Reincarnation: How has it transformed your life?

[ZephyrusX]

Just a general open-ended question: how has your belief in reincarnation changed the way you perceive and interact with the world? I’m interested in how people perceive their reality and how they interact with the world via beliefs. I’m not so interested in the validity of reincarnation.

If you are confused, consider the following questions: How has the belief in reincarnation changed the way you interact with others? How has it changed your goals and sense of purpose in life? How has it changed the way you perceive your self?

It would be helpful if you gave a short explanation as to why you began exploring reincarnation in the first place.

Just a disclaimer: I don’t actually believe in reincarnation my self. The issue isn’t about whether or not reincarnation actually exists, but rather it is a failure to find a utility in such a belief. Even if I do reincarnate, it doesn’t change the fact that I am living in the present moment. I’ve simply never came a cross a personal reason to take reincarnation seriously I guess... But that will make your responses all the more interesting to me.

[Anagogy]

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

Just a general open-ended question: how has your belief in reincarnation changed the way you perceive and interact with the world? I’m interested in how people perceive their reality and how they interact with the world via beliefs. I’m not so interested in the validity of reincarnation.

The idea of reincarnation brings peace to my mind. To think that when you die, you would never get to enjoy any of the wonderful physical sensations this world has to offer our consciousness makes me feel.....not so good.

Reincarnation takes the pressure off this life being the only chance to experience the lessons physical reality has to offer to its fullest potential. I find that I enjoy what life has to offer far more when I don't feel pressured to "get it all done now".

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

If you are confused, consider the following questions: How has the belief in reincarnation changed the way you interact with others? How has it changed your goals and sense of purpose in life? How has it changed the way you perceive your self?

It would be helpful if you gave a short explanation as to why you began exploring reincarnation in the first place.

My belief in reincarnation has made me feel more kinship with other cultures because I feel I've been a part of them, every one, every nationality, every religion. I feel more sympathy and compassion for those who are different because I know that I could just have easily have incarnated into their life circumstances rather than the one I presently enjoy.

I began exploring the concept of reincarnation because I was dissatisfied with Christianity. It just didn't feel right to me. It felt off, from an intuitive perspective. It was almost like I could remember before this life, and I knew it didn't actually work that way (or most of the ways that it was being promulgated to me). I knew life was more forgiving than one shot to get it all right or screw it up for eternity. When I discovered reincarnation it was definitely an "aha, I remember now!" type of moment.

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

Just a disclaimer: I don’t actually believe in reincarnation my self. The issue isn’t about whether or not reincarnation actually exists, but rather it is a failure to find a utility in such a belief. Even if I do reincarnate, it doesn’t change the fact that I am living in the present moment. I’ve simply never came a cross a personal reason to take reincarnation seriously I guess... But that will make your responses all the more interesting to me.

You live in the present moment. This is true, however, the NOW is always changing. What is reincarnation, but the process of transformation? You reincarnate anew in every moment. You are never exactly as you were the moment before, even if the change is only slight. Reincarnation, in the classical sense, is simply a larger, more broad threshold of the change that is eternally occurring as your awareness gradually shapes the world you encounter.

Whether that be practical, I know not, but it is the truth from my perspective.

May I ask what you believe, if you do not believe in reincarnation?

[ZephyrusX]

I believe that our individual consciousness simply ‘disappears’ once our body dies. So I don’t believe in a soul as most people chose to define it (something that exists separately from the body and continues to exist after death - unless you want to call different streams of socialization and interrelationships as ‘souls’, but I don’t think most people see the concept of a soul as such… there is nothing individual and self-preserving about this latter view).

The idea of an ultimate death accentuates the preciousness of human life for me. It is unfair that some people die young, but that only motivates me to become more critically aware of my environment and my actions in the hopes of improving the quality and longevity of others lives. It has given me a purpose in life and behind my work. It also seems unfair that we only have one chance to make things good, and that if we mess things up, tough luck. There is no correcting your mistakes. But that motivates me to be more compassionate and understanding towards others. If I fu*k up somewhere in my life, I’d like to think someone would care enough to lend a helping hand so that I can get my life back on track and get the most out of it as possible. If not, I can always become the person who helps others.

