ReincarnationReincarnationmaybedefinedasthereturnofanonmaterialessence(soul,mind, consciousness) to another physical body after death. Reincarnationbeliefs are widespread in the world today and may be quite ancient. Thisarticle coversbeliefs about reincarnation in various traditions andesotericsystems but emphasizes research with persons who claim to rememberprevious lives and theories that have been developed to account for theresearchfindings.Specialattentionisgiventocriticismsoftheresearchandtoalternativeexplanatoryframeworks.

TheConceptofReincarnation

Theideaofreincarnationrestsonadualisticconceptionofmindandbodythat runs counter to reductionist materialism, which holds that consciousness is generated by the brain. From thematerialistperspective,thesurvivalofconsciousnessafterbodilydeathis inconceivableandreincarnationisnomorethanatenetofsomereligionsandoccultsystems.MaterialismhasbeentheguidingphilosophyofWesternscienceinrecent centuries but it is increasingly under assault from various directions[1] and with its weakening is coming anopenness to the possibility of postmortem survival and reincarnation. In the view of physicist Henry Stapp of theLawrenceLivermoreNationalLaboratoryat theUniversityofCalifornia,Berkeley, ‘Rational science-basedopiniononthis question [of the survival of consciousness after bodily death] must be based on the content and quality of theempirical data, not on a presumed incompatibility of such phenomenawith our contemporary understanding of theworkingsofnature’.[2]

Fortunately, there is now considerable empirical data to be examined, thanks to a research program initiated by IanStevensonof theUniversityofVirginia in1961.[3] Unsurprisingly, Stevenson’s research and that of his colleagues andsuccessorshascomeinforafairamountofcriticism,butitcontinuestoprogressandmoveinnewdirections.Itseemswise to allow any final definition of reincarnation to be guided by this empirical work, butmeanwhile wemay takeaccountofthevariouswaysreincarnationhasbeenconceivedindifferentbeliefsystems.AccordingtothegreatreligionsofAsia,humansmayberebornasnonhumananimals,butthat isnotsoelsewhere.Therearealsodifferentopinionsaboutwhenreincarnationoccurs(atconception,atbirth,oratnocertainpoint),whetherornotitispossibletochangesexbetweenlives,whetherkarmaplaysaroleintheprocess,andotherdetails.

Forthepurposesofthisarticle,reincarnationisdefinedsimplyasthereturnofanonmaterialessenceassociatedwithanentitytoanotherphysicalbodyafterbodilydeath.Thisdefinitionisgeneralenoughtoallowforthemanynotionsofwhatreincarnatesandhowitdoesso.Ineverydayspeech,theessencethatreincarnatesofteniscalledthe‘soul,’butmanytraditions imagine itasacontinuationof selfandpersonality. InBuddhism, it isa streamofconsciousnessdevoidofmentalcontentandseparatefromaselfandself-identity.Beforetakingupresearchoncasesofpast-lifememoryandthetheoreticalworkthatattemptstoaccountforthem,thediverswaysreincarnationhasbeenunderstoodarereviewed.First,theterminologyusedtotalkaboutreincarnationisconsidered.

ReincarnationTerminology

Writersonreincarnationhaveusedseveraldifferentwords,oftenwithmoreorlessthesamemeaning,butsometimeswithdifferences.Althoughreincarnationisthepreferredtermtoday,inthepastitwasmetempsychosisorthetransmigrationofsouls.[4]

ReincarnationisawordwithaLatinrootthatmeans‘returntotheflesh’or‘enteringthefleshagain’.Itwasnotusedinancienttimes,however,butwascoinedinthemiddleofthenineteenthcenturyasahyphenatedword.[5]Rebirthalsocameintowidespreaduseinthemid-nineteenthcentury,perhapsalittleearlierthanreincarnation.[6]

Transmigration,anothertermwithaLatinroot,wasinusebythe1300storefertomovementofpeoplefromoneplacetoanother.Thesenseof‘passageofthesoulafterdeathintoanotherbody’wasfirstrecordedin1594.[7]

MetempsychosisistheEnglishrenderingoftheGreektermµετεµψύχωσιςthatwasusedinancienttimestorefertothedoctrineofreincarnationaspromotedbyPherecydesofSyros(c. 580–c.520BCE)andPythagoras(c. 570–c. 495BCE),

amongothers.[8]TheStoics(300sBCE)introducedpalingenesia(παλιγγενεσία)orpalingenesistorefertothecontinualrecreationoftheuniverseandthisalsocametorefertoreincarnationinantiquity.[9]TheChristianChurchFatherClementofAlexandria(150-215CE)wasthefirsttousethetermmetensomatosis(µετενσωµάτωσις),literally‘changeofbody’.[10]However,neitherpalingenesisnormetensomatosis cametobeaswidelyusedasmetempsychosisandtheyare rarelyfoundtoday.

InJudaism,theHebrewtermgilgul(גלגול,cycle)waspairedwithneshamot(הנשמות,souls)torefertoa“cycleofsouls”bytheKabbalistIsaacLuria(1534-1572)inhisGateofReincarnations,butdoesnotappeartohavebeeninuseearlier.[11]

IslamusestheArabicwordtanasuhkhtorefertoreincarnation.[12]

TheSanskrittermsamsara(saṃsāra)maybetheoldesttermforreincarnationinuse.Itmeans‘wandering’or‘world’,withtheconnotationofcyclicchange,andisthefundamentalpremiseofallIndicreligions.[13]Samsarawas taken intoHindiandPaliandhasthemeaningofreincarnationinbothHinduismandBuddhism.[14]WhenspeakingEnglish,Hindusrefertosamaraasreincarnation,butBuddhistspreferrebirth,becauseforthemreincarnationimpliestherecyclingofasoul,theexistenceofwhichtheydeny.Inthisusage,reincarnationdenotesthecarryingforwardofpersonhoodacrosslives,whereasrebirthdenotesthepersistenceofanindividual’sbehaviorsandkarmictendenciesonlyafterdeath;itisnotthecontinuancepersonhood.[15]

BeliefinReincarnation

ReincarnationinEasternReligiousTraditions

By far the best known reincarnation belief systems are those associated with the major Indic religions, Hinduism,Buddhism,Jainism,andSikhism.The first threeof thesetraditionsbegantodevelopabout thesametime,around500BCE,andtheyinfluencedeachotherevenastheytookseparatepaths.Thereisalsoconsiderablecomplexitywithineachfaith,whenwerealizethatthereisadifferencebetweenestablisheddoctrine,theelaborationsofreligiousthinkers,andtheconvictionsoflayindividuals.[16]TherearecommondenominatorsintheIndicsystems,however.Allincludekarmaandembracesomeformofmetempsychosis,withthegoalofachievingreleasefromthecycleandreachinganendstate,calledmoksha(mokșa)inHinduismandJainism,muktiinSikhism,andnirvana(nirvāna,Sanskrit)ornibanna(nibānna,Pali)inBuddhism.[17]

InmostvarietiesofHinduism,Godoverseessamsaraandmediateskarma,sothatone’sbadkarmamaybeamelioratedbyritualappealstoGod.SomeHindusbelievethatitispossibletotransfergoodkarmatootherpersons(especiallyspousesandchildren)andtothespiritsofthedead.[18]Thereisnofixedtimeafterdeaththatreincarnationoccurs.Theintervalmaybeasshortasafewmonthsordays,andreincarnationmayevenoccurafterbirth.TheSanskritandHinditerm,parakayapravesh,denotesthereturnofawanderingspiritinalivingbody;itisusuallytranslatedas(spirit)possessionratherthanreincarnation,however.[19]

Sikhismwasnotfoundeduntilthe15thcentury,longaftertheotherIndicfaiths.ItsteachingsonreincarnationaresimilartotheHindu.Thesoul issubjecttoreincarnationuntil its liberationbyGod.[20] Jainism,bycontrast,begantodeveloparoundthesametimeasBuddhism,andmanyofitstenetsaresimilartotheBuddhist,exceptthatJainismrecognizesGod.Jainsholdthatkarmadrivesthesoultoreincarnateimmediatelyatdeathintoanotherbodythenbeingconceived.[21]

BuddhismoriginatedinIndia,butbythe3rdcenturyCEproselytizingmonkswerecarryingittodifferentcountriesaroundeasternAsia.ItwasbanishedfromIndiaforpoliticalreasonsinthe13thcenturyandtodayhasonlyasmallpresencethere.Buddhism became syncretized to local traditions in each place it became established, making for a great variety ofBuddhisteschatologies.Twobroadbranches,TheravadaandMahayana,arerecognized,[22]butwithineachtherearemanylocaltypes.TibetanBuddhismisanespeciallydistinctiveformofMahayanaBuddhism,andJapaneseBuddhismisagaindifferent.[23] A key difference between Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism is the nature of existence between lives.TheravadaBuddhismstipulatesthatconsciousawarenessceasesatdeath,butintheMahayanaschools,notonlydoesconsciousawarenesscontinue,theconsciousnessstreamissupportedbyasubtlebody.Nevertheless,eveninTibetanBuddhism,one’skarmadeterminesthewombdooroneconfrontsintheend.[24]

ReincarnationintheCircum-MediterraneanRegion

ReincarnationbeliefsappearinvariousplacesaroundtheMediterraneanSeainancienttimes,apparentlyindependentlyofthedevelopmentofsimilarbeliefsinIndiaandtosomeextentfromeachother.Noneofthesesystemshaveafullydevelopedconceptofkarma,butinotherrespectstherearesignificantdifferencesbetweenthemgeographicallyandover

time.

PherecydesofSyroswasthefirstGreektowriteaboutreincarnation,inthe500sBCE,[25]butGreekreincarnationbeliefsaremorecloselyrelatedtoPythagoras.Unfortunately,Pythagorasfavouredoralinstructionandleftnowritingsofhisown(thoseattributedtohimarenowknowntobeforgeries).[26]In440BCE,HerodotusallegedthatGreekreincarnationbeliefshadbeenacquiredfromEgypt.Theseteachingsaffirmed,Herodotussaid,that‘whenthebodydies,thesoulentersintoanothercreaturewhichchancesthentobecomingtothebirth,andwhenithasgonetheroundofallthecreaturesoflandandseaandoftheair,itentersagainintoahumanbodyasitcomestothebirth;andthatitmakesthisroundinaperiodofthreethousandyears’.[27]ItisnotcertainthatthesewerePythagoras’views,though,andmodernscholarsdoubtthattheyoriginatedinEgypt.ItisnotclearthattheEgyptiansbelievedinreincarnation;itseemsmorelikelythattheelite,atleast,subscribedtosomeformofresurrectioninsteadofreincarnation.[28]

OtherGreekswhoembracedreincarnationincludethepoetPindar(c.518-c.438BCE)andthephilosophersEmpedocles(c.492-c.432BCE)andPlato(427/428-348/347BCE).Plato’sideasarepresentedinhisdialogues,exploredthroughthewordsofhischaracters,andarenotentirelyconsistentacrosshisoeuvre.Platodrewonhispredecessorsbutaddedsomethoughtsofhisown.[29]Helikenedthesoultoapairofwingedhorseshitchedtoachariot.SomesoulslosttheirwingsandbecameembodiedincreaturesonEarth.Thesewinglesssoulswerefreedfromthebodyatdeathtobejudgedbythegodsandmightbesenttotheunderworldtodopenanceforonethousandyearsbeforeresumingcorporeallife.Mostsoulsrequiredtensuchcycles(tenthousandyears)beforetheycouldregaintheirwingsandreturntothegods.[30]Soulsontheirwaytoreincarnationwereallowedtochoosetheirnewbodies,eitherhumanornonhumananimal,butdidsoonthebasisof their temperamentsandcharacters.[31]Before resuming fleshyexistence, theyweremade todrink fromtheRiverofForgetfulness(Lethe)towipecleantheirmemoriesoftheirpreviouslives.[32]ThenotionthatthegodsjudgedsoulsafterdeathandthatrebirthoccurredafterpenancehadbeenpaidmadekarmasuperfluousasanethicaltheoryfortheGreeks.[33]

TheJewishphilosopherPhiloofAlexandria(25BCE-50CE)wroteaboutreincarnation,[34]butwhetherearlyJewsingeneralbelieved in it isunclear.ThehistorianFlavius Josephus (37-100CE) reported that thePharisees ‘say thatall soulsareincorruptible,but that thesoulsofgoodmenonlyareremoved intootherbodies,—butthat thesoulsofbadmenaresubjecttoeternalpunishment’.[35]Somescholarshavetakenthistoindicatereincarnation,butothers[36]insistthatitreferstobodilyresurrection.Ifthereferenceistoreincarnation,itcomeswithatwist:onlytherighteousarereincarnated,butthewickedaredestinedtospendeternityinHell.Philoheldthatperfectedsoulsescapedthereincarnationcycle,whilsttheimperfectwerereborn,[37]oppositethesituationdescribedbyJosephus.

