When a person dies, the body and the spirit separate.  The body stays with the physical earth and the spirit returns to the astral plane. Upon returning to the astral plane the person/fragment is greeted, cared for, and nurtured by other spiritual beings.

After death the person (or fragment) gets debriefed. The length of time of the debriefing depends on what the person or fragment expects in the afterlife and what type of life they have lived. For those who expect a heaven or a hell, they will experience such. The length of time for the debriefing is different for each person.

After the person/fragment has experienced what they expected to experience, and then been debriefed, the fragment can then evaluate and assess their life. The fragment can evaluate their experiences, the lessons learned, and when the fragment is ready, the fragment will once again begin the process to prepare for the next physical life experience. This is called reincarnation and this provides the opportunity for continued life progression and provides the continued opportunity and variety needed to learn and grow.

The fragment will then determine what experiences are desired or needed, what karmic debts needed to be repaid, and preparations once again begin.The average time lapse between incarnations in physical time is often a couple of hundred years, but this elapsed time may be less or more depending on the desire of the fragment. (Pontius Pilot, for example, has not reincarnated since his lifetime experience with Jesus).

Why Do Fragments Reincarnate to the Physical Plane?

Some life lessons and some karma can be paid off on the astral plane, but for the most part, the easier and better process is via the physical plane and through a physical lifetime incarnation. As a result, the desire to return to the physical plane and build upon your last incarnation is highly desired. This desire to return to the physical plane continues until a fragment starts to feel the pull and desire to join with other fragments and move to the next level, which is the mid-causal plane.

What happens in a near death experience?

A person experiences their energy body temporarily leaving the physical body and retaining the memory of the experience.