I’ve been following some blogs on Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth. After reading Bruce’s post yesterday, he got me thinking about how hopeless the belief in reincarnation is. You can read his post here:
The Yardstick of God’s Revelation « Bruce’s Blog
Bruce wrote:
“For lack of better words, New Age philosophy is Hinduism wrapped in Western garb. Humanity’s primary problem, according to Hinduism, is that we have forgotten we are divine. The consequence is that we are subject to the Law of Karma, another important Hindu belief. This is the moral equivalent to the natural law of cause and effect. You always reap what you sow. There is no grace, there is no forgiveness, there is never any escape from consequences. It’s a very heavy burden to carry. Not only that, but Hinduism says that the consequences of our choices, both bad karma and good karma, follow us from lifetime to lifetime. This is another Hindu concept: samsara, the ever-revolving wheel of life, death, and rebirth, also known as reincarnation. A person’s karma determines the kind of body–whether human, animal, or insect–into which he or she is incarnated in the next lifetime.” [emphasis mine]
Historically, reincarnation is viewed in the Eastern religions as a “bad” thing. If you are reincarnated in any form, that means you did not attain “salvation;” blissful realization that all things are One. It is a repetitive trap; a cosmic “Ground-Hog Day” of sorts. The New Age Movement in the Western world has re-packaged reincarnation and presented it in a more positive light. You work in this life to improve your next life. Also, your life today can be improved by investigating what you did in past lives that is causing you suffering here and now. Scientology warps this idea even further into a mechanical system to cleanse this life of past lives’s “sins.”
If I believed in reincarnation: I’d be worn out thinking about millions of past lives’s problems, when the problems of this one are overwhelming in solo! Talk about anxiety. I’d be so worried about past Karma sneaking up on me and whacking me over the head for something my soul did last life. I’d be stressed out one of my screw ups now, would condemn me to the life of an orphan in Russia next time. How alone, and big, eternity would be! I think I’d give in to the hopelessness and struggle with a sense of depression.
But praise be to God! There is NO condemnation in the precious and forgiving arms of Christ. I am not condemned to pay for my selfishness, mean spirit and self indulgences by being re-born as a newt. My soul has already been born again in this life wondrously (I wonder at the how of it) through simple belief that Jesus suffered my death sentence. He assures me that I don’t have to be physically re-born to join Him outside of time. Eternity with my best friend is looking pretty good.
We are of good courage, I say, and prefer…to be away from the body and to be at home with the Lord. 2 Corinthians 5:8
Kay Bonikowsky 
I would never question your faith but what I am talking about is scientifically obtained testimony from unrelated individuals who were regressed to their superconscious state. It was in this hypnotically induced state of consciousness where Dr. Newton discovered and recorded his subject’s testimony from their soul memories of recalled EVENTS of their LIFE between lives (See “Journey of Souls” and his second volume “Destiny of Souls: New Case Studies of Life Between Lives” by Michael Newton, PH.D.). So, the “revelations” are not Dr. Newton’s but his over 2000 clients/subject’s testimony gathered over some 35 years of study. He had been doing past life regressions when he accidently discovered that his client’s while in the deepest (and literally the MOST conscious-he calls it our “superconscious” state in which theta wave brain paterns are emitted) state of hypnotic trance were able to access the SOUL MEMORIES of their life in the Spirit World of their birth. As I stated in my last post, most all of these subjects were Christian and had no conscious knowledge of their soul memories. These are therefore, NOT some ancient, and some would say controversial, “revelations” supposedly of God (if you’re refering to the so-called words of Jehovah or Yahweh in the OT-not all of us agree with that characterization or that these regional Elohim were our Creator/God), but simply their recalling THEIR PERSONAL MEMORIES of their life in a spiritual dimension in which they found themselves as DISCARNATE SOULS.
I know that this is a lot of information for most of your readers to comprehend let alone accept. If you wish to be aware of this pioneering research may I suggest you watch Dr. Newton’s 5 part interview on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watchv=0QDT58Q6Zxo&feature=related
My purpose in referring Christian believers to this world changing information is because the amazing facts revealed by those who are regressed (see post above), is nothing short of transformative for the individual and I believe necessary for the consciousness shift required to bring us back from the edge of our near physical destruction on this planet. Jesus told us to ask, seek and to knock and that the truth would set us free. Here is your opportunity to follow His message and to discover the new truths and to discard the old lies for yourself. See for yourself whether the information now being revealed through some extraordinary means will resonate with the divine truth within you.
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I am not familiar with Dr. Michael Newton. It seems we are each following different “revelations.” My faith is in what I believe is the revealed word of God, your’s in Dr. Newton. Of course, we will then have diverse conclusions!
