Reddit mentions: The best reincarnation books

Well, for mahayana the book I have is this one. However, I don't remember how good it is. What I did for buddhism was simply go through various online resources. The reason being that western misconceptions about the connotations of buddhism are so deep that the only way to balance them out is by reading a lot of different sources, and trying to ignore the obviously interpretive parts. The main misconceptions revolve around ignoring or hand-waving that the Buddha post enlightenment was seen as divine, and that this and the system in general were meant to be very literal.

> I also wanted to ask, do you know of any theistic views that are different to classical and personalist theism that you consider intelligible and consistent?

Well, if you want a book on tillich, this one is good.

You already know about process theism, but I can give you some good reads. The iep page for whitehead is a good place to get the basics down. The important ting to note about process theists is that some of them hold to some of the general points, but not others. And so its a good general basis to explore a general idea that can be taken in different ways. For instance, whitehead's specific ontology of events is obviously a little more specific than someone today would be likely to profess. But the general format of the system is still top of the line. I would also say to read this book written by the first big process theist after whithead who turned it into a distinctly theological project instead of just a philosophical system.

Note that (well, obviously after you'll read them you can note that) the idea of a social conception of god is compatible also with tillich. Both tillich and some of the process theists explore the idea that the living aspects of god should be seen as a collective / social organism by nature of the summation of all the values of individual entities relating together through the absolute. Another way they tie them together is that john b cobb who you mention points out that the process theological concept of "creativity" parallels closely tillich's concept of the power of being. Process theism has a bit more metaphysics than tillich's minimalistic form, but they are very compatible ideas.

Another important person to look into is Carl Jung (yes, the psychologist carl jung). Because interestingly for his profession he actually provides a pretty substantial idea of a pantheist system. Which in short has to do with the idea that gods have a kind of quasi existence since they exist as abstract archetypes in the world at large, and are given form by human consciousness. But that once you properly frame into context what human consciousness even is you begin to see why that despite them being psychological images that they are also real. (its not easy to describe how, but basically it has to do with the fact that people aren't discrete, and the images are images of things external to the mind to begin with, so the mediated form exists as a submind encoded across multiple beings, and the world at large). Its a bit hard to get how it work until you intuitively grasp it, and it helps to know some relevant philosophy of mind that would make it seem more real. But a good book for seeing jung in a religious light is this one. It starts off a little slow, but in the middle it has a metaphorical religious text written by jung itself, and then it picks up in analysis of his real beliefs from it. As a psychologist he talked about the collective uconscious as a human psychological phenomenon, but it seems he really thought it was a kind of world soul relation between entities and the world itself.

Now, I must admit that tillich, the process theists, and jung are the three best modern things to look into. But there's a few more notable things to look at.

this book by the physicist schrodinger is about an idea called open individualism, which is basically a modern secularization of the hindu idea of brahman. He points out at the beginning that he is not a philosopher himself, but merely expressing the idea in an easy to read way. (Which is fortunate, since the actual philosophy textbook I want on the idea is $110). The gist of the idea is that there are no actual metaphysical borders between people, and so all people are abstractions of a super-identity that you can identify with god.

this book by fechner is a quasi religious book that argues for a secular reason to think life exists in a sense after death. The book is 150 years old, so it might have parts that seem overly idealistic, but the general idea and its arguments are something that's relevant even today. There's pantheistic elements in it too, but they are sidelined.

The kyoto school in japan blends modern metaphysics, zen metaphysics, and pantheism into a modern system. I haven't read anything from it, but hear that this anthology is good.

Here is a well-rated anthology of panentheistic writings from many authors in general. Including many I haven't read. You can look into it to see if any of them look like interesting areas of interest to branch off into.

Also, of course there's any number of old traditions one could look into even if one doesn't consider them totally literal to frame into context ways of looking at things that could carry over to a more transtheistic system. Kabbalah and stoicism are good places to look. here Is a book written by a psychologist and stoicism scholar that details their beliefs and how to engage in the practice in modern day. (Though obviously one can disagree with the virtue ethic framework). And here is one of the best kabbalah books. Obviously kabbalah is way too specific for me to consider literal, but it does have beautiful work and ways of looking at things to frame religious experience into context.

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For a few closing remarks, I'd point out to remember that these ideas are not necessarily all competing. Many of them (perhaps all at once depending on how strict you are) are compatible. You'll probably also notice that they all have similar tones of panentheism. That's because that's my general area of interest. The reason for this being that ultimately I think tillich is correct. There may be sentient godlike distinct beings out there, but we need to make religious experience revolve around things we have more of a definite concrete justification for. And the values of the religious experience pervade our world anyways, and so we don't need to rely on the literal existence of these independently sentient beings. Via jungian ideals we can even abstract the idea of gods to positive useful archetypes, and if they exist as concrete instantiations as well, all the better. If you ask me, the universe is likely tremendous in size. Bigger than we can even dream. There's probably more complex segments of it somewhere that very much have tangible sentient entities we would consider godlike. But there doesn't seem to be evidence of them interacting directly with us. So like epicurus says, belief in gods isn't an excuse for belief in superstition. They exist "elsewhere." Its better to focus on the transtheistic absolute.

