Although past lives, reincarnation and rebirth are a key principle in number of Asian religions including Hinduism (80.5% of Indians describe themselves as Hindus) looking back on past lives has not generally been a part of people’s faith. Hindu scholar Patañjali, writing in around 200BC did however discuss the possibility that some souls might suffer the effects of their past lives and might need prati-prasav (reverse birthing) to come to terms with their karmic rebirths.
This new interest in past lives and regression seems to have come to India from the West where such therapies have been practiced since the 1950s. One of the most famous cases from the early days of reincarnation research was that of housewife Virginia Tighe. Under the guidance of amateur hypnotist Morey Bernstein, she described a previous life as Bridey Murphy, a nineteenth century Irish housewife. Bernstein’s subsequent book became a bestseller despite scepticism about the story. Many believed that Tighe had inadvertently weaved the story together mind from small details of things she’d picked up subconsciously throughout her life.
Bernstein himself continued to maintain that Tighe really had remembered vivid details of a previous life, even defending himself in correspondence with Cecil Adams, who published extracts from their debate in his column, The Straight Dope.
Not all cases over the years have been so swiftly dismissed. Psychiatrist Ian Stevenson collected a number of case histories where people seemed to have successfully recalled memories of past lives. Even Carl Sagan, not a man usually known for credulity, was intrigued by Stevenson’s work and the possibility of reincarnation.
Reflections on past lives continue to be popular. Time spent in a hypnotic trance is no longer an part of a person’s journey to their past life. Some mediums claim to be able identify the past life of an individual without having to use hypnotic regression techniques.
Earlier this month Phil Collins announced his retirement from music and his decision to research the history of the Alamo. Why would the English singer-songwriter be so keen to investigate what happened during the Texas Revolution? It seems that Collins has been told he’s the reincarnation of an Alamo survivor.