FortheRomans,reincarnationbeliefsviedwithtraditionalideasoftheafterlifeinasubterraneaninfernoanditisnotknownhowwidelyheldtheywere.[38]SeveralLatinwriters,includingVirgil(70-19BCE)andCicero(106-43BCE),dealtwithreincarnation, however.[39] This period saw a resurgence of Pythagorean and Platonic ideas, but also some newdevelopments. The first of the Neoplatonists whose work has come down to us, Plotinus (c. 204–270), rejectedresurrectioninfavorofreincarnation.Heacknowledgedthatsomepeoplebelievetheymayberebornasanimalsasaresultof‘sin’,butfollowsPlatointeachingthatoneisreborninaformconsistentwithone’scharacter.[40]

ReincarnationideasweresomuchapartoftheintellectualclimateofJesus’stimeandplacethatitishardtoimaginethathewasnotacquaintedwiththem,buthisstanceonthesubjectisuncertain.TherearepassagesintheNewTestamentthatcanbereadasallusionstoreincarnationonthepartofJesus’sdisciples,atleast,butthesepassagesmayrefertopre-existenceofthesoulwithoutpriorincarnation,ratherthantoreincarnation.[41]Therewasagooddealofcontroversyonthispointeveninantiquity.[42]Itwasthepossibilityofthesoul’spre-existenceratherthanitsreincarnationthatgotOrigen(185-254)intotroublelater.[43]

Severalsecond-centuryChristianGnostics, includingCarpocrates (d.138),Basilides (d.140),andValentinus (100-160)espousedreincarnation.ThebeliefwasclearlywidespreadamongthegeneralpopulationthroughouttheLevantduringthisperiod,asevidencedbytheenergyotherChristiansinvestedindisputingit.TheophilusofAntioch(d.c.181),Irenaeusof Lyons (d. 202), Tertullian of Carthage (160-222), and Marcus Minucius Felix (d. 260) all condemned the idea ofreincarnation[44]andtheChurchsoontookstepstocombatit.

In325,RomanEmperorConstantinetheGreat(274-337)convenedtheFirstCouncilofNicaeaforthepurposeofresolvingdisagreementsoverChristiandoctrineanddecidingwhatbooksshouldbeincludedintheNewTestament.TheCouncilruledagainstreincarnationandConstantinesetaboutarecreationofChurchhistory,sothatthewritingsofearlyfatherswho favored reincarnationwereexpunged from the record.Then, at theSecondCouncilofConstantinople (the FifthEcumenicalCounciloftheChurch)in553,Origen’sspeculationsaboutpre-existencewerejudgedtobeheretical,shuttingdowndiscussiononthattopicaswell.[45]AlthoughreincarnationbeliefsweresuppressedinChristianlands,theydidnotaltogether disappear, however. St. Thomas Aquinas (1224/225-1274) found it necessary to inveigh against them.[46]

ReincarnationwasacentraltenetoftheCathars,whosereligionwasbrutallysuppressedinthe1200s.[47]Later,GiordanoBruno(1548-1600)wasburntatthestakeforteachingreincarnation,amongotherheresies.[48]Reincarnationbeliefsalsoheldon inareasdominatedby theGreekandRussianOrthodoxy,continuing thereafter theseparationof theEasternOrthodoxChurchfromRomanCatholicisminthe11thcentury.[49]

Judaismdidnottakeadoctrinairestandagainstreincarnation.Reincarnationfiguresinthe8th-centuryKaraitemovementandtheninthe12th-centuryBahir.TheBahir,writteninSpainandnowrecognizedasthefirstworkoftheKabbalah,ispopularlyattributedtothe1st-centuryRabbiNehuniabenHaKana.[50]Reincarnationbeliefswereelaboratedinthe12th-centuryZohar,by15thcenturyItalianKabbalists,[51]andbytheGermanYitzhak(Isaac)Luria(1534-1572),whoseGateofReincarnationsisaprincipaltextoftheUltra-OrthodoxHasidimtoday.[52]

EarlyIslammaynothaverejectedreincarnation,thoughoppositionsoondeveloped,andthebeliefisrepresentedtodayonlyamongtheesotericSufisandheterodoxShiasectssuchastheAlevi,Alawites,andDruze.[53]Thedetailsofthebeliefsvaryfromonesecttoanother.Historically,onestreamof thoughtheldthatsoulsprogressedfrominanimateobjects,suchasstones,tononhumananimals,thentohumans,fromwhichconditionitwaspossibletoattaintranscendence.[54]

TheideathatactionsinonelifemightinfluencetheconditionsoftheafterlifeorthenextembodiedlifeisfoundinSufismand among the TurkishAlevi, but the idea is not universal orwell-developed, as is the doctrine of karma in Easternreligions,andmayreflectaborrowingfromthem.[55]Alawitesholdthattheywereoriginallystarsordivinelightsthatwerecastoutofheaventhroughdisobedienceandmustundergorepeatedreincarnationbeforereturningthere.[56]TheAleviandDruzebelievethatGodassignssoulstonewbodiesimmediatelyupondeath,thenattheendoftimejudgesthemonthebasisofalltheirlivesintoto.[57]TheDruzeholdthatDruzearealwaysrebornasDruze.[58]

ReincarnationbeliefshavebeendocumentedinEuropenotonlyamongChristiansandJews,andnotonlyinthecircum-Mediterranean region.When JuliusCaesar (100-44 BCE) led the Roman army intowhat is now France in 50 BCE, hediscovered that the Gauls (a Celtic people) believed in reincarnation, and he opined that for this reason, they wereunafraid to die.[59] Reincarnation beliefs have been documented for Celts in Great Britain, up to the early twentiethcentury,[60]andforNordicpeoplesaswell.[61]TheyfigureinthePoeticEdda,a13th-centuryIcelandicsaga.[62]

ReincarnationintheModernWesternWorld

MostmodernWesternnotionsofreincarnationarederivedfromtwomajorstreamsof influence—ChristianandJewishesotericism, plus a purported Egyptian occultism and Neoplatonism, on the one hand; and concepts imported fromHinduismandBuddhismontheother.[63]

Anearlyandimportantmovement,Hermeticism,isthoughttohavehaditsgenesisinthefirstcenturiesoftheCommonEraasanamalgamationofChristianandJewishmysticism,Neoplatonism,andEgyptianoccultism.Reincarnationbeliefsare basic to Hermeticism, although rarely stressed.[64] Hermetic teachings informed alchemy, Western magic andwitchcraft,andRosicrucianism.ReincarnationhasacentralplaceinwitchcraftandRosicrucianism,whichoriginatedinthe1600s,[65]andintheHermeticOrderoftheGoldenDawn,foundedin1888.[66]

Freemasonryisanothersecretsocietywithreincarnationbeliefs.[67]AlthoughithasrootsinEgyptianandWesternesoterictraditions,includingPythagoreanism,FreemasonrydevelopedseparatelyfromHermeticismandRosicrucianism.MasoniclodgesfirstbecameorganizedinEnglandunderKingAthelstan(reined924–940),buttheywereexclusivelyprofessionalorganizationsforstonemasonsanditwasnotuntilthe17thcenturythatthe‘speculative’aspectofthesocietymovedtotheforewiththeacceptanceofnon-masonsintothelodges.[68]Thereafter,thesocietyspreadwidelythroughEuropeandwascarriedtoAmericabycolonists.

AlongwithFreemasonry,Rosicrucianism,witchcraft,andmagic,aswellas theKabbalah,madetheirwaytoAmerica,where they foundmanynewadherentsandhelped to informAmericanculture from itsearliestdays.[69] ReincarnationbeliefsaccompaniedthembutironicallytheBritishandEuropeancolonizerswerelargelyunawareofNativeAmericantraditionsof reincarnation.[70] In the1820sand1830s, reincarnationwas takenupby theAmericanTranscendentalists,includingRalphWaldoEmersonandHenryDavidThoreau.[71]WiththeTranscendentalists,forthefirsttime,therewasasynthesisofideasaboutreincarnationthatincludedthen-newly-translatedtextsofEasternreligions,andanemphasisonspiritual development and karma, especially in the works of Emerson.[72] Asian ideas, first Hindu and later Buddhist,claimedincreasingattentionfromthe1840sonward.[73]

Indic ideasof reincarnation, includingkarmaandtheconceptof theAkashicRecordsasanethericmediumonwhichinformationhasbeenrecordedsincethebeginningoftime,playanevenlargerroleintheteachingsoftheTheosophicalSociety,whichwasfoundedinupstateNewYorkin1875byHelenaBlavatsky.RudolfSteinerbrokewithBlavatskytoform

Anthroposophy inGermany in the early 20th century, but retained certain essential Theosophical teachings, such asreincarnation,karma,andtheAkashicRecords.TheseideasalsoshapedthelifereadingsofEdgarCayce[74]andhavehadanenduringeffectonthewayreincarnationisconceivedintheWest.TheyarecentraltotheunderstandingofreincarnationintheNewAgemovementthatbegantodominatetheAmericanmetaphysicalsceneinthe1970sandhassincecometoglobalprominence.[75]PaganismandWicca—termsusedtodaytorefertowhatwasformerlycalledwitchcraft—haveingeneraladoptedtheNewAgebeliefsystemregardingreincarnation.

Othernewreligiousmovementsofthe19thand20thcenturiesembracedreincarnationwithoutanexplicitcommitmenttokarmaorotherEasternideas.TheseincludeSpiritism,aspromulgatedbyAllanKardec;theUnityChurch,partoftheAmericanNewThoughtmovement;and, inthe20thcentury,Eckankar, theChurchofScientology,and thechanneledteachingsofSethandMichael.

Public opinion polls have found the belief in reincarnation to have increased both in Europe andAmerica in recentdecades.A1968surveyofreligiousbeliefsinEuropefoundthatalthoughthepercentagevariedbycountry,overallsome18% of respondents said they believed in reincarnation. A similar survey in 1986 found 21% of respondents reportedbelievinginreincarnation.[76]IntheUnitedKingdom,29%ofrespondentstoaEuropeanValuesSurveyconductedbetween1990and1993saidtheybelievedinreincarnation.NationalsurveysconductedincontinentalEurope,mostlyfrom1999to2002,foundanaverageincidenceof22%forthecountriesofWesternEuropeand27%forthecountriesofEasternEurope,withasmanyas41%ofIcelanderssayingthattheybelievedinreincarnation.[77]A2013HarrisPollfoundasimilarupwardtrendinreincarnationbeliefamongAmericans,from21%in2005to24%in2013.Youngeragegroupstendedtohaveagreater level of belief, with only 11% of those over 68 believing in reincarnation in 2013. Interestingly, the rise inreincarnationbeliefsbetween2005and2013camewhilebeliefs inGod,Heaven,angels,andothertraditionalreligiousideasdeclined.[78]

ReincarnationinTribalSociety

Reincarnationbeliefshavebeendocumentedforindigenoustribalsocietiesthroughouttheworld.ManyAmericanIndiansbelieve in reincarnation.[79] The belief is especially common in the northwestern part of the continent, inAlaska andBritishColumbia,andamongtheEskimosandInuitasfarasGreenland.[80]IthasalsobeenreportedfromtheLapps(Sämi),aFinno-Ugric-speaking people livingmainly inNorway, Sweden, and Finland.[81] Reincarnation beliefs are also foundthroughoutAfrica,Oceania,Australia,andthetribalsocietiesofIndiaandmainlandAsia—oneveryinhabitedcontinent,andinthemajorityofcultureareasinallbutEurope.[82]Cross-culturalstudiesusingsamplesof30,[83]50[84]and60[85]small-scalesocietieshavefoundreincarnationbeliefsinbetweenathirdandahalfofthem.

Thereincarnationbeliefsoftribalpeoplesareafeatureoftheiranimisticworldview.AnimismwasfirstidentifiedbySirEdwardBurnettTylor(1832-1917)inhisbookPrimitiveCulture,originallypublishedin1871.Tylordrewhisportraitofanimismfromthereportsoftravelers,missionaries,andamateurethnographersamongindigenouspeoples.Heshowedthatanimismhadanexperientialandempiricalbasis,indreamsinwhichhumanfiguresappeared,ghostsandapparitions,and what today are called out-of-body and near-death experiences, mediumistic trance, and shamanic journeying.Similarly, he pointed to phenomena such as dreams of expectant mothers, birthmarks on newborn babies, and thebehaviorsoftoddlers,ashavinginspiredthebeliefinreincarnation.[86]

Thespecificsofanimisticreincarnationbeliefsvaryfromsocietytosociety,thoughtheyarecharacterizedbytheabsenceof karma and, except for some in the Indic sphere, a rebirth cycle that includes animal lives.[87] In general, animisticpeoplesbelieve that ifnonhumananimals reincarnate, it is in theirownspecies lines.[88]Reincarnation is expected infamilylines[89]andanindividualmaydeclarebeforedeaththerelativewhomheintendstohaveashisnewmother.[90]

Reincarnationbeliefsarelinkedtosocialpracticesintribalsocieties.Thedeadmaybeburiedbeneaththefloorofthehousetofacilitatethereturninthefamilyoratcrossroadsinordertoconfusethespiritanddeteritfromreturningamongitskin.[91]Attemptsaremadetoidentifychildrenwithdeceasedrelativessothattheycanbegiventhesamename.[92]Sincenames are linked to status and property, this allows people to reincarnate in such a way as to inherit positions andpossessionsfromtheirpreviouslives.[93]Theassociationofreincarnationbeliefsandsocialpracticesisacharacteristicfeatureofanimismbutabsentintheworldreligions,inwhichbeliefstendtobemoreelaboratedphilosophically.[94]

OriginoftheBeliefinReincarnation

Therehavebeenmanysuggestionsaboutwherethebeliefinreincarnationoriginated.ThemostcommonviewamongscholarsisthatitwasfirstconceivedinIndia.[95]Inantiquity,itwasthoughttohaveenteredGreecefromEgypt,andatleastonecommentatorhassuggestedthatittravelledfromEgypttoIndia.[96]Somehaveproposedthatitoriginatedwith

theProto-Indo-EuropeanancestorsoftheGreeks,Indians,Celts,andGermanicpeoples.[97]AnothersuggestionisthatthebeliefaroseinTibetandMongolia,whenceitfounditswayindependentlytoGreece,India,andNorthAmerica.[98]

Morerarely,scholarshaveconsideredthepossibilitythatthebeliefhadmultiplepointsoforiginindifferentculturalandlinguisticgroups.[99] Those who take this position sometimes suggest that reincarnation was inspired by the cyclicalpatternsofnature.[100]Tylor’sposition—thatitwasaconclusiondrawnfrompregnancydreamsandobservationsofthingslikephysicalandbehaviouralcorrespondencesbetweenchildrenanddeceasedpersons—hasreceivedlittleattentionandyetwouldappeartohavemuchinitsfavour.AsTylornoted,thesesignsarementionedfrequentlyinconnectionwithreincarnationbeliefsintribalsocieties.[101]Forexample,theGilyak(Nivkh)ofnortheasternSiberiahavealegend‘whichtellsthatafterthedeathofaGilyakwhohadonhisfacedistinctivescarsfromwoundsreceivedinafightwithabear,aboywasborntoanotherGilyakwiththeveryscarsonhisfaceasthedeceasedhad’.[102]Signslikebirthmarksareofapan-humannatureandsocouldhaveledtothebeliefwhereveraresemblancewasdistinctenoughtobenoticed.