Thank you for taking to time to write down your thoughts.
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Well, I hardly know where to begin in rebuttal to virtually all that is stated in the article, the response and the subsequent post above. Firstly, you attribute all the corrupted interpretations and dogmatic additions to Hinduism’s and Buddhism’s basic tenets regarding Karma and reincarnation e.g. the caste system and animal transmigration, to Tolle’s beliefs. In so doing, you put beliefs in Tolle’s mouth that he has never claimed nor statements he would never make. He, of course, does not ascribe to either Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufism, Judaism, Islam OR Christianity. All of these “organized” religious dogmas have similar basic tenets of love, compassion and forgiveness along with many untruths and simply pure nonsense.
Secondly, I believe that Tolle is either intuitively aware or has direct knowledge of the new truths and revelations being reported and revealed by the Life Between Lives case studies of Dr. Michael Newton and others. The true nature of karmic law and the fundamental process and dynamics of reincarnation revealed by these studies of over 2000 subjects are dispelling many of the false claims and distortions which you attribute to these basic principles of our spiritual progression as falsely practiced by the many world religions.
Here are a few of the principles of our soul’s journey that Dr. Newton has gleamed from the testimony of his subjects who were regressed to their discarnate soul and were able to report their life between lives in the spirit world of their birth:
All human beings have one soul that remains attached to its chosen physical body until death. Souls play a part in the selection of their next physical body (usually only 3 choices are offered) during their reincarnation cycles. The soul typically joins its physical body after conception between the fourth month and birth (important implications for the debate as to when life begins and for the issue of abortion. Some have reported that whether a baby will reach full term is known ahead of time and the soul is advised of this before selection).
Each soul has a unique immortal character. When conjoined with a human brain, this ego character is melded with the emotional temperament, or human ego, of that body to produce a single but temporary personality for one lifetime. This is what is meant by the duality of our mind (so here on Earth the True Self/Soul is the witness and real identity beyond the temporary ego mind of the body).
While soul memory may be hidden from the level of conscious awareness through amnesia, thought patterns of the soul influence the human brain to induce motivations for certain actions.
Souls reincarnate with human beings for countless lifetimes to advance through levels of development by addressing karmic tasks from former lifetimes. Souls grow in knowledge and wisdom through this learning process while pondering their thoughts and deeds in past lives with peers under the direction of teachers (There are many other assignments given advanced souls. Becoming a teacher or guide is only one option. What is reported without contradiction is that each of us will eventually progress beyond the need to reincarnate and take up these duties in an endless succession. There is still much that is unknown about the more advanced hierarchy that is present in the spirit world of our birth, for his subjects have obviously not reached those levels of development as yet.)
Our planet is one of an incalculable number of worlds that serve as training schools for the advancement of souls. During temporary physical incarnations on Earth, souls are provided an opportunity to advance through trial and error to accumulate wisdom. Humans are not bound to a predetermined existence. Various possibilities and probabilities arising from karmic influences and prior soul contracts are subject to the free will of the soul.
Earth is a place of great beauty and joy but also harbors ignorance, hate, and suffering that are man-made combined with natural planetary disasters over which we have little control. Coping with these positive and negative elements on Earth is by design. This planet is a testing ground for souls rather that being a place of evil, demonic influence from outside our world. Spiritual malevolence does not exist within the divine order of love and compassion that comprises our spiritual origins.
Personal enlightenment emanates from within each of us and endows humans with the capability to reach our own divine power without intermediaries.
At the moment of physical death the soul returns to the spirit world, the source of its creation (sometimes we may stay here for awhile longer if we feel a strong need to do so. It is always our decision). Since part of a soul’s energy essence has never left the spirit world during incarnation, the returning soul rejoins with that essence of itself. Thus, spiritual learning never ceases for the soul. The spirit world also offers souls the opportunity for rest and reflection between lives (those who have partaken of particularly egregious acts on earth, however, immediately become aware of their failure and inability to control their human body and temperament and are voluntarily separated from returning to their cluster group of peers. No one as yet has reported the existence of anything akin to a lower world of fire, e.g. Hell. But, there are areas separate from our normal spaces of operation in which various purification processes are used to cleanse the soul of “dark” or negative energy, and can be quite a long isolation for some of the worst cases of violent offenders. But, even they are overseen by highly trained and loving caretakers during this voluntary separation. Eventually most are returned to their group or in some cases reassigned to another. In rare cases some souls will not be allowed to return to Earth and are given other rehabilitative activities to perform until they and their overseers feel they are ready to progress forward again ).
