Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 320
320 passed a decree of death, but sendeth the others back till a time that is fixed. Herein are signs for those who reflect. ' 154 That is to say, the connection of the soul is tem- porarily severed from the body even in sleep and the conditions of the life after death may be perceived on this analogy. As this separation is temporary, the soul retains its connection with the brain, through which man is enabled to remember what the soul has experienced during its separation from the body. The Holy Quran says: 'Herein are signs for those who reflect,' that is to say, man can derive many bene- fits from a study of this condition, for, he can under- stand the nature and actions of the soul and its condition after death. In sleep, the body reposes comfortably in bed, yet man sees himself in other forms and visits various places. The things which he sees in his dreams have bodies like the bodies of material objects, some- times so perfect that they leave behind evidence of their physical nature on the body of man, a fact well-known to those who have experience of such matters. I myself have experienced this many times. Once, I was fasting and began to feel very thirsty. When my thirst became intolerable, I prayed to God, and as a result of the prayer, I entered a state of light sleep when something was put into my mouth which had the effect of allaying my thirst. This condition lasted only for a second, but I found I no longer suffered 154 Al-Zumar, 39:43.