What did you think about reincarnation before it started feeling real?
- Thread starter Sarellah
- Start date
Red Night
Senior Registered
Personally, I've never not believed in reincarnation. I saw a documentary probably about five on children who remember their past lives and was extremely jealous that I couldn't remember mine. I had a few moments after that where I believed I might have been in certain places at certain times, but nothing really stuck with me and until I was about fourteen the whole idea sort of just sat in the back of my head, nice and calm. In middle school I learned about the Holocaust and I was greatly affected by it. It was then that I knew where my last life had taken place. It hit me like a bag of rocks. And I'm not a very empathetic person to most things. I'm know for being cold and uncaring (isn't that wonderful?!), so I knew there was something behind what I was feeling. It was too strong, and still is, to ignore.
Whippoorwill
Senior Registered
I've always believed too, it was just something inside me from a very young age. I've had feelings I couldn't explain from early childhood, but it was only last year that things really started to fall into place and I had confirmation of a name and other details. The funny thing is that I'm struggling more now than I was before! Now I have some kind of "proof" I find I'm more worried that I'm making it all up! I suppose it's because it just means so much more to me now, I'm more involved and at a greater risk of disappointment. Some days I believe, some days I think my memories are false. Things were simpler before I started to remember, but I wouldn't go back to not knowing, I've had so much comfort from understanding the things that are affecting me in this life.
I have always believed in it. I always thought it could be possible.Sarellah said:
Ever since I had my near death experience when I was 6, I have always felt like I didn't have "my own" soul. Kind of like a never ending soul identity crisis. I know that sounds crazy, but true.
tanguerra
Moderator Emeritus
I've had past life memories as long as I can remember. I still vividly remember my first day of kindergarten when I encountered other children who had no idea what I was talking about and first realized this was 'not normal'.
I wrote about it here: First day of kindergarten
In my avatar image, the first set of eyes was taken that day, or soon after - a kindergarten portrait. I'm thinking 'OK, I can play along here'.
It wasn't until I was about 14 when I found a book 'Life after life' about near death experiences and reincarnation, etc. that finally the penny dropped and I realised what was going on. I realised I wasn't nuts, or had an overactive imagination or anything like that, but that what I was experiencing were memories ... just as I'd always thought they were.
This is another account from a little while after this. The first time I heard bagpipes in real life it really 'did something to me'. I didn't really know why at the time. I have much better idea nowadays.... First time I heard bagpipes
I'm pretty sure they were playing Scotland the Brave. It still makes the hair come up on the back of my neck to this day. There was a bit when they were tuning up, then there's a bit where the drums come in. This can't possibly capture the real life experience, but it brings it back to me all the same. I can still smell the pop corn and hear the kids squealing on the ferris wheel.
I remember it to this day how I saw them twirling the sticks on the drums as they marched by not two feet from my nose as I was pressed up against the wire fence of the arena. They had fur or something on their drumsticks and they were all in costume, kilts swinging in time to the music. I went weak at the knees.
I wrote about it here: First day of kindergarten
In my avatar image, the first set of eyes was taken that day, or soon after - a kindergarten portrait. I'm thinking 'OK, I can play along here'.
It wasn't until I was about 14 when I found a book 'Life after life' about near death experiences and reincarnation, etc. that finally the penny dropped and I realised what was going on. I realised I wasn't nuts, or had an overactive imagination or anything like that, but that what I was experiencing were memories ... just as I'd always thought they were.
This is another account from a little while after this. The first time I heard bagpipes in real life it really 'did something to me'. I didn't really know why at the time. I have much better idea nowadays.... First time I heard bagpipes
I'm pretty sure they were playing Scotland the Brave. It still makes the hair come up on the back of my neck to this day. There was a bit when they were tuning up, then there's a bit where the drums come in. This can't possibly capture the real life experience, but it brings it back to me all the same. I can still smell the pop corn and hear the kids squealing on the ferris wheel.
I remember it to this day how I saw them twirling the sticks on the drums as they marched by not two feet from my nose as I was pressed up against the wire fence of the arena. They had fur or something on their drumsticks and they were all in costume, kilts swinging in time to the music. I went weak at the knees.
Owl
Super-alt Mitglied
This is a good thread.
No, reincarnation never felt "false" to me, although before consciously getting into it I just considered it another theory of what happens after death. It made more sense than other theories, sure, but before having validated memories I had no way and no reason to believe in it more than in others except because I found it more plausible.
No, reincarnation never felt "false" to me, although before consciously getting into it I just considered it another theory of what happens after death. It made more sense than other theories, sure, but before having validated memories I had no way and no reason to believe in it more than in others except because I found it more plausible.