I totally understand!! Honestly, I went through the same feelings while learning this stuff too. There came a point where I sat myself down and was like look - if I continue to believe what I’ve always believed, the world stays small and known. Imagine telling someone back in the 15th century that cars existed - no need to walk or ride a horse to travel. They wouldn’t have believed you, but it’s true - cars exist. I took the same approach to learning - a conscious decision to accept that there’s so much I took for fact, that actually isn’t known, just assumed.

For example, Darwin’s theory - he said himself, when presenting the theory, that he wasn’t actually sure that survival of the fittest was natural law, but theorized that it was possible and likely. Possible and likely, but NOT fact.

(I don’t remember where I originally read this, but here’s a great read from Quora: https://www.quora.com/Was-Charles-Darwin-100-sure-that-his-evolution-theory-is-right-and-without-single-doubt)

Scientists have been studying nature, and guess what - survival of the fittest is not The Law of Nature. There are endless examples of collaboration, support, exchange in nature - it’s about giving and taking, for the benefit of all.

As a society, however, we took Darwin’s theory and ran with it, and it’s literally baked into the fiber of our fabric. Capitalism, hierarchical structure, large corporations consuming small businesses, etc etc etc.

What would society look like if we built our structures on the basis of sharing, caring for each other, pursuing the highest good of all?

All of that to say, when you allow yourself to be open, to think, to consider different approaches, you achieve different outcomes.

When you close yourself off, assume you have “the answer”, act reactively, unconsciously, then you achieve the same outcome.

I just want different! For me, life is about growing, stretching, learning, getting my mind blown over and over and over, adjusting and adapting, constantly. And ITS FUN!

Regarding the whole life after death/soul separate from body concept, I was thrown into it via Dolores Cannon. If you like reading books, buy and read Between Death and Life: Conversations with a Spirit (https://www.amazon.com/dp/1940265002). If you prefer watching videos:
https://youtu.be/FhjoEnG4gww

She’s incredibly close to “the answer”, but I think since she was practicing, some things have changed - like the emotional evolution of the greys, nothing is static.

Another great book: The Gaia Project by Hwee-Yong Jiang (https://m.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-gaia-project-hwee-yong-jang/1123431981)

And another: The Complete Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsch (https://www.amazon.com/dp/0399153292)


In any case, all of us reach a point where we can’t be told “the answer”. Someone can tell us something close to it, but ultimately, you can only truly truly believe what you’ve searched and found to be true. That’s literally what belief is, and in its truest form, it cannot be forced. I think that’s the beautiful thing about exploration, and the great news is, if you consciously stay open to new information and actually seek, you absolutely will find and find and find until you choose to close down or stop.

Oooo this is my wheelhouse!

First, I would recommend looking at the Mormon History Association Best Book awards going back to 1966. Quality scholarship, research, and writing are a mainstay with them.

Required reading:

Brigham Young: Pioneer Prophet by John Turner / Brigham Young: American Moses by Leonard Arrington

Considered two of the best books about early Utah and the Brigham Young years. Arrington's book was considered groundbreaking when he wrote it, and Turner's book brings in the valuable perspective of the non-Mormon writing about Young. For many Mormons, Turner's book will be less sympathetic to Young than Arrington's, but Turner also worked closely with the Church Archives (and spoke glowingly about them and that process), so his research had access to some better sources. If you need a primer for Brigham Young, I recommend Arrington's book. For a Brigham Young graduate level course, I recommend Turner.

Early Mormonism and the Magic Worldview by Michael Quinn

To understand much of what happened in early Mormonism, you must understand the role that folk magic played in the lives of Americans in the 1800s. Quinn's research at this time was top notch, and he was a quickly rising star among Mormon historians. Considered one of his best works, and foundational to the understanding things like seer stones, divining rods, visions, and everything else that happened in the early church days.

David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism by Greg Prince

Covers late 1940s - 1960s Mormonism, one of the "rising moments" of Mormonism when we went from a Utah-church to a worldwide church. Prince had amazing access to the journals of President McKay's secretary, which led to some candid discussions about things like the publishing of Mormon Doctrine by McConkie, blacks and the priesthood, ecumenical outreach, and politics.

Spencer W. Kimball by Edward Kimball / Lengthen Your Stride: The Presidency of Spencer W. Kimball by Edward Kimball

Ed was Pres. Kimball's son, and the books cover both the apostle years and presidency years of Spencer W. Kimball. If you had to choose one, get Lengthen Your Stride, but make sure it has the CD that comes with the book. This has the unabridged manuscript prior to the Deseret Book edits, which is much more interesting.

By the Hand of Mormon by Terryl Givens (heck...anything by Terryl Givens!)

I'll admit - I'm a Terryl Givens fanboy. By the Hand of Mormon was the one that first got me in to him, mostly because he took the Book of Mormon as a serious work of literature to examine it's merits. It's not as devotional as many traditional LDS books about the Book of Mormon (it was put out by Oxford University Press), but it really gave me a deeper appreciation for the Book of Mormon as contemporary literature. Also check out Viper on the Hearth (Mormons on myth and heresy), People of Paradox (Mormon culture), When Souls had Wings (the pre-existence in Western thought), and so many others.