The idea of death never seemed to really bother me that much (it is the pain and suffering of people dying that bothers me), which is a reason why I never really explored the validity of reincarnation in much detail. I realize that everything I appreciate about my self will go on living without me because these qualities are not at all unique and individual, and in some odd way, I find that comforting. Everyone has the capacity to see and construct beauty. Everyone has the capacity to be resilient in the face of hardship and turn a crappy, hard life into something powerful and constructive for the greater good. I see my one life as a unique opportunity to understand what it means to be human and I appreciate having that opportunity even though I‘ll be sad to let it go one day.

Just out of curiosity: did you ever reconcile Christianity with the idea of reincarnation? I faintly recall hearing that certain streams of Christianity are compatible with reincarnation.

[GeorgeMagister]

Reply is not endorsed by the author, left unedited for record.

Okay, here's a thoughtful engagement of your question:

I'll just preface my reply with the background minutiae that I'm in a place, right now, where I don't like the term "reincarnation". Skip the down to the quote box unless you really want to know the specifics, as it really isn't the focus of this thread.

I think that there is a duality of personal experience that is both ignorant to linear time and abides by it. In other words, if I can rationalize a paradigm where a soul has more than one incarnation, than it is of little value to a being to experience them all completely serially. The idea of a subsequent incarnation to a "current" one seems like a misguided normalization to a concept that exists outside of material experience.

I guess what I'm saying is that I feel I am a facet of a being that choose this disposition in space and time for myself with a logic beyond my understanding. My journey within this ego is not relatable to other incarnations in a temporal context. To this over-being all the facets are like limbs to a body. What I believe to be linear is that reconciling the sum of your experience with one's higher-self.

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

The issue isn’t about whether or not reincarnation actually exists, but rather it is a failure to find a utility in such a belief.

Are you seeking to confirm that with this thread or to prove it to yourself; or, were you just stating a belief of yours? Whatever the case is, I do take issue with that premise.

Possessing knowledge about something is a subjectively meaningful matter. An individual can apply a concept or realization and engineer a use for it, and for others to do the same wouldn't necessarily bear any meaning to them or be practical. There can be a utility to affirming "reincarnation", whatever permutation of the concept one could subscribe to, and that could be in seizing the present and one's own contemporary self, which seems to be tantamount to your rationale. Sure, someone could also shirk personal responsibility and accountability in their life and reason that, ultimately, their total experience will compensate for any failings and shortcomings. That would be a justification for a mechanism that exists independent of whatever their opinion of it is. Looking for a meaning in awareness of it or a utility of it that is universality binding will fail. That said, you cannot authoritatively tell someone that it doesn't have utility in their lives if they assert it does.

For example, I know that superfluidity exists, and the conditions that enable that state, but I know that it lacks any real utility for my life, as interesting as it is to my intellect. For others, it is relevant to their lives, be they engineers or researchers.

I didn't actually seek out the belief nor did I actively explore multiple incarnation. My sense of scientific reason and demystification of non-materially explored concepts helped me arrive at my conclusion that it could and probably does does exist.

It just happened and—as a consequence—did "[change my] goals and sense of purpose in life". Ironically, it accentuated the preciousness of life (further) for me, as well (the opposite idea made you arrive at the same sentiment); because it gave me a larger actionable stage to work with, working toward the positive. It motivates me even more to bring quality of life and light into the world of now. It also helps me evaluate the darker aspects of exerting will, without becoming completely cynical about the world. It is an aid to affirm that it isn't futile and arbitrary to work against proliferative self-interest and exploitation, even after this person that I am now kicks the bucket. It lets me know that an endgame is imperceptibly far off, and that is an exciting prospect.

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

There is no correcting your mistakes. But that motivates me to be more compassionate and understanding towards others. If I fu*k up somewhere in my life, I’d like to think someone would care enough to lend a helping hand so that I can get my life back on track and get the most out of it as possible.

