Reincarnation and Past Lives

To Hell and Back: Life After Death Startling New Evidence

by Maurice S. Rawlings

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"To Hell and Back is not a religious book, even though it is about life after death. Dr. Rawlings (the author) is not a theologian or a pastor, but a cardiologist. Dr. Rawlings writes of the experiences of his own patients brought back to life. Here are some excerpts from his book. With the advent of new resuscitation techniques people can now be brought back to life after being dead several minutes. Just what happens after death. Eleven million Americans have reported near death, or out of body experiences. The typical description involves a beautiful light at the end of a tunnel. Many Christians are convinced that the light is Jesus Christ, because they often saw a figure on a cross. Some others perceive a heaven conforming to their own particular faith. Remarkably, others see the bright light turn into a ring of fire (pg 10). Among the resuscitees who claim to have had a spiritual experience, the experience becomes so real that the victim is transfixed by every detail. While there are many positive experiences, there are also, as we shall soon see, many negative experiences (pg 32).WHY DO SO MANY PEOPLE SEE LIGHT? Why do people almost always report seeing a light and feeling only peace & serenity after a near death experience? Many religions associate their leader with light, and as mentioned in the Christian faith, both God and Lucifer claim to be light. It is crucial in near death experiences to identify this source of light -- whether the light is a true representative of God, or a luring mirage of evil that imitates God as an all forgiving force (pg 59). Christians often perceive the light as Jesus, while a Jewish person might perceive the light as a representative of Johva God, yet a Hindu might envision Brahma, Vishnu, or Shiva, etc... (pg 61). But misrepresentations do in fact occur. One day I (Dr. Rawlings) performed CPR on a man who had been shot in the chest during a bank robbery. During CPR this man told me that he had an out-of-body experience, during this time he said he encountered the heavenly light, he was surprised at what surrounded him. There was no ridicule or rejection, the sordid parts of his life were not examined, and no mention was made of the couple he had killed three years before during a robbery. (pg 61). I (keith mason) think that many of the experiences which seem to be positive, are positive only because it is a trick from Satan himself tricking people into believing that there only is peace and serenity after death (regardless if a person is Christian, Moslem, Atheist, Hindu, Jewish, or whatever); in this way people of all faiths are tricked into believing that there is no accountability, or no judgment. The book is full of people who have had near death experiences, (both positive and negative). Skeptics dismiss these near death experiences as the result of a oxygen-depraved mind, while Theologians think that often these people are seeing none other than Satan himself... (pg 47). NOT EVERYONE SEES LIGHT. Not everyone sees light and reports peace and serenity. Dr. Rawlings explains it this way: As a general rule people remember that which is good, and forget that which is bad, and so if the interview is delayed just a little bit -- much less days, weeks, or months after the fact only the positive experiences will be found (pg 33). Case in point. As stated earlier, many people see this tunnel of light turn into a ring of fire. Here are a couple of examples: I (Dr. Rawlings) was watching a monitor to guide a pacemaker into my patients heart when it happened: his heart stopped. This is the story. The patient recounts his story in this way: I blacked out and then you (Dr. Rawlings) hit me on the chest saying 'excuse me.' ... Somebody was yelling. Something crashed over my left shoulder, everybody went crazy. And then I was out of it. I was floating, pitch black, moving fast. The wind whistled by and I rushed toward this beautiful blazing light. As I moved past, the walls of the tunnel caught fire. Beyond the blazing tunnel a huge lake of fire was burning like an oil spill. Elongated shadows showed that people were moving aimlessly about like animals in a zoo enclosure. Down the hill I saw an old friend who had died -- the last I recall they were dragging the river for him, 'hi there Jim' I called out. He just looked at me, didn't even smile. They were taking him around the corner when he started screaming: I ran, but there was no way out. I kept saying 'Jesus is Lord, Jesus is Lord.' Suddenly I was back in my body, as you were putting in the stitches. (pg 72). Another account is found on page 75. It goes like this: I was guided to a place in the spirit world called Hell. This is a place of punishment for all those who reject Jesus Christ. I not only saw Hell, but felt the torment that all who go there experience. The darkness of Hell is so intense that it seems to have a pressure per square inch. It is an extremely black, dismal, desolate, pressurized, heavy, type of darkness. It gives the individual a despondent feeling of loneliness. The heat is a dry, dehydrating type: your eyeballs are so dry they feel like red hot coals in there sockets. Your tongue and lips are parched and cracked with intense heat. ... The loneliness of Hell cannot be expressed. (pg 75). Yet another story follows: I (Dr. Rawlings) was giving CPR to a patient when the following incident occurred. I inserted a pacemaker through the shoulder and guided it through the vain into Charlie's heart. His heart stopped so I began to pound on the his heart, but as I did blood spurted out, I stopped to adjust the pacemaker. And as I did, Charlie's eyes would roll back in his head, he would sputter, turn blue, and convulse. This happened several times. Once while I was stopped to adjust the pacemaker Charlie screamed, 'Don't stop, don't stop, I'm in Hell, I'm in Hell.' Hallucinations, I thought at first, but most victims say, 'Take your big hands off me, your breaking my ribs,' but he was saying the opposite 'For Gods sake don't stop! Don't you understand, every time you stop I'm in Hell. When he asked me to pray for him I felt downright insulted. I told him to shut up, I'm a doctor, not a minister or a psychiatrist. Then the nurse gave me that expectant look. What would you do? That's when I composed a make believe prayer. I made him repeat the prayer to keep him off my back. Say it! Jesus Christ son of God, Keep me out of Hell. And a very strange thing took place. He was no longer that wild-eyed screaming lunatic. It was then that I too (Dr. Rawlings) became a Christian (pg 37). As I said earlier, Dr. Rawlings is not a Theologian, or a Minister, rather an unbiased Doctor who has written the findings of the patients he has resuscitated."