HeatherMarie
New Member
Growing up in a Christian Scientist home I believed in God per se, but I never believed in any sort of afterlife that the religion teaches. After about 12 or 13 I started to denounce God and religion and decided I was an Atheist. I didn't believe in reincarnation, I had a vague understanding of it, I didn't believe in anything supernatural either. Then a few months ago I watched some Buddhist on YouTube talk about karma and that lead to watching him talk about past lives, next thing I knew I was watching "past life regression" videos. I was in utter awe of the stories people had about their past lives. For a while I forgot about it and then started researching more and decided to join the forum. (sorry about my grammar)
Although a lot of spiritual people (Buddhist's too) say you should focus on the here & now I can't help but obsess with it. It's amazing. Learning about other people's past lives has made me question if I was right to become an Atheist. Now I feel really unsure. I have yet to discover mine. What is truth?
Although a lot of spiritual people (Buddhist's too) say you should focus on the here & now I can't help but obsess with it. It's amazing. Learning about other people's past lives has made me question if I was right to become an Atheist. Now I feel really unsure. I have yet to discover mine. What is truth?
BriarRose
Senior Registered
Truth, for me, is so subjective, that it's almost undefinable. I don't think you can prove the existence of the Divine with logical deduction. Some scientists say that humans have a "god center" in the brain that hard wires us for belief. I think the accounts of "Near Death Experiences" are a better proof of the continued existence of the soul, and of God, than reincarnation memories.I have had the same feelings of "angst" in the past about belief that you have. I need meaning and purpose in my life, not to live in a random universe where nothing we do has meaning. Anyway, I can't think of anything less random than the design of the universe! In the end, belief is a choice. Are you "wrong" to be an atheist? Of course not. I've never read an NDE account about an atheist being punished by a vengeful Deity. You can choose to "believe" or not. Forum members hold both points of view, and a few in between.
Nightrain
Senior Registered
Your reflections concerning the correctness of being an Atheist struck a note with me because I think we are all somewhat distracted from the "truth" by labeling ourselves. Our culture, indeed all cultures are prone to forcing us to declare ourselves by our beliefs as to whether we are Atheist, Christian, Muslim, Jew, Protestant, Buddhist, Deist, Pagan, Fundamentalist, Conservative, Jansenist, etc. This is especially troubling to me, because within each label there exists more divisions, each with their own dogma. And, when it comes to the subject of Reincarnation, you will find the same propensity for labeling which exists in the general population. There are people, for example, who believe in Reincarnation but do not believe in God. And, although Fundamental Christianity and Orthodox Judaism have declared Reincarnation off limits, one can find groups within who actively support the belief.HeatherMarie said:Learning about other people's past lives has made me question if I was right to become an Atheist. Now I feel really unsure. I have yet to discover mine. What is truth?
What I am suggesting is that the act of labeling oneself is unnecessary, and even counterproductive. I further believe that seeking the truth through dogma of any kind can only be a fruitless quest, because truth can only be found by having an open but critical mind.
I very much agree with Owl, for a long time it was just another theory of what happens after death, but one with a lot more evidence going for it. Then, getting a few things from meditation that backed up my hunches, it all got very real. It took a while for me to integrate this new reality into my world view, which was admittedly a bit of a painful process involving a lot of deep thinking, but I got there in the end.Owl said:
I would like to say don’t worry. There are plenty of other Atheists here on the forum. Atheism just means not believing in God and/or Gods, even without deities you can still have a strong spiritual belief system. I used to call myself a Pagan, but now call my self Pantheist, which is essentially ‘spiced-up Atheism’ (to paraphrase Richard DawkinsHeatherMarie said:
). For me, the Universe is sacred and nature is devine, although I generally live my life as an Agnostic as to the nature or existence of 'God' in the traditional sense 
There is nothing wrong with being Atheist or Agnostic or Christian or Pagan or Buddhist or whatever, just follow the path that feels right for you. But ultimately, like NightTrain says, you have to come to your own explanation and understanding of things. Remaining open yet critical is the key to understanding
the 'label' of 'religion' is only really of use to succinctly explain your beliefs to other people
Eowyn
Wrought out of steel
I also thought this until I stumbled across a lot of people who have suffered a NDE and still believe they'll wait in Heaven like angels playing the harp after their deaths, as if there's nothing else to do than living one life and find punish or reward according to your doings. What led me to think that when you have a NDE you only have glimpses of the afterlife and it's hard to know if there's really a survival of the soul or if it's only a momentary survival of consciousness, that could well fade away moments after the "complete" death of the body.BriarRose said:
And I was also shocked when I discovered quite a lot of these people hadn't even considered the idea of reincarnation, some think it's like "recycling" something, some wonder how your father can be your sister in your next life, others just dismiss it because it's not what their religions say, while they believe they have been "chosen" by God to have the experience or receive some kind of message.
