When a person dies, the body and the spirit separate. The body stays with the physical earth and the spirit returns to the astral plane and is debriefed. According to John U.K., my Spiritual Guide and teacher, the length of time of the debriefing depends on what the person expects in the afterlife and what type of life they lived. For those who expect a heaven or a hell, they will experience such. After the debriefing, the soul and their Higher Self rejoin to one.

This is what John U.K. said about what happens when you die. “At death, those who expect a heaven or a hell, experience such. But not through their Higher Self, which understand the true nature of their life’s experiences. It is the energy body’s experiences or experiences that dwell in the lower astral levels and as they gain awareness may migrate upwards to eventually join their Higher Self. The soul can be greeted by other souls who are also deceased. Usually it is the souls the person knew on earth who may be there to greet the person back "home". But if the person who died expects nothing, they will see and experience nothing for a period of time. For those who expect a heaven or a hell, they will have that experience. But after the person experiences what they expected to experience, a debriefing can occur to help them acclimate back to the astral plane.”

I asked, “How long does the debriefing last?”
 
John U.K.’s responded, “the debriefing period is dependent upon many factors. Younger souls tend to take longer to debrief than old souls. Also, souls who acquired a lot of karmic debt will need to review and accept each and every soul who was harmed due to their actions. For example, Adolph Hitler is still going through the debriefing process. You can picture the debriefing area like a hospital bed, where a soul is able to comfortably transition from one reality to another reality and family and friends can come and provide comfort and support.”

“What do Souls do on the astral plane?” I asked.
 
John U.K. said, “life on the astral plane is similar to what it is like on the physical plane, but spiritual. Souls interact with each other, communicate with each other, travel, socialize, have fun, experiment, develop new ideas, plan, learn, grow, love, have astral sex, etc. When a soul is ready for another physical incarnation (because they want to learn something new, bring a new idea to the world, experience what it would be like growing up in a different country, be a different gender, try a life with a different sexual orientation, experience a life partnered with a soul mate, be the parent of a certain soul, or perhaps repay some karmic debts acquired from previous incarnations, etc.) the soul will then start to plan and prepare for their next incarnation.  This is the cycle of life: a process of living, having experiences, learning, growing, loving, feeling, dying, then, eventually living again but now a bit more experienced and wiser.”
 
“Upon death, the soul will return and combine back to your Higher Self, adding a new layer to the Higher Self. It is that most recent layer of life experience that is now how you project yourself on the astral plane.  For example, if you were “Sally Smith” in the 1600s, but in the 1800s you were “Joe Blow”, you will display yourself as “Joe Blow” on the astral plane because it was your most recent incarnation.”

“A soul can project different ages or stages of their last life in the image they display. (If they died when they were 80 years old, they may project themselves as 30 years of age, for example, on the astral. Or if they died at 3 months of age, they may project themselves as 18 years old on the astral).”

“The process of incarnating, living, growing, making our own decisions, and then dying, happens over and over, with each incarnation giving each of us new opportunities to develop knowledge, wisdom, and insight. But does this process ever end? “

“Eventually the fragment has learned and experienced all they set out to do and then the fragment combines with another fragment, becoming a duo – a combined fragment with another fragment. This combined duo fragment then continues with their progression and combines with a trio, etc., and in this process the fragment joins with other fragments experiencing life in and through a myriad of levels. Eventually, they recollect back to the Tao, having a very diverse set of things they learned and experienced in this vast journey.

The idea of joining with other fragments in this process of progression gave me new insights about the phrase “we are all connected”. We start off as being one with the Tao, then fragment, live a series of incarnations, and at some point, all recombine into one energy – the Tao. At that point, the Tao really has learned and experienced everything that was desired.”

The Tao had a conscious thought and with that thought, a desire to learn, grow, and progress. The Tao then decided to act on that thought and desire, so it fragmented into smaller parts. This was done to create a way to increase the number and types of experiences that would then facilitate the desire of that thought - to learn, grow, and progress. Some of those fragmented pieces of the Tao are us. We are a fragment of the Tao! Depending on when, where, and how we fragmented, we came away with some core traits or "imbedded energies" that help define who we are. 
 
John U.K., my Spiritual Guide and Teacher said this about the fragmentation. "The fragmentation of the Tao was and is (because it continues) rather orderly. Part of the fragmentation process produced core personalities or archetypes within these fragments. These core personality traits is one way to create diversification between the fragments."