Ifthebeliefinreincarnationhadmultiplepointsoforigin,itiseasiertounderstandthegreatdiversityofwaystheprocessisconceivedtooperatetoday.[103]Moreover,ifthebeliefwasgroundedinitiallyinsignsofthesortTyloridentified,itcouldbeveryold.AnthropologistssuspectthatIndianbeliefswereborrowedfromindigenoustribes.[104]Ifthatisso,thenwhatspreadfromIndiamaynothavebeenthebeliefinreincarnationassuch,buttheideathatitwasassociatedwithcertainconceptionsofkarma.[105]

EvidenceforReincarnation

Past-LifeReadings

Oftheseveraltypesofevidencethathavebeenadducedforreincarnation,past-lifeidentificationbypsychicpractitionersisconsideredbyresearcherstobetheweakest.Theinformationcomesfromthirdpartiesandevenwhenitisaccurate,itssource is uncertain and so is the person to which it refers. Because psychics use extrasensory perception to gaininformation, their sourcecouldbe themindsof their clientsor it couldbewrittendocumentsorevenahypotheticalethericrepositorysuchastheAkashicRecords.[106]PsychicEdgarCaycesaidthathesometimesobtainedinformationforhis ‘life readings’ from the minds of his clients and sometimes retrieved it from the Akashic Records.[107] However,informationnotgleanedfromaclient’smindwouldnotnecessarilyrefertotheclient,butmightbelongtosomeoneelse,orcouldbeimaginary.Thereisnowaytoknowforsure.[108]

Additionally, the information relayed by psychicsmay be coloured by their own convictions. Historian of religion J.GordonMeltonhasshownhowCayce’slifereadingswereinfluencedbytheTheosophytowhichhewasintroducedbyaclient.AtypicalreadingfromCayceincludedaseriesoflives,beginninginAtlantisandEgypt,followingtheTheosophicalaccount of history, and he put great emphasis on karma and other principles of the Theosophical concept ofreincarnation.[109] Cayce’s life readings are very popular and have been emulated by other psychics, but few of themincludeverifiableinformation,andofthosefew,onlyasmallfractionhavebeenconfirmeduponinvestigation.[110]

PastLifeRegression(PLR)

Regressions toprevious livesunderhypnosis (past life regressions) have become immensely popular for purposes oftherapy,wherepsychologicalratherthanfactualtruthiswhatmatters,[111]butStevensonfoundthemoflittlevalueforresearch.Heattemptedtoregress13childrenwithpast-lifememoriestoseeifhecouldelicitadditionalverifiabledetailsbutdidnotsucceedwithanyofthem.[112]Moreimportantly,therearemanyproblemsassociatedwithusinghypnosistolearnaboutpastlives.

Hypnosiswasoncethoughttoenhancememory,butthisisnowknownnottobetrue,whichiswhytestimonybasedonhypnosis is no longer allowed in courts of law. Hypnosis encouragesmemory distortions such as confabulation andparamnesia, inwhich fantasy and objective experience are confused, and cryptomnesia (sourceamnesia), in which aperson imagineshimself in themidstofeventshehas readorheardabout,buthasconsciously forgotten.Moreover,hypnosisisaverysuggestiblestate;eventheinstructiontogobacktoapreviouslifeisenoughtomakeapersonimagineone.Nordoestheinstructionmerelytoreturntothesourceofatraumaguaranteethatapastlifewillberecalledasitoccurred.[113]

Occasionally,veridical(factuallycorrect)informationthatisnotcryptomnesia-basedemergesinpastliferegressions,buttheidentityofthepreviouspersongivenismuchmorerarelyconfirmed.AnexampleofveridicalmemoriesinaregressioninwhichthepreviouspersoncouldnotbeidentifiedisthefamouscaseofBrideyMurphy,whichissometimesmistakenlysaidtohavebeencompletelydebunked.[114]Thispartialaccuracymaybeduetothesubconsciousmindblockingmemories

fromcomingtoconsciousawarenessfullybecauseitistryingtoshieldthepersonfromlearninghispast-lifeidentity.[115]

Inonecelebrated regressioncase, IndianapolispolicedetectiveRobertSnowwasable to identityhisprevious selfbylocatingacanvashesawhimselfpaintingunderhypnosis,butthenameshegaveforbothhispast-lifeselfandhispast-lifewifeturnedoutincorrect.[116]

DéjàVuandChildProdigies

Déjàvu—thesensethatonehasbeeninaplacebefore—oftenisnomorethanamemorydistortion.[117]However,whenexperiencersareabletoleadtheirwayaroundplacestheyhaveneverbeen,ashappensonoccasion,itishardtoascribethemtofantasy.Childprodigiesarechildrenundertheageoftenwhohaveskills—generallymathematical,artistic,orsportsskills—atthelevelofanexpertadultperformer.Becausetheskillsmanifestinchildrensoyoung,theynaturallyleadtothesuspicionthattheywereacquiredinanearlierlife.Déjàvuandchildprodigiesareclassiclinesofevidenceforreincarnation, but the most that modern researchers are willing to say about them is that they are consistent withreincarnation.Inandofthemselves,neithersuppliesanysignificantsupportforit.[118]

AnnouncingDreams,BirthmarksandBehaviours

Manytribalpeoplesrelyonpregnancydreamsandanewbornchild’sbirthmarksandbehaviourstodetermineitspreviousidentity.[119]Although thesesignsmaybequite striking, theycaneasilybeover-interpreted,andby themselvesdonotclaimmuchattentionfromresearchers.

InvoluntaryMemoriesofPreviousLives

Involuntarymemoriesofprevious lives,whicharisespontaneously inthewakingstateordreams,areofmuchgreaterresearch interest. Involuntarypast-lifememories closely resemble involuntarymemoriesof thepresent life.Past-andpresent-lifememoriesmaybetriggeredbythesamesortsofassociationsandtheyaresusceptibletothesamesortsoferrorsanddistortions.Theymaybeanalyzedwiththesameconceptsandterminology.[120]

Past-lifememory research isconcernedchieflywith involuntaryautobiographicalmemories.Thesememoriesmaybereported by adults as well as children, but they tend to comemost naturally to young children. Children’s past-lifememoriesmoreoftenincludeverifiableinformationthandotheproductsofhypnosisorthereadingsofpsychicsand,uponinvestigation,aremuchmorelikelytobeconfirmed.Thisisinpartbecausetherecalledlivestypicallylieinclosetemporalandspatialproximitytothepresent life.Thechildrenclamortobetakenbacktotheplacestheyrememberhavinglived,andwhentheirparentsoblige,theyexperiencedéjàvu.Theyshowtheirwayaround,recognizepeople,andbehavetowardthemasthepersonstheyrecallhavingbeenbehavedwhenalive.[121]

When the previousperson is identified, behaviouralandphysical signs the child has displayedmay be recognized ascorrespondingtothatperson.Thechild’smothermayhavehadannouncingdreamsduringherpregnancy,or shemayhaveexperiencedcravingsforfoodsofwhichthepreviouspersonwasfond.[122]Thesepast-lifememorycasesthusincludethe sorts of signs that have long been recognized as suggestive of reincarnation, but in an integrated, demonstrablyveridicalmannerthatmakethemhardertoexplainexceptasgenuineexpressionsofreincarnation.

ResearchonReincarnation

IanStevensonandhisSuccessors

StevensoncompletedhisMDdegreeatMcGillUniversityinMontrealin1943andworkedindifferentareasofmedicinebefore entering psychiatric training in the 1950s. He was hired as Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at theUniversityofVirginiain1957.Dissatisfiedwithmedicine’sunderstandingofhumanpersonalityandtherootsofindividualdifference,hebecameinterestedinparapsychology,althoughhewasoutofstepwiththeexperimentalparapsychologytheninvogueinAmerica.Hewasmoreinsympathywithanolderstyleofresearch(psychicalresearch)thatfocusedonspontaneousexperiencesandtheevidenceforthesurvivalofconsciousnessafterdeath.[123]

In his reading during this period, Stevenson came across numerous accounts of past-lifememory. Before this time,psychicalresearchhadconcentratedonmediumshipandapparitions,withlittleattentiontopast-lifememory.WhentheAmericanSocietyforPsychicalResearchannouncedacontestforthebestpaperonthetopicofpostmortemsurvival,hebroughthiscasestogetherandanalyzedtheminacontributionthatwonthecontest.Inthatpaper, ‘Theevidenceforsurvivalfromclaimedmemoriesofformerincarnations,’publishedin1960,Stevensonreportedhavingfound44casesinwhichthepast-lifememorieswereassociatedwithaspecificpreviousperson.In28ofthecases,thesubjectshadmadeat

leastsixcorrectstatementsaboutthepreviouslife.[124]

In1961,StevensonreceivedagrantfromtheParapsychologyFoundationtostudynewcasesinIndiaandCeylon(nowSriLanka).Asapioneerinthisresearch,hehadtodevelopanappropriatemethodology,forwhichhedrewonthepracticesofpsychicalresearchersinstudyingapparitionsandotherapparentlyparanormalspontaneousevents.Heconcentratedonthecasesubjectandfirst-handwitnessestowhatthesubjecthadsaidordone,andifthepreviouspersonhadbeenidentified,didthesameonthepreviousperson’sside.Ifthepreviouspersonhadnotyetbeenidentified,hesoughttodosohimself.Stevensoncollectedsupportingwrittendocumentssuchasdeathcertificatesandautopsyreportswheneverpossible. His was a case study approach, but his techniques elevated it above the collection ofmere anecdotes. Herealizedthesignificanceofwhathewasdoingandmadeeveryefforttofollowallleadsanddocumentthecasesaswellashecould.[125]

OverthenextfewyearsStevensonstudiedadditionalcasesofpast-lifememoryinLebanon,Brazil,andAlaska.By1966,he was acquainted with over 200 cases, from which he selected 20 for his now-classic Twenty Cases Suggestive ofReincarnation. Thiswas only the beginning of his research programme, however.A second edition of the bookwithfollow-upinformationon18ofthe20childsubjectswasissuedbytheUniversityPressofVirginiain1974.[126]Stevensonwentontopublishnineotherbooksaboutreincarnation,oneintwovolumes,alongwithnumerousjournalpapers.[127]

Altogether, he reported over 300 cases, many at the length of 30 pages or more. Over the years, he was joined bycolleagues,mostnotablyclinicalpsychologistSatwantPasricha,researchpsychologistsErlendurHaraldssonand JürgenKeil,anthropologistAntoniaMills,andchildpsychiatristJimBTucker,allofwhominvestigatedandreportedtheirowncases.ThecasecollectionatStevenson’sresearchdivision,nownamedtheDivisionofPerceptualStudies,hascontinuedtogrow,evenassomeless-developedcaseshavebeenpurged.Asof2013,itincludedabout2500cases,ofwhich68%or1700hadidentifiedpreviouspersons.[128]Stevensonandhiscolleaguescallthese“solved”cases.

Universal,Near-UniversalandCulture-LinkedPatterns

Fromthestart,Stevensonrealizedthathewaslearningaboutfarmorecasesthanhecouldstudycompetentlyandwriteaboutindetail,buthesetaboutcollectingbasicinformationonasmanyaspossiblesothathecouldsearchforpatternsacrosslargegroupsofcases.Someofthepatternsheidentifiedmayberegardedasuniversalornear-universal,whereasothersaremorecloselyculture-linked.Oftheformergroup,somerelatetothecasesubject,whereasothersconcernthepreviousperson.[129]

Oneofthestrongestuniversalpatternsistheyoungageatwhichchildrenspeakaboutpreviouslives.Themajorityofchildrenineveryculturebeginbetweentheagesof2and5,althoughthefirstreferencetothepreviouslifemaybemadeasearlyas18months.Mostchildrenstopspeakingabouttheirmemoriesafterafewyears,andtheyseemtohavefadedfromconsciousawareness.[130]Thefadingofthememories,whichgenerallyoccursbetween5and8,wasonceassumedtobeanear-universalfeatureofthecases.However,infollow-upstudiesinSriLanka[131]andLebanon[132],Haraldssonfoundthat asmany as a third of children retainedmemories past that age, at least into young adulthood, when theywereinterviewed.