And just because I'm a big book nerd, here's the list of books that are on my desk right now that I can give you quick reviews if you want:

• Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History by Greg Prince
  
• The Mormon Jesus: A Biography by John Turner
  
• Mormon Feminism: Essential Writings, edited by Brooks, Steenblik and Wheelwright
  
• Religion of a Different Color: Race and the Mormon Struggle for Whiteness by W. Paul Reeve
  
• Pedestals and Podiums: Utah Women, Religious Authority and Equal Rights by Martha Sonntag Bradley
  
• A Reason for Faith: Navigating LDS Doctrine & Church History, edited by Laura Harris Hales
  
• Glorious in Persecution: Joseph Smith, American Prophet 1839-1844 by Martha Bradley Evans
  
• The Mormon Church & Blacks: A Documentary History, edited by Harris & Bringhurst
  
• From the Outside Looking In: Essays on Mormon History, Theology and Culture, edited by Neilson & Grow
  
• Out of Obscurity: Mormonism since 1945, edited by Mason & Turner
  
• Mormonism & American Politics, edited by Balmer & Riess
  
• Seeking the Promised Land: Mormons and American Politics by Campbell, Green & Monson
  
• A Book of Mormons: Latter-day Saints on a Modern-Day Zion, edited by Jensen & McKay-Lamb
  
• Revelations in Context: The Stories Behind the Sections of the Doctrine & Covenants by the LDS Church
  
• Natural Born Seer: Joseph Smith, American Prophet, 1805-1830 by Richard S. Van Wagoner
  
• Revelatory Events: Three Case Studies of the Emergence of New Spiritual Paths by Ann Taves (looking at Mormonism, Alcoholics Anonymous and A Course in Miracles)
  
• A House Full of Females: Plural Marriage and Women's Rights in Early Mormonism, 1835-1870 by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
  
• Baring Witness: 36 Mormon Women Talk Candidly about Love, Sex, and Marriage edited by Holly Welker

here is an excellent book written on the subject. It was written by a Jewish born theology doctor who abandoned Judaism, began to study various religious texts from around the world, and also decided that Gnostic texts and Yeshua are indeed telling the truth.

The answer I have for you is one that you'll mostly likely will not want to hear.. Western and Eastern occultists have two beliefs of ascension, in which Blavatsky, an eastern occultists, claims that western beliefs are a 'shortcut', a cheating way to get to higher heavens. This is true.. in a sense.

Buddhism, enlightenment, does work.. but on such an epic scale of 'time', if you believe in time persay, that eventual soul enlightenment does eventually work based on the Archon soul recycling system in place. Near Death Experiences patients have claimed that many of times, after passing through the tunnel of light, they are shown their past life. The soul remembers ALL of your past lives lived, but while tethered to the 666 body made by Saklas, it is unable to remember all of them in this particular lifetime that you are here now. Hence why the Archon system is a sham, as this leads to the most unefficient way to soul ascension.

Now, western occultists believe in the 'Christ' conscious, well some do, such as Dion Fortune (and myself!). The Gnostic texts, the actual real version of the Torah, and the actual translations of the Apostles, to include the various banned books from the corrupt Roman Church, all tell one how. And, Archon/satanic entities cannot freely reign upon mankind.. they need 'CONSENT'! The Prime Creator, the Holy Spirit, the entity Yeshua speaks, creator of the Self-Created One, tells how to ascend into the higher heavens: Treat others how you want to be treated. When he says, he without sin cast the first stone, he is saying that we are all trying to become better people and to become one with the Father, one has to begin adopted love and mercy to one's life. The Creator, luckily for us, is a Creator of infinite love and mercy. We are part of the Creator, as said, "Then Jesus said to them, "Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." And they were amazed at him." This is meant to show one not to fall in love with wordly things, as this place, this holo-matrix, is all a sham.. and two, we are part of the Creator. We cannot join or become into our original light/spirit form unless we shed the things we do in this life..

But, this is extremely hard! Archons are purposely erasing our memories, making it extremely hard to ascend, on purpose. Why? To keep their soul energy, holo-matrix farm in place for as long as possible.. but this will not last forever. Yeshua/Jesus says this place will eventually be destroyed because Archons are manipulating man's ability to consent with full knowledge of the current situation were in. Yes, we are consenting to this world.. or have in the past, hence the 'fall of man'.

The Wachowski's and the Matrix show humankind being used to be turned into batteries for the robots.. an analogy of man's soul energy being used to power the holo-matrix to be turned into spirit energy batteries for the Archons. Our spirit is of infinite protential, we are creative beings with exponential creative potential.. and they know this! If you think about this on a grand scale, how bad would it be to manage mankind if they were to 'rebel' against the archons, as in have full awareness of the current world they live in? Very hard to manage indeed, and I would say, unmanageable. Humanity, on a united front, has the potential to alter 'reality', or more accurately, alter this holo-matrix, as we are of infinite potential. Our current energy is being manipulated to power the holo-matrix because.. well, the Archons are most definitely benefiting from our limitless power potential. Why would they want us to awaken?

