Animals in Spirit

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Excerpt from the book:

 

Animals in Spirit by Penelope Smith

Losing an animal companion can be a painful experience, yet by examining their transition from a spiritual perspective, Animals In Spirit explores the process of dying from the viewpoints of animals and their people. This is not a sad and depressing book at all, in fact it is quite uplifting and makes your heart feel warm. One doesn't need to have a pet to appreciate this book as many lessons can be learned from the stories. Of particular interest is a conversation between the author and some rabbits that are being raised for their meat; the wisdom of the rabbits just may surprise you. Learn how animals choose their paths in each lifetime, and the knowledge they leave behind for their humans. Excerpt: In my experience communicating with thousands of animals throughout my life, and since I began counseling work as an animal communication specialist in 1971, I find that animals of all kinds are like humans—individual, conscious, spiritual beings who animate physical form. They have intelligence, mental capacities, feelings, and sensitivity—often far exceeding human awareness or expectations—that is well-suited for their purposes and functioning in the natural order of life on Earth. Communicating with animals who are "in spirit" is similar to communicating with animals who are "in body" because animals are aware of their continuous existence beyond death. Unlike many humans in our western culture, most nonhuman animals have a sense of their spiritual nature and recognize that their physical bodies are but temporary homes. This awareness gives them an acceptance of life and death as a natural and ever-flowing cycle. While they may grieve the loss of a loved one as humans do and may not wish to leave their bodies at certain times or under certain conditions, they are not socially conditioned by members of their own species to think of physical death as a horrible end or something to dread. They know that death is a transition to another state of being, like a change of costume in a play or a different way of being alive. They generally grieve their loved ones and move with the flow of life as it presents itself in each moment. The following is an illustration of how animals feel and demonstrate the loss of their loved ones (from spring 2005 "Trunklines," a publication of The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee. Keeper records noted that on the night before [ailing Asian elephant] Lota's death, the elephants in the main barn, which is adjacent to the quarantined barn, engaged in a group ritual that had never before been documented. All of the elephants were inside the barn with outside access if they desired. Without any obvious provocation Jenny and Shirley began to roar. Simultaneously, all of the elephants lent their voices to the chorus, which built in volume and vibration until it became deafening. From one end of the barn to the other, the walls shook and the air quaked as the elephants' bellows increased to a deafening level. This display lasted for six full minutes. Each time the volume began to wane, it would then suddenly begin to build again, resembling a mass wailing display of grief. The elephants' physical behavior throughout was curious. They all remained fairly still, standing in place yet exploding with the most profoundly emotional verbal display imaginable. As abruptly as the display began, it ended with only residual signs and guttural rumbles as the entire herd returned to its usual routine of napping, eating, and interacting.