In Through the Gates of Death (1932), renowned occultist Dion Fortune tears away the veil that modern society has draped over death and dares to unveil the secret rites, cosmic truths, and mystical realities of the dying process. This work isn’t about morbid curiosity—it’s about reclaiming the ancient, forbidden knowledge that can prepare us for the ultimate transformation: the soul’s transition into the unseen.

Fortune draws from her deep roots in Western esotericism, Theosophy, and psychic science to explore death as an initiatory rite, rather than a final end. She presents death not as a punishment, but as a sacred gateway—a cosmic threshold that has been misrepresented by religious institutions and materialistic science alike.

Key themes explored in this metaphysical guide include:

• The occult anatomy of death, detailing the separation of body and soul, the role of the "Great Anaesthetist," and the emergence of the Body of Light
  

• The death-bed experience from a clairvoyant and psychic perspective, including how fear, ignorance, and grief can hinder or assist the soul's journey
  

• The hidden influence of ancient Egyptian initiations, in which neophytes ritually underwent death to conquer fear and glimpse the afterlife
  

• Chapters on Purgatory, the Heaven-world, and the astral planes, each treated as real and navigable dimensions of consciousness
  

• The importance of psychic training, showing how awareness beyond the physical body allows some to die consciously, passing into the next world in full lucidity
  

• Guidance on how the living can help or hinder the dead, including warnings against necromantic practices and unhealthy emotional attachments
  

• A compassionate exploration of grief, mourning, and spiritual responsibility, recasting our role from mourners to guardians of the soul’s passage
  

Fortune's chapters—such as Helping or Hindering the Dead, Crossing the Threshold, The Hidden Side of Death, and Communication With the Departed—offer a blueprint of consciousness across the veil, mapping the esoteric geography of life beyond death. She seamlessly integrates personal clairvoyant insights with Hermetic and mystical traditions, providing a manual for initiates, mystics, and spiritual seekers who wish to understand what lies ahead—and how to meet it with strength and serenity.

Most strikingly, she calls upon us not only to understand death, but to assist the dying as occult midwives, guiding them with psychic love, inner light, and silent strength. The departed, Fortune reminds us, are never truly gone—they return, reincarnate, and sometimes whisper from the astral shores.

This book is a rare and vital text of forbidden gnosis, reminding us that death is neither terror nor void, but a cosmic rite of passage deeply encoded in the ancient mysteries. A must-read for anyone seeking the hidden knowledge of the afterlife.