Photo by juliakoz

When a young Turkish boy named Celal Kapan first began to speak, almost the first thing he said was:

“What am I doing here? I was at the port.”

Later  he told his parents that he had been  a dockworker who had fallen asleep in the hold of a ship when a heavy oil drum fell on him and killed him instantly. Was he remembering a previous life?
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What happens when we die?
.Is there life after death?

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From the earliest beginnings of the human race, people have asked these questions. This week’s article is about reincarnation. Others on past life regression, near death experiences, death bed visions, crisis apparitions, and ghosts, will follow at irregular intervals.

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Reincarnation

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Reincarnation is the belief that the human soul is reborn into a new body after death. Many Buddhists and Hindus believe in reincarnation. Even some strands of Christianity believed in reincarnation, until the Council of Nice banned such beliefs in 553 A.D.

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What do we really know about reincarnation?
Is there any evidence for it?

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The foremost researcher of reincarnation was Dr. Ian Stevenson, Professor of Psychiatry and Director or the Division of Personality Studies at the University of Virginia. He died in 2007 after a long, distinguished, and fruitful career. Stevenson researched cases of children between the age of two and five who suddenly started speaking of a previous life and offered details. His research was published in reputable scientific journals.

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In Stevenson’s book “Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation”, he recounts the story of the Indian girl Swarnlata Misha:

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When Swarnlata was three, she was travelling in a car with her father and a driver. When they were in Katni, an area 100 miles from her home, she suddenly pointed and said to the driver:

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“Please go along this road here. We can go to my house. We can get a better cup of tea there than on the road.”

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Her father was taken aback because this area was unknown to him and to her. She then related more details of her previous life in Katni, giving her name as Biya Pathak, and describing the house in detail. She said that she had two sons and had died of “a pain in her throat”.

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When she was ten years old, an Indian researcher, Prof Banerjee, heard about her story and decided to investigate. He found the house where the Pathak family lived, using only Swarnlata’s description. Everything was just as Swarnlata had described it. He interviewed the Pathak family and they informed him that Biya Pathak had died in 1939 and had left two sons and a husband.

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A few months later Biya’s husband, her brother and one of her sons paid a surprise visit to the girl in order to see her and test her memories. You can imagine the turmoil they must have felt as went on this mission. She recognised her family and even knew their nicknames.

It’s hard to imagine what it might have been like for Chintamini Pandey, Biya’s husband. To meet a 10-year old who seems to be a reincarnation of his beloved wife who died twenty years ago must have been an extraordinary experience.

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I wonder how Swarnlata felt about all this? It must have been confusing to remember the life of a grown woman when she was only a child. Stevenson visited her in later years and corresponded with her for ten years after this case was investigated. He reports that she grew up normally, received an advanced degree in botany, and got married. She visited her ‘former family’ in Katni regularly.

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You can read a candid interview with Stevenson, as well as the full story of Swarnlata here.

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Stevenson said of his research:

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All the cases I’ve investigated so far have shortcomings. Even taken together, they do not offer anything like proof. But as the body of evidence accumulates, it’s more likely that more and more people will see its relevance.

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To round off the picture, here is an article in which the author critizises Stevenson’s methods and findings.

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What do you make of reincarnation?

Please share your thoughts in the comments.
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I plan to explore themes that may shine some light on what happens when we die in a series of seven articles that will appear at irregular intervalls. The themes are: past life regression, near death experiences, death bed visions, crisis apparitions, ghosts, and beliefs about death and afterlife. The next article of the series is on past life regression. I’l reveal a mysterious experience of mine that could be construed as a past life regression. But I’ll only publish it if you leave a lot of comments here so that I know that you are interested in the mystery of life and death, and would like to read some more!

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Related post: Past Life Regression: Evidence of Life after Death?

Photo by Venkane

What do people remember about you when you walk out of the room?

In my case, I may think it’s my background and knowledge that makes me special, but it’s more likely that what’s really memorable is seeing food magically transports itself from my plate onto the floor or onto other laps when I’m excited…

What makes YOU special?

Take a look at the following list of 35 things that make you special. It’s like a life inventory. When you consider all the questions, you’ll get a sense of how your life is at the moment, and how you could change it to bring out YOUR special uniqueness.

1. Personality

What is your personality? Take a look at the following personality types according to the Enneagram. Are you

• An idealistic Reformer,
• a caring Helper,
• a success-oriented Achiever,
• an introspective Idealist,
• an idealistic Reformer,
• a caring Helper,
• a success-oriented Achiever,
• a sensitive Individualist,
• an intense Investigator,
• a security-oriented Loyalist,
• a spontaneous Enthusiast,
• a powerful Challenger,
• or a reassuring Peacemaker?

You can take the Enneagram test here, or take another personality test here

2. Signature style

What’s your signature style? Are you engaging, entertaining, moving, intense, funny, bold, ditzy, serene, boring, or threatening? Read the rest of this entry »

Photo by Peter K
What do you think about most? It’s likely to be about yourself. How you were, how you are, how you will be, what people think about you, and so on.

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That is why the world is like it is: full of suffering. Just open the newspaper and you will see suffering all over the world. You can also find suffering right next door. I am sure you too know friends and family members who are going through hard times. And maybe you yourself are suffering.

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I want to share with you a wonderful way of changing our self-centred way of being. It’s a meditation that heals and opens. It’s from an ancient Buddhist text, called the Metta Sutra. Metta - or loving-kindness - is an ancient form of Buddhist meditation.

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In the Metta Sutra it says:

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Cherish all living beings;
Radiate kindness over the entire world;
Spreading upwards to the skies,
And downward to the depths;
Outward and unbounded,
Free from hatred and ill-will.
Whether standing or walking, seated or lying down,
One should sustain this recollection.

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What a wonderful aspiration! Aspirations are like lofty mountains that we look up to. We may never make it to the summit but the towering peak defines the path we travel. I think if you and I - and everyone else on the planet - were to live by this loving-kindness practice, the world would be a better place.

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Well, we can’t be responsible for the way others live their lives. But we can determine how we live. To this end I want to show you a simple way to put this grand aspiration into practice.

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The root of the word ‘aspiration’ is the Latin word ‘aspirare’, to ‘breathe upon’. The breath is life-giving. When we breathe in, we take in the energy of the whole world. When we breathe out, we connect with all beings. Mindful breathing is a natural meditation technique that many spiritual traditions include.

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The particular kindness meditation I want to suggest to you today - which I call Boundless Kindness - has the breath at its centre. The central practice is to radiate kindness in all directions and at all times. You can approach this practice by following the seven steps below:

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1. Choose a time when you are undisturbed
2. Sit upright and silent
3. Focus softly on your breath flowing in and out
4. Dedicate each breath to the wellbeing of all
5. Imagine your kindness flowing into the world with every out-breath.
6. Feel it flow from you in all directions
7. Notice kindness flow through your own body, softening it with each out-breath

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Read the rest of this entry »