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Past-Life Recollections - Lesson 4
Hereditary & Environmental Influences
Let's begin our examination of the role of hereditary & environment plays in our lives by looking at the relationship between these influences & the ones we bring with us from our previous incarnations. Thus far, our work has been based on the assumption that our interests & characteristics are strongly
shaped by our former lives. How, then, do we account for the effects of heredity & environment?
Modern genetics has shown pretty conclusively that we inherit through our genes not only our physical makeup, but many of our mental & psychological traits as well. If this is true, how can we say that past-life influences, rather than simple genetics, have caused a person to be fat or thin, a mathematician rather than an artist, or whatever the case may be?
We have a similar puzzle with respect to environment. We know that our early childhood experiences, our family setting, & virtually everything go on in the world around us all have an influence on the way we think about & react to life’s events. How, then, can we attribute traits of temperament & personality to past-life experiences? Are we denying the role of heredity & environment in making us who we are?
Probably the best answer is, yes & no. Yes, we are denying that heredity & environment are the absolute molding agents in our lives, forces that shape us without regard to our own choice. On the other hand, no - we are not denying that heredity & environment have a very real effect on our lives. But rather than seeing them as factors which determine who we are, perhaps we should view heredity & environment as conditions that we're drawn to in order to meet the results of choices we've made in the past. In other words, heredity & environment interact with this thing called karma in such a way that each life is a continuation of patterns, good & bad, that we've established in previous lives. Here's how it might work.
First of all, it's important to remember that in the reincarnation theory the essence of who we are is nonphysical. It's the part of us that existed before we were born into the current flesh-body & the part of us that will live on after the body dies. If we imagine, for the sake of illustration, that our nonphysical essence is like a malleable substance - say, a piece of clay - we can begin to see how our choices shape our inner being. With each choice we make, that clay-like substance is shaped, forming a record of sorts. A talent developed here, a problem fed here, a happy experience, a painful one - they each leave their mark on our inner beings, shaping them into forms that become our individual identities. And when our nonphysical essence is drawn into physical form, it attracts to itself just the right heredity & environment to fit the inner identity. We might imagine our heredity & environment to be a glove, custom-made to fit the hand.
Or consider it this way: Suppose that clay-like essence we spoke of a moment ago is also magnetic. Just as our magnetic lump of clay would draw to itself iron fillings that would encase it & give it a hard outer shell, our inner identity encases itself in physical & environmental circumstances.
It's important to remember that patterns, which have, take on concrete form in our physical or environmental circumstances usually can't be changed instantaneously; the inner form must be changed before a new outer shell can be constructed to conform to it. For this reason, body traits can be some of our most enduring records of past-life experiences. The physical makeup we come in with is pretty much indicative of some patterns built in prior lives. Because of this, we can learn to read our body's record of what we may have built or experienced in the past.
Of course, not all body clues point to shortcomings or lessons we need to learn. Some are simply records of the past, like the skillful hands of a person who had been an accomplished artist, the sharp hearing of a former Indian, & the physical agility of someone with a previous incarnation as a great athlete. These clues become especially important when it seems that the person was just born with them, rather than having labored in this lifetime to develop such physical traits.
Our bodies can also store memories of past-life traumas that we haven't let go of yet. Birthmarks may be the carryovers - scars, if you will - of injuries incurred during former incarnations.
Sometimes our body clues point to compensation for a past situation. There are, as we have seen, many possible ways in which our bodies can reflect experiences from our past. Thus it is important to realize that a single body clue, all by itself, may not instantly suggest a past-life theory. But it can be an important piece in the puzzle.
EXERCISE A
It's time for you now to take an inventory of your own body clues. As you answer the questions below, some ideas about past-lives may occur to you. Be sure to make note of these in response to question 18, which asks for any additional comments you may have regarding the exercise. But if you don't get any hunches as you go along, that's okay too. What's important now is just that you think about & answer the questions. This will give you several useful clues as to your previous incarnations. Time & guidelines for weaving these clues together to form comprehensive past-life theories will be provided later on in the course.
SECTION ONE: PHYSICAL STRENGTHS
1) Consider your childhood as well as the present time. Did you, or do you, have any special body skills & characteristics that are physical strengths? Examples of this might be strong, broad hands that enable you to play the piano, or finger dexterity that allows you to do precision work, such as building model building. List any such physical traits you possess; then indicate which of these you were apparently born with or developed naturally at an early age, as opposed to those you worked consciously to develop.
2) Again considering your childhood as well as the present, are any of your five senses particularly sharp? If so, state which of your senses is special in this way & describe the ways in which this acuteness is demonstrated.
3) Have you ever had any special athletic ability, either now or in the past? List your specific skills, as well as the body strengths necessary for these abilities. For example, you might list cross-country skiing, which would require great stamina & strong legs, or maybe as a child you were the tabletop tennis champion of your block; this would show exceptional hand-eye coordination.