Mostchildrenrememberhavingdiedclosetowheretheywereborn.Long-distancecases(withdistancesgreaterthan50kilometers,or31miles,fromtheplaceofdeathtotheplaceofbirth)occurinlargercountriessuchasIndia,Turkey,andtheUnitedStates,butcasesthatcrossinternationalboundariesareunusual,andsolvedinternationalcasesarerare.[133]

Most children who recall previous lives do so in the waking state, with no apparent alteration of consciousness.Sometimesmemoriescomeindreamsornightmares,butthereareusuallywakingmemoriesaswell.Witholdersubjects,dreamsandotheralteredstatesbecomemoreimportantinconnectiontopast-lifememories.[134]

Ofuniversalandnear-universalpatternsrelatedtothepreviouspersonofacase,oneofthemostimportantisthemannerinwhichthatpersondied.Violentdeaths—byaccident,murder,suicide,duringwar,etc—figuredin51%ofsolvedcasesandwereclaimedin61%ofunsolvedcasesaccordingtoa1983study.[135]Withnaturaldeaths,ageatdeathisimportant:Theyoungeraperson iswhenhediesanaturaldeath, themore likelyhis life is tobe recalled later.[136] This doesnotnecessarily mean that those who die young are more likely to reincarnate quickly, however. Premature deaths—byviolenceorillness—arelivescutshort,andmightproducethesenseofthingsleftundone,aneffectStevensontermed‘unfinished’or‘continuingbusiness.’Henotedsomesortofcontinuingbusinessinthegreatmajorityofhiscases.[137]

Severalother case features, althoughnotexactly culture-bound,havebeen found tobeclosely culture-linked.Thesefeaturesincludehowoftencasesoccurandaresolved;therateofsexchangebetweenlives;therelationshipbetweenthesubjectandthepreviousperson;andthelengthoftheperiodbetweenlives.Thelatterthreevariablesarerelatedtobeliefsaboutthereincarnationprocessintheculturesinquestion.Oneofthestrongestistherelationbetweenbeliefsinthe

possibilityofchangingsexandcasesinwhichthereisareportedchangeofsex.ThistopiciscoveredatgreaterlengthinPatternsinReincarnationCases.

UnlearnedLanguagesandOtherSkills

Childrenwhorecallpreviouslivesnotonlytalkaboutwhattheyremember.Someexpresstheirmemoriesintheirplay[138]

ordisplaybehaviourscharacteristicofthepersonstheyclaimtohavebeenbefore.Inthemostdramaticcases,thereareconstellationsofbehaviourthatmaybedescribedasbehaviouralsyndromes(seeBehaviouralMemoriesinReincarnationCases).Attheextreme,childrenexhibitskillstheyhavenotacquiredinthepresentlives.CorlissChotkin,Jr.,aTlingitIndianboy,hadaknackwithboatengines,[139]andPauloLorenz,aBrazilianboy,wasadeptatusinghisdeceasedsister’ssewingmachine.[140]Todate,therehavebeenreportsofonlytwochildrenwithpast-lifememorieswhomaybedescribedasprodigies,bothinsports:Hunteringolf,[141]andChristianHauptinAmericanbaseball.[142]

Children’sunlearnedskillsmayincludelanguageskills,orxenoglossy.Researchersrecognizethreetypesofxenoglossy:responsive, recitative, andpassive.Responsivexenoglossy is theability to comprehendand converse in anunlearnedlanguage;recitativexenoglossyistheroteuseofunlearnedwords;andpassivexenoglossyistheunconsciousinfluenceofanunlearnedlanguageonspeechproduction.Responsivexenoglossyhasbeenclaimedforregressionsunderhypnosisaswellasinvoluntarymemoriesofpreviouslives,butitmanifestsmoreclearlyinspontaneouscases.Fordiscussionofthethreetypesofxenoglossy,withexamples,seeXenoglossyinReincarnationCases.

PhysicalSignsofReincarnation

Perhapssurprisingly,therearemanywaysinwhichreincarnationmaybeexpressedphysically.Oneisthroughbirthmarks.Manybirthmarks in reincarnation cases reflect fatalwounds,[143] but theymay also commemorate the scars of healedwounds,asintheGilyakexamplecitedearlier,andmanyotherthings,amongthemropeindentations,tattoos,styes,andulcers.[144]Thereareseveralinstancesofbirthmarksonthelobesorhelixesoftheearsinthelocationsofearringholes.[145]

Apparentlyanythingofsignificancetothepreviouspersoncanbeimprintedonthenewbodyintheformofabirthmark.[146]

Birthmarksarenottheonlyphysicalfeaturesinvolvedinreincarnation.Manycaseshavebirthdefectsthatcorrespondtoinjuriestothepreviousperson’sbody.Thesedefectsmaybeinternalaswellasexternal.AnAmericanboywhorecalledbeingapolicemanwhodiedafterbeingshotinthechestwasbornwithsevereheartdisease.[147]Otherphysicalsignsrelateto whatmay be regarded as the previous person’s core identity. Girls who remember being boys ormenmay be ofrelativelylargestatureandtheirmenarchemaybedelayed.[148]AsianchildrenwhoclaimtohavebeenBritishorAmericanareoftenphysicallylargerthanotherchildrenintheirfamilies,haveeyesoftheEuropeanshape,andintheircomplexionare virtual if not actual albinos.[149] Equally striking are physical differences betweenmonozygotic twins. Gillian andJenniferPollockcloselyresembledeachotherwhenyoung,butonlyJenniferhadbirthmarks.Onematchedascarthesisterwhoselifesherecalledhadhadhad,theresultofanaccidentwhenshewasthree(twoyearsbeforeherdeath)andanotherwasamoleonherwaistwhereshehadhadamole.[150]

Birthmarksandbirthdefectsmaybeplannedanddeliberatelyinduced.ATlingitmansaidbeforehisdeaththathewouldberecognizedbycertainmarksonhisnextbodyandtheseappearedonCorlissChotkin,Jr.,whorecalledeventsfromhislife.[151]ThroughouteasternAsia,fromIndiatoJapan,cadaversmaybemarkedwiththeintentofstimulatingbirthmarksonthebodyofthenextlife.Thebirthmarksthatcorrespondtothesemarksarecalledexperimentalbirthmarks.InWestAfrica,afamilythathaslostseveralchildreninarowsometimesmutilatethebodyofthelasttodieinordertopreventitfromdyingyoungagainandcorrespondingdefectsturnuponthebodyofthenextchildbornintothefamily,whichoftenlivesintoadulthood.MoreinformationonthesepracticesiscontainedinExperimentalBirthmarksandBirthDefects.

TheIntermissionbetweenLives

About20%ofchildrenwhorecallpreviouslivestalkabouteventstheysayoccurredbetweenlives,theperiodresearcherscalltheintermission.Intermissionmemorieshaveasimilarstructurecross-culturally,buttherearebothsimilaritiesanddifferencesincontent.

Theintermissionmaybebrokendownintofivestages,thefirstthreeofwhicharesimilartothestagesofthenear-deathexperience.[152]Thefirststageisatransitionalstagefollowingdeath,generallylastinguntilthebodyisburied,cremated,ordisposedofinsomefashion.Thesecondstageismorestableandoftenpassesinafixedlocation.Thethirdstageinvolveschoosingparentsforthenewlife.Thefourthstagecoverstheperiodofgestationinthewomb,andthefifth,birthanditsimmediateaftermath.[153]

Althoughmostofwhat issaidaboutthe intermissioncannotbeconfirmed, theremaybeveridicalperceptionsof thematerialworldateverystage.Casesubjectseverywheretalkaboutseeingandinteractingwithotherspiritentities,whoare identified in cultural terms, i.e., as angels inWestern countries but as devas or other religious figures in Asiancountries.Themoststrikingdifference,however,isinwheretheintermissiontranspires.WhereasWesternersimagineittaking place in aHeaven above,Asians describe it as passing in realistic terrestrial setting.[154] In tribal societies, theafterlifetendstopassinaplaceacrossabarrier,suchasariver,ontheterrestrialplane,orbeneaththesurfaceoftheearth.[155]

ThePsychologyofPast-LifeMemory

Researchershaveexaminedthepsychologyofchildrenwithpast-lifememoriesincomparisonwiththeirpeerswithoutpast-lifememoriesandlookedathowthememorieschangeasthecasesubjectsage.Factorsonthesidesofboththepreviouspersonandthecasesubjectcomeintoplayinpast-lifememory.

Psychologicalstudiesusingstandardpsychologicaltestinginstrumentshavefoundthatchildrenwithpast-lifememoriesarenomoresuggestiblethantheirpeersandalthoughtheyhavesomedissociativetendencies(theytendtohaverapidchangesinpersonalityanddaydreammore),thesearenotpathological.Childrenwithpast-lifememorieshaveahigherlevelofcognitivefunctioninganddobetterthantheirpeersinschool;asagroup,theyaregiftedchildren.

These results have emerged from studies in theUnited States[156] aswell as in Sri Lanka[157] and Lebanon.[158] However,childreninSriLankaandamongtheDruzeinLebanonarereportedbytheirfamiliestohavemorebehaviouralproblemsthan their peers. They are more nervous and stubborn, argue more, and tend to be more perfectionistic. ErlendurHaraldsson, who conducted these studies, observes thatmany of these traits are symptoms of post-traumatic stressdisorder, consistentwith the fact of a largenumberof violent-death cases in these cultures. In Lebanon, 80%of thechildrenrecalledlivesthatendedsuddenlyandviolently(mostlyaccidents,butalsowar-relateddeathsandmurder).[159]

ThesamepsychologicalproblemswerenotobservedintheUnitedStates,wheretherewouldhavebeenamuchlowerincidence of deaths from war and murder.[160] There may, however, be phobias associated with violent deaths in allsocieties.[161]

As theygrowolder, childrenwithpast-lifememoriesbecomebetteradjusted.Teachersdonot report thesamesocialdifficultiesparentsdo.Althoughtheseissuesneedtobeclarifiedinfutureresearch, itappearsthattheproblemsmayrecedeasthechildrengrowolder,leavinglonger-termbenefits.[162]

Subjectsbeginspeakingaboutpreviouslivesatdifferentages,mostoften2-3,butdevelopmentalfactorsareinvolvedintheirexpression.Past-lifememoriesatallagesmaybetriggeredbythingsthesubjectseesorhears,butthesecuesaremoreevidentandappeartoplayabiggerrolewitholdersubjects.[163]Theoldersubjectsarewhentheystartspeakingofthepastlife,thelesswelldevelopedthememoriestendtobe,andthemorelikelytheyaretoariseindreamsorotheralteredstatesofconsciousness.[164]

Factorsaffectingpast-lifememorybesidesthemannerofdeathofthepreviouspersonincludethesenseofunfinishedbusiness,suchaswomenwhodieleavingyoungchildreninneedofcare,businessmenwhodiewithunpaidoruncollecteddebts,andpersonswhodiewithouthavingtoldotherswherevaluablesarehidden.[165]Thelattercategory,calledburiedtreasurebyresearchers,isespeciallyinteresting,becausethesevaluablesaresometimesstillhiddenwhenchildrenshowwheretheymaybefound.[166]Otherfactorsonthepreviouspersons’sidearementalones.Naturaldeathsinoldageareoftenassociatedwithmeditation.[167]Birthmarksarelesslikelytoappearonacasesubjectwhenthepreviouspersonwasinebriatedatthetimehedied.[168]

CriticismsofReincarnationResearch

SubjectiveIllusionofSignificance/Patternicity

ScepticalphilosopherLeonardAngelmaintainsthatStevensonandotherresearchers‘havenotevenattemptedtoshowthat there is anything that needs to be explained’ in the reincarnation cases theyhave studied.[169] ‘One should try todeterminewhether the sortsof correspondences foundbetweena livingperson’sverbalmemoryclaimsand the factsaboutapurportedlyreincarnateddeceasedpersondefychanceexpectations.Iftheydo,thereissomethingthatneedstobeexplained.Butiftheydon’t,thenthereisnothingtobeexplained’.[170]Angelwouldliketosee‘controlledexperimentalwork’designedtoruleoutwhathecallsthe‘subjectiveillusionofsignificance’.

Angelillustratesthesubjectiveillusionofsignificancebynotingthathefoundnofewerthan21factsaboutStevenson’s

lifementionedinhisobituaryintheNewYorkTimes.[171]thataretrueforhimaswellasforStevenson:BothwereborninMontreal,bothattendedMcGillasundergraduates,bothweremarriedtwice,andsoforth.The‘controlledexperimentalwork’Angelhasinmindwouldcontrastresultsofthissortofcomparisonwiththeresultsofcomparisonsofasubject’sstatementsandthedeceasedpersonidentifiedashispredecessor.Onewouldhaveshownthattherewassomethingtobeexplainedonlyifblindjudgesratedthecorrespondencesoftheformergroupas‘atleastasgoodas’thecorrespondencesoflattergroupandifthejudgestended‘toaskforspecialexplanationsofthecorrespondences’inthelattergroupmoreoftenthanintheformergroup.[172]

Angel’s subjective illusionof significance isakin toMichaelShermer’spatternicity—‘the tendency to findmeaningfulpatternsinbothmeaningfulandrandomnoise.’[173]Thisisarealpsychologicalphenomenon,andAngelisrighttodemandthatitberuledout.However,hedoesnotappeartoappreciatethatacasesubject’sstatementsmustbeconsideredasatotality,alongwithanyerrors,andnotinisolationfromeachother.AntoniaMillsattemptedtoassignprobabilitiestoseveralstatementsmadebyanIndianboy,AjendraSinghChauhan,butgaveupthetaskwhensherealizedthatsheneededtoestimatenotonlytheprobabilityofindividualstatements,butallofthemincombination.[174]

Additionally,achild’sbehavioursandphysicalfeaturesmustbetakenintoaccount.Theentireconstellationofevidencemustshowagoodfitforacasetobeconsideredsolved.InareviewofReincarnationandBiology,AngelspendsalotoftimediscussingproblemshehasidentifiedwithStevenson’smanytables,buthedoesnotpausetoconsideranyofthe225casesinthebookintheirentirety.Rather,heaccusesStevensonof‘backwardsreasoning’inallofhiscases,becauseheadmitstohavingreasonedbackwardsfrombirthmarksinafewinstances.[175].

