Life After Death Archives

Talking to My Deceased Grandfather in a Dream— A Spiritual Goodbye

In this article, you’ll discover how:

Dreams can offer profound spiritual experiences—especially when they involve loved ones who have passed on.
In ECKANKAR, dreams can be seen as nightly “near death experiences” (without dying!). Dreams are a bridge between the physical and spiritual worlds, offering insights, healing, and connection beyond words.
This personal story reveals how one dream became a final conversation, bringing closure and healing.

By Bea Colborne

A Quiet Grandfather, a Deep Spiritual Bond

I have a lot of love for my late grandfather, despite the fact he was an extremely quiet man. I never really knew him as well as I had hoped.

When he was diagnosed with cancer that affected his bloodstream, it was a two-year journey of watching him pass. During this time, I had been progressing through my ECK discourses, one of the Spiritual Living courses students of Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ receive each year.

Overcoming Night Terrors and Reconnecting with Dreaming

As I was beginning to explore the ECK Dreams courses, I was nervous. I am not a dreamer. I used to be plagued by night terrors and had blocked out dreams. This was worrying me at the time. But I had felt like I had grown spiritually, so I was feeling ready to experience dreaming again.

Experience with My Deceased Grandfather in a Dream

One night, I had a dream I was in my grandfather’s kitchen and for once it wasn’t a nightmare. We were having a full conversation. It was an equal back and forth. Light was pouring into his kitchen. In the dream, I suddenly realized: Oh, he has passed on!

This inspired me to carry on the conversation with more intention. I told him I was gay, something I normally kept to myself. Then he told me he was too! To clarify, I don’t think he was actually gay. I understood it as his way of humorously trying to relate with me.

Spiritual Goodbye Through Dreams

When I woke up, I realized it was a beautiful moment of connecting with him properly one last time, Soul to Soul. Saying that he was gay also was a beautiful moment connecting us emotionally to vulnerabilities in a way we couldn’t reach on the physical plane. This meant that when he translated (a way of saying “passed on”), I felt like I had said goodbye in my dreamtime and was content with everything we had together in both places – the spiritual and the physical. In Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ, this is sometimes described as connecting in the dream worlds, which can offer profound healing and insight.

Learn More About Dreams

Learn more about spiritual dreaming.

What Does It Mean to Dream About Deceased Loved Ones?

From a spiritual perspective, these dreams may offer emotional closure, reflect growth in inner awareness, be genuine Soul to Soul encounters, and even proof for the dreamer that there is life after death. Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ encourages dreamers to record dreams in a journal, ask questions inwardly before sleep, and view dreams as part of their spiritual education. Explore Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ dream practices.

Coming Out in a Dream — Emotional Truths on the Inner Planes

Dreams often allow us to express truths we might hesitate to voice in waking life. For Bea, coming out in that dream was deeply healing. It showed that the inner worlds can be places of emotional honesty, spiritual connection, and personal growth, even during times of grief.

How Spiritual Growth Can Unblock Dreams

Many seekers experience blocked dreams due to fear or past trauma (like night terrors). As spiritual awareness grows, these blocks often dissolve naturally, allowing dreams to become more clear, uplifting, and meaningful. Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ’s Dream courses are specifically designed to help students navigate this inner territory with confidence. Learn about Dream 1 Discourses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What does it mean if I talk with a deceased loved one in a dream?

Such dreams often reflect spiritual connections or emotional closure. In Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ, they are Soul to Soul meetings on the inner planes. Real experiences.

Q: Are grief dreams “real” or just symbolic?

They can be either, or both. Some dreams are symbolic reflections of inner healing, while others are direct spiritual experiences in higher planes of consciousness.

Q: How can I remember more spiritual dreams?

Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ suggests trying a spiritual exercise before sleep, keeping a dream journal, and treating dreams as real spiritual experiences rather than random brain activity.

Q: What does “translation” mean in ECKANKAR?

“Translation” refers to the passing of Soul from the physical world to continue its journey in the spiritual worlds.

Q: Your Own Soul to Soul Journey

Dreams can be profound teachers, healers, and bridges between worlds. Whether you’re exploring your own grief dreams, spiritual experiences, or want answers about life after death, Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ offers tools to help you understand the language of Soul. Discover more about spiritual dreaming.

Recurring Dreams about Dying

Dreams, Life After Death

Would I Find My Name?

By Rian Beyers

When I was a child, I had a recurring dream. I was dressed in a soldier’s uniform, fighting alongside other men.

Bullets flew across unfamiliar terrain as we engaged in a firefight with our enemies.

I was in command. One by one, my men were killed, leaving me the last man alive. As the enemy troops moved toward me, I noticed they were wearing traditional Vietnamese-looking hats. If I was caught, I might be forced to reveal valuable information that shouldn’t fall into enemy hands.

I looked down and saw my name on the uniform and the weapons I carried. Then my life ended.

I had this same dream for many years. But I didn’t recognize the landscape.

I grew up in South Africa, and at that time our country had no access to television service. It wasn’t until several years later that television became widely available and I had my first glimpse of the Vietnam War.

I was shocked. The landscape was the same one I saw in my dreams. The uniforms of the American soldiers, the weapons they carried, even the way the Vietnamese soldiers dressed—everything was the same, down to the smallest detail.

I didn’t know what to think. After that, every time I saw a movie or show that accurately depicted the experiences of a soldier in the Vietnam War, I had a strong emotional reaction.

Was This Dream a Past-Life Experience?

As I got older, I began to wonder if this was a past-life experience. I’d heard about reincarnation but wasn’t sure if it was true.

Then I found Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ and learned that past lives are indeed real. Remembering our previous lives, and the lessons they taught us, can help us understand more about ourselves today.

