JRT Topic: Reincarnation

I Died on the Titanic: Fact or Fiction? – Carol Eder (Is.12)

by Carol Eder, C.Ht.

In many ways, this article represents both an inquiry into the validity of a particular past-life regression experience, and, indirectly, also raises question to which we all seek a definite answer: Are past-life “memories” real or symbolic, fact or fantasy? The author addresses the topic from a very personal perspective: her own. She was encouraged to submit this article to JRT by Hazel Denning, Ph.D., whom readers will recognize as one of the founders of APRT.

Man has always been concerned about life after death. Those who accept reincarnation maintain that the soul is immortal and may be reborn again and again in different individuals. How can we know about a possible existence before birth? … Read the rest

Past Lives Therapy as an Aspect of Shamanism – Brad Steiger (Is.12)

by Brad Steiger

Since childhood I have been challenged by the idea that we have lived before on this or other worlds. One of my early articles, “How Many People Are You?” (Exploring the Unknown, February, 1963) led to my first book-length exploration of past lives, The Enigma of Reincarnation (Ace, 1967).

By 1968 I was ready to begin personally exploring cases suggestive of reincarnation through individual regressions, but at that time my sole motivation was to prove that such phenomena existed. I sought to obtain solid documentation that would satisfy the most rigorous skeptic that the human soul might indeed express itself in more than one incarnation during the process of spiritual evolution.

But while extensive in-field research did … Read the rest

Listen To The Children: Working with Children’s Past-Life Memories – Carol Bowman (Is.11)

by Carol Bowman

This article invites therapists and researchers to explore children’s past-life memories. Cases and observations based on the author’s six years of research support findings that some children make excellent regression subjects, easily remembering past-life stories and quickly integrating these past-life experiences in ways that change their lives. Five cases illustrate the following: 1) how children access these memories; 2) processing techniques that both therapists and parents can use with children; and 3) benefits children derive from remembering these former lifetimes.

My findings from six years of working with children’s past-life memories show that children can be willing and able subjects for past-life regression and therapy. They remember their past lives easily, and rapidly process and integrate these … Read the rest

A. R. Martin: Pioneer In Past-Life Regression – George Schwimmer (Is.11)

by George Schwimmer, Ph.D.

Although past-life regression is considered by many to be a fairly recent technique, A. R. Martin, late author of Researches In Reincarnation And Beyond, began conducting past-life regressions sixty-five years ago, the first person known to do so in the United States. His ground-breaking research, book, and conclusions are important in understanding that the core of life is spiritual, that we come to Earth repeatedly to learn needed lessons, and that the purpose of past-life recall is to help us to grow spiritually. It is hoped that this will be the first of a series of articles about the early “pioneers” in our field.

Most people today probably date the advent of past-life regression … Read the rest

The Reincarnation of James – The Submarine Man – Rick Brown (Is.9)

by Rick Brown, Hypnotherapist

Those who would challenge the validity of PLT often point to the lack of information which can be empirically validated. Their cry is, “Give us data! Give us names, dates, places!” For this reason, this contribution, in which a careful and methodical follow-up was conducted to validate the data obtained during the regression, is an important study. We would be interested in hearing from other PLT practitioners who have done similar studies and validations.

On February 11, 1942, the U.S. Submarine Shark, on which James Edward Johnston was a crew member, was depth charged and sunk by the Japanese Destroyer Amatsukaze. All hands including James drowned. The spirit that occupied the body of James appears … Read the rest

Past-Life Therapy with Difficult Phobics – Johannes M. Cladder (Is.2)

by Johannes M. Cladder

There are many books and articles dealing with regressions in trance to so-called past lives. Some include fascinating case histories using past-life therapy. Others attempt to establish the authenticity of reincarnation and the reality of past lives, though the question of whether reincarnation is or is not a possibility can best be determined by lines of investigation other than hypnotic regression, such as the work of Stevenson. Systematic research to determine the possible use of past-life regression with certain kinds of patients is just beginning.

Experimenting with past-life regressions in the hypnotherapy of difficult phobics gives the impression that patients are flooded with traumatic material from the hypothesized past lives and cannot avoid experiencing strong anxiety … Read the rest

Imaginal Techniques in Past-Life Therapy – Roger Woolger (Is.1)

by Roger Woolger

The notion that physical and psychological illnesses may be derived from the psychic residues of events in previous lives is accepted in a great many non-western cultures. The opening lines of the classic Buddhist text, the Dhammapada, sums up this view succinctly: “All that we are is the result of what we have thought.” It hardly need be added that in the Buddhist world view, earlier thoughts can most certainly belong to earlier incarnations.

In the West, however, such an idea has never been seriously entertained by orthodox science or by the orthodox versions of Christianity and Judaism (McGregor, 1978 and Langley, 1967) in recent history. On the other hand fully articulated doctrines of karma and reincarnation … Read the rest

Who Were You Before You Were You? Garret Oppenheim (Is.1)

by Garrett Oppenheim (1911-1995)*

“When I started doing regressions with my own patients, I read all the literature I could find on the subject. By now I’ve read a considerable body of it. I’m impressed by the quantity of evidence that these books contain, particularly the evidence so painstakingly accumulated by Dr. Ian Stevenson.

I am also impressed by the enormous difficulty of seeing through our biases when it comes to interpreting all this evidence. In reading a wide range of views on reincarnation, one can’t help but realize how individual belief systems can color interpretations and influence the way we gather evidence.

Then where do I stand? While I know that we don’t have a final answer to the Read the rest

Philosophical Assumptions Underlying Past-Life Therapy – Hazel Denning (Is.2)

by Hazel Denning

The effectiveness of past-life therapy grows out of its philosophical underpinnings as a plant grows out of rich and nourishing soil. To understand its potential for change and healing without grasping the significance of the underlying assumptions would be like trying to understand how psychoanalysis works without postulating the existence of unconscious motivation and psychic determinism. In a sense, past-life therapy is an extension of these principles: that which happens later depends on the groundwork set earlier with the enrichment of transpersonal and spiritual factors. Psychoanalysis subjected itself to grave limitations by its myopia regarding the spiritual nature of man. It limited itself by considering birth to be the cut-off point of psychic determinism. Past-life therapy remedies … Read the rest