Shermer’sobservationthatoneissuretofindacorrespondencesomewhereifoneexaminesalargeenoughsample[176]

missesthemarkentirely:IntheresearchofStevensonandhiscolleagues,thesamplehasalreadybeennarrowedtoonepersononthebasisofstatementsandbehavioursbeforecorrespondencesbetweenwoundsandbirthmarksareassessed.Shermerstates that ‘onedoesnotneedto readdeep intothe literature tosee [theprocessof identifyingthepreviousperson]asaclassiccaseofpatternicity’,[177] but therein lies theproblem forcritics:Onecannotproperlyevaluate thereincarnationcasedataunlessonereadspastasuperficiallevelandtakesallthefactsintoconsideration.Thepatternicityappears toShermerpreciselybecausehehasnot readdeeply. Ingeneral, sceptical chargesagainstStevenson failnotbecausetheyhavenofoundation,butbecausetheyareexaggeratedandover-generalizedanddonottakeintoaccountthefullrangeofhisresearchmethodsandfindings.[178]

ResearcherIneptitude

The first sustainedcritiqueofStevenson’smethodswasmade inaprivateassessmentprepared forhimbya researchassistant,ChampeRansom,intheearly1970s.AnabbreviatedversionoftheRansomReport,asithascometobecalledinskepticalcircles,[179]hasnowbeenpublished,[180]andwecanseewhatitsays.

The first thing tobenoted is thatRansom’scommentsareconfined toa readingof the firsteditionofTwenty CasesSuggestiveofReincarnation,[181]sotheyaremoreproperlyacritiqueofStevenson’swrite-upthanofhisfieldtechnique.[182]

Forinstance,‘oftenthecasereportsarelackinginthedetailsofwhenthestatements(ofasubjectorwitness)weremadeandinwhatcontextandtowhom’.[183]Otherpointsturnonhypotheticals,e.g.,‘Leadingquestionsmayhavebeenused’.[184]

Ransom raises some serious concerns, including subtle distortions of memory over time, the need to work throughinterpreters,andproblemsattendantwithspendingonlybriefperiodswithwitnesses.However,theseissueswouldcarrymoreweightiftheywereonesStevensonhadnotpreviouslyconsidered,yetheacknowledgedandaddressedtheseandmanyotherpotentialpitfallsintheopeningchapterofTwentyCases,wellbeforeRansombroughtthemtohisattention.[185]

TheforceofRansom’schargesisreducedalsobytheirgenerality.[186]Itwouldhavebeenmorehelpfulhadhecitedplacesinthebookwherethedeficiencieswereevident.Inthis,RogodoesabetterjobthanRansom.Drawingonfouradditionalvolumes of case reports Stevensonhadpublished by 1983,Rogo centers his attention on four cases inwhichhehasdetectedproblems.[187] The first of these is the case ofMounzer Haïdar.[188] In investigating this case, Stevenson firstsketchedthelocationofabirthmarkontherightsideofthesubject’sabdomen.Whenhesubsequentlyinterviewedtheprevious person’smother, he asked her where he had been shot, and she pointed to the right side of her abdomen.Stevensonthenshowedherhissketch,andthewomansaidthatthewoundwasintheplacemarked.ThisindicatestoRogothatStevensonsometimesleadshiswitnesses,becausehedidnotaskthewomantosketchtheplacethebullethadenteredherson’sbodybeforeshowingherhissketch.[189]

ThesecondcasecriticizedbyRogoisthecaseofMallikaAroumougamfromTwentyCases.RogochargesthatthiscaseindicatesthatStevenson‘sometimesdeletesimportantinformationwhenwritinghisreports’becauseStevensondoesnot

mentionthatthesubject’sfatherandgrandfatherpubliclyrefutedareincarnationinterpretationofthecase,orthatheusedoneinformant(thepreviousperson’sbrother-in-law)asaninterpretertointerviewanotherinformant(thesubject’sfather)withoutstatingclearlythathehaddoneso.[190]Stevensonadmittedthattheinvestigationandreportingcouldhavebeen better handled, but pointed out that neither the father nor the grandfather were witness to any of Mallika’sstatementsorbehaviours,sotheiropinionswereirrelevantinjudgingthefactsofthecase.[191]

Rogo’sothercomplaints,referringtothecasesofImadElawarandUttaraHuddar(Sharada)aresimilarlyinsignificantandRogoadmitsthathiscriticismsare‘verytrivial’.[192]AnotherofStevenson’searlycritics,IanWilsonraisesthequestionofwhetherStevensoncouldhavebeenfooledbyhissubjectsandinformants.HenotesthatStevensonissensitivetothispossibility,butconsidersthathehasbeentooquicktodismissdissidentwitnesses.DissidentwitnessesappearinveryfewofStevenson’scases,however,andWilsonisforcedtoconcludethatthereare‘considerablenumbersofhiscaseswheresuchaninterpretationcannotbejustified’.[193]

Morerecently,AngelhasseverelycriticizedStevensonforhishandlingoftheImadElawarcase.[194]ThiscasewasunsolvedwhenStevensonreacheditbutImad’sparents,inanefforttomakesenseofwhathewassaying,hadstrunghisstatementstogetherinawaythatturnedouttobemistaken.Whatshouldbeastrengthofthecase—thewrittenrecordmadebeforeverification—isproblematicforAngel,whobelievesthatStevensonselectedwhichinformationtocreditandwhichnot.Nonetheless, inacarefulre-evaluationofImad’searlystatements,JulioBarrosshowsthatthethingsImadsaidbeforeStevensonbeganhisinvestigationaresufficienttoidentifythepreviouspersonandsupportsStevenson’sinterpretationofthecaseoverAngel’s.[195]

CulturalConditioning

According to American sceptic Keith Augustine, ‘The fact that the vast majority of Stevenson's cases come fromcountries where a religious belief in reincarnation is strong, and rarely elsewhere, seems to indicate that culturalconditioning (rather than reincarnation) generates claims of spontaneous past-life memories’.[196] This commonconclusion reveals how superficial an acquaintance most critics have with the case data. There are fewer strongreincarnationcasesreportedfromWesternthanAsiancountries,butitwouldbewrongtocallWesterncasesrare.Muller,[197]Stevenson,[198]andTucker,[199]amongothers,[200]havereportedsolvedWesterncases.Furthermore,intheWest,casesdonotoccuronlyamongsub-cultureswithabeliefinreincarnation,asissometimesalleged.[201]

Amoresophisticatedversionoftheculturalconditioningargumentholdsthatbecausecertainfeaturesofthecases,suchassex-change,arecorrelatedwithbeliefsinagivenculture,thecasesmustbeaproductofculturaldemands.[202]However,acloserinspectionofthedatafindsthisideawantingalso.TheDruzebelievethatoneisrebornimmediatelyupondeath,intothebodyofachildbornatthatmoment,butalthoughthemedianintermissionlengthinsolvedDruzecasesisshorterthanmostothercultures—sixtoeightmonthslong—itisnotimmediate.NocasesofimmediatereincarnationhavebeenreportedamongtheDruze.TheDruzeresponsetothisawkwardsituationistoassertthattheremusthavebeenbrieflivesthatwerenotrecalled.[203]TheDruzeharmonizetheirbeliefstotheircases,nottheircasestotheirbeliefs.[204]

InasurveyinnorthernIndia,SatwantPasrichaandDavidBarkerdiscoveredthatinformationaboutcasesrarelytravelledfarandthereforecouldnotserveasamodel forothercases.Manycaseshaduniquecharacteristics thatcouldnotbeexplainedonthediffusionhypothesis,inanyevent.[205]Inaseparatestudy,PasrichafoundthatIndiansunfamiliarwithcasesheldexpectationsaboutcasecharacteristicsthatdifferedfromwhatthoseofactualcases.[206]

Stevensonproposedadifferentwayofunderstandingwhycase features sometimes reflect cultural ideals. If themindsurvivesdeath,itwouldbenaturalforthebeliefsandexpectationsheldinlifetobecarriedintodeath.Apersonwhodiedbelievinghecouldnotchangesexinhisnextlifemightavoiddoingso.[207]Thesameprinciplecouldexplaincertainotherpatterns,suchasthetendencyforcasestooccurinfamilylinesmuchmoreoftenintribalculturesthanelsewhere.[208]

SocialConstruction

Socialconstructionhastodowiththewaywitnessesinterpretcasefeaturesinlinewiththeirbeliefs.Thereisnodoubtthatthishappenssometimes,asStevensonshowedinaseriesofcasesdemonstratingdelusionandself-delusion.AntoniaMillshassuppliedanotherexample.A30-month-oldIndiaboy,SakteLal,mispronouncedsomecrucialnameswhenhefirstspokethem.HesaidhehadbeennamedAvariratherthanItwari,thatAvarihadbeenmurderedbyVishnuratherthanKishnu,andthathewasfromAmalpurratherthanJamalpur.Hismispronunciationsmighthavebeenbabytalk,butalesscharitableviewwouldbethatthesocialconstructionofhiscasebeganwithare-interpretationofthenamestomakethemfitalocallywell-knownmurder.[209]

Socialconstructioncanfigureatlaterstagesofacaseaswell,especiallyatthepointatwhichachild’spast-lifeidentityisverifiedinameetingwiththepreviousperson’sfamily.Millsdemonstratesthisinananalysisofavideotapedseriesofrecognition testswithSatkeLal.Althoughtheboymadea fewspontaneous recognitionson tape,moreoftenhewaseithermistakenorledtothecorrectanswerbyonlookers.Despitetheobviouscoaching,hewasjudgedtohavepassedthetests,andhispast-lifeidentitywasconsideredconfirmed.Millscommentsontheemotionalinvolvementofallconcernedand says that Sakte Lal was consistently addressed as if he were the reincarnation of the putative previous person,reinforcingtheidentification.[210]

SkepticshaveoftenusedthecaseofRakeshGaurasanexampleofsocialconstructionprocesses,buttheevidenceislessclear-cut here. Satwant Pasricha andDavid Barker investigated this case together, but came to different conclusionsaboutit.Barkerthoughtthattheidentificationofthepreviouspersonwasmadebychance,andoncemade,thememoriesof informants changed to support this identification. Barker, however, assumes thatRakeshdidnot use the previousperson’sname,anissueonwhichtherewassomedispute.HadRakashnotusedthenamewhenhefirstmetavisitorfromthepreviousperson’svillage,thereisnoexplanationforwhythevisitorwentdirectlytothefamilyuponreturningthevillage.[211]EvenifRakeshdidnotusethename,however,Pasrichapointsoutthattherearethreethingsthatallinformantsagreed he said before hemade contact with the previous family (that he was from a certain town, that had been acarpenter,andthathehadbeenelectrocuted),andtheseweresufficienttoidentifythepreviouspersonevenwithoutaname.[212]

IanWilsonhas suggested that childrenwho speak abouthaving lived in better socioeconomic circumstances in theirpresentlivesmightbeimaginingbetterlivesforthemselvesor‘poorfamiliesmayhavetiedtopassofftheiroffspringasreincarnations of dead offspring of the rich’[213] but this makes little sense in cultural terms. Most cases with greatdisparities between lives are in India and Sri Lanka, where according to Hindu and Buddhist reincarnation beliefs, apreviouslifeinbettercircumstanceswouldimplyakarmicdemotionintothepresentlife.Itseemsunlikelythatchildrenwouldreapmuchbenefitfromsuchaclaim,muchlessthattheirparentswouldencourageit.[214]

CryptomnesiaandParamnesia

American psychologist David Lester counts cryptomnesia as a possible explanation for past-life memory,[215] butelsewhere acknowledges that ‘when the two families are widely separated and not known to each other, this seemsunlikely’.[216]Anotherreasoncryptomnesiaseemsunlikelywithspontaneousreincarnationcasesisthatthemajorityofsubjects are young children,whohavenormallybeenkept close tohomeandhavenothad theexposure to ‘normal’sourcesofinformationaboutthepeopletheyclaimtohavebeen.[217]

Nonetheless, Stevenson regularly considered cryptomnesia as a possibility and looked for links, not at first obvious,betweenthepresentandpreviousfamilies.Sometimeshediscoveredthattherehadbeencontacts,evenwhenthetwofamiliesdeniedknowingeachother,andcertainlywerenotwellacquainted.Butcouldthesecasualcontacts—perhapsanoverheardconversation—havefurnishedenoughinformationforachildtodevelopdetailedandaccuratememoriesofadeceasedperson’slife?Stevensondoubtedthattheycouldhave.Also,henoted,somechildrendemonstratedknowledgeofintimatefamilyaffairs,orevenknewwhere‘buriedtreasure’hadbeenhidden.Moreover,asalways,itwasnecessarytoexplainnotonlyachild’sstatementsabouttheprevious life,butalsoanybehaviouralorphysicalsignsmatchingthepreviousperson.[218]Intheend,itdidnotseemtoStevensonthatcryptomnesiawasafactorinanyofhisreincarnationcases,althoughitclearlyplayedaroleinhypnoticregressionsandotherareasofparapsychology.[219]