Here is a book on the topic:

http://www.amazon.com/Old-Souls-Scientific-Evidence-Lives/dp/068485192X?tag=particculturf-20

I've read numerous reports from people I trust about kids who know stuff they shouldn't, and even some kids who speak languages they shouldn't.

There are also examples where you have child geniuses who talk about remembering Heaven and stuff like that - a great example is this girl:

http://www.artakiane.com/vid-cnn-spiritualyoungartist.htm

Not only does she have memories of heavenly realms, but she has an incredible talent with which she paints her memories. She also engages in abstract philosophizing which is far beyond her age.

Almost all parents are familiar with how young kids talk about seeing and remembering things that the parents don't see. Lots of kids claim to talk to ghosts, have invisible friends, things like that. Eventually they lose these friends as they mature, usually around age 7 they die off for good. But a Buddhist would claim that the child, being fresh out of the womb, still has a partial ability to see the Heavenly realm where he existed between incarnations.

The Buddhist interpretation of Heaven/Hell is that between lives, you go to an astral realm made of spiritual light that appears like a concrete world but is actually a reflection of your inner being. So if your inner being is full of hate and jealosy, between lives the world you live in will have hate and jealosy as components (but you still won't suffer in the same way you suffer on Earth because you are incorporeal and feel no pain or misery)

Likewise, if your inner experience is of love and joy when you go to the realm between lives you will be in a world of love and joy.

Most people forget these realms when they incarnate, but some people retain memories of them. Some people can find the memories through meditation practices and stuff like that, and some psychics seem to be able to peer into people's past lives and dig up information that is not available to the psychic otherwise.

Also, it's worth noting that multiple people can share the same karmic ancestor. So for instance you might actually have 3 different people now who, in past lives, were Napoleon. The Buddhists speak of this as a soul being like a fire - it can be spread into several fires but is still the same fire. You can have simultaneous reincarnations that are all the same soul. It's not time-bound.

So when 3 different people say they are reincarnated from Napoleon, according to the Buddhists they may all be correct. Of course, they may also all be wrong :)

Buddha always said, and his followers still do say, that belief is irrelevant. It's not important whether you believe these things or not - what is important is that you seek the truth through your own inner experience.

The Dalai Lama says, "If a scientific fact contradicts a teaching of Buddhism, then that Buddhist teaching will have to be changed to fit the truth."

The Buddha himself, if you read his philosophy, was a very scientific man. He believed in first hand proof and only first hand proof. Instead of a microscope though he used his own consciousness and discovered many supernatural things.

>If we ever DO find a way to measure or reliably detect ESP, or a soul of some sort, then I would give the transmission hypothesis more weight

You are making a very logical point, and I agree with everything you said.

However, there is one thing you aren't taking into consideration, and it's an assumption on your end even though you aren't aware of it, and that is this:

>but as of right now, I feel that materialists are perfectly justified in asking transmission hypothesists for some sort of empirical evidence of an outside source for the consciousness. Without such evidence, it makes much more sense to say that the brain itself is the creator.

We already do have evidence for ESP and a "soul of some sort". You just don't happen to be aware of the fact that such evidence does already exist. We are literally in the position that this philosopher is making the case for, and he goes on to explain why this evidence is ignored not only by academia but by our entire culture as well.

If you want to familiarize yourself with that evidence, I highly recommend this, this and this trilogy. I have read all the intellectual greats throughout the history of philosophy, but I've never been as intellectually dominated, if not downright raped, as when I read his writings. If nothing else, read the (editorial) reviews, and you'll find that all agree that this guy presents the totality of the evidence in the best manner, accounts for all the counter-arguments and doesn't overstate his case.

If you want more freely available sources, it's a lot more spread out and chaotic to get a full picture of the state of the research, but see for instance this, this, this, this, this, this and this.

Also, thanks for being so open-minded and sharing a genuine interest in these arguments. Most people just dismiss them out of hand, and sometimes even turn hostile towards me for presenting them to them.

>There's FUCKLOADS of things we don't know about the universe

I agree. And a lot of people are dismissing the idea of an afterlife even though they don't even understand what it would imply if there were an afterlife. That's why I tried to understand what an afterlife would most reasonable and feasible look like in conjunction with my quest to study the evidence in favor thereof. If you want to understand what NDErs are saying about the afterlife, see for instance this, this, this and this.

If he was in the military and overseas, then I suppose he never really was an option as a possible explanation. I would feel safe in ruling him out.

These are the only facts that you have.

1. New locks, all keys accounted for.
   
2. Young son said a grown man with a key opened the door for him.
   
   Now, here are some assumptions that you made that weren't warranted:
   
   
3. Family members being 500 miles away make them irrelevant.
   
   Actually, there are cases of family members being seen in places where they couldn't have been. Showing a few pictures could have turned up something interesting.
   
   
4. Family members being dead makes them irrelevant.
   
   There are even more cases of people reporting dead family members (sometimes their death was unknown to the witness) being where they shouldn't have been. Again, showing a few pictures might have produced interesting results.
   
   So you go through a family album with your son (at the time; too late now) and rule all that out.
   