In the book, "Messages from Michael" by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, she states there are seven different core personality’s types that came from the fragmentation process: Server, Priest, Artisan, Sage, Scholar, Warrior, or King. Each of these roles has certain long term characteristics that are continually a part of who that fragment is. I asked John U.K. if this was true and he said, "Yes. These roles, however, are more like classifying a bug and are more important in the initial incarnations of the fragment than in later incarnations. This is because as the individual fragment matures and progresses, the soul gains more control over their experience. John U.K. also said that each fragment does not need to specialize in ALL possibilities because this knowledge is shared with all. We can, and do, learn from each other."

He continued, "Reincarnation is the method a fragment (or soul) can have many lifetime experiences. Reincarnation is the process that provides everyone with the opportunities to learn, progress, and grow. The basic concept is that each living person at each physical incarnation has a separate energy anatomy that is distinct from the physical body. The effect of this energy body is to give life to the physical. Each life builds on each other and works in concert with the souls other life experiences. A soul will assess and evaluate the life experience he/she needs and start planning their next incarnation on the physical plane. She will determine what the priorities are that he/she wants to experience and then evaluate which options on the physical plane will most likely provide those opportunities and experiences.  

What I took away from this conversation is that we start out with core personality traits. This core is based on where and when we fragmented from the Tao. These core traits were used to help us begin the journey but are not designed to limit our journey. As we continue to move through different life experiences, many of our core traits become less important.  We essentially have learned how to modify, change, expand, and even transform our core through broader experiences. 

I spent several years interacting with my Spiritual Guide and Teacher named John U.K - aka John formerly from the United Kingdom so was able to ask him about concepts that I didn't understand. One of our conversations was about why are we here on earth? What is the purpose?  Here is a summary of this conversation.

In order for the TAO to broaden its experience, it decided to create this earth existence and divide itself upon it. The purpose was to gain the greatest diversity of experience.  In order for the Tao to learn, progress, and grow, the Tao chose to break into smaller pieces. We call these smaller pieces “fragments” of the Tao. Some of these fragments are us. We are a fragment of the Tao. The earth is also one of those fragments."

What I learned from this, is that the Tao (aka God, Goddess, Source, All That Is) is still progressing and learning. There is not an end point because learning and progressing and changing is continual. 

Another take-away from this conversation was that the needs diversity. If everything and everyone were the same, it would limit the number and type of experiences. It would limit growth. The Tao realized this so fragmented into smaller parts of itself. The Tao then let those fragments loose to see what happens. This means being different from other people is a positive thing. It is necessary and part of the big plan. 

If the Tao's desire is to learn and grow, this also means the Tao won't necessarily step in and stop bad things from happening. It means we need to figure things out and either prevent bad things from happening or change the situation. If that doesn't happen, it means we eventually have to learn from the experience and grow. All of his helps us change, grow, and progress.

In summary, the Tao's desire (and essentially mission statement) is to learn, progress, and grow. The Tao knew that to learn and grow, more diverse experiences would be needed. To have more diverse experiences, the Tao needed to break apart into smaller pieces and send them off to have those experiences. The Tao created the Earth and this is one place that is providing some fragments the opportunity to learn, progress, and grow. In addition, the Tao knew both good and bad experiences facilitate the learning process, so allows both good and bad things to happen to us, as well as the earth.  

I was raised with Christian stories and beliefs about how life began. The story we were may be similar to yours. God created the earth in six days and then rested on the seventh day. He created Adam from some a bunch of clay in the earth and then gave him life. God then took a rib from Adam and made Eve. He then placed the couple in a beautiful garden called the Garden of Eden, telling them to not each from a certain tree. The garden was filled with peace and plenty. Then, an evil snake slithered over to Eve to encourage to disobey God and eat the fruit from the forbidden tree. Eventually she gave in and ate the forbidden fruit. She also shared it with Adam. This resulted in God confronting them about breaking the rules which made him kick them out of the lovely garden. According to my religion, this was how humanity began.

When I was 36, I had a significant dream spelling out the letters E.S.P. which then prompted me to learn about Extra Sensory Perception (ESP). This process to learn about ESP then led me to connect with my Spiritual Guide and Teacher, John U.K..  I was able to ask questions and John would discuss and provide answers to many of the questions that never made sense to me. One of those questions was "How did  we begin?" This is what John U.K. said:
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"In the beginning there was dust, atoms, gas, the Tao. As the species evolved over the millions of years of development, the intellect of each descending species increased and therefore the capacity for abstract thought also increased. At some point of development, the species felt a necessity to perhaps bring order to the chaos they lived in along with a guiding principle of concept that would protect and give direction. And the Tao was everything. 

In order for the TAO to broaden its experience, it decided to create this earth existence and divide itself upon it. The purpose was to gain the greatest diversity of experience. And in order for the Tao to learn, progress, and grow, the Tao chose to break into smaller pieces. We call these smaller pieces “fragments” of the Tao. Some of these fragments are us. You are a fragment of the Tao. The earth is also one of those fragments, so the earth is a fragment of the Tao. The Tao is the total gathering of information, knowledge, wisdom, energy, etc. It is the sum of all existence, both what you can sense and that which you have no concept of. It is everything that is."