Itwasnotsowithothermemorydisturbances,suchasparamnesia,atermoftenusedlooselytoindicateanydistortionandinaccuracyinmemory.Stevensonconsideredparamnesiatobeofgreatpotential importance.Hewrote: ‘IfIweregoing to coach a critic of these cases, I should advise him to concentrate on whatever evidence he can find of theunreliabilityoftheinformants’memories.’[220]Manycriticshaveinfactdonethis,butwithreferencestotheallegationsofRansom,Rogo,oranothercritic,suchastheIndianphilosopherCTKChari,[221]ratherthantoStevenson.[222]

Stevensonshowedthatmemorydistortionsmayoccurbothwiththecasesubjectsandwiththeadultwitnessestowhatachildhassaid.ImadElawarseemstohavepartiallymergedthememoryofthetruckaccidentwhichledtothedeathofhispreviousperson’scousinandfriendwiththatofabusaccident inwhichthepreviouspersonhimselfwas involved.[223]

SwarnlataMishraat firstconflated twopast livesshe recalledand theyonlygraduallybecamedistinct inhermind.[224]

RakeshGaur,also,confusedmemoriesoftwohousesinwhichthepreviouspersonlivedandmadeothermistakes.[225]

Adultwitnessesmayhavefaultymemoriesaswell,whichisonereasonthatStevensoninterviewedasmanyfirst-handwitnessestoacasehecouldfindandwentbacktothemrepeatedlyoverperiodsofyearsinordertocheckforconsistency.Hereportedandevaluatedallinconsistenciescarefully.Althoughheacknowledgedthepossibilityofsocialconstruction

insomecases,hejudgedthisaninadequateexplanationforhisstrongercases.Hewasconfidentthatfaultymemoryandsocialconstructioncouldberuledoutwiththosecasesinwhichchild’sstatementswererecordedinwritingbeforetheywereverified.Astudycomparingcaseswithandwithoutsuchwrittenrecordsfoundthatmorestatementswererecorded,yetthepercentageofcorrectstatementswasequallyhigh,incaseswithpriorwrittenrecordsasincaseswithoutthem.[226]

Inanotherstudy,StevensonandKeilcomparedcasesinvestigatedbyStevensonwiththesamecasesreinvestigatedtwentyyearslaterbyKeil,andfoundtherehadbeenverylittlechangeinwitness’smemories.[227]

PhilosophicalObjectionstoReincarnation

TheearlyChristiantheologianTertullianwasthefirstpersontoraiseoneofthemostcommonphilosophicalobjectionstoreincarnation,thatofreconcilingitwithpopulationgrowth.Itismanifest,Tertulliansaid,thatthedeadareformedfromtheliving,butitdoesnotfollowtherefromthatthelivingareformedfromthedead;iftheywere,thereshouldbeaconstantnumberofpeopleonearth,butthenwhywasthepopulationincreasing?[228]Tertullian’sassumptionthatthereare a fixed number of souls in circulationmay be unwarranted.Newhuman soulsmight enter the system in severaldifferent ways, including being promoted up to human form from nonhuman animals.[229] Even if there were a fixednumberofsouls,however,populationgrowthwouldnotnecessarilybeaproblemunlessthetimebetweenintermissionswasalsofixed,anditisclearfromthecasedatathatitisnot.[230]DavidBishaihasshownthatmerelytighteningupthetimebetweenlivesissufficienttoallowforpopulationgrowth[231]anditisinterestingtonotethattheintermissionismuchshorterinAsiansocietieswithgreatpopulationdensitythaninWesternsocieties.[232]

Tertullianalsoasked,Whydopeopledieatdifferentstagesoflife,yetalwaysreturnasinfants?Wouldnotthosewhodiedinoldagepickupwheretheyleftoffintheirnextlives?[233]Edwardslabelsthisquestion‘Tertullian’sObjection.’[234]RobertAlmederpointsoutthatitisnotreallyanobjection,unlessitisanobjectiontoaparticularideaofwhatreincarnationentails.[235] There is no logical reason that reincarnatedpersons innewbodies shouldnothave to start anew in thosebodies,unlessoneassumesthatreincarnationmeansthecarryingoverofone’sentirepsychologyintoone’snewlife.Inanyevent,casestudiesprovidenumerousexamplesofchildrenbehavingasiftheyweretheadultstheyrecalledhavingbeen. Stevenson referred to this as exhibiting an ‘adult attitude’.[236] Examples are Bongkuch Promsin and SuleymanAndary,Notall child subjects showadultattitudes to thesameextent,but it is common for themtobe judgedmorematurethantheirsiblingsintheiroverallbearing.[237]Thus,theanswertoTertullian’squestionisthatitspremiseiswrong:somechildrendoapparentlypickupwheretheyleftoff.

TertulliansetupaStrawManversionofreincarnation,towhichheaddressedhisquestions.ThesameistrueofEdwards.AsAlmederobserves,Edwardsattacksaconceptionofreincarnationthatdoesnotmatchanyparticularbeliefsystem,butappears to be constructed solely for the purpose of ridicule. Edwards assumes that karma is an intrinsic part ofreincarnationandthatsomesortofsubtlebodyisrequiredtoconveythe‘soul’fromonelifetoanother.Hefindslogicalproblemswithbothandthinksthathehastherebydisposedofthepossibilityofreincarnation.However,neitherkarmanorsubtlebodiesarerequiredbyreincarnation,asevidencedbythemanybeliefsystemsthatmakedowithneither.Aminimalistconceptofreincarnationthatdoesnotinvolvetheseideas,moreover,receivesgoodsupportfromthecasedata.[238]

ExplainingtheReincarnationEvidence

ParentalGuidance

Psychiatrist Eugene Brody proposed ‘culturally influenced unconscious parental selection’ as an alternative way tounderstand Stevenson’s reincarnation cases.[239] From this perspective, children’s past-life memories reflect acompromisedrelationshipbetweenmotherandchildthatbeginsinearlyinfancy.Frequentcryingand‘feedingdifficulties’signal‘partiallyrepressedimpulses,wishesorideas’,theexpressionofunmetneeds.Intryingtocometotermswithherperceivedinadequaciesatparenting,amotherturnstoherculture’sbeliefinreincarnation.Herbeliefsshapethewayshetreatsherchildandareconveyedtohim,sothathegrowsupimagininghehaslivedbefore.[240]

Psychological studieswithchildrenhave foundno indicationof suchmother-child tensions,norcanBrody’sscenarioexplainhowchildrencansaytruethingsaboutpeopleneithertheynortheirparentshavemet,orevenknowexist,beforetheyaretrackeddowninresponsetothechild’smemoryclaims.[241]Moreover,parentalguidanceseemshighlyunlikelyinmanycases.AntoniaMillsstudied26casesofwhatshecalled‘half-Moslem’cases—HinduchildrenwhorecalledlivesasMuslimsorMuslimchildrenwhorecalledlivesasHindus.[242]StevensonandKeilstudied24BurmesechildrenwhoclaimedtohavebeenJapanesesoldierswhodiedinBurmaduringtheSecondWorldWar.[243]ItseemsdoubtfulthatIndianparentswouldimposeanotherreligionontheirchildorthatBurmeseparentswouldwanttheirchildrentoidentifywithdespised

occupiersoftheircountry.SatwantPasrichaexaminedthepossibilityofparentalguidanceintwostudies,findingsupportforit inneither.[244]Farfromencouragingthedevelopmentofthecases,manyAsianparentsattempttosuppresstheirchildren’smemories,outoffearthattheywilllosethemtothepreviousfamilies.[245]

Parentalguidanceisassumedbymanycriticstobeanimportantfactor[246]inthecasesbutitismostlikelytocomeintoplaywhenthepurportedpreviouspersoniswell-known,asintwocasesexposedbyStevensonandhiscolleagues.Inoneofthese,aTurkishAlevichildwasidentifiedbyhisparentsasthereincarnationofJohnF.Kennedyonthebasisofadreamandabirthmark.TheboywasnamedKenediandgrewuphearingthathewasKennedyreborn.Hecametobelieve it,althoughheneverclaimedtohavememoriesofKennedy’slife.Inanothercase,anIndianchildwastoldbyhisparentsthathewasMahatmaGandhireborn.HebegantospeakofeventsinGandhi’slifeonlyinhisteens,aroundthetimeateachercaughthimreadingabookaboutGandhiinhisschoollibrary.[247]

PsiandSuper-Psi

Theveridicalityofmanychildren’spast-lifememoriespresentsaproblemforsociopsychologicalexplanationssuchassocialconstructionandparentalguidance.Recognizingthis,Stevensonconsideredthepossibilitythatthechildrenmightbeusingextrasensoryperception(ESP)tolearnaboutdeceasedpersons.HecouldnotseehowESPalonecouldaccountfor the behavioural correspondences inmany cases and so considered ESP plus personation, the internalization andmobilizationofESPimpressionsnecessarytoimpersonatethepreviousperson.Eventhiswasnotenoughtoexplainthepsychological continuity children felt with the previous persons or their use of the first person in narrating theirmemories.Inmanycases,theinformationthechildrenproduceddidnotresideinthemindofanysinglelivingpersonandsowouldhavehadtohavebeenassembledfrommultiplesources.Therewasalsothequestionofmotivation—whydidthechildzeroinpsychicallyonthisparticulardeceasedpersonratherthananother?[248]

AnotherproblemwiththeESP(orpsi)explanationisthatwhenandhowchildrenexpresstheirmemoriesmorecloselyresemblesmemory than psi. Children’smemories are often triggered by things they encounter, as occurs oftenwithmemoryofthepresentlife.Manychildrenhaveaneasiertimerecognizingpeopleinoldphotographsthantheydopeopleandplacesthathavechangedsubstantiallysincethepreviousperson’sdeath.Moreover,thechildren’smistakessuggestmemorymorethantheydopsi:Itishardtounderstandwhychildrenshouldmakemoreerrorswhendeathsareviolentiftheywereemployingpsi,norwouldoneexpecttofindunsolvedcases,ifpsiwereatplay.[249]

Thesedifficultieshavenotkeptsomeparapsychologically-orientedcriticsfromfavoringapsiexplanationofthecases.Charithoughtthatpsimightbecomeinvolvedinparamnesiaaswellaslessdistortedmemories.[250]Roll,similarly,believedthathecoulddiscernpsychicconduitsforinformationinsomereincarnationcases.[251]However,inordertoaccountforthebehavioural andphysical featuresof the cases,psiwouldhave tobenotonlyunusually extensive, butunusuallycomplex.Unusuallyextensiveorcomplexpsiiscalledsuper-psi,becauseitisbeyondanythingthathasbeenreportedinspontaneouscasesordemonstratedinlaboratoryexperiments.[252]

StephenBraude,especially,hasbeenkeenonarguingforthepossibilityofacomplexsuper-psiasawayofexplainingreincarnationcasephenomena.Braudebelievesthatsuper-psideployedinalteredstatesofconsciousnesscouldexplainnotonlyhowchildrenareaccessinginformationaboutdeceasedpersonsbutalsohowtheyareacquiringlanguageandotherskills.[253]Heexplainsphysicalfeaturesinthefollowingway:Aftertheyseethebirthmarksonanewborn,membersof its family reach out through psi to find a deceased person with bodily features matching those marks, acquireinformationaboutthatlife,andpassitonpsychicallytothechild,shapinghisbehavioursintheprocess.Alternatively,amemberof thepreviousperson’s familypsychically locates a childwith theappropriatebirthmarks, thenpsychicallytransfersinformationaboutthepreviouspersontohimorher.[254]Theseconjecturesgowellbeyondanythingthatpsiisknowntoachieveandarepurelyhypothetical.

MaternalImpression

Maternalimpressionistheideathatthethoughtsandfeelingsofapregnantwomancanaffectthedevelopmentofthechildinherwomb.Thispossibilityisdismissedbymostmodernembryologists,butthereappearstobesomeevidencethat a mother’s mental images may be imposed on her unborn child.[255] Jürgen Keil, among others, takes maternalimpressionseriouslyasanexplanationforbirthmarksandbirthdefectsinreincarnationcases.[256]IanWilsongoesfurther;heconsidersitpossiblethat‘amother’smentaltraumas,ofwhateverorigin,maybeunconsciouslytransmittedtounbornchild,sothatthechildtakesonwhatismerelytheillusionofpast-lifememoriesbyidentifyingitselfasthevictimofthetraumas’.[257]

Thisexplanationworksbestwhenthemotherwasawareofawoundorotherscaronthepreviouspersonandwasshocked

byit.Therearenumerouscasesinwhichthesubject’smotherhadnoknowledgeofthepreviousperson’swounds,muchlesshadsheseenthem.[258]Unlessthemotherwasacquaintedwiththepreviousperson’scircumstances,shewouldhavehad to have become aware of them throughpsi, so this explanation tends to be combinedwith super-psi to explainphysicalsignsinreincarnationcases.[259]

GeneticMemory

Geneticmemoryis‘amemorypresentatbirththatexistsintheabsenceofsensoryexperience,andisincorporatedintothegenomeoverlongspansoftime’.[260]Geneticmemoryissometimesproposedasanexplanationforpast-lifememory,butthatisnottenableformanyreasons.Oneisthatpast-lifememoriesaretypicallyautobiographicalmemoriesaboutaspecificpreviousperson,notthesortofinstinctiveactionsthatmaybeencodedinthegenomeofaspecies,presumablyforthesurvivaladvantagestheyconfer.Moreover,inmanycases,therearenogeneticconnectionsbetweenthechildrenandthepersonswhoselifetheyremember.Also,geneticmemorycouldnotaccountformemoriesofdeaths,whichareverycommon,norcoulditaccountformemoriesofpersonswhodiedwithoutprogeny.[261]

