Reflections on the Meaning of Past Lives
First and foremost for some people, "Past Lives"
aren't real, or don't matter, or are "all made up". For anyone that
feels that way - and it's fine if you do
- perhaps using the concept
of a "Past Life" being a "subconscious metaphor that can be used to
process a deeply buried trauma" is a good way to think of this.
There is also the notion of the Universal Consciousness or the
Collective Unconscious that can be tapped into by anyone. Using
either of these approaches, both the client and the therapist can simply look at
the thoughts, pictures, images, and meanings that are evoked as a
way to facilitate healing these deeply buried emotions (which are
authentically being felt) and bring
them into a new light. In the same way that Jung processed a
troubling dream by having the client temporarily "be the voice" for
each of the people, places, and things that occurred in the dream or
nightmare, processing a "Past Life" as a dream or metaphor can still
provide excellent therapeutic results.
Our emotional, physical, spiritual, and
relationship problems or stumbling blocks are sometimes the result
of unresolved issues, emotions, or traumatic experiences stemming
from earlier events in this lifetime. Some memories, however, go
back to an even earlier time - to previous existences. As we move
from reality to reality, life to life, we carry with us the totality
of our collective experiences. We may at present be unaware of this
precious cargo, but still, what we've learned affects us and is
deeply imbedded in our subconscious. It influences our actions (or
lack thereof), our beliefs, feelings, and our physical bodies.
Recalling - and more importantly - processing past lives and
significant past events can be a therapeutic tool for releasing
mental and emotional blocks, restoring balance, and allowing healing
to take place on all levels.
Our past experiences of events - memory patterns - are integrated
into our core identity. Our dreams, relationships, behavior - and
even our DNA - can reflect those energies, interpreting and
manifesting them in any number of ways. There are many examples of
this.
- A man's birthmark, for example, could reflect a past life stomach wound that the body consciousness "remembered."
- A woman's fibroid tumors turned out to be the result of trapped energy connected to a past life experience of dying in childbirth. Releasing this allowed them to clear-up without a trace.
- Another young lady found her inexplicable fear of bugs rooted in a fatal experience with an insect swarm. Now she can swat the occasional spider in her house with no concern other than the mess it might make.
- Abandoned as a child in a past incarnation and unable to survive on his own, a man manifested that energy in his present life as dependent behavior, seeking relationships, situations and choices where he would not have to be responsible for himself. Armed with this insight, he has created a newer, stronger self-image which has greatly improved his ability to be independent, self-motivated, get promoted and rise up in his organization.
Our multiple lifetimes are neither punishments nor rewards, but rather opportunities for learning. Each incarnation is an opportunity for self-improvement in both the role of Teacher and Student.
Negative experiences are not the only ones you bring with you, of course. You bring many amazing gifts with you as well. Think of how much you have already learned in THIS lifetime that you have supposedly forgotten? Some of these wonderful gifts are buried just as deeply, and sometimes even more so.
Those ancient memories that act out as modern-day challenges do so in an effort to bring your attention to the fact that there is a problem or obstacle that must be resolved, or a lesson to be learned. Sometimes we simply are testing ourselves to see if we truly "got" the lesson - to ensure we recognize (re-cognize) that there is no need to go through that same experience again.
A core lesson in A Course in Miracles (ACIM) is that "I can see peace instead of this." "I can replace my feelings of depression, anxiety or worry [or my thoughts about this situation, personality or event] with peace." W34 This approach can be a powerful tool when used with Hypnotherapy and NLP strategies to create a healing process to release the past.
Another consideration of Past Lives from an ACIM perspective is that they are not important of themselves, as they are are part of the vast illusion of time. As such, a belief in reincarnation is not necessary for your forgiveness work. You have everything you need in you current life. But if you do have such a notion, there is nothing wrong with it. Validating Past Lives is just as correct - or incorrect - as validating your present life. Therefore the approach of the Therapeutic Metaphor becomes very useful.
"...Our only question should be, "Is the concept helpful?" And that depends, of course, on what it is used for. If it is used to strengthen the recognition of the eternal nature of life, it is helpful indeed. Is any other question about it really useful in lighting up the way? Like many other beliefs, it can be bitterly misused. At least, such misuse offers preoccupation and perhaps pride in the past. At worst, it induces inertia in the present. In between, many kinds of folly are possible.
22 Reincarnation would not, under any circumstances, be the problem
to be dealt with <now>. If it were responsible for some of the
difficulties the individual faces now, his task would still be only
to escape from them now. If he is laying the groundwork for a
future life, he can still work out his salvation only now. To some,
there may be comfort in the concept, and if it heartens them its
value is self-evident. It is certain, however, that the way to
salvation can be found by those who believe in reincarnation and by
those who do not. The idea cannot, therefore, be regarded as
essential to the curriculum. There is always some risk in seeing the
present in terms of the past. There is always some good in any
thought which strengthens the idea that life and the body are not
the same." ACIM Manual for Teachers, Lesson 24,
pp21-22
There are many ways to look at it. We can look at past (and future) lives not just from the point of view of the personality who lived it, but also from the perspective of being the one who chose it (or co-created it). When we tune into ourselves on a spiritual level we gain greater awareness of the issues affecting our “Now”. We can see ourselves more objectively, more completely, and can examine closely how our infinite life experiences shape current life patterns. Thoughts originating from this level of being form a partnership with our subconscious mind, influencing our choices, direction and approach to life.
Looking at time as a loop (or a mobius strip)
rather than a line helps us to see how energies of the so-called
past, present and future act upon one another endlessly. The person
is then constantly fed with fresh new material to use in its
creations and "joint ventures" with other beings.
Have you ever had a feeling of “I know that
person!” – and yet you’ve never met them before this lifetime? Many
of the people in our lives — family, friends, lovers, teachers,
colleagues, etc.— are people we have shared life experiences with
before, and are people with whom we may have "life agreements"
here in the "now".
Deep Memory Recovery can help us realize the true scope of our
relationship dynamics with others. When we remember having been a
wife, mother, son, victim, and victimizer to the same person,
lifetime to lifetime, we gain many new insights and information. We
become aware of aspects of ourselves and of others that may not be
so apparent from our too-close-for-comfort view in the present life.
We find that tolerance, understanding, and forgiveness are more
readily accessed and a new level of peace can be attained.
Processing past lives can assist us in healing by facilitating a
change in perspective and therefore a change in choices we make and
even in our behaviors. This experience has been life changing for
many.
Déjà vu, anyone?
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