Journey of Souls
| Original title | Journey of Souls |
|---|---|
| Subtitle | Case Studies of Life Between Lives |
| Author | Michael Newton |
| Publisher | Llewellyn Publications |
| Year of publication | 1994 (May) |
| ISBN | 978-1-56718-485-3 |
| Original language | English |
| Number of cases | 29 |
Journey of Souls (subtitled Case Studies of Life Between Lives) is the first book by the American hypnotherapist Michael Newton, published in May 1994 by Llewellyn Publications. It is based on 29 hypnotic regression sessions in which Newton's clients, in trance, recalled their past lives and the "life between lives" — the interval between incarnations. The book launched the Life Between Lives method and became an international bestseller.
Content
The book is built as a series of 29 "cases": the author (referred to in the text as "Dr. N.") presents transcripts of dialogues with clients ("subjects") immersed in a deep hypnotic state that Newton calls the "superconscious." From these accounts he constructs a coherent picture of the soul's path after death: passage through the "gateway" into the Spirit World, meeting with a spirit guide, review of the life just lived, return to one's soul group, appearing before the Council, and selection of the next life.
Newton describes the structure of the mind as three levels: the conscious, the subconscious (memory of past lives), and the superconscious — the "higher center of wisdom":
- "The superconscious is not really a level at all but the soul itself."
Key concepts
The book first sets out systematically the concepts that became the foundation of Newton's method (presented as his own model):
- Spirit World (spirit world) — the world to which, according to Newton, the soul goes between incarnations;
- superconscious — the state in which, according to Newton, the "memories of the soul" become accessible;
- spirit guides (spirit guide; in book translations, "Guide") — highly developed guides assigned to a soul; the hierarchy runs junior → senior → Master guide;
- soul groups — primary (a close-knit cluster of typically 3–25 related souls) and secondary (a grouping of primary groups);
- Council of Elders — an assembly of highly developed beings (usually three to seven) before which the soul appears between lives;
- soul levels — six levels, to which aura colors are assigned (from white in beginners to blue-violet in "masters");
- selection of a future life — a preview of options for the future body.
Significance
Journey of Souls is a foundational text of the field. Over 700,000 copies have been sold in English alone; the book has remained among the bestsellers of its field for decades and has been translated into many languages. On the basis of the method set out in it, Newton in 2002 founded the organization now known as The Newton Institute.
Editions
The original — Llewellyn Publications, 1994 (ISBN 978-1-56718-485-3). It has been published in many languages.
Sources
- Michael Newton. Journey of Souls. Llewellyn Publications, 1994.
- The book's page at the publisher — Llewellyn Worldwide (EAN/ISBN 9781567184853)
- The Newton Institute — newtoninstitute.org