   (If you are interested in reading a balanced book that deals with some of these things, check out Greg Taylor's Stop Worrying! There Probably Is an Afterlife. http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Worrying-There-Probably-Afterlife-ebook/dp/B00GBLRNTS )
   
   If you had ruled those things out, then you might have some kind of glitch. As it is, I think this probably belongs in a paranormal sub somewhere.
   
   You asked earlier, "And please elaborate on how evidence can guide us to most likely solutions is full of unwarranted assumptions from the 1920s." That isn't exactly what I said. I said, "There's a load of assumption in that, and those assumptions haven't been warranted since the 1920s at least."
   
   Here's a wiki quote: "In the mid-1920s, developments in quantum mechanics led to its becoming the standard formulation for atomic physics."
   
   That, and what it implies about the nature of reality, is something that should be common knowledge by now. But it isn't. (In fact, just this week there was an announcement about new evidence pointing toward there being multiple universes, some even lying very near our own, yet invisible to us. This comes shortly after other evidence that "bruising" evident in the background radiation suggests our universe has "bumped into" other universes in the past.
   
   I'll just give you a sample of some recent articles discussing the issue of the multiverse and its implications:
   
   > Last month, a team of scientists at the South Pole announced that their telescope, Bicep 2, had discovered gravitational waves, colossal ripples in space time. The finding, which has been disputed and has yet to be confirmed, would not only back up our models of the Big Bang but also provide strong evidence for inflation and the reality of the multiverse.
   > Recent discoveries like this suggest space may have inflated to an infinite extent after the Big Bang. Physicists believe that the inflationary process was capable of creating matter as well as space, in similarly infinite quantities.
   > In which case, go far enough and you will see an exact “repeat” of the stars and galaxies we see around us, including another planet Earth and another you – and every variation thereof, including worlds where Elvis lives, where Hitler won the Second World War, and where strange creatures like unicorns graze on alien pastures. This is a respectable idea. “To get rid of that conclusion,” Tegmark says, “either inflation is wrong … or space is in fact not infinitely stretchy.”
   
   Here's another with some very interesting implications:
   
   > A second possibility is that our universe is part of a larger system called the multiverse in which all possible values for m and b can occur and lead to many -- in fact, an infinite number of -- separate, logically consistent universes. Most of those values lead to universes in which life does not exist, while others have randomly selected values for m and b that are within the very narrow range to allow life to eventually emerge. We observe the weird values for m and b because we are here to experience them. This is called the anthropic cosmological principle, and it represents the dilemma facing physicists today.
   >
   > If we live in the first kind of universe, we expect that at some point we will eventually understand all there is to know about it and come up with a single, complete mathematical theory explaining all of its significant details. There will be no impediments to making all the necessary observations and creating the ultimate logical model with no unprovable assumptions to launch the mathematics. For example, all the fundamental constants in nature will be derivable from inside the mathematical theory and will no longer be quantities that we have to observe and measure.
   >
   > If we live in the second kind of universe, we have a problem. If the multiverse exists, we can never observe any of these other universes to prove or disprove their existence. The fundamental constants that make our universe look the way it does and make life possible are not unique and derivable from some grand supertheory but are randomly assigned and can in principle take on any value from 0 to infinity. We are simply lucky to be living in a life- and sentience-friendly universe where the constants we see and even the laws of nature make this possible.
   
   There's a long chain of thought and experiment that brought us to this point. I think everyone should be more familiar with it, but especially if one is interested in the unexplained.
   
   You have something that is bothering you, but you have been a bit like the fellow who lost his keys and is looking for them under a lamppost. Another fellow comes to help him look, but together they still can't find the keys. Finally the second fellow says, "We've looked everywhere, are you sure you lost them here?"
   
   "Oh, no; I lost them over there," says the first fellow, pointing into the darkness. "But the light is so much better over here."

I share my truth, not THE truth. all truths are true.

​

I have found that there is no death that death is just an illusion. This is what you are picking up on intuitively. There is no "stupid darkness." Just continued life, outside of the body which is just temporary to begin with. We are eternal spirits having a human experienced, as illustrated scientifically in the book Journey Of Souls, by Michael P. Newton. A used copy of this book can be obtained for like $4 on amazon used. It is very illuminating. This is the book that woke me up the most. And started me on my spiritual life journey.

​

We are alive in order to seek happiness, by following our excitement. Excitement is the compass pointing us north to where our higher self wants us to go. This is what "woke" people have learned to do. And we see great results from practicing this in any given moment.

​

"Unwoke" people do not know this and so they struggle in life and question things. Meaning, they get up in the morning and want to do A, but they choose to do B because they believe they have to do it. This is false. Its a trap. They have given their power away and also ignored their internal guidance. There is no legitimate reason to do something you do not want to do. Pigeons were created just like us and they are all happy and lack in nothing. Everything is provided for them. same with squirrels, Dolphins etc. Try it for a while and see how it goes. To the best of your ability. When you say you want something and take action on that thing, you tell the universe I want this, and so it give you more of it. When you want something and do not take action on it, you tell the universe you dont want it and so the universe does not give it to you.

