Is a reincarnated person the same person, or just a case of shared memories?

[DebraBlume]

Let me explain. The brain and body can survive just fine without a soul (take microbes and arguably, animals as examples). Microbes and animals have demonstrated the ability to store memory. (My cat hates water after falling into a pond and getting himself wet!)

So with that, we can deduce the soul is like a recorder. It records a few memories and some aspects of personality of the person. There's evidence (reincarnation) that some souls do not die with the body and may end up seeking out embryos to begin a 'new' life.

Which leads me to the question. Is a person who says he/she was x in a previous life correct? Or is it that x still remains dead, but his or her memories (soul) are retained within the person claiming to be x.

For example you can play back a recording of someone who died a long time ago, but that doesn't mean the person who died a long time ago is still alive. If this is the case then it would be no different to making a 'clone' or scientifically inserting memories into a person's brain. This could be done via taking the memories of a still living person which further complicates the issue.

[taurmel]

This is an interesting question, one I think about too when hearing of reincarnation! I think the soul is like a recorder (excellent example), or rather, cells are. They can take learned experiences and memories, and carry them to infinity. So, personally, I feel cells can be absorbed by another after the host body passes, and that is where past life regression comes from.

I would love to hear other viewpoints as well from those more experienced! I don't discount that the soul goes on, just that certain cells are absorbed by a soul and that is what leads to past life memories. That's how I see soul mates, cells absorbed in different souls meeting once again, they recognize each other!

Just personal opinions, I don't claim to be correct in my judgement, that's simply the view that entertains me the most, the one that is intriguing to me...everyone has their own way of seeing things ;)

[Amilius777]

You are literally the SAME person. If you wanna know who you are as a soul just look at your own self in a mirror.

People complicate this way too much. Your physical body is your soul expressing itself on the 3rd dimension. Soul manifesting on 3rd dimension is the physical body. So even your body is spiritual just at a slower rate of vibration.

The more I drifted from my Catholic upbringing the more I discovered how much I came closer to it with my spiritual experiences which is weird. They used to say "body and soul" were one and I thought that was preposterous. It isn't now that I understand what the Mystics of that tradition were trying to say.

Of course when you take on a new incarnation you will have a different name, look, appearance, or maybe even sex. But you retain all that you are and what you've been and there is always a clear distinction of who you are. That is why we recognize people in our own lives and say, "Where have I known you before?!" Even if they were Chinese before and now they are Caucasian there is always a clear sign that it's the same person usually in the eyes, the face, and overall facial expression.

We are Souls, eternal spirits with a personality which is entirely our own and we continue to build on that personality through the many lifetimes we learn lessons.

[Rozie]

That is a belief, not a fact.

The truth is, that nobody really knows. People think that there is irrefutable evidence to support their belief, but the evidence is refutable. There are other explanations for what we witness. The only source of information is channeled material and that is not reliable. People have experiences that are very convincing and authentic, but how things really work is a mystery and we don't know. People think they know but I don't think they know.

I believe that things are much more complicated then we think. That is a belief and not a fact.

[SemperVI]

Originally Posted by DebraBlume

Is a person who says he/she was x in a previous life correct? Or is it that x still remains dead, but his or her memories (soul) are retained within the person claiming to be x.

Your question is a really good one; It is sort of how you describe it but with a bit more nuance. I would not call it a memory, it is more like a reflection that one can be exposed to - allow me to explain why I believe this.

Your soul (higher self) is the sum of all incarnate experience. When your spirit (conscious) leaves your body it will return to your eternal soul. A soul or higher self that existed before this incarnation and will continue to exist after this incarnation. While it is certainly possible that you and by proxy your soul will observe another incarnate experience - it will not be the same spirit or consciousness that you are experiencing now. It will be completely different, with a different purpose and personality. The point is - this incarnate life you are experiencing now will become part of a bigger picture if you will and will exist in conjunction with your higher self both as part of the sum of the soul as well as the unique conscious experience.

Perhaps I can explain it a little better if I clarify the semantics I used. First and foremost, your soul is eternal. It has always existed and is sourced from what is considered original source -- commonly referred to as God or the Creator. Accordingly, this soul co-exists with the incarnate life you are currently experiencing. As a matter of definition in understanding - I call this a soul or a higher self. It is the source of the "Whole You".

Conversely - the conscious awareness that exists as "DebraBlume" I simply refer to as a conscious or spirit. This is simply a distinction of the two competing ideas but the over-riding difference between conscious thought and your soul is that your consciousness (the spirit of who you are) is the sum of all your living experiences in this life just as your soul (higher self) is a super consciousness that is the sum (a collection) of all your different incarnate experiences that have ever existed. I bring this up because I believe it is important to make the distinction between these micro and macro states of existence.

Having said that - it is true that it is possible to tap into another incarnate experience through what is called a past life regression. In fact I have done it numerous times into several different lives. What I have learned is that each of these lives were independent of this life "Semper" is living. More to the point these past lives are not my life at all. What I mean is they do not belong to "Semper" per se. The spirit or consciousness of that life is unique unto itself just as this life I am experiencing now is "My Life" -- not some future life of a past life. What ties these different and unique incarnate experiences is they belong to the same higher self that sourced you in the here and now. Accordingly - you don't regress to a past life directly. Instead you gain access by proxy through the soul or your higher self. Ultimately, for me, the key to understanding is not done by connecting to past life but by making that connection to your higher self. The truth is - in most cases past lives are irrelevant to this life and you should not get hung up on them. Past life regression is more of a perk than it is or should be a goal - it's a little reward for having a closer connection to the "Whole You".

I hope this explanation helps. I Copy and pasted the above from a thread I responded to when a similar questions was asked. http://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/sh...d.php?t=102360

[Johnathanrs]

Thought experiment.

Are you the same as the 10 year old version of you. If you compare your intelligence, personality, beliefs, exc...wouldn't you find a complete contrast?

Funny, it's almost as if your completely separate beings all while simultaneously being the same thing.

[sea-dove]

Originally Posted by Johnathanrs

Thought experiment.

Are you the same as the 10 year old version of you. If you compare your intelligence, personality, beliefs, exc...wouldn't you find a complete contrast?

Funny, it's almost as if your completely separate beings all while simultaneously being the same thing.

this does help people to understand more of we are also different life to life. :)

Our souls though are always are the same it is is via the soul that we can recognise each other from an other life as we recognise the others energy signature via their soul and then just know who they are or were to us if we can remember.

Our souls are far more then just a recorder but they are almost like another being though they are ourselves. Souls think, souls feel, souls make decisions and take actions. Souls even are said to choose what kind of lives they want to come into.

It is possible to get to know oneself as ones soul instead of ones human self.

[jim78]

Your you, your past lifes you. They are all you. No difference.

[shoni7510]

When the current incarnation ends our bodies die but our minds and souls moves on to meet with the higher self in the life between lives. When we reincarnate again a different portion of the higher selves comes as our soul (consciousness) leaving the memories and the previous consciousness or soul with the higher self. A new mind begin the new incarnation and records even our conception and this is the subconscious mind. Both the mind and the soul are living beings in their own right just like the body is.