Souls appear to be members of specific spirit cluster groups to whom they have been assigned since their creation. The teachers of each group are the personal spirit guides of members of that group. Members of these groups reincarnate with the soul and assume meaningful roles during a soul’s life on earth.
Rather than being defined as a place of ultimate non-action, or nirvana, the spirit world appears to be a space of soul transition for souls who evolve into higher energy forms with capabilities for creation of animate and inanimate objects. The soul’s energy itself has been created by a higher source. The spirit world has an area of influence which is undefined except that it includes our universe and nearby dimensions.
No earthly religious deities are seen in the spirit world by returning souls. A soul’s closest connection with the divine is with their personal spirit guide and members of a council of benevolent counselors who monitor the affairs of each soul. Souls from earth feel and sense the presence of a god-like Oversoul or Source emanating from above the wise beings who make up individual councils.
The spirit world is composed of highly advanced non-reincarnation soul specialists who regulate the work of the souls in their care. When incarnating souls develop to higher levels of wisdom and performance themselves, they will cease to incarnate and take their place among these specialists, who will assist the still-incarnating souls. Soul specialists apparently are selected by motivation, talent, and performance.
The ultimate goal of all souls appears to be the desire to seek and find perfection, and finally conjoin with the Source who created them.
It is made very clear by all Dr. Newton’s subjects that only our actions and possibly our words and the emotional displays attached to our thoughts as they negatively affect others are of any real consequence to the hierarchy of souls to whom we directly report, and they appear to be the only ones who assess our soul’s level of attainment. Whether they consult with others unseen or the Source/Presence Itself in some “external” way is simply not known. His subjects also clearly report that we ourselves once free of our physical body and reoriented to our spiritual “home” upon physical death are the primary and foremost arbiters of whether we had successfully completed our life’s mission here. Once free of the false ego’s attachments and excuse mechanisms we are able to honestly evaluate our performance objectively. We as discarnate souls, although certainly not perfect and have much to learn and many lifetimes yet to live, do know when we have failed to meet our own goals and where we have fallen short of our expectations and those of our spiritual mentors. The old adage that we are harder on ourselves than others holds true even more so in the spirit world.
All of the above general statements as to the reality of our true spiritual nature and the make-up of the spirit world are derived from the amazing detailed transcripts of the hundreds of case studies he cites of his individual subjects, much of which is verbatim question and answer. It is the absolute consistency of these details, varying only in some of the descriptive language used, that is overwhelming and compelling. He explores all of the possible alternative explanations that are proffered by the skeptics and each and everyone fails to explain his findings as being anything other than the memories of an experienced reality. They are completely veridical and non-contradictory, thus making them tremendously convincing, particularly because of their lack of any religious symbolism in which the “afterlife” is often portrayed. If the recalled memories had contained unfulfilled wishes or, as one would suspect, were influenced by the subject’s religious beliefs, or even if they were hallucinatory manifestations of some delusional state of mind, you would expect a full range of fanciful flights of fantasy, religious symbolism and beatific visions. There were none, even from those who professed what would be considered as either biblical literalism or fundamental Christian religious beliefs (The Christian belief is singled out here only because it is the predominant religion of his subjects).
All his subjects report a non-human spiritual worldview when reporting from their true spiritual “home”. They all state that Earth is a place of great beauty and joy but also harbors ignorance, hate, and suffering that are man-made combined with natural planetary disasters over which we have little control. Coping with these positive and negative elements on Earth is by design. This planet is a testing ground for souls rather than being a place of evil, demonic influence from outside our world. Spiritual malevolence does not exist within the divine order of love and compassion that comprises our spiritual origins.
Most importantly, as Tolle makes eloquently clear in all his teachings: “Personal enlightenment emanates from within each of us and endows humans with the capability to reach our own divine power without intermediaries.”
So, no Hell, no religious figures, demons or devils; no satans, no animal transmigrations (they have separate lower “souls” or collective spiritual energies); no judgement or punishment, only an all encompassing love, compassion and forgiveness combined with extensive counseling and preparation for our next incarnation and life lesson here on earth.
These new revelations and truths are what Tolle points to in his understanding of our eternal transmigrating soul moving towards greater love and wisdom and the final conjoinment with the Source that created us.
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Did you know that the resurrection of Jesus in itself refutes reincarnation? It does. Jesus was killed, and He was buried but when He rose from the dead Jesus went to great lengths to show that He was in the same body.
In other words, the eyewitness accounts in the Bible of Christ’s resurrection show that in the after-life, just as Jesus is, we will be the same person that we are now.
Sadly if he doesn’t repent, men like Tolle end up in Hell. However, all those in Christ will be with God forever as ourselves.
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