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In last week’s blog, I wrote about the rose bush that I planted in Craig’s honor, on the second anniversary of his crossing. Here I will tell you how he “guided” me to select that precise plant. In order to do so, we need to talk about the “bardo space.” I don’t know about you, but I had never heard of the “bardo” until 2 years ago when I had a “conversation” with Craig through a gifted medium, right after he died.
Since then, I have been conducting my own personal survey and I have only encountered two individuals who were aware of the place or term referred to as the “bardo.” I am going to assume that you, like the majority I questioned, don’t know what it is either. So…I did what any normal person would do; I Googled it. I first Googled “barto” and eventually discovered and tried the correct “bardo.” This is what I found:
Wikipedia: Used loosely, “bardo” is the state of existence intermediate between two lives on earth. According to Tibetan tradition, after death and before one’s next birth, when one’s consciousness is not connected with a physical body, one experiences a variety of phenomena.
Spiritual Travel.org: The realm of the afterlife is called the world of the bardo. The term bardo is a general term which literally means “in-between place” and in this context denotes a transitional state. The bardo concept is an umbrella term which includes the transitional states of birth, death, dream, transmigration or afterlife, meditation, and spiritual luminosity. For the dying individual, the bardo is the period of the afterlife that lies in between two different incarnations.
The medium told me a little about the bardo indicating that everybody goes there, before they are born and after they die. She said you usually need to give the deceased 3 days after they depart this earth, and they come face to face with their own soul and experience their life review in the bardo. She said there is no judgement. You merely ask yourself, “How could I have been more loving to myself and others?”
Craig said the bardo is a time of introspection, a time to make new choices. He said one of the choices he made in the bardo was to work with me while I was still on the earth. And, voila, here I am bringing these messages to you.
During a conversation with one of my dear friends, she asked me if I had read, Lincoln in the Bardo? Little did she know that she was to be part of my survey questioning the “bardo.” I made one of those surprised choking noises you make when someone startles you with a question. I was shocked to hear the first person use the word “bardo” and was stunned that there was a book with it in the title. So, I Googled it. This is what I found:
Lincoln in the Bardo is a novel based on the true story of the death of William Wallace “Willie” Lincoln, a son of United States President Abraham Lincoln. In 1862, Willie Lincoln died of typhoid fever at the age of 11. The novel opens in the bardo, which is an intermediary state between life and the afterlife. The bulk of the novel, which takes place over the course of a single evening, is set in the bardo.
Of course, I immediately purchased the audio book and listened to the entire recording in 3 days – just like the time spent in the bardo space! Having taught American history at the high school level, being a President Lincoln fan who visited the Lincoln Memorial, and having toured all the Civil War sights – I loved the book! I found it fascinating and thought provoking. The history is all documented, and the end of the book made the hair on my arms stand on end.
In one of my readings with Craig, I specifically asked him about the Lincoln in the Bardo book. I asked him if the basis of the novel was legitimate? He said yes and that I should contact the author, George Saunders, and let him know how much I enjoyed his book. And I did. And he responded back to me, thanked me, and instructed me to say hello to Craig!
My sessions with the medium are recorded and I listen to them while I work out. The day that I bought the rose bush to plant in honor of Craig’s crossing, I was listening to the recording where we were discussing the Lincoln in the Bardo book.
After my workout, I went to Home Depot to purchase the rose bush. Once I was there, I was overwhelmed with all the selections. I don’t know anything about roses, other than I love them. The majority of roses had big tags with the name “Don Juan” on them, which did not resonate with me. I was then directed to one rose bush, the only one of its kind, and the tag said, “Mister Lincoln.” I knew that was the one!
Please share any stories of your own on how you were guided from above.