​

Death is a grand adventure in itself and is fully explained in the book mentioned above and also the book Home with god, by Neale donald walsh. I say to you the first words that the angel Gabriel said to Mohammad before he gave him the Koran. Read! For it is simply knowledge that you need dear one.

​

Bless Sings

Oh wow. As to specific books. Hmm. That's sort of all over the place but each one had something to offer. The ones I remember are:

• Conversations with God books 1 and 2.
  
  
• The Power of Now
  
  
• Sacred Heart Yoga
  
  
• Change You Aura Change Your Life
  
  
• Children Who Remember Previous Lives
  
  
• Old Souls
  
  
• Dreams, Evolution and Value Fulfillment
  
  
• A New Earth
  
  
• Practicing the Power of Now
  
  
• The Chakra Deck and The Walking Deck
  
  
• Some books by Doreen Virtue
  
  
• Some books by Deepak Chopra
  
  Books on my list to read:
  
  
• The Mind Made Prison
  
  
• The Untethered Soul
  
  
• The 7 Ancient Keys to Happiness
  
  
• Zen and the Perception of Happiness
  
  
• Making Sense of People
  
  
• The End of Your World
  
  
• Flow
  
  
• Starting from the End
  
  
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Dummies
  
  I have also dabbled in the study of Zen and a few types of Buddhism, Tao, other Eastern Religions and philosophies as well as some Western religions, ho'oponopono, mindfulness and reiki.
  
  Deepak Chopra and Eckhart Tolle have some good techniques for separating yourself from your ego.

Have you ever heard of Dolores Cannon? She presents an interesting theory in her book The Three Waves of Volunteers:

"In 1945 when the atomic bombs were dropped in WWII, our “protectors” and “watchers” in outer space saw that Earth was on a collision course with disaster. The prime directive of non-interference prevented them from taking any action, but then they came up with a brilliant plan to save Earth and assist her in her ascension..."

http://www.amazon.com/Three-Waves-Volunteers-New-Earth-ebook/dp/B0053YHPS8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1406592965&sr=8-1&keywords=dolores+cannon

I also highly recommend these 3 documentaries:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LicNQpUh0o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0C-qrHtlok

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ggdx4-oGIvM

I don't see Mark Johnston's work talked about much round these parts, but I think his work is great.

He looks at religion and immortality from fresh angles, using rigorous philosophy, and produces wild conclusions:

Saving God (arguing that all religions are idolatrous)


Surviving Death (arguing that you can live on after death without divine intervention - really brilliant personal identity stuff in there)

These books are recent, erudite, and keep away from some of the more over-wrought debates. They're also some of the most fun I've had reading philosophy, which I think is really important.

Honestly, the best evidence and narrative defending the paranormal has been compliled lovingly into this easy to read book:

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Worrying-There-Probably-Afterlife-ebook/dp/B00GBLRNTS

It covers a wide range of topics and is impeccably researched, regardless of its goofy title.

I find anything done for video/tv/movies is sensationalist, driven entirely by a profit incentive, mostly dishonest, and frankly - pretty stupid.

> I had a dream where Nano appeared at the foot of my bed and said “It is time.” I said “time for what?” He replied “It is time!” He vanished and I woke up with this feeling that it was time to start looking for another kitten. The next week I adopted an 8 week old rescue kitten from a local vet and it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

You might think I'm crazy, but... I wonder if that was an "Announcing Dream", in which "Babies communicate with their new family before being born, even before conception. Announcing dreams, in which a deceased relative appears, are a common feature of family return.".

That was literally the first thing I thought of when I read this comment. I've read the linked book, and there are a couple of accounts like this from women who were trying to conceive and IIRC even one from a pregnant woman that ended, "and I woke up and was in labor".

Something to think about, anyway.

>is it possible for the concept of mysticism to be relevant to philosophy in some way?  Is there any contemporary work on mysticism that is worth investigating? 

Not only is it possible, but some would argue that it is inevitable and necessary. And yes, there is a lot of it, but these days it is regarded as going under the umbrella of survival research. Here is an article that elaborates on that point and on the current state of affairs regarding survival research, although it has begun to improve a bit since the writing of that article. Additionally, here are the best books written by a philosopher on these topics (1, 2, 3).

Ajahn Brahm - Loving Your Sufferings

Ajahn Brahm - Addictions & Obsessions

Ten years ago I worked with two young men who had duchenne, like you. So I know a bit about your situation. It lifts me up to see, that you are working on yourself instead of just giving up.

Why not take refugee in the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha?
Why not take comfort in believing in rebirth? This life might be very hard. But you can still develop your mind with meditation. Especially Metta Meditation. And this way you will build up a lot of good karma, which will come to fruition in your next life. Reflect on this.
There are some good books on reincarnation. And there is real scientific evidence on it. It is very convincing. And why not take comfort in that?
Life Before Life: Children's Memories of Previous Lives
And check out more of Ajahn Brahm. He is a magnificent buddhist teacher, and his compassionate teachings have helped me so much in my life.
The whole teachings of buddhism are about one question: How to end suffering? And the buddha found the ultimate answer. He found the ultimate escape from all suffering, from all disappointment, from all misery. And all you need is your own mind. No money, no career, no girlfriend, no sex, and not even a healthy body - just your mind.
Check out Ajahn Brahm - he is powerful.
With lots of Metta! Good Luck to you!

