Nonfiction
Eight Ways to Learn About Your Past Lives w/ Research
Regression Therapy isn’t the only way
If you believe in past lives, then you may be wondering how to access information about them. Many people have heard about past life regression hypnosis, but that is not the only way and may not be the easiest.
Thirty-three percent of Americans said that they believe in reincarnation in a 2017 survey, according to a 2018 article by Pew Research Center.
Here are eight ways to learn about your past lives listed in the order which I believe is from easiest to more difficult: Mediumship; Scrying; Hypnosis; Dreams; Meditation; Spontaneous Geographic Memories; Psychedelic Therapy and Holotropic Breathwork.
Mediumship
Working with a psychic medium can be an effective way to learn about past lives, according to reincarnation researcher Walter Semkiw M.D.
I list mediumship first because this is possibly the quickest and easiest way to get information about your past lives if you can afford to work with a reputable medium.
Semkiw researches reincarnation through several means, including working with trance medium Kevin Ryerson.
The video below discusses Semkiw’s reincarnation research and Ryerson’s mediumship and also shows a demonstration of Ryerson’s mediumship.
Semkiw also recommends the following mediums in his book Origin of the Soul and the Purpose of Reincarnation:
Echo Bodine — www.echobodine.com Judy Goodman — www.judygoodman.com Michael Tamura — www.michaeltamura.com And of course, Kevin Ryerson — www.kevinryerson.com
Other mediums claim the ability to access information about past lives. I list the above because they are recommended by Semkiw, who is a well-known reincarnation researcher. I would recommend thoroughly researching any medium you may work with.
Scrying — Crystal Gazing
Scrying is the practice of gazing into an object such as a crystal ball or black mirror until images from the unconscious mind appear. Practitioners often believe they can see accurate information about many things, including past lives, according to the books Coming Back and Reunions by Raymond Moody M.D.
Sure, gazing into a crystal ball is a cliche, but it actually works. Even Wikipedia says so.
Most people will see images form if they stare long enough into a scrying implement. It is not a question of whether practitioners can see visions, that is well established according to Reunions. The question is whether these visions come from a spiritual source or merely from the brain of the viewer.
Moody is best known for his book Life After Life, which began the serious conversation about near-death experiences in the modern western context in addition to the work of Elizabeth Kubler-Ross.
Moody went on to study and write about other supernormal phenomena such as past life regressions and scrying after writing Life After Life.
Moody tried regressions but found crystal ball gazing to be more effective. According to Moody’s book Coming Back, “I used the crystal-ball technique both in groups and with individuals. Overall, it gave the best results of all, perhaps because the crystal ball gave the subject a sense of control.”
I list scrying above the more well-known method of past life regression therapy based on Moody’s expert opinion.
The following video briefly describes some crystal ball scrying method.
The following video published by HarvardX discusses historical accounts and uses of scrying mirrors among the Aztec and Mayan civilizations.
Hypnosis — Past Life Regression Therapy
Past life regression therapy is probably the most well-known method of remembering past lives.
Even people who do not believe in reincarnation believe that past life regressions are a real phenomenon. However, these people believe the source of the hypnotic material comes from the local mind of the subject and the suggestion of the hypnotist, according to the book Coming Back: A Psychiatrist Explores Past-Life Journeys by Raymond Moody M.D.
However, there have been many regression cases that connect to historical records, such as the case of homicide detective Robert L. Snow. See below.
Below is the now viral video of Brian Weiss M.D. conducting a regression. You can use this video or other recordings you may prefer. You can also work one on one with a regression therapist if you can afford it or attend a workshop or retreat like the ones Weiss facilitates. Past life phenomena are purportedly very common during such workshops, likely as an effect of the group’s intention, according to Weiss in his book Miracles Happen: The Transformational Healing Power of Past-Life Memories.
Below is a humorous video of Buzzfeed staffers’ experiences with past life regression therapy.
Dream Journaling
Dreams can offer a wide range of information that can be useful to your life, including possible information about your past lives, according to the book Through Time Into Healing by Brian Weiss M.D.
“Start to keep a dream journal. Not all dreams are Freudian dreams with symbols, distortions, and wish-metaphors. Some dreams convey literal past life memories,” according to Through Time Into Healing.
Weiss recommends remaining still after you wake up and going over your dream in your mind. Then give the dream a title and write down as much as you can remember about the dream.
Over time you may have dreams which you believe contain information about your past lives. Practicing dream journaling and having the intention to access information about your past lives makes it more likely that this will occur, according to Through Time Into Healing.
Meditation
Meditation is listed lower on the list because it may take more time and practice than the above methods. I do not want to predispose you to believe any one thing or another. It might be the simple fact that some people believe meditation is difficult or requires a lot of time and practice to go deep that makes that true for people.
It is possible that someone can see a past life their very first time meditating, and even if they were not intending to. But don’t be discouraged if it takes more than one meditation session to remember your past lives.
Below, well-known Buddhist teacher Ajahn Brahm instructs listeners how to access past life memories through meditation. He claims one requires a deep state of meditation to do this. Again, that may not be true. As far as I know, no one has tested this hypothesis rigorously. So I hope you are encouraged to try this if it sounds interesting.