I then wanted to know about Adam and Eve. Where did the idea of Adam and Eve come from? Here is his response.

"Different cultures of course have widely different and variant aspects of explaining the first couple. Once you had the initial couple, then life was easily explained from that point. But beginnings are always somewhat cloudy. Therefore, a common concept that man was created by a greater being either through pottery or the mutation or the adaption of various animals or whatever, these stories have in common is a God/Deity that created the first people. Other stories of creation relate to the forces of nature or animal groups that caused humankind to be produced. Others and obviously extremely recent indicate humans came from more advanced but distant planets. The reason I bring the last one up is that in general people do not like to believe that they are common creations of an ecologically balanced system. They expect something dramatic or special to foster the human race. therefore, the more believable but the more spectacular stories are those that are generally accepted by those who do not understand the biological history." 

When I was 36 years old, I was married, had two children, and was living in Utah. I was still officially a Mormon, but was now more "on-the-fence". I was struggling with my faith. A big problem I had was about how women were treated and perceived in a male dominated patriarchy. It was as we were inferior and our only purpose was to serve men - first our father, and when married, the baton was passed to our husband. Women were groomed to be subservient, silent, and obey - always obey.  I was often enraged how this perception dripped into our entire world and culture. Other times I would be in tears. I didn't know what to do, or even how to begin to make a change.

Then I had a significant dream spelling out the letters E.S.P. in my mind. This prompted me to learn about Extra Sensory Perception (ESP) so I bought a book and started following the recommendations on how to develop ESP. The very first time I did this I connected with a Spiritual Being by the name of John U.K. (formerly from the United Kingdom). He said he was my Spiritual Guide and teacher. I was shocked - after all, I was a woman and was now experiencing an encounter with a spiritual being! Apparently the rules I learned in Church about everything spiritual comes through the man was incorrect.

John UK then started to teach me the lessons about how to work with spiritual energy, which I eventually put in a book titled "Cultivating Spiritual Energy"  But one of my first questions was about God. - "is there a God?"

John U.K.'s response surprised me. He said "There is the Tao. The Tao is everything.  Many will label it different names; God, Goddess, All that Is, Allah, Mother Nature, Life Force, etc. You could call it Suzie if it works for you and that is how you want to visualize it.  What helps you to understand the Tao is what you can use to help define it.  But be aware that by labeling the Tao, you limit your understanding or experience of it."

He went on to say this....
"Dividing the Tao into manageable size parts and studying those particular parts can help your understanding, but remember your understanding will be limited.  The drawback of course is that you can miss other parts at the expense of comprehending specific ideas.  But by maintaining balance and keeping the totality of the Tao ever present in the mind, this is a workable and useful technique."
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What I learned from this conversation with John U.K. is that my view of God  at that time - a white old man with white hair and a white beard dressed in white - was like a subset or microcosm of the Tao. We will create subsets of from ideas and concepts to help us better understand them - or a part of them. But we need to remember these are only a part and not the WHOLE. If I changed my perception of God being a woman, for example, I would get a different and new perspective of God. If I view and perceive God as a black man with a black beard, I would get a new and different awareness of this energy source. All of these concepts are part of the whole and all of them are OK because it provides a place one can begin. 

After receiving this information, I required a course correction in my understanding and awareness of a higher being. I started to explore using different concepts of a higher power to try and broaden my understanding. I would conceptualize God as female, then as Mother Earth, then as Mother Nature.  Each different view and perception gave me a different perspective with new information and awareness. But the biggest change happened after I learned I learned I could step outside my physical body and do remote Qigong treatments. When I learned to do this and became aware I could project a part of my spiritual self to different locations and then connect with a client and interact with their subtle energy to heal their body, I asked myself a new question. Can I project myself to meet "GOD" (or Mother Earth, or the Tao, or All That Is)? Is this possible?

Finally, in one of my meditations I left my physical body and discovered I was in the middle of dark energy. Then, I felt like I was in the middle of white light. I then felt I was in the middle of two types of energy and a thought came to mind that this was the Tao. This was Source. This was "All That Is"!  This is it! And is is  all energy with purpose and consciousness!

To answer the question, is there a God? My answer is "it depends. It depends on what your view and interpretation of God is. If you view God as EVERYTHING, then the answer is yes. If you view God as an old white man with a beard, I would say, your view and interpretation is incomplete.  The Tao is God. The Tao is Source. The Tao is All That Is. The Tao is all energy. The Tao is Everything."