Allan Kardec-THE Spirit's Book_ The Principles of Spiritist Doctrine (1989)

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ALLAN KARDEC
remain with him to the last moment, encourage him, and often even follow him in his new
life."
343. Is it the spirit-friends who thus follow us in our earthly life that we sometimes see in our
dreams manifesting affection for us, but whose features are unknown to us?
"Yes, in very many cases; they come to visit you as you visit a prisoner in his cell."
Union of Soul and Body
344. At what moment is the soul united to the body?
"The union begins at the moment of conception, but is only complete at the moment of birth.
From the moment of conception, the spirit designated to inhabit a given body is united to that
body by a fluidic link, which becomes closer and closer up to the instant of birth; the cry then
uttered by the infant announces that he is numbered among the living."
345. Is the union between the spirit and the body definitive from the moment of conception?
Could the spirit, during this first period of that union, renounce inhabiting the body designed
for him?
"The union between them is definitive in this sense namely, that no other spirit could replace
the one who has been designated for that body. But, as the links which hold them together are
at first very weak, they are easily broken, and may be severed by the will of a spirit who
draws back from the trial he had chosen. But, in that case, the child does not live."
346. What becomes of a spirit, if the body he has chosen happens to die before birth?
"He chooses another body."
- What can be the use of premature deaths?
"Such deaths are most frequently caused by the imperfections of matter."
347. What benefit can a spirit derive from his incarnation in a body which dies a few' days
after birth?
"In such a case, the new being's consciousness of his existence is so slightly developed that
his death is of little importance. As we have told you, such deaths are often intended mainly
as a trial for the parents."