The same could be true of someone that does see reincarnation as valid. It's not a belief or methodology exclusive to one camp.

Reincarnation isn't a requisite step to understanding the meaning of your own life; on the contrary, it is perfectly fine to be ignorant of it. I only happen to use it as a tool to examine continuity of meaning in my actions.

If it is case that multiple incarnations exist, I would venture that some souls would choose incarnations wherein knowing or believing in it isn't relevant to them.

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

I see my one life as a unique opportunity to understand what it means to be human and I appreciate having that opportunity even though I‘ll be sad to let it go one day.

Reincarnation doesn't necessarily negate this, either. The being that you are would cease. Your opinions, sentiments, and stream of consciousness would end. The "you" of this life indeed ceases. Therefore, its uniqueness is not lost with reincarnation in place. While the totality of it would never be lost, your will would merely be part of a manifold that is greater than your consciousness. Your existence would pass on in lieu of something not equivalent to you. I tell myself to cherish me as I am now, in the present, because it isn't forever and any aspect of mine's preservation is not manifest nor is it guaranteed.

[ZephyrusX]

Hmm… I’m a little confused by parts of your post GeorgeMagnus.

Looking for a meaning in awareness of it or a utility of it that is universality binding will fail. You can't authoritatively tell someone that it doesn't have utility in their lives if they assert it does.

I’m not looking for a utility behind reincarnation that is universally binding nor am I telling anyone that it doesn’t have a utility in their lives. I want the reader to tell me whether or not the concept of reincarnation has subjective meaning in their lives and what that meaning entails. I’m acting on the premise that the capacity to assign a personal utility to the concept of reincarnation will motivate the reader to self-validate its existence through whatever means chosen, whether it be research of the current literature or whatever. I’m also acting on the premise that the capacity to utilize the concept of reincarnation will motivate the reader to integrate the belief into his/her life in meaningful ways. The reason why I will not take the time to validate reincarnation and integrate it into my life meaningfully is because I cannot assign a purpose to it. That doesn’t mean that reincarnation doesn’t exist; it simply means that I chose to be ignorant of its validity. I share your opinion: One doesn't necessarily need to resort to a belief in reincarnation in order to understand their life.

I suppose the reason why I never bothered to modify my current beliefs is because I never saw a reason to do so. If I believe that we all ultimately die in the end and it doesn't bother me or impede me in anyway, why change the belief? Simply for the sake of knowing the truth? I can think of better ways of finding a truth of some matter that would have meaningful consequences in my life. Besides, as i've said before, I'm more interested in the reader's subjective understanding of the matter more so than the actual truth.

To put it another way: I want to know why other people are interested in reincarnation.

For example, I know that superfluidity exists, and the conditions that enable that state, but I know that it lacks any real utility for my life, as interesting as it is to my intellect. For others, it is relevant to their lives, be they engineers or researchers.

I didn't actually seek out the belief nor did I actively explore multiple incarnation. My sense of scientific reason and demystification of non-materially explored concepts helped me arrive at my conclusion that it could and probably does does exist.

What is your point exactly? I never said that reincarnation doesn’t exist because I personally cannot affix a utility onto it. I’ve read work by Stevenson and his predecessor and I honestly can’t see any reason to refute their work. I know, however, that any scientific claim requires replication by the scientific community in order to achieve credibility, but my personal research into the relevant literature stops there because I honestly don’t see the point in proving to my self that reincarnation exists. I’m curious to know the utility of reincarnation from the stand point of the reader simply because I enjoy hearing the range of subjective meaning attached to religious and spiritual concepts. Yes; technically if reincarnation does exist, it will influence my life regardless of what I think of it. But that is not what I’m interested in. I’m interested in the reader’s own subjective understanding of reincarnation.

The same could be true of someone that does see reincarnation as valid. It's not a belief or methodology exclusive to one camp.