On the contrary, imo, having past lives memories is a better proof of the continued existence of the soul. After discarding all other possible scientific explanations that's the one theory that explains not only reincarnation but many other paranormal phenomema. It gives you a lot of understanding and a wider view of the possible meaning of life.
As for my beliefs, I totally agree with Owl. It was just a theory, read a lot of books about it, but until you don't have memories you don't feel how "real" it is. It's when things really start to change deep inside and when you realize religions are not important at all, we all are joined by stronger bonds that go far beyond those conceptions.Owl said:
Totally agreed here too.Nightrain said:
Truth is inside of us. No need to look elsewhere.
BriarRose
Senior Registered
Well said, Gentlemen. It's hard for me to grapple with the meaning of life before breakfast. That being said, while I have a general belief in a Deity, and Cosmic design, I don't pretend to understand the nature of God. I don't discount the possibility that reality, as we know it, is a vast and complex computer program. In other words, I believe in God, and a purposeful creation, but have no idea as to how that is accomplished, or by whom. I agree about the problem of labels - I'm sure there is no organized religion that would accept me, nor would I want to be part of one. The whole topic very much revolves around a personal belief system, and how, and where, each soul arrives at a conclusion that satisfies them. I do, however, feel the need to look for truth outside myself. It's very, very possible that there are people who know more than I do, and I want to know what they think. An open mind has to go both ways in the debate about the "God Force". For, and against.
Rustic_Kid
New Member
Yeah before I ever gave reincarnation the idea that it could be real I always thought it just might be my imagination. Or maybe just me trying to make sense out of nonsense. I've been looking back a lot lately on what may very well be memories I have all this time. I've even found some things that show some of them to be quite possible. Even then, I guess a change in my thinking from all this time of not knowing and believing would help. Not that I don't believe, it's just after not having done so, it's still a process. Hope this helps out!
BriarRose
Senior Registered
In the case of NDEs, that is by definition, a "near death" experience, not a total immersion. We may, at least initially, see what we expect to see. Every experience has to be taken on "faith" at some point. None of us has one shred of objective evidence about any opinions or memories that we present on this forum. We all state our "memories", and everyone else takes them on faith. I have been reading Michael Newton, and his are the first books I've read on the subject that strike me as improbable. Even then, there were things that felt like "truth". I also thought that there was no way that he could "prove" that the regressions he did weren't "faked". He could present tapes, but so what? Actors are very good at making those sound "real". In the end, I will read a few more of his books, consider what he says, and then accept it or not, depending on a leap of faith. Really, where does a belief in past lives come from? Your own "memories"? I'm sorry, but our ego filter often distorts current life memories, at least for adults. Why wouldn't it do the same for past life ones? I give all members' "memories" the benefit of the doubt and try to respond to their posts courteously. (although some times I fail!). I do this because I choose to have an open mind, and take reincarnation on a "leap of faith."
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Very true. Every discussion/argument/viewpoint etc has both sides, for and against. Unless we learn the other viewpoints, to at least understand where the other side is coming from, we can never truly understand the whole of something. Also, there is only so far we can get from looking 'inside' ourselves, we need to look outside for information too. The 'truth' is how we interpret that information. By reading and seeking knowledge from others we are standing on the shoulders of giants.BriarRose said:
HeatherMarie
New Member
I totally agree with you and BriarRose too! I sort of envy people who have a "relationship" with a "higher being" ... that would be so special. Thanks for the responses guys.Nightrain said:
tanguerra
Moderator Emeritus
Well said Mama.Mama2HRB said:
Personally, I don't see that any of this has anything to do or not do with any deities. I think this is a 'natural' thing. This doesn't mean that God (however you conceive Her) isn't intrinsically involved in anything and everything natural. Of course she is. I just don't see what any of this has got to do with religion, of whatever flavour.
BriarRose
Senior Registered
I don't think religion and reincarnation are necessarily connected, but, as Mama was saying, many people have an already existing religious belief system. When they encounter reincarnation, they have to find a way to reconcile the two, or are forced to discard some of the beliefs they were taught, or hold dear. I have never seen a conflict between reincarnation and a belief in the Divine. Anything that comes from the "Creator" is, as you say, "natural". I also see no conflict with a respect for science, or the scientific method, and a belief in the "Divine". But, science is not a "god", to be followed blindly, and to be worshiped. I don't even think "God" wants that. I believe he wants us to engage in intelligent examination of our beliefs, because he is evolving along with us. If that is heresy, and offense to anyone, I profoundly apologize - it is just my opinion. As I've said before, everything we espouse here on the forum involves a "leap of faith", in reincarnation, and each other.