are crystalline in nature, as if made of glass. Even the streets there glisten brightly.
The Crystal City exists at a high place in the etheric realm where angels, Light Beings and other celestial residents from faraway dimensions often frequent.
Kingdom of Heaven
Likewise, the Kingdom of Heaven is talked about extensively in the New Testament of the Bible. Jesus used parables to illustrate its wondrous nature.
Book of Revelation
In Chapter 21 of the Book of Revelation, John shared his experience as he was shown by the Divine the “New Heaven and New Jerusalem” replacing the old.
It is almost as if he experienced the unfoldment of the “New Heaven” as an extension of his own being. Clearly, it was a powerfully vicarious vision for him, given the detail in which he wrote about it.
Is It Real?
However, with all of the spiritual symbology used by the Divine during this revelation, we may be left wondering what Heaven is really like, or even if it exists as it is frequently thought of and talked about.
Changing Views Over Time
For example, in our early youth, we may have envisioned Heaven through a child’s imagination, seeing it as an extension of our own playful nature.
As we matured into adulthood, our view of the nature of Heaven probably became replaced and updated with perspectives and understanding that reflected our increased life experiences, spiritual knowledge, maturity and growth.
Near-Death Experiences
People who have had Near Death Experiences, or NDEs as they are called, talk about their own experience of the afterlife, when they visited Heaven — what we call the etheric realm.
Seeking a Spiritual Life
Without exception, each of them had such an intense, life-altering, lucid experience while visiting Heaven, that they were never the same as they were before. After their NDE experience, many of them quit their high-paying professions to seek simpler, more spiritual lives.
Now, it goes without saying that the etheric realm is beyond vast; it is indeed infinite. There are an endless number of experiences available there, as well as countless places to visit.
Different Religion, Different Heaven
That is one of the reasons so many different religions and spiritual teachings talk about the afterlife and what Heaven looks like in so many different ways.
Heaven of the Bible is Real
With that said, our focus today is to explore the Heavenly forms and landscapes as described in the bible because those classic images of Heaven spoken of in the bible truly do exist, very much resembling the structures and forms as we think of them.
The pearly gates and glistening walls surrounding the Kingdom of Heaven are only the beginning of what exists in the spiritual panorama described in the bible.
Heaven and the Fabric of Our Being
Just as John in the Book of Revelation, we may find that the Heaven we think of, with the pearly gates and glistening walls, as well as all that extends beyond them, are made of the same fabric as our own sacred, ethereal being.
The Gates of Heaven
As we approach, then pass through the Gates of Heaven and the vast kingdom that extends beyond them during this meditation, let us experience this ultimate, wondrous eutopia through our own connection to it.
Many Types of Afterlife Experiences
When we do, our awareness may expand, only to find, that the philosophies and teachings of other religions, their spiritual practices as well as their descriptions and images of the afterlife, are also true for those who are called to follow them, just as the bible is true for those who hear its call.