No one ever said that it was a belief or methodology exclusive to one camp. I find it very interesting that we can arrive at similar outlooks via two totally different beliefs.

As for the rest of the post, thank you. I found it interesting.

[GeorgeMagister]

I’m a little confused by parts of your post GeorgeMagnus.

While I'm not confused by the text itself, I am a little dazed by my response's train of thought and how I strung it together. Posting after midnight does not agree with me, especially with a dialectic sort of discussion (which may have been the wrong horse to take today anyway). I should have sat on my reply until noon, it would have probably been more focused and coherent, so apologies there.

In the meantime, I wanted to at least address this part:

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

I never said that reincarnation doesn’t exist because I personally cannot affix a utility onto it. I’ve read work by Stevenson and his predecessor and I honestly can’t see any reason to refute their work.

And I rightfully didn't say this was what you meant. When I quoted you regarding that, I thought you were expressing that anyone finding utility in it was not possible, independent from whether or not an individual incorporates reincarnation to their beliefs. After the fact, I thought that you also could have meant something like: "[My] issue isn’t about whether or not reincarnation actually exists, but [rather that I would fail] to find a utility in such a belief."

In any case, I seemed to have invested too much time into my perception of that passage. It struck me in a way that was really compelling at the time. Sorry about that, I probably did the content of my post that you did find interesting a disservice, and should have elaborated on that portion further.

[ZephyrusX]

This is a little off topic, but that’s fine. I found the following passages most interesting in your original post.

I think that there is a duality of personal experience that is both ignorant to linear time and abides by it. In other words, if I can rationalize a paradigm where a soul has more than one incarnation, than it is of little value to a being to experience them all completely serially. The idea of a subsequent incarnation to a "current" one seems like a misguided normalization to a concept that exists outside of material experience.

I guess what I'm saying is that I feel I am a facet of a being that choose this disposition in space and time for myself with a logic beyond my understanding. My journey within this ego is not relatable to other incarnations in a temporal context. To this over-being all the facets are like limbs to a body. What I believe to be linear is that reconciling the sum of your experience with one's higher-self.

I’m not entirely sure that I completely understand what you mean though. Are you saying that the higher-self incarnates in multiple times and spaces simultaneously? And that incarnation A may not have any relevancy whatsoever on how incarnation B manifests itself? What is the higher self exactly? Is it just one higher self and we are all facets of this or are there multiple higher selves? What is the purpose of the higher self splitting it self up into multiple facets to experience unique combinations of space and time? Is it impossible to experience anything otherwise? i.e An incarnation acts sort of like a filter that renders the totality of information meaningful.

Could you suggest some resources to procure? Preferably resources that are readable to a lay reader on such topics, but actually gets to the heart of the matter. I once tried having this conversation with someone else before, but I was too young to really get it. It sounds really interesting though… may be I’ll have another crack at understanding it.

[ZephyrusX]

Reincarnation doesn't necessarily negate this, either. The being that you are would cease. Your opinions, sentiments, and stream of consciousness would end. The "you" of this life indeed ceases. Therefore, its uniqueness is not lost with reincarnation in place. While the totality of it would never be lost, your will would merely be part of a manifold that is greater than your consciousness. Your existence would pass on in lieu of something not equivalent to you. I tell myself to cherish me as I am now, in the present, because it isn't forever and any aspect of mine's preservation is not manifest nor is it guaranteed.

That makes sense to me if I incorporate it with the idea of a higher self. How common place is this view though? Often when I listen to people talk about their past lives, they make it sound as if the 'ego' carries on from incarnation to incarnation. And the reason why they seem to get involved with reincarnation to begin with is often that they want reassurance that their ego (the memories, sentiments, opinions, core values etc. that we identify as the self) continues on after death. I mostly talk to Westerners that I would characterize as new age practitioners though. Is your view point more popular in the East more so than the West?

[rei]

How has the topic of reincarnation transformed my life?

It (well, the experience of it more so than the concept) has allowed me to offer services that draw from information in the records of our individual energy - the part of self that moves into multiple incarnations. The records are known as the Akasha or Akashic Records. They exist in etheric form on a level woven into the level seen as consensus reality.