CaringtonianModelsofPostmortemSurvival

Whately Carington was a psychical researcher who studied mediums and wrote theoretical works on telepathy andpostmortemsurvival.Hedevelopedatheoryofmindasanassociativenetworkofideasandsensahecalled‘psychons’,linked through psychological forces. Psychon systems survived the death of the body andmight connect with otherpsychonsystemsthroughprocessesofaffinity,ratherasinpsychometry.[262]

Carington used his theory to explain various sorts of psychic and survival phenomena, including mind-to-mindcommunication,mediumship,andapparitions,buthewrotebeforeStevensonhadbegunhisresearchwithreincarnationcases and so did not attempt to relate it to past-life memory. Psychologist Gardner Murphy was the first to applyCarington’s psychon theory to Stevenson’s cases, based on his reading ofTwenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation.MurphyemphasizedelementsinthecasesthathethoughtwereconsistentwithCarington’stheory,includingwhathesawas a less than full persistence of personality, with little evidence of the carryover of desires and purposes, ‘thecharacteristic“unfinishedbusiness”oflife’.[263]Inhisreply,Stevensonnotedthatthiswaslargelyadeficiencyinthewayhe had presented his material. In fact, he said, the cases provided plenty of evidence of a more robust survival ofpersonality,behaviours,andemotions,forwhichhehadbeenunpreparedwhenhebeganhisresearch.[264]

DespiteStevenson’sclarifications,otherwritershaveadoptedmodelsofsurvivalsimilartoCarington’s.OneoftheseisWGRoll,whosetheoryofspatialandtemporalrelationsactingtochannelinformationbyESPisveryCaringtonian.[265]

AnotherisDScottRogo,whodespitehiscriticismsofStevenson’smethods,intheendacceptedhisdataanddevisedhisownCaringtonianinterpretationofthem.[266]ThemostrecenteffortalongtheselinesisbyJürgenKeil,whoproposedthatin‘thelastphaseoflife’bodiesmight‘emit’‘thoughtbundles’whichcould‘independentlypersistforperiodsoftimeandmayoccasionallybeabsorbedbyaveryyoungchildwhoisnotasyetencapsulatedwithinhisorherownpersonality’whenthechildcameintoitsvicinity.[267]TherearemanyproblemswithKeil’sproposal,however,includingthefactthatmanychildrenwouldnothavehadtheopportunitytocomeintocontactwiththepreviousperson’s‘thoughtbundle’andnotallpeoplewhorememberpreviouslivesareyoungchildren.[268]

ReincarnationviaaSubtleBody

Stevensonproposedthatmemories,behaviours,andformwereconveyedfromonelifetoanotherviaasortofsubtleorastral body he called a ‘psychophore’, a term which means ‘soul-bearing’. Physical impressions carried on thepsychophorewouldhelp shape an embryo or fetus through a field effectwhen the psychophoremoved into ‘topicalalignment’withit,hethought.[269]Memories,behaviours,andphysicalimpressionswerereducedinthepsychophoreandpassedontothenewbodyinashrunkenway,sothatmemoriesbecamefragmentary,skillsbecameaptitudes,woundsnolongerbledbutmightbereplacedbybirthmarksorothercongenitalabnormalities.[270]

Apparently Stevenson was persuaded for philosophical reasons that he had to provide a subtle body to supportconsciousnessbetweenlives.‘Adisembodiedexistenceisdifficulttoconceive,andformethetaskhasprovenclosetoimpossible, as it has for somephilosopherswhohave considered the problem’.[271] However, other philosophers havefoundthesubtlebodyconceptproblematical,[272]anditisnotclearwhathappenstothepsychophorewhenreincarnationoccurs after conception.[273] Stevenson thought it amatter of ‘personal preference’whether one classified caseswithintermissionsof less thanninemonthsascasesof reincarnationorpossession[274] andwas inconsistentabouthowhecharacterizedtherarecasesinwhichthebodyisjoinedafterbirth.Inhisvolumesofcasereports,hetreatedtheselastasvariationsof reincarnation,[275] andonce referred to themas ‘exchange incarnation’.[276]Atother times,he called them

examplesofpossession.[277]

ReincarnationasPossession

JamesMatlockhassuggestedanalternativeconceptionofhowreincarnationworks.Reincarnationispossessionbyitsnature,inMatlock’sview.Thereincarnatingmind’spossessionofabodyinthewombmightoccuratanypointduringgestationbutwouldnotnecessarilyinvolvethereplacementofanothermindalreadyassociatedwiththebody.Whentheincomingminddoesdisplaceanothermind,andremainsincontrolofthebodythereafter,Matlockcallsthisreplacementreincarnation.Replacementreincarnationmayoccureitherbeforeorafterbirth.Ifthepossessionisnotpermanentbuttransient or temporary, as inmediumistic or spiritpossession or the thirteen-week possession of Lurancy Vennum,Matlockcalls thispossession.Thedifferencebetweenwhetheragivencase isoneofpossessionor reincarnation isamatterofwhetherthepossessionistemporaryorlong-term.[278]

Matlock’sconceptofreincarnationaspossessionprovidesastraightforwardwayofexplainingpast-lifememoriesaswellas the behavioural and physical features of reincarnation cases.Matlock understandsmemory to be preserved in thesubconsciouspartofthemind,fromwhich,followingreincarnation,itcanpresentitselftoconsciousawarenessaspast-lifememory.Heexplainstheconveyancefromonebodytoanotherofbehaviouralandphysicalfeaturesastheproductsofthemindactingonitsnewbodythroughpsychokinesis,asoccursinpsychichealingorwhatparapsychologistscall‘distantmentalinteractionswithlivingsystems’(DMILS).Stevensonmarshalledagreatdealofevidencethatamindcoulddirectlyinfluenceitsbody,[279]whichitshouldbeabletodowithoutthemediationofapsychophore,Matlockpointsout,and if there isnopsychophore,onedoesnothave toexplainwhathappens to itwhen themind joins thebodyafterconception.[280]

JamesGMatlock

SeeAlso

AdultPast-LifeMemoriesResearch

AnnouncingDreamsandRelatedExperiences

BehaviouralMemoriesinReincarnationCases

Birthmarks

BuriedTreasureinReincarnationCases

ChildrenWhoRememberaPreviousLife

ExperimentalBirthmarksandBirthDefects

FamousPastLifeClaims

InternationalReincarnationCases

IntermissionMemories

PastLifeMemoriesResearch(Overview)

PastLifeMemoriesoftheHolocaust

PatternsinReincarnationCases

PeopleWhoKnewEachOtherinPastLives

PhysicalSignsinReincarnationCases

PsychologicalStudiesofChildrenClaimingPast-LifeMemories

ReincarnationAccountsPre-1900

ReincarnationandPhobias

ReplacementReincarnation

TibetanLamasReincarnatedintheWest

TwinsReincarnationResearch

XenoglossyinReincarnationCases

Antonia(CaseStudyAnalysis)

BishenChandKapoor

BongkuchPromsin

DumindaRatnayake

GnanatillekaBaddewithana

Gretchen

ImadElawar

İsmailAltınkılıçandCevriyeBayrı

JagdishChandra

JamesLeininger

JasbirLalJat

KumkumVerma

MaTinAungMyo

MartaLorenz

MarySutton/JennyCockell

NazihAl-Danaf

PollockTwins

PretibaGunawardana

PurnimaEkanayake

RamooandRajooSharma

RatanaWongsombat

Sharada

Shiva-Sumitra

SuleymanAndary

SunilDuttSaxena

ThusitaSilva

Titu(ToranSingh)

WaelKiwan

FurtherReading

Bowman,C.(1997).Children’sPastLives:HowPastLifeMemoriesAffectyourChild.NewYork:BantamBooks.

Bowman,C.(2001).ReturnfromHeaven:BelovedRelativesReincarnatedWithinyourFamily.NewYork:HarperCollins.

Haraldsson,E.,&Matlock, J.G. (2016). I Sawa Light andCameHere:Children’s Experiences ofReincarnation. Hove,UnitedKingdom:WhiteCrowBooks.

Kelly, E.W. (Ed.) (2013).Science, the Self, and Survival afterDeath: SelectedWritings of Ian Stevenson. Lanham,MD:RowmanandLittlefield.

Pasricha,S.K.(2008).CantheMindSurviveBeyondDeath?InPursuitofScientificEvidence(2vols.).NewDelhi:HarmanPublishingHouse.

Playfair, G. L. (2006). New Clothes for Old Souls: Worldwide Evidence for Reincarnation. London: Druze HeritageFoundation.

Shroder,T.(1999).OldSouls:TheScientificEvidenceforPastLives.NewYork:Simon&Schuster.

Stevenson,I.(1974).TwentyCasesSuggestiveofReincarnation(2nded.,rev.).Charlottesville:UniversityPressofVirginia.

Stevenson,I.(1997).WhereReincarnationandBiologyIntersect.Westport,CT:Praeger.

Stevenson, I. (2001). Children who Remember Previous Lives: A Question of Reincarnation (rev. ed.). Jefferson, NC:McFarland.

Stevenson,I.(2003).EuropeanCasesoftheReincarnationType.Jefferson,NC:McFarland.

Tucker, J.B. (2005). Life before Life:A Scientific Investigation ofChildren’sMemories of aPrevious Life.NewYork: St.Martin’sPress.

Tucker, J.B. (2013).Return toLife:ExtraordinaryCasesofChildrenwhoRememberPastLives.NewYork:St.Martin’sPress.

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References

Footnotes

1.ˆMaterialismisunderassaultfromphilosophy(e.g.,Koons&Bealer,2010),psychology(e.g.,Barušs&Mossbridge,2017),neuroscience(e.g.,Wollacott,2015),quantummechanics(e.g.,Stapp,2011),andotherdisciplines(e.g.,Kastrup,2014;Kelly,Crabtree,&Marshall,2015).2.ˆStapp(2009),p.9.3.ˆStevenson(2006),p.15.4.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture1.1:WhatisReincarnation?5.ˆhttps://www.etymonline.com/search?q=reincarnation.CompactEditionoftheOxfordEnglishDictionary(1977),p.2475,citesthefirstusageofreincarnationin1858.6.ˆhttps://www.etymonline.com/search?q=reincarnation.CompactEdition(1977),p.2434,saysthatrebirthwasincommonusetorefertoreincarnationbyc.1850.7.ˆhttps://www.etymonline.com/search?q=transmigration.CompactEdition(1977),p3382,citesthefirstmentionoftransmigrationofsoulsin1594.8.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metempsychosis9.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palingenesis10.ˆhttps://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/metensomatosis11.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilgul12.ˆWaugh(1999),p.56.13.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sa%E1%B9%83s%C4%81ra14.ˆhttps://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english-hindi/samsara15.ˆhttps://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-rebirth-and-reincarnation16.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.17.ˆKrishan(1997);O’Flaherty(1980).18.ˆO’Flaherty(1980),pp.28-37.19.ˆThistermalsoappearsasparakayapravesh,parkayapravesh,parakayapravesha,andmaybedenotethewillfulmovementofthespiritofalivingpersonintoanotherbodyaswellasadiscarnatespiritofadeceasedpersonintoalivingbody.Eitherinstanceisrepresentedas“possession”inEnglish.20.ˆMandair(2013),pp.145-147,176.21.ˆKrishan(1997);Stevenson(1974b),p.372n4.22.ˆLesscommonly,fourbranchesarerecognized.InadditiontoTheravadaandMahayana,theseincludeVajrayanaandZenBuddhism.Seehttp://www.findingdulcinea.com/guides/Religion-and-Spirituality/Buddhism.pg_00.html23.ˆBecker(1993);Thondup(2005).

24.ˆThondup(2005).25.ˆSchibli(1990),citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.Bythistime,themysteryschoolknownasOrphismhaddevelopedamythaboutthedismembermentandreconstitutionofDionysus(Johnson,2013,pp.73-80),butthissortof‘reincarnation’isverydifferentfromthepersonalreincarnationtaughtbyPherecydesofSyrosandPythagoras.26.ˆBurkert(1972),citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.27.ˆHistoryofHerodotus2.123,trans.G.C.Macaulay.28.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.29.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.30.ˆPhaedrus,246a-249c.31.ˆRepublic10.617e-620c,32.ˆRepublic10.621a.33.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.34.ˆYli-Karjanmaa(2015).35.ˆJosephus,TheWaroftheJews,II.8.14.36.ˆForinstance,Cohn-Sherbok(1991),p.191.37.ˆYli-Karjanmaa(2015),p.158.38.ˆCumont(1922),citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.39.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.40.ˆPlotinus,TheEnneads,translatedbyMacKenna&Page,citedinMatlock(2018),ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.41.ˆHamerton-Kelly(1973).42.ˆTrumbower(2016).43.ˆMacGregor(1978),pp.48-62.44.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.45.ˆMacGregor(1978),pp.48-62.46.ˆSt.ThomasofAquinastookastandagainstreincarnationinseveralworks,includingSummacontraGentiles,Book2,Chapter83(George,1996).47.ˆA.P.Smith(2015).48.ˆSinger(1950),citedinStevenson(2003),p.7.49.ˆAlexakis(2001).50.ˆKaplan(1979),p.xi.51.ˆOgren(2008).52.ˆPinson(1999);Trugman(2008).53.ˆWaugh(1999).54.ˆWaugh(1999).55.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.3:Karma,God,andtheIndividualinReincarnationTheory.56.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alawites57.ˆStevenson(1980).58.ˆStevenson(1980).59.ˆJuliusCaesar,GallicWars6.14.‘bythistenet[they]areinagreatdegreeexcitedtovalor,thefearofdeathbeingdisregarded”(GallicWarsBook6,Chapter14,translatedbyW.A.McDevitte&W.S.Bohn.60.ˆDillon&Chadwick(2003),pp.152-153;Evans-Wentz(1911/2007),pp.365-380.61.ˆOsred(2011).62.ˆLarrington(2014).63.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.64.ˆhttp://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Hermeticism65.ˆLewis(1956).66.ˆhttps://www.golden-dawn.com/eu/displaycontent.aspx?pageid=115-hermetic-tradition67.ˆhttp://www.masonicworld.com/education/files/artaug04/masonry_and_the_doctrine_of_reincarnation.htm68.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Freemasonry69.ˆIrwin(2017a,2017b).70.ˆIrwin(2017b),p.120.71.ˆhttp://www.theosophy-nw.org/theosnw/reincar/re-tran.htm.ForsomeofThoreau’scommentsonreincarnation,seehttps://www.azquotes.com/author/14637-Henry_David_Thoreau/tag/reincarnation.72.ˆIrwin(2017b),pp.130-134.73.ˆIrwin(2017b),pp.209-254.

