Cheon Seong Gyeong – Sun Myung Moon

Book Five - Earthly Life And The Spirit World
Chapter Two - Death and the Spirit World
Section 1. The Inevitable Path of Our Life

1.1. The body is far from eternal life

The earth also breathes and moves. Your cells breathe as well. Do you want to live eternally on earth or do you want to live eternally in a place where you become an invisible entity of love? You should live eternally in a world where you become an invisible entity of love. Even when God wants to reveal Himself, you cannot see Him with your physical body. That's why you need a spirit self.

God is the center of the invisible spirit. Therefore, He wants to give human beings, who are His counterparts, everything from the eternal realm of the ideal that He created. (111-111, 1981.2.1)

1.2. How the majority of people live

We are headed for a certain destination whether we know it or not, even as we move and even as we rest. Not just you, but this nation, this world and even heaven and earth are headed there as well. This is an undeniable fact.

Where will you go after this life? This is an important issue that people must resolve. Religions and philosophies arose historically to do this. You, therefore, cannot deny that you, too, are all caught up and driven by this destiny.

That being the case, where are our bodies and minds trying to go? Further, where are our lives inclined towards and where are our hearts trying to go? Our wishes, hopes, and ideals... Where are they trying to go? Even if we cannot resolve these issues, we are destined to go in any case.

This body will see its end when it is buried in the ground on the day we die. If so, will this mind, this life, this heart, this ideal, and even this hope be buried together the day the body is buried? To answer this, we should present detailed contents, solutions and a definite and purposeful perspective.

Saints, sages and numerous founders of religions, stopped on their paths of life, interrupted the concerns of their minds and the inclinations of their hearts, and asked themselves where they were going, as they struggled to resolve this issue. They came forth to resolve this issue, but to this day no one could confidently claim, "My body has gone to such a place. My mind, my heart, my life, and my ideals have hastened there; hence, all beings in heaven and earth should go there." (5-194, 1959.12.20)

Religious people hope for the end of this fallen world which originated from private desires. Over the millennia, religions have eagerly awaited a public world -- a single, unified world of peace.

How should religious people live? They should shorten this historical path and link it to the world and to the cosmos. The life after this accomplishment is far more interesting than the pleasures of conjugal life. Such a family is a liberated family It cannot help but become an absolute family.

Walking the streets of Myungdong in Seoul, one sees young couples being affectionate. For whom are they doing that? they say they do that to enjoy their youth, which they have but once. That's fine, but who is the owner of enjoyment? This is a serious question. How long can you enjoy life? You do so from your twenties, but it will not last after you pass your sixties, seventies, and eighties.

Yet the way of the Unification Church is different. For what purpose do we eat? For the sake of the world and to abolish this evil world. We see in order to clean up this evil world -- not to become a part of the evil side but to defeat it. How we hear, think, walk and act is different from the secular world. (36-71, 1970.11.15)

God would not be the Absolute Being if He had created people to live for just a few days and perish. He created them as precious beings that He wants to keep seeing and cherish eternally.

We know that we are the object partners God can derive joy from. As He is eternal, we must also be eternal. The eternal God relates with an eternal world.

However, there are many people who have lived thinking, "I've lived up to eighty. That will do, and when I die, that's the end of it." Yet in the course of history, there were people who pondered the question of immortality. They wondered if there was anyway to live eternally without dying. The more people held on to this ideal, the more they thought and asked themselves, "What's the meaning of life? Why are people born and then go away like travelers?" and they concluded, "Life is suffering. It is like the coming and going of grass." Yet, if they could live forever, there would be no need for such worries. (39-228. 1971.1.15)

1.3. Death is inevitable

One day we will go to the spirit world. There is no doubt about that. People visiting Korea land at Gimpo Airport, but that does not mean they have traveled in Korea. From Gimpo Airport, where do we go? Do we go to South Jeolla Province or South Gyeongsang Province or Pyung-an Province? From Pyung-an Province, where do we go? To a county. From there, where next? A township. What is next? A village. From there, we must go to a neighborhood. This is not easy. If people cannot determine their dwelling place, what is the value of success in social life? That is a problem.

If God orders me to come, even tomorrow night, no matter how great I may be today, I have no choice but to go. However loudly I might protest, I would have to go. I will go while protesting loudly, but only after speaking the right words. I must present the way that the nation and the world must go. It will be my death if I fail to do so. (177-41, 19??.5.15)

1.4. God is the owner of life

Who is the origin of life? Not I. Both the origin and the purpose of life must transcend me. My life did not originate from my parents, society, a people or nation but from the transcendent absolute God. The motive must be firmly connected to the transcendent motive that stands in the absolute position. It should not be linked to historical relational factors, environmental relational factors, or social factors. Only when you link your origin to the transcendent cause, the transcendent purpose, can you extricate yourself, make a leap, and transcend. You must link your life to the transcendent motive; it does not begin with yourself.

It began with the absolute God. When you link yourself to the transcendent motive, even if you die, it will be within a transcendent process because of God's will. (36-63, 1970.11.15)

People don't live for millennia or centuries. All of us die within a century or so. Among our numerous ancestors who died at various times throughout the innumerable historical ages, if there had been any whose thoughts were motivated by public-spiritedness meeting with universal approval, they would have bequeathed a legacy lasting a millennium even if they lived less than a century. Instead, they all lived selfishly and perished. They brought everything to ruin.

Such a lifestyle causes problems. What is the biggest problem here? It is the question of how to replace an egocentric system of evaluation and orientation with one that serves a higher purpose. It is about how to shift the emphasis from self-centeredness toward that which can benefit the greater good.

We must, therefore, reverse the way of individualism and self-interest. To do so requires resources and action.

If you were wearing your one and only change of clothing, you would fight tooth and nail to stop anyone trying to take it off you. Let's say you had changes of clothing for each of the four seasons. if it is spring, and people are dressed in winter wear, then bring them spring clothing and tell them, "That's winter wear. Take it off!" If others are wearing spring clothing in summer, bring them summer clothing and tell them to change. Those people didn't see the need. They were unaware of the existence of a replacement of greater value. (200-90, 1990.1.24)

On the earth we have parents, teachers and relatives. We have ways to establish such relationships on the earth, but not in the spirit world.

In the spirit world, everyone practices God-centered public-spiritedness. All positions are differentiated. Thus, those above cannot descend below, and those below cannot easily ascend above.

Originally we were supposed to go to the spirit world only after achieving perfection on earth. Once we enter the next world, that's it. There is no doubt that we will die.

Our life course is too short. Life is too short. Even a life span of eighty years is too short. It is less than eight hours in spirit world time. From the perspective of eternity, it is even less than that. Therefore, the power of true love is great. The speed of true love is so great as to be beyond our understanding. (205-65, 1990.7.7) 

Table of Contents

Tparents Home

Moon Family Page

Unification Library