Is your soul the same as your higher self? How responsible is one’s soul and/or higher self for the actions one takes while incarnating on earth? – Carrie
The higher self is your soul, yes. The way it was given to me to understand is that Source creates tendrils of loving consciousness and those tendrils are the various souls that exist in the ether.
A soul can choose to incarnate to experience life on Earth, or it can choose to stay on the other side and experience an energetic existence.
For those souls who choose to incarnate, they do so to experience what life in a flesh and blood body feels like. They incarnate knowing that when they are born they will forget their energetic existence for a little while and fully immerse themselves in the life of a human being.
As you have no doubt noticed from living here for a while, humans take various actions. Some acts are kind, caring and compassionate. Some actions are mean, hurtful, and abusive.
At all times, we are responsible for the actions we take. Specifically we are responsible for the consequences we manifest as a result of actions we take.
First there are the human, earthly consequences like if you murder someone you will probably go to jail. If you find a missing pet, maybe you end up with a small monetary reward. Society has built in consequences.
When you get to the other side, you will go through a life review where you will see the effect you had on pretty much everything and everyone in your life. You will see how your actions harmed or helped others, you will see the part you played in creating your life and the lives of those close to you. You will know how others felt around you and in their interactions with you.
If you did mean and hurtful things, you will likely feel a deep regret. You will understand on a deep level that you hurt the whole of humanity, the collective conscious, the other tendrils of loving Source energy and you will wish you hadn’t.
But if you’re expecting to be punished for the actions of your human self, that’s not going to happen. The other side is not about retribution, punishment, or atoning for sins. It’s about forgiveness and understanding.
I realize that this concept flies in the face of what we are taught while here on Earth, where punishment follows crimes, where you are judged by society, by humanity, and possibly by a judge or jury of your peers.
On the other side, the soul accepts that it has transgressed against other souls or against the planet, and it feels regret, sadness, and pain for the damage it caused. It vows to learn to do better, to work on having more positive experiences, and to make a more positive impact. But it knows better than to wallow in grief or self-flagellation. It forgives.
One day that soul may choose to incarnate again, under different circumstances and to experience different things. There is a supreme reverence for life on the other side, and when your soul returns and you regain all your memories, and you watch and experience your life review, you will remember that you are a loving tendril of Source consciousness and that you did the best you could with the life you had.
With every incarnation you get to touch another aspect of creation. In some lives you will be amazing, and in others your circumstances may drive you to dark places. But always, on the other side, there is forgiveness, understanding and acceptance.