74.ˆMelton(1994).75.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.76.ˆStevenson(2003),p.9.77.ˆHaraldsson(2006).78.ˆhttp://www.harrisinteractive.com/NewsRoom/HarrisPolls/tabid/447/ctl/ReadCustom%20Default/mid/1508/ArticleId/1353/Default.aspx79.ˆJefferson(2008);Mills&Slobodin(1994).80.ˆMatlock&Mills(1994).81.ˆMatlock(1993),p.123.82.ˆDavis(1971);Matlock(1993);Somersan(1981);Swanson(1960).83.ˆMatlock(1993).84.ˆSwanton(1960).85.ˆDavis(1971);Somersan(1981,1984);Matlock(1995).86.ˆTylor(1958).87.ˆMatlock(1993).Matlock(2018),Lecture1.1:WhatisReincarnation?88.ˆMatlock(1993),pp.129-130.89.ˆMatlock(1993),p.156.90.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.98-99;Matlock(2018).91.ˆMatlock(1993),pp.87-89.92.ˆMatlock(1993),pp.94-96.93.ˆMatlock(1990a).94.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.95.ˆOnewhoassumesthisisAlexakis(2001).96.ˆMcEvilley(2013).97.ˆForexample,Toynbee(1959),p.55.98.ˆKingsley(2010),p.14799.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.100.ˆForexample,Irwin(2017b),p.xiii.101.ˆMatlock(1993),pp.12,44.102.ˆQuotedinMatlock(1993),p.45.103.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.104.ˆFürer-Haimendorf(1953);Obeyesekere(1980),citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.105.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture2.2:ABriefHistoryoftheBeliefinRebirth,WestandEast.106.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture12:TheContributionsofShamans,Psychics,andMediums.107.ˆCerminara(1950),p.44.108.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture12:TheContributionsofShamans,Psychics,andMediums.109.ˆMelton(1994).110.ˆCerminara(1963),p.69,andseediscussioninMatlock(2018)Lecture11:FantasyandFactinPastLifeRegressionunderHypnosis.111.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture11:FantasyandFactinPastLifeRegressionunderHypnosis.112.ˆStevenson(2001),p.47.113.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture11:FantasyandFactinPastLifeRegressionunderHypnosis.114.ˆSkepticshavetriedhardtodebunktheBrideyMurphycase,buttheirchargesthemselveshavebeendebunked.SeeDucasse(1961),chap.25.However,despitethecorrectdetails,nooneBrideyMurphynamedhaseverbeentraced.Matlock(2018):TheContributionsofShamans,Psychics,andMediums.115.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture12:TheContributionsofShamans,Psychics,andMediums.116.ˆSnow(1999),citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture12:TheContributionsofShamans,Psychics,andMediums.117.ˆBaker(1992),pp.103-107.118.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.48-49.119.ˆMatlock(2013).120.ˆMatlock(2018).Lecture4:InvoluntaryMemoriesofPreviousLives.121.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture5:TheChild’sBehavioralIdentificationwiththePreviousPerson;Stevenson(2001),p.26-27.122.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.99-101,197-199.123.ˆStevenson(2006).124.ˆStevenson(1960).SeealsoPre-1900reincarnationaccounts.

125.ˆStevenson(2006).126.ˆStevenson(1974b).127.ˆSeeKelly(2013)foracomprehensivelistofStevenson’spublications.128.ˆMills&Tucker(2013),pp.314,318.129.ˆSeePatternsinReincarnationCases.130.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.108,123;Matlock(1990b),p.199.131.ˆHaraldsson(2008).132.ˆHaraldsson&Abu-Izzeddin(2012).133.ˆHaraldsson&Matlock(2016),chap.27.134.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture10:DevelopmentalFactorsinPast-LifeMemory.135.ˆCooketal.(1983),p.121.136.ˆTucker(2013),pp.200-202.137.ˆStevenson(2001),p.212.138.ˆStevenson(2000).139.ˆStevenson(1974b),pp.262-263.140.ˆStevenson(1974b),p.205.141.ˆTucker(2013),pp.130-135.142.ˆByrd(2017).143.ˆStevenson(1993).144.ˆStevenson(1997).145.ˆMills(1994);Stevenson(1997),vol.1,pp.589-636.146.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture6:BirthmarksandOtherPhysicalSigns.147.ˆPasricha,Keil,Tucker,&Stevenson(2005),pp.379-381.Foralongeraccountofthiscase,seeTucker(2013,chap.1),underthenamePatrick.148.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.2,pp.1663,1873.149.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.2,pp.1757-1846.150.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.2,pp.2045,2053-2056.151.ˆStevenson(1974b),pp.259.152.ˆSharma&Tucker(2004).153.ˆForillustrationsofthesefivestages,seeIntermissionMemories.154.ˆMatlock&Giesler-Petersen(2016).155.ˆMatlock(2017).156.ˆTucker&Niddifer(2014).157.ˆHaraldsson(1997);Haraldsson,Fowler,&Periyannanpillai(2000).158.ˆHaraldsson(2003).159.ˆHaraldsson(2003).160.ˆTucker&Niddifer(2014).161.ˆStevenson(1990).162.ˆMatlock(2018)Lecture9:Past-LifeMemoryandMentalHealth.163.ˆMatlock(1989).164.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture10:DevelopmentalFactorsinInvoluntaryPast-LifeMemoryRetrieval.SeealsoAdultPastLifeMemoriesResearch.165.ˆStevenson(2001),p.212.166.ˆSeeBuriedTreasureinReincarnationCases.167.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture10:DevelopmentalFactorsinInvoluntaryPast-LifeMemoryRetrieval.168.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.1,pp.1102-1103.169.ˆAngel(2015),p.578.170.ˆAngel(2015),pp.575-576.Angelpresumablymeans:‘Oneshouldtrytodeterminewhetherthesortsofcorrespondencesfoundbetweenalivingperson’sverbalmemoryclaimsandthefactsaboutadeceasedpersondefychanceexpectations.’Thelivingpersonwiththememoryclaimsandthe‘purportedlyreincarnateddeceasedperson’areoneandthesame,soaswritten,thesentenceismeaningless.171.ˆStevenson’sobituarymaybefoundathttp:///www.nytimes.com/2007/02/18/health/psychology/18stevenson.html.172.ˆAngel(2015),p.576.SeealsoAngel(2008).173.ˆShermer(2018),p.100.174.ˆMills(2004).175.ˆMatlock(2018),commentingonAngel(2002).

176.ˆShermer(2018),p.102.177.ˆShermer(2018),p.100.178.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.179.ˆEdwards(1996,p.275)wasthefirsttousethisname.180.ˆRansom(2015).Inintroducingthiscontribution,theeditorsofthevolume,MichaelMartinandKeithAugustine,notethatStevensonaskedthathisreplybecirculatedalongwithRansom’scomments,buttheychosetopublishthesummaryofRansom’scommentswithoutasimilarsummaryofStevenson’sreply.181.ˆStevenson(1966).182.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3.2:ResearchStylesinModernReincarnationStudies.183.ˆRansom(2015),p.640.184.ˆRansom(2015),p.641.185.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3.2:ResearchStylesinModernReincarnationStudies.186.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3.2:ResearchStylesinModernReincarnationStudies.187.ˆRogo(1985),pp.73-86.188.ˆStevenson(1980),pp.17-51.189.ˆRogo(1985),p.73,citedinMatlock(1990b),p.249.190.ˆRogo(1985),p.73.191.ˆStevenson(1986),citedinMatlock(1990b),p.249.192.ˆRogo(1985),p.77,citedinMatlock(1990b)pp.249-250.193.ˆWilson(1982),p.23,citedinMatlock(1990b),p.248.194.ˆAngelfirstpublishedhiscommentsonthiscasein1994butrepeatedthemaslateas2015(Angel,1994,2015).195.ˆBarros(2004),citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture3.2:ResearchStylesinModernReincarnationStudies.196.ˆAugustine(n.d.).197.ˆMuller(1970).198.ˆStevenson(2003).199.ˆTucker(2013).200.ˆHaraldsson&Matlock(2016);Hassler(2013).201.ˆMatlock(2018).Lecture8:TheInterplayofBeliefandExperience.202.ˆAugustine(2015),p.25,amongothers,drawsthisinference.203.ˆStevenson(1980),pp.9-10.204.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture1.3:ChallengetoMaterialism.205.ˆBarker&Pasricha(1979).206.ˆPasricha(1990).207.ˆStevenson(2001),p.180.208.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture8:TheInterplayofBeliefandExperience.209.ˆMills(2003),pp.76-77,citedinMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.210.ˆMills(2003),inMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.211.ˆPasricha&Barker(1983).212.ˆPasricha(1983).213.ˆWilson(1981),pp.21,22.214.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture9:Past-LifeMemoryandMentalHealth.215.ˆLester(2015),p.642.216.ˆLester(2005),p.129.217.ˆStevenson(2001),p.153.218.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.153-154.219.ˆStevenson(1983b).220.ˆStevenson(2001),p.154.221.ˆChari(1962a).222.ˆSee,forinstance,Augustine(2015).223.ˆStevenson(1974),pp.303-304.224.ˆStevenson(1974),p.72.225.ˆPasricha&Barker(1983).226.ˆSchouten&Stevenson(1998).227.ˆStevenson&Keil(2000).228.ˆTertullian,ATreatiseOntheSoul,chap.30.229.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.207-209.230.ˆHaraldsson&Matlock(2016),pp.224-225.

231.ˆBishai(2000).232.ˆSeeHaraldsson&Matlock(2016),pp.224-225;Matlock(2018),Lecture8.TheInterplayofBeliefandExperience.233.ˆTertullian,ATreatiseontheSoul,chap.31.234.ˆEdwards(2016),pp.223-224.235.ˆAlmeder(1996),p.512236.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.66-68,70-71,92,96,120,194,283n27,298n23.237.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture9:Past-LifeMemoryandMentalHealth..238.ˆAlmeder(1996).239.ˆBrody(1979),p.75,quotedinMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.240.ˆBrody(1979),pp.78-79,quotedinMatlock(2018),Lecture9:Past-LifeMemoryandMentalHealth..241.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture9:Past-LifeMemoryandMentalHealth.242.ˆMills(1990).243.ˆStevenson&Keil(2005).244.ˆPasricha(1992),Pasricha(2011).245.ˆStevenson&Chadha(1990);Pasricha(2011).246.ˆForexample,Augustine(2015),p.25.247.ˆStevenson,Pasricha,&Samararatne(1988),pp.10-15,22-26,citedbyMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.248.ˆStevenson(1974b),pp.343-348.249.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture4:InvoluntaryMemoriesofPreviousLives.250.ˆChari(1962a,1962b,1967).251.ˆRoll(1982),pp.197-198.252.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3InvoluntaryMemoriesofPreviousLives.253.ˆBraude(2003),pp.114-127.254.ˆBraude(2003),p.181.255.ˆStevenson(1992).256.ˆKeil(2010),p.82.257.ˆWilson(1981),pp.25-26.258.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.1,pp.1142-1145.Onp.1144,Stevensonpresentsatablelistingcasesinwhichmothershadnoawarenessofthepreviousperson’swounds.259.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.260.ˆhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_memory_(psychology)261.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.158-159.262.ˆCarington(1945).263.ˆMurphy(1973),p.122.264.ˆStevenson(1973),pp.139-141.265.ˆRoll(1982),pp.197-200;Matlock(1990b),p.253.266.ˆRogo(1985),pp.215-218.267.ˆKeil(2010),p.96,quotedinMatlock(2018),Lecture3.3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames.268.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture3:CriticalandInterpretiveFrames;Lecture4:InvoluntaryMemoriesofPreviousLives.269.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.2,pp.2084-2088.SeealsoStevenson(2001),pp.234-235,251.270.ˆStevenson(2001),pp.234-235.271.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.2,p.2083,citingFlew(1973)andWheatley(1979).272.ˆForexample,Edwards(1996),chap.9.273.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture7:SignsofDiscarnateAgency.274.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.1,p.1142.275.ˆSeeJasbirJatinStevenson(1974b),pp.34-52;ChaokhunRajsuthajarninStevenson(1983a),pp.171-190;andRuprechtSchulzinStevenson(2003),pp.210-222.276.ˆStevenson(1974b),p.2.277.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.1,p.1142;Stevenson,Pasricha,&McLean-Rice(1989).278.ˆMatlock(1998),Lecture7:SignsofDiscarnateAgency.279.ˆStevenson(1997),vol.1,chaps.1-3.280.ˆMatlock(2018),Lecture15:ReincarnationandLife.

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