Publisher: Thomas Nelson Inc | More reviews: amazon.com

From Death to Birth: Understanding Karma and Reincarnation

by Pandit Rajmani Tigunait

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"The Good Doctor must have known we were both ready for and needing this book, which not only puts the central mysteries of Eastern philosophy and religion into a context for the Western mind to fully fathom, but makes seem just that much more beautiful and poetic than we are currently able to even imagine. For those of us who can't help but hear Narcississtic baby boomers in mid-life crisis playing jams from the Doors and the Beatles on out of tune guitars and talking about Woodstock whenever you hear the word "Karma" (and therefore would rather not hear anyone try to explain what it is) this book brings you back to the dignity and profundity of what it realy means--not to mention how important it was that the Baby Boomers embraced it when they did for generations after them!Not only will you have no question as to what the central tenets of Hinduism and Buddhism refer to and build from after reading this, you will have a better understanding of what it is to be fully, truly human than practically most of the Western religious text we have today is capable of rendering, as well as the philosophy--which is ironcially based on much of this! This book sheds a light on life that is so bright it embraces the light of all others and absorbs it into its own, instead of attempting to extinguish it. It will answer more questions than you even knew you had. It will also put much of everything from the spiritual self-help/New Age/psychological movement of today's culture to the quantum physics/cutting edge philosophy movement of Western society today into the overarching context we all have been intuitively desperate for.This book teaches your soul to dance."

Publisher: Himalayan Institute Press | More reviews: amazon.com

Reflections On Life After Life: More Important Discoveries In The Ongoing Investigation Of Survival Of Life After Bodily Death

by Raymond Moody Jr.

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"This book, the sequel to "Life After Life" is somewhat smaller than the previous book, and contains some interesting observations gleaned from the anecdotal evidence of those who came near to death and survived. Moody talks of the elements of the NDE that fewer people have: seeing the realm of "bewildered spirits" (ghosts), Cities of Light, dopplegangers, and so on. He goes on to speculate of the experiences of suicides, most of whom (in Moody's study) seem to have only partial NDE's. Also discussed are various reactions to his studies, including reactions from the ministry (not all of which were favourable). He includes, interestingly, accounts of certain people who were in dangerous situations, but not actually physically harmed (may provide some indight into what precipitates the NDE). Rather than being primarily speculative in tone, he seems to be mainly creating a roster of things that his subjects have reported to him, which gives the account a feel of objectivity, but he also uses some more personal observations later on in the book. This makes a good supplement to his previous book, but is a little dull because of the way in which it is organised. Interesting, but still all evidence is anecdotal. Little attempt at verification has been exercised (this may have not been the author's intention anyway), so one is left with the idea that maybe the whole experience may be generated by the mind rather than filtered through it. not a bad effort, but could be better."

Publisher: Bantam | More reviews: amazon.com

Journeys Through Time: Uncovering My Past Lives

by Jenny Cockell

Jenny Cockell has always had memories of living before. In her first book, 'Yesterday's Children', she described her search for the past life family which had haunted her from her earliest childhood. She remembered living as Mary Sutton, an Irishwoman who had died over 20 years before she was born. She gave an extraordinary account of how she successfully found Mary's surviving children, and was reunited with them in the present. Her new book, 'Journeys Through Time', brings readers up to date with her story. Jenny gives details of the four past lives that she remembers most clearly and explains how she has tried to trace them all. In particular, she remembers a life in Japan, which she has desperately sought to verify and uncover. Beginning with flashes of memories that she experienced in childhood, Jenny describes how she ?found? Mary and her children, her subsequent researches into her Japanese life, and what it all means. It is a page-turning account of one woman's journey to find the lives she lived before.

Publisher: Piatkus Books | More reviews: amazon.com

Soul Journeys: My Guided Tours through the Afterlife

by Rosalind McKnight

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"Anyone who reads this book will soon begin to sense the love that bleeds through the words of the author. Ms. McKnight is clearly an evolved conduit willing to share the private moments of her life history for the benefit of all who are wise enough to appreciate them. Her life story evolves as the non-physical portion of her greater nature guides the process of expanding enlightenment and her connection with her animal friends compliments that process.

