Source texts from the books by Jozef Rulof for the article ‘Summerland - Fourth sphere of light’.
These sources presume the prior reading of the article ‘Summerland - Fourth sphere of light’.
Spiritual consciousness
The fourth sphere of light is also called the first spiritual sphere, because the soul has reached her spiritual grade of feeling here.
In the book ‘The Cycle of the Soul’ Lantos is shown a picture of this ‘Summerland’.
The first thing I noticed was the purplish glow which descended from the universe.
Everything I perceived was quieter, more beautiful and greater.
The human being shone like a sun!
How much happiness still awaited me.
It was incredible and yet this took place before my eyes, I was connected with it.
On earth I was connected with my past, now with my future.
I saw an awe-inspiring view and a satiny glow lay over everything, which was the aura of the life which lived there.
‘The fourth sphere’, I heard the master say, ‘the Summerland and namely the first happy spiritual sphere.
There the human being has discarded his earthly feelings.
Only there has he entered the spiritual life.
It is there that he feels as if born again.
The human being already possesses this feeling in the first sphere, but it becomes stronger and more conscious, yes, more powerful, until he enters there.’
The Cycle of the Soul, 1938
The fourth sphere cannot be entered immediately after dying:
We know that no form of life can enter the first spiritual existential sphere, which is the fourth sphere, from the earth.
A View into the Hereafter, 1936
Summerland means: consciousness.
This is the spiritual consciousness which the life on earth is on the way to:
And now we are attracted and we see ... We will soon experience that, and we determine that in the fourth sphere, that is the Summerland; and Summerland also means: consciousness.
A summer’s morning is a loving life of feeling, of power, growth, blossom, revelation.
Lectures Part 1, 1950
Love and harmony
The illustration at the beginning of this article is a painting received by Jozef Rulof as a medium.
Master Alcar tells Jozef (André) that this painting illustrates Summerland as the garden of life:
Nature sings its song here and everything breathes peace and quiet.
Here you feel how much God loves man and how infinitely good He is towards him.
Here, in His Garden of Life, man is one with Him.
Do you think I’m exaggerating, my son?
Isn’t it a garden of life?
The piece I gave you, with all those flowers in eternal splendour, was a small portrayal of this.
The person who arrives here after a life well-spent and who sets foot in this sanctuary will feel unspeakably happy.’
A View into the Hereafter, 1936
During an out-of-body experience, Alcar takes André to Summerland, where love, harmony and happiness reign:
André saw a beautiful landscape in front of him, with trees, water, beautifully coloured birds, and flowers such as he had never seen on earth, in ineffable hues.
The sky was pale violet-blue and sometimes it shone with a gold-yellow brilliance.
He couldn’t find words to describe this splendour.
If he had to compare it with something, the closest would be a billiant early summer day when you feel nature touching your heart.
But even if this were the most beautiful morning you had ever experienced, it would still be a poor comparison, because God’s holy Light and the radiant warmth that prevail in Summerland cannot be put into words.
‘In Summerland it’s love, harmony and happiness that prevail, my son.’
A View into the Hereafter, 1936
In the temple of the soul in this sphere, André will later be given an explanation why one person is further evolved than the other:
Here, in the fourth sphere, everybody was happy.
Everything had its own radiation, and people here possessed that great and pure love warming everyone.
The people he saw radiated a light unknown on earth.
Here the inner being enveloped the external being in radiation which could be seen.
The birds sang their song for the sisters and brothers living here and who had once lived on earth.
Now they were happy, very happy.
He had better not think of all this happiness, because he was still on earth.
Many times he had wondered why some people had advanced that far while others still lived in misery.
In thousands of things people had failed.
All this would now be revealed to him and he would understand why all these beings were that far.
See this beauty and how pure all these people are.
See their robes!
It was loosely draped from the shoulders and this was their possession.
It was impossible to take away this garment, this beautiful robe from them, because the spirit had acquired it.
He saw wonderful indescribable colours.
The Origin of the Universe, 1939
‘Look’, he heard his leader say, ‘the fourth sphere.
Over there you see the temple of the soul, which we will enter in a minute.’
High and lofty, overlooking everything else, stood the temple of the soul.
The building was made of snow-white marble and it radiated light which he could perceive already from a distance.
There he was about to be shown a great wonder.
The Origin of the Universe, 1939
The explanation is elaborated in the article ‘Temple of the Soul’.
Meadow
The book ‘A View into the Hereafter’ also mentions another Summerland.
Here it concerns a sphere of connection with the earth, where the human of the earth can visit his loved ones who have passed on in an disembodied state, which encourages him in his earthly life.
In other books this sphere of connection is referred to as the ‘meadow’.
In the article ‘meadow’ you will find more information about this sphere of connection.
Spiritual study
It is only in the fourth sphere of light that people can completely master a spiritual study.
For instance, master Alcar conducted an extensive study of the origin of all life:
‘Did you make a study of it, Alcar?’
‘Yes, André.’
‘Is that possible for everyone?’
‘Everyone who has reached the spheres of light can go in for some study or other on this side.’
‘Those living in the darkness too?’
‘No, because they do not even understand themselves, are unaware of the spheres of light and are living dead.
These beings, as you have known for a long time, do not even know that they died on earth and those who do know are spiritually poor human beings, who are at an utter loss and seek animal-like life.
They are unaware of all those laws of nature; they live in the darkness, feel no love and are obsessed by their own misery.
They must first discard that dark life.
We cannot qualify for a spiritual study until in the fourth sphere on this side, it is there that we have discarded all abnormality belonging to the earth and have consequently entered normal life.
Those living there have the feeling; they have advanced that far on the spiritual road and understand the meaning of life after death.
They know that they can and shall proceed ever further, they know they can return to the earth and, above all, they understand creation.
It is not possible to make a study of it previously.’
‘How long does that study take, Alcar?’
‘Such a study requires hundreds of years.
Don’t forget that all these beings are connected with the universe and have to acquire all those laws of nature.
It takes no less than dozens of years before they have learned and felt the true meaning of the problem of birth and death and the many laws of nature related with it.
In this spiritual life we do not learn and calculate what we are being taught, we must be able to feel and experience it, it does not otherwise get through to us and it would be useless to spend time on it.’
‘So man must have advanced that far, Alcar?’
‘Yes, André, indeed.
They must have that feeling inwardly or no master can help or teach them.
Here we see who possess sufficient inner light and they can make some study.’
The Origin of the Universe, 1939
