Can a soul die before the body?

Observation teaches me that bird, and beast, and flower,

And every creeping thing, which now possesses living power,

Will truly, in another form, enjoy a higher state—

For nothing, which has life below will God annihilate.

What the soul is to the man, such is instinct to the beast—

And if we hold that one will live when from the earth released,

Why then this rule will also in the other case apply—

For reason teaches me that soul or instinct cannot die!

But that which is repugnant now unto the mortal eyes,

Will, in this blessed world of peace, become most spiritualised—

And all things hideous to the gaze a different look will wear,

As the undying soul unfolds within these mansions fair.

I know that many earthly minds will ridicule the thought

That God has not a single bird, or beast, or flower, forgot—

That He, who, without notice, would not let a sparrow fall,

Has, in a brighter realm beyond, provided for them all!

But as the soul's interior powers develop and expand,

As it unfolds in love and truth within the Spirit Land,

It then will better be prepared to comprehend and see

What now appears so deeply wrapped in doubt and mystery!

Twelve Messages from the spirit of John Quincy Adams