While writing has come late in her life, let us pray that this is only Rosie's second book and not her last.

There is much more to say about this book, but I would leave that to the pleasure of the reader. "

Publisher: Hampton Roads Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com

Life in the Spirit World: The Mind Does Not Die

by Muriel Williams; Bill Williams; Ian Currie

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"Este maravilloso libro nos narra la vivivencia directa del Dr. Ian Currie, un profesor investigador de la universidad de Canada, el cual una ves fallecido vuelve por medio de la medium Sra. Muriel para explicarnos "todo" el proceso de transicion a la vida despues de la muerte, desde su traspaso en el lecho de muerte, hasta su condicion actual..(muchos van a disfrutar sus descripciones sobre como los descarnados disfrutan los juegos de tennis de campo, cuando nos visitan aqui en la tierra, ademas de que que comen?? en ese nuevo estado de conciencia humana),,,relamente un libro para asombrarse y disfrutar!!
Recomiendo completamente la lectura de este libro.
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This wonderful book tells the direct afterlife of dr. Ian Currie, a research professor at the University of Canada, who died and later speak through the medium Mrs. Muriel to explain the process of transition to life after death, since its handover on their deathbed, to its current condition .. (Many are going to enjoy their descriptions on how "death people" enjoy games of tennis field, when we visit here on earth, besides what they eat? in this new state of human consciousness),,, a wonderfully book to marvel and enjoy!
I' completely recommend reading this book,(100%) "

Publisher: Trafford Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com

American Book of the Dead

by E. J. Gold

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"The status of the classic, fascinating Tibetan Book of the Dead, despite its reputation, remains vexed and it is finally an apocryphal and late text in the Buddhist tradition. Travel light and stick to basics.And beware of the associated abuses.
This work by the notorious Gold, a cloned wannabe in this vein, is essentially a pointless text, whose core meaning might become clear if you have read the last paragraph of Gurdjieff's All and Everything. Be forewarned! The 'work' is a false concept, and doesn't mean 'liberation', beware of what you agree to. Don't be caught in the clutches of these operators. It is one thing to groove on Sufi sayings like 'die before you die', quite another to take it as a form of spiritual practice at the hands of those with lunatic thinking in this field. I read an early version of this book years ago while interviewing a few of Mr. Gold's victims in a state of shock (he has plenty of groupies however), whose tales bespeak a singularly nutty versions of Gurdjieff-Sufism mishmashed. I was struck by the especial viciousness of the goings on in this regard, and the symbolic manipulation of the 'book of the dead' archetype. Sometimes posing as a Indian style guru, sometimes the Sufi sheik and/or 'successor' to Gurdjieff, this man with no stated credentials whatsoever, save the clear hints of being no guru at all but a Crowley style occultist, has let loose some stunning and dangerous howlers in this field, and I would recommend staying well beyond his influence. Period. The question of the Gurdjieff 'school'is hopeless at this point. There is no such thing as the 'fourth way' and the ersatz ashram in tricky combinations has drifted down history ad infinitum and this is no exception. You are under no obligation to spiritual obedience to these entrepreneurs. None whatever. Wake up and watch your step."

Publisher: Gateways Books & Tapes | More reviews: amazon.com

I Have Lived Before: The True Story of the Reincarnation of Shanti Devi

by Sture Lonnerstrand

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"If you are like me, open minded to the idea that reincarnation is real but had no real proof, read this book. Shanti Devi was a girl that could remember her past life in full detail like it was yesterday, at the young age of 4. The book tell of how she eventually meets the husband she was married to, and other family members, and is tested to make sure she really was who she says she was. She went back to her last home and knew the whole layout and where she had hidden some money. I was convinced that at least one person has reincarnated after reading this book. Has some interesting information at the end about what Shanti Devi feels she has learned about life and also some quotes in the Bible refering to reincarnation."

Publisher: Ozark Mountain Publishing (AR) | More reviews: amazon.com

Lifestream: Journey into Past and Future Lives

by Shelley

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"Although this book is not long, it has some great info in it. I couldn't put it down once I started it. It talks about past lives and how they affect your present life and the choices you make. It talks about the future, and how we control the outcome. What I liked best was that the book has very interesting meditations for healing your heart, a past life regression, and a look into the future for the best outcome of any situation. I can't wait to try them out."

Publisher: Out of This World Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com

Healing the Eternal Soul: Insights from Past Life and Spiritual Regression

by Andy Tomlinson

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"I cannot recommend this book too highly. Tomlinson is thorough and thoughtful, with a real heart to see people healed and growing spiritually. He covers everything from the fine points of regression to the practicality of a client needing to use the toilet. I have read many texts on regression, and worked as a therapist. Tomlinson's book is one of the best on the subject. If you are going to do regression therapy, or if you are currently doing it, this book is a "must read"."

Publisher: O Books | More reviews: amazon.com