The first book to read for Christian Spiritism is "The Spirits Book", by Allan Kardec. Then a good book to read about reincarnation, which explains how and why and for what purpose we have many lives.

To learn about the spirit world and heaven you should read Nosso Lar

Christian Spiritism teaches us that we are immortal souls who reincarnate to improve ourselves over multiple lifetimes.

I'd recommend checking out this book: https://www.amazon.com/Souls-Earth-Exploring-Interplanetary-Lives-ebook/dp/B075W1S6FC

I still don't know for sure if it's real but the stories are really intriguing. It definitely opened my mind to some fascinating possibilities!

I like Ghost Adventures. It's the least flashy of all the shows out there and they really go about the science behind it. Plus I've seen some stuff on there that is rather curious. But I also watch it with a critical eye. I don't always agree with the show's findings.

Some days I don't believe in ghosts, some days I guess I pretend to. I have a good section of my library dedicated to ghost stories. One of my favorite books is Real Ghosts, Restless Spirits, and Haunted Places It's fun anyhow. You're spooked? That's hilarious.

Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:


amazon.com

amazon.co.uk

amazon.ca

amazon.com.au

amazon.in

amazon.com.mx

amazon.de

amazon.it

amazon.es

amazon.com.br

amazon.nl

amazon.co.jp

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I currently look here: amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, amazon.in, amazon.com.mx, amazon.de, amazon.it, amazon.es, amazon.com.br, amazon.nl, amazon.co.jp, amazon.fr, if you would like your local version of Amazon adding please contact my creator.

There's the nineteenth century school of spiritualism that has a lot to say and describes a system like you're asking for.

Then you have the entire world of nde's and everything they describe, which is mostly judgment and reincarnation. Life after life is good place to start or ian stevensons books.

Then you have hypnotic regression and the whole Michael Newton school of thought.

Then you have plain Jane religion, especially Buddhism, especially the esoteric stuff like the Tibetan book of the dead.

Personally, the best book on this subject I've read on this subject is this and it touches of most of the above. I suggest you check it out as a starting point and work your way from there:

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Worrying-There-Probably-Afterlife-ebook/dp/B00GBLRNTS

There are many cases. There is book which recorded 100 cases. MY friend was growing in that area/

100 Reincarnation Cases In Pingyang: Extraordinary True Stories of Kam People Who Recall Past Lives
https://www.amazon.com/100-Reincarnation-Cases-Pingyang-Extraordinary/dp/172008906X

If you want books, I'd recommend Life Before Life and Return to Life by Jim B. Tucker, along with anything by Ian Stevenson.

For documentaries, there's "Supernatural Science: Previous Lives", "Extraordinary People: The Boy Who Lived Before" (which is based on a case that Dr. Tucker investigated), and "Reincarnation in America".

Edit: I got around to watching "Unmistaken Child", and while it's not the most scientifically backed documentary, it is quite fascinating. At one point the child chooses items from his past life, and I estimated choosing the correct ones to have a 0.0093% chance of being luck, or 1 in 10,000. Not concrete proof by any means, but extremely out of the ordinary regardless.

I have written a book on The Case for Reincarnation, which covers the process and the reasons for you to have multiple lives. Please check it out on Amazon and look at the contents. I hope this helps you in your spiritual journey.

Stevenson did some very interesting work tracking down the stories of children who remembered previous lives, and there's a more informal account of his work here: http://www.amazon.com/Life-Before-Childrens-Memories-Previous/dp/031237674X

His angle was to collect stories and then try to confirm the details of the stories, finding the specific previous life the child remembered. Working in cultures which accepted reincarnation enabled him to more easily find subjects and check their details. The birth defect study is an off-shoot of that.

If you want to read an excellent book on the origin of hell/heaven, check out After Life in Roman Paganism by Franz Cumont.

I strongly recommend you read this book.

http://www.amazon.com/Life-Before-Childrens-Memories-Previous/dp/031237674X

this is a neat book

Yes! I used to have a book written by someone who researched alongside Stevenson.

https://www.amazon.com/Return-Life-Extraordinary-Children-Remember/dp/1250063485/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1482511061&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=children+who+remember+their+past+lives

I like these books :

https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Physicalism-Reconciliation-Science-Spirituality/dp/1442232382

https://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/1401953425/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1541433567&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=boy+past+lives&dpPl=1&dpID=51XVBER6UbL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/Life-Before-Childrens-Memories-Previous/dp/031237674X/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1541433596&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=ian+stevenson+reincarnation&dpPl=1&dpID=41TryJKvduL&ref=plSrch

In my opinion, the best place to start review of the evidence for reincarnation is with Dr. Jim Tucker's Life before Life. He's got more recent books. And you'll eventually want to go to the source, his mentor Dr. Ian Stevenson's seminal research. But start with Tucker's balanced review of the evidence and arguments. Don't prejudge it with assumptions about what is "keerazzy" or what does or does not exist. Just look at the data and draw your own conclusion.