I realized my recurring dream had actually been a memory of my past life as a soldier in the Vietnam War. But I wondered why this particular past-life memory created such a strong reaction in me. What did it mean?

Many years later, I visited the United States for the first time. I felt drawn to go to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC. This monument honors United States soldiers who died or went missing in action during the Vietnam War. Inscribed on the monument are more than fifty-eight thousand names.

When I arrived, I was taken aback to see the vast number of names on the monument’s wall. I wondered if the name I saw in my dreams was there too. But since the names weren’t listed alphabetically, I couldn’t imagine finding it.

I stopped and did a contemplation, asking the Mᴀʜᴀɴᴛᴀ to help me.

“If my dream is real,” I asked the Inner Master, “can you help me find my name on the wall?”

A few moments later, I came out of contemplation and began walking along the monument. I hadn’t gone very far, when I had a nudge to look at the wall. Inscribed there was the name I saw so many times in my dreams.

As I gazed at the name, I suddenly felt a burden lift from me. I realized I had felt responsible for the deaths of my men. Now I understood there was no need for guilt. We had all done the best we could.

This experience validated that my recurring dream really was a past-life memory. With the Mᴀʜᴀɴᴛᴀ’s help, this recognition helped me release a hidden burden I had unknowingly carried with me.

Now I know that life doesn’t end with death. Soul is eternal. Every experience in this life and past lives can help me take another step closer to becoming a Coworker with God.

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Is There Spiritual Life after Death?

Life After Death

Life-after-Death Encounters

By Jack Lile

I was to be the cleric for a local Light and Sound service and thought it best to get a haircut. My longtime barber had translated (passed on) unexpectedly. His shop partner, Cheryl, had cut my hair on occasion, so I switched to her.

When I sat down in her barber chair, Cheryl asked the usual question: “How do you want your hair cut?”

I replied, “Just a light trim” and then added, “I’ll be wearing a suit this weekend and want to look nice.”

Even as these words were coming out of my mouth, I wondered, Why am I saying this?

I was soon to learn the answer.

Cheryl’s Spiritual Questions

Of course, Cheryl asked why the suit, and we spent the next thirty minutes talking about Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ. She fired off some of the usual questions:

1. “Is it Christian based?“

“No, Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ is not a Christian-based religion.”

2. “Do you believe in God?“

“Yes, we believe in God.”

3. “How would you describe God?”

Knowing of her background in Catholicism, where God is described with the attributes of omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence, I replied, “God cannot really be compared to anything in the human experience except that of love. In the ECK teachings, we simply say God is love.”

4. “Do you believe Jesus was the Son of God?”

“A son of God, but not the one and only son of God. We believe Jesus was a mortal man who had a spiritual mission to teach the love of God for mankind.”

5. “Do we have a Soul?”

“You don’t have a Soul, you are Soul. Soul is who and what you truly are, and as Soul you are eternal. Soul exists because God loves It (you).”

The Big Questions: Karma, Reincarnation & Soul

Other topics were sprinkled throughout our conversation. We talked about karma and reincarnation before getting around to the really big questions. “What’s it all about? Why are we here?” Cheryl then asked.

I compared Soul to a very young child who only wants to serve itself by having fun and avoiding responsibility. So, like children, Soul has to go to “school” (also unwillingly) to learn the many lessons necessary to grow into maturity. Earth is such a school, and all of the necessary lessons are not learned in a single day or lifetime.

We played with the school metaphor for a while, and I introduced the concept of being a Coworker with God. I gave examples of some historical figures who gave service. She thought about it and then asked, “But when do you get to rest?”

I almost chuckled at the seriousness of her tone and replied with my own question: “When have you been the most happy?”

That question seemed to take her aback, so I followed with, “Were you most happy lying around doing nothing, or when you were doing something you love?”

She replied enthusiastically, “Yes, with other people.” Then I suggested that could be one aspect of being a Coworker with God.

Until this point, our conversation was mostly along a philosophical vein. Then Cheryl asked a question that was going to lead to a deeply personal revelation: “Do people reincarnate together and maintain a relationship?”

“Yes, through the bond of karma or the bond of love. But the nature of the relationships will change—as a mother one time and then as the daughter or son the next. There are many possibilities, but usually love is the bond.”

Life-after-Death Encounters

By now, my haircut was finished. I was getting ready to leave, when Cheryl began to tell me her story.

She had twin daughters, Kathy and Katie, but Katie died from leukemia two years ago at the age of twenty-one. About a month after her passing, Cheryl awoke one morning at three o’clock with the full awareness that Katie had been there to say good-bye, as she was moving on.

Cheryl told me there was a most beautiful fragrance in the room. She got up and walked throughout the house, but the aroma was only in her bedroom. Too excited to sleep, she waited four hours to call Kathy, her other daughter, who was away at college.

As soon as Kathy answered the phone, Cheryl started to tell her what had happened. But Kathy quickly blurted out her story:

“Mom, you’ll never believe this, but Katie was here in my room last night. She was pulling on my toe to wake me up like she used to do when we were kids. I kicked her hand away, because I have a test this morning and needed to sleep, but she kept pulling. I finally woke up.

“She was here to tell me good-bye. The room was filled with a heavenly scent. Even my roommate could smell it when she woke up. Mom, it was real! Katie was real!”

Cheryl and Kathy knew that Katie, as Soul, survived death. The bond of love brought her back to say good-bye.

Since Katie’s visit, mother and daughter have been trying to find that fragrance in perfumes and other scents, but nothing comes close.

Usually I let my hair get rather long, but now I can’t wait for my next haircut so I can hear the rest of their story.

Would you like to read more? View the free Eᴄᴋᴀɴᴋᴀʀ Soul Adventure Magazine or subscribe now.