The method is fairly simple: achieve a deep state of meditation through repeated practice and/or such as is achieved during a meditation retreat. After the period of meditation is up, simply ask or direct your mind to remember your past lives. Ajahn Brahm says that at this point it should happen fairly easily and immediately. If it doesn’t, he recommends to not force it, to let it go, and try another time.
He also says that it is likely that one of the first things you will remember through this method is the death scene of the life you are remembering, which is likely the life directly previous to this one. He says that you are likely to see the death scene because it is the final memory from that body and therefore the most recent. If this is distressing, he recommends remaining calm and simply directing your mind to show an earlier memory than the death scene.
Spontaneous remembrance / Geographic Memory
Many people report having spontaneous memories from their past lives, especially children. However, many adults have also reported spontaneous past life memories when they visit geographic locations which their past-life self had some connection to.
I list this lower than the above because it seems more rare and less likely to happen intentionally. If this happens to you, perhaps you were guided to that experience. And perhaps people can intend to have these experiences, although some of the above methods seem easier and more reliable.
However, if you feel drawn to a particular place in the world, you may have a past life connection to that place. You could start by studying the place and eventually visiting, according to the book Through Time Into Healing by Brian Weiss M.D.
Psychedelic Therapy
I list Psychedelic Therapy near the bottom because this is a controversial method.
Firstly, many or most psychedelics are difficult to obtain legally. Secondly, psychedelics are powerful and possibly have more risks associated with their use than most of these other methods. Thirdly, the spiritual community is divided over the use of psychedelic chemicals.
I have heard many spiritual practitioners claim that nothing spiritually valuable can come from psychedelic chemicals. I disagree. I think the evidence suggests that psychedelics can be very useful depending on how they are used.
Stanislav Grof M.D. is a psychiatrist who studied LSD Therapy before it was illegal to do so, according to the book Realms of the Human Unconscious: Observations from LSD Research by Grof.
Several participants experienced spontaneous past life experiences during the many LSD Therapy trials Grof conducted. Even participants who did not believe in reincarnation prior to the LSD sessions would occasionally have these experiences, though far from every participant had such experiences, according to Realms of the Human Unconscious.
This is a brief overview of the method: Participants would undergo traditional talk therapy before and after the LSD session. Participants would also stay overnight at the facility after the session, to ensure that they were psychologically ready to reenter the world after their experiences. During the session, two therapists would sit in the room with the participant during the entire experience. Therapists and participants committed to remaining present for as long as it took for the patient to return to ordinary consciousness, even if that was 12 hours or more, though often it was just about eight hours. After LSD administration, the patient was instructed to wear eye shades and listen to music while surrendering to whatever experience arose.
The therapists were there for safety and comfort. The therapists were encouraged to not interact with the participant unless the participant needed care or interacted with the therapist first. Talking was not the emphasis, though it did occur. Therapists and participants were encouraged to not guide the sessions, but to let the session take its own course.
The protocol was not talk therapy with LSD. Rather, the protocol was essentially to use LSD, music, and eye shades to enter a non-ordinary state of consciousness during which the conscious mind loosens its grip and the unconscious mind can work out whatever it needs to work out.
The protocol was very effective in treating many different psychological conditions. Grof initially worked with terminal cancer patients experiencing depression and anxiety in the face of death. Many were able to find peace as a result of their experiences, according to Realms of the Human Unconscious.
You can see from the above that clinical LSD Therapy was conducted under strong safety protocols and there was preparation before the session and follow-up care after the session. Further, there was no guarantee someone would have any specific type of experience, past life experiences were only one of many different phenomena which occurred during these sessions.
As such, I do not recommend anyone just take a bunch of LSD and hope they will remember a past life. I would recommend someone do a lot of research before attempting anything like this. Or potentially wait a few more years in the hope that clinical LSD Therapy trials will begin anew in a legal context. The work to pave the way for this is already underway, though it has been a slow process.
Holotropic Breathwork
The following information comes from the books Holotropic Mind and Holotropic Breathwork by Stanislav Grof M.D.
Stanislav Grof developed Holotropic Breathwork after prohibition ended legal LSD research. It is a method of breathwork designed to reliably enter non-ordinary states of consciousness, during which deep healing and spiritual growth can occur. People also report experiencing past lives during Holotropic Breathwork sessions, though this is not guaranteed to happen in any one session.
I list Holotropic Breathwork at the bottom for two reasons: Firstly, it is potentially psychologically and physically risky and therefore should only be done in a certified workshop, which often costs around $200 or more. Secondly, the Holotropic Breathwork method involves letting go. You can’t guarantee past life phenomena.
Although many people report seeing past life material during Holotropic sessions, it happens spontaneously. There is no way to will this to happen. If you try too hard to control the experience, it will probably interfere with the ability to enter a Holotropic state in the first place.
It is possible that after one or more sessions you will experience past life recall given the intention to do so. That being said, it is possible you will learn about past lives more quickly through the above methods.
The Method: find a certified Holotropic Breathwork workshop or practitioner and attend one or more workshops until you have a breakthrough or experience past-life recall.
I hope this article was enjoyable and useful. If you know of other ways to remember past lives which I did not mention, please let me know in the comments. I am always curious about more reincarnation information.
More spirituality writing by Ryan M. McLaren