Yes, that's quantum immortality. I'm also an INFP. There's an assumption that we're alien Volunteers (mostly non-Earth-native humans) and that's why this planet is so fucking foreign to us. See Dolores Cannon's The Three Waves of Volunteers: https://www.amazon.com/Three-Waves-Volunteers-New-Earth-ebook/dp/B0053YHPS8/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_1

Pointing you to these books is the best I can do at this point.
'Hitler's Suppressed and Still Secret Weapons and Technology'
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hitlers-Suppressed-Still-Secret-Weapons-Stevens-ebook/dp/B005LQQYM6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501720012&sr=8-1&keywords=hitler%27s+suppressed+and+still+secret+technology

'UFOs in the Year of the Dragon'
https://www.amazon.co.uk/UFOs-Year-Dragon-Lou-Baldin-ebook/dp/B009L40WBI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501720033&sr=8-1&keywords=UFOs+in+the+year+of+the+dragon (this book is more challenging).

This book has a chapter of stories like that.

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Worrying-There-Probably-Afterlife-ebook/dp/B00GBLRNTS

Sure! A couple books I can recommend:

Stop Worrying! There Probably is an Afterlife

Surviving Death: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for an Afterlife

Both of those authors have videos on youtube and podcasts and such.

You may also be interested in the Orch-OR theory of consciousness.

Related: Carol Bowman's books on children talking about past lives: http://www.amazon.com/Childrens-Past-Lives-Memories-Affect/dp/055357485X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452956781&sr=8-1&keywords=carol+bowman

http://www.amazon.com/Return-Heaven-Beloved-Relatives-Reincarnated/dp/0061030449/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1452956781&sr=8-2&keywords=carol+bowman

ni li ike ala tawa mi!

mi lukin kin e lipu ni: lipu "lipu pi kon moli ike" pi jan Posi.

mi lukin kin e lipu ni: lipu "o pilin pona tan ni: ken la moli li moli ala" pi jan Telu

mi lukin kin e lipu ni: lipu "ilo mute pi pali toki" pi jan Losepete

I'm very sorry for your loss. Just a few points...science is not ye close to explaining what consciousness is or providing an explanatory mechanism for how it arises from electro-chemical brain activity. And with that, no can say what occurs at death with irrefutable certainty. I wouldn't look for scientific evidence of an afterlife...I don't believe science to be the appropriate medium for this (I say this as a scientist myself and someone who is passionately pro science). Direct experience is a much better medium I think. If you are interested, I would recommend you research near death experiences, death bed visions, death bed phenomena witnessed by others, after death visitations, and maybe talk to sympathetic hospice people who have a lot of experience of being around the dying. I'm not sure any of these things will provide anything approaching hard evidence, but taken together they are at the very least strongly suggestive that death is something far more mysterious than what mainstream science understands, and the relationship of brain to consciousness is likewise also something more mysterious.

A recommended book that explores all this evidence without trying to convince you, it just lays it all out there and allows one to make up their own mind (if they wish). Interesting stuff.

https://www.amazon.com/Stop-Worrying-There-Probably-Afterlife-ebook/dp/B00GBLRNTS

From life to death, beyond and back | Thomas Fleischmann

​

More proof:

Easily digestible tier:

https://topdocumentaryfilms.com/day-i-died/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwyVFW9kT8k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw3oaNUR1iI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhANf60Y4Nk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_W-PLmMwl2o

https://vimeo.com/7464750

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PX2x0FxDTs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nzz-nG5pjFg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnoIf2NwaRY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5or66dI6akU

​

World-leading research tier:

​

http://www.horizonresearch.org/Uploads/Journal_Resuscitation__2_.pdf

https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc799144/m2/1/high_res_d/vol21-no1-5.pdf

https://www.amazon.com/dp/159477451X/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594773564/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594774528/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0997560800/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0826499236/

https://trans4mind.com/spiritual/Does-consciousness.pdf

From life to death, beyond and back | Thomas Fleischmann

​

Easily digestible tier:

https://topdocumentaryfilms.com/day-i-died/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwyVFW9kT8k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bw3oaNUR1iI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhANf60Y4Nk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_W-PLmMwl2o

https://vimeo.com/7464750

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PX2x0FxDTs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nzz-nG5pjFg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnoIf2NwaRY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5or66dI6akU

​

World-leading research tier:

http://www.horizonresearch.org/Uploads/Journal_Resuscitation__2_.pdf

https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc799144/m2/1/high_res_d/vol21-no1-5.pdf

https://www.amazon.com/dp/159477451X/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594773564/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1594774528/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0997560800/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0826499236/

https://trans4mind.com/spiritual/Does-consciousness.pdf

You're wrong about the evidence. There are case studies on so called "veridical near death experiences" where information is gathered during the out of body state that could not be otherwise perceived.

A good book (ignore the cheeky title) is Stop Worrying! There Probably is an Afterlife which covers several of these cases in addition to much more evidence.

Indeed, the place you go when you die may be the same place you were before you were born, and you may simply have lost your memory/ability to perceive that place.