4) List any trouble spots in your body where you frequently experience illness or discomfort. Include any chronic health problems (such as a bad back or recurrent sinusitis) as well as areas where illness tends to crop up repeatedly for you (for example, periodic trouble in the stomach or the respiratory system). Indicate any of these problems that especially bothersome to your mental outlook.
5) List any of your senses that are especially weak or are nonfunctional.
SECTION THREE: BIRTHMARKS & FEATURES
6) List any birthmarks you may have & state where they're located. If you have feelings about any of these marks, be sure to note them as well.
7) Do you have any specific features that others often notice or that you are particularly aware of? For example, maybe others frequently comment on your tiny feet. Or maybe you have always been very aware of having a long neck. Note any such features here, as well as whether you consider each one to be an asset or a problem.
SECTION FOUR: YOUR BEHAVIOR REGARDING YOUR BODY
8) List any habits you have involving the care &/or use of your body that are unlike those of most people you know.
9) List any body habits you make a conscious effort to maintain.
10) Do you have any body habits about which others have complained? What are they?
SECTION FIVE: YOUR ATTRIBUTES TOWARD THE BODY
11) What physical ability do you wish for or have you striven to acquire?
12) Is there any particular physical injury or weakness you are afraid of having to face?
13) Are there any physical body types that you find generally attractive or repulsive? Explain.
14) What physical characteristics do you look for & admire in others?
15) Have you ever suddenly been attracted to a person? Describe what you consider to be that person's most striking physical characteristics.
16) Have you ever had an unreasonable dislike for anyone? What physical traits of this person do you remember?
17) What physical weakness or handicap do you notice most readily in others? How do you feel about people who have this condition?
SECTION SIX: GENERAL COMMENTS
18) Are there any other insights that have occurred to you as a result of this exercise? Include, but don't limit yourself to, any past-life theories suggested to you by this inventory of your body & your feelings towards it.
Just as our physical heredity can reflect past-life influences, the environmental forces that appear to shape our interests, abilities, & temperament can be seen as instruments bringing our soul patterns into action in this three-dimensional world. Our early interests, our fears & distastes, & even our talents & hobbies may on the surface be traced to people who inspired us, educational experiences that whetted an appetite or ability, early traumas that awakened a fear, & so on. But the deeper question remains: Did those environmental influences arise strictly by accident? Or did they come our way in order to awaken certain patterns the soul needed to experience? During
this course we're going to work under the hypothesis that there is indeed a reason behind the specific environmental circumstances into which each of us was born. Thus we can look to our interests, fears & talents to discover clues to past experience.
Sometimes the things that we liked to do when we were children can tell us about our earliest inclinations. Many times these activities are forgotten by the time we're adults. But we're left to wonder: could those very early interests, talents & hobbies be clues to carryovers from our previous incarnations?
EXERCISE B
In this exercise we will be dealing with actual events, rather than fantasy. Therefore the experience you'll be having here is not, strictly speaking, a reverie. Nevertheless, several of the techniques used in reverie may prove helpful here.
Relaxation of both body & mind is extremely important. Before beginning this mental trip back through the years, take some time to let yourself grow quiet. At least you should get into a physically comfortable position, close your eyes, take several slow, deep, natural breaths, & let any tensions slip away from you.
It might be helpful for you either to make a cassette of the material below to serve as your guide through this experience, or have a friend slowly read the material to you. Whatever method you choose, do not interrupt the flow of your memory in order to write your responses to the questions that appear in
the text. These inquiries are intended merely to direct your attention to various details of your experience so that you will be able to recall them at the conclusion of the exercise. The questions will be repeated for you at that time.
And now it's time for you to follow whatever relaxation technique you feel will be most effective, & then use your memory to revisit the areas of your childhood described below.
Let yourself be carried back to an early childhood experience. Visualize with your mind's eye the event as it unfolds around you. As completely as you can, enter into this memory, becoming the child that you were when the incident first occurred.
In your chosen recollection, what are you doing? Who are you with? How are you feeling? Stay with this memory for as long as you like, letting the experience proceed at its own pace toward its natural conclusion.
Now look back over your childhood memories. What games do you remember enjoying? Were there any that you made up? What did you do on a rainy day in the summer? Were there special toys or belongings you practically prized?
Did you like to draw? To color, or to finger-paint? If you did, what kinds of things did you draw?
How about favorite stories? Were there any you begged to hear again & again? Did you like to read stories & books on your own? What kind? Do any stand out in particular?
What about friends? Think about the friendships of your childhood. How were they different from one another? How were they alike? Were there particular activities you enjoyed doing with certain friends?
Continue thinking about your childhood for a few moments, as long as the memories last.
When your memories of early childhood have finished running their course, return to the present & answer these questions about them.
1) In the first childhood scene you revisited in this exercise, what were you doing? Who were you with? Do you remember how you were feeling?
2) In your other recollections of early childhood, what games do you remember especially enjoying? Were any of them games that you yourself made up?
3) What types of things did you did you do during rainy days in the summer?
4) Did you have any special toys or belongings that you particularly treasured?
5) Did you