So, I get to provide people with information about lifetimes, current theme for their life based on what the soul has chosen to learn - information about the soul that would probably not be available if it were a one shot deal.

That is one form of utility regarding the topic. I also like the idea that I have more than one chance to succeed at making a choice aligned with my core self. I would not like the idea that I could only have one lifetime to grow exactly as much as my soul wants to grow, and I would not enjoy the idea of leaving earth without things balanced in a higher/energetic sense.

I try my best anyway, but I might crumple under the pressure if I thought I had to get it all perfect in this lifetime.

When we consider that linear time doesn't occur on the soul level, that every lifetime is happening simultaneously, it's not always easy to wrap the mind around that since linear, forward-flowing time has become such a common meme. But I think in this sense the term, "reincarnation," could be more linguistically accurate since it's less about becoming carnal again and more about becoming carnal right now all over the place and all over various segments of linear time.

The above is written from the perspective that reincarnation happens, beyond being a concept or useful belief. But then as we each have our own individuated consciousness we are free to create what we choose on this.

[ZephyrusX]

The records are known as the Akasha or Akashic Records. They exist in etheric form on a level woven into the level seen as consensus reality

Are the Akashic Records sort of like tapping into the mind and reasoning of the higher self?

I would not like the idea that I could only have one lifetime to grow exactly as much as my soul wants to grow, and I would not enjoy the idea of leaving earth without things balanced in a higher/energetic sense

What do you mean by growth exactly? I'm acting on the premise that you also believe in a higher self, so if that is wrong, just sort of ignore my random thoughts here... Why is it necessary for the higher self to incarnate in order to grow? Is there something that it cannot experience otherwise? Can it not feel emotion or know what love is unless it incarnates?

I think I'm dragging my own socialization into this and equating the higher self with the concept of God, which is suppose to be 'perfect'. Is the higher self perfect? And if it is, what is the point in incarnating? Is it just totally bored and wants something to do? I'm also treating the higher self as if it is some sort of 'space' alien... being... thing... Is that the wrong approach?

Do you think I ask too many questions? I'd be happy with just a recommended source to read.

[rei]

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

Are the Akashic Records sort of like tapping into the mind and reasoning of the higher self?

Hmm, sorta yes and sorta no. It is more like accessing an energetic library where we hold our inner self information. I think pretty much all our experiences are recorded by the soul and appear in the records, so in this moment your own Akashic records would contain evidence of your experience of the conversation you're having right now. Just as mine would (A wee bit boggling to conceive, I think )

I guess it is similar to what you said since mind can hold information but rather than being a being it is more like a place. And that place has guides who can retrieve the information for you, like a librarian (I call my Akashic guide Peter, but I don't think the name really matters. I picked it as a throwback to the St. Peter myth. EDIT: I mean myth in the sense of the dictionary definition of myth, not in the sense of falsity.)

Another edit: But come to think of it, if it is all consciousness then the Akashic library is also part of consciousness and built with it, so in that sense it is like tapping into a higher aspect of self.

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

What do you mean by growth exactly? I'm acting on the premise that you also believe in a higher self, so if that is wrong, just sort of ignore my random thoughts here... Why is it necessary for the higher self to incarnate in order to grow? Is there something that it cannot experience otherwise? Can it not feel emotion or know what love is unless it incarnates?

I think I'm dragging my own socialization into this and equating the higher self with the concept of God, which is suppose to be 'perfect'. Is the higher self perfect? And if it is, what is the point in incarnating? Is it just totally bored and wants something to do? I'm also treating the higher self as if it is some sort of 'space' alien... being... thing... Is that the wrong approach?

Do you think I ask too many questions? I'd be happy with just a recommended source to read.

I will pick a couple of these to answer...

Point of incarnating - you'll get a variety of responses to that question I think it boils down to wanting to learn from experiences that aren't readily available from the state we come here from. We come from a way of being that is obviously perfection (we are perfect here too, but we often hide that from our self ), where things flow and we can manifest anything, there is never struggle or pain/suffering. We come to play, forget to remember. And we come to experience separation because we are accustomed to experiential Oneness. We do not come from a negative motivation, we come through our excitement to explore and experience in a different level.

It isn't necessary to incarnate but we choose to explore through the lens of separation because it is in some ways easier to gather a wide variety of experiences doing it this way. It is harder to pretend to be victimized when you are fully, completely, consciously aware that you are the perpetrator. It is hard to learn from the experience of romantic love when you are fully, completely, consciously aware that it is you you are in love with. (From a perspective of separation it might even be weird to consider it as we fall in love with ourselves, or to consider that this current discussion is a matter of talking to ourself, as all discussion is, etc.)

As for higher self and whether that is a 'right' approach - again, you'll find a variety of answers. My own take is it is all consciousness, and all awareness, yes with sentience as well though not always expressed in the form we'd expect (i.e. a rock has sentience as well, from this perspective applied holistically). From the mindset of separation, it is different aspects and from that level we come from I think we simultaneously maintain a separate form and also experience our Oneness. But it depends on which level we're talking about, as eventually you reach Undifferentiated Source where there's not even separation for the convenience of interacting with self.

Sadly I don't have any specific materials to recommend as most of what I have learned about it has come from actual time in the records and accumulating understanding from various free resources. There is a thread here in the forums started by a user named ChrisL called "Akashic Records - Questions and Support," where he gets into some of these questions. What he shared as an expert on accessing the records syncs up with what I have experienced.

You might also find articles online by searching the sites of Soul Realignment Practitioners. That modality involves working with the Akashic records.

[Solipsist]

Which life?

(Sorry, I couldn't help it)

[rei]

Originally Posted by solipsist

which life?

(sorry, i couldn't help it)

lol

[ZephyrusX]

Thanks for the reference. The thread is really interesting! Once I’ve actually read all of it, I’ll probably redirect any questions I have to the other thread. In the mean time, I do have one inquiry.

If the Records preserve all of our experiences, wouldn’t it be possible to tap into them and recreate (or relive) specific events in any life? On that note, I found the following interesting from ChrisL:

It depends on what I'm asking. The most amazing experience of past lives is when I literally have an experience as that other life. When I go into the Records I do get images and I can get a full series of images/symbols like walking into a movie. I also hear and read information, or get a sensate feeling at times. For clients, I always go for a multi-sensory experience, and it depends on the question and which way the client can receive the information.

I’ve only spoken to a couple of other people who have shared similar accounts. I was wondering if you (or anyone else reading this) has experienced this or could possibly elaborate upon it. Are there accounts of past advanced civilizations using the Records in a similar fashion or for different purposes (as if it were common place)? I’m asking out of curiosity. It sounds pretty cool.

[rei]

Originally Posted by ZephyrusX

I’ve only spoken to a couple of other people who have shared similar accounts. I was wondering if you (or anyone else reading this) has experienced this or could possibly elaborate upon it. Are there accounts of past advanced civilizations using the Records in a similar fashion or for different purposes (as if it were common place)? I’m asking out of curiosity. It sounds pretty cool.

I am not in a place where I would use all my senses when I visit the records. Which is actually a good thing since I get there so easily - I would not want to be living another lifetime when I am driving a car in this one Since I visit the records by just thinking of them, that would otherwise be a distinct possibility.

Chris would be a better person to ask this question, as my time in the records has a different purpose. He has said that DaVinci tapped into the records but I don't recall him mentioning any civilizations. I do know in pre-fall-Atlantis and Lemuria it was very commonplace to access the records, and it was also pretty natural and easy for them to do. But I don't know what they used the information for.

[GeorgeMagister]

ZephyrusX,

I just wanted to post that I have not overlooked, nor have I actively ignored your questions and anything else unresolved between our responses. I'm going through some things right now, but I plan on responding to this thread properly in the near future. I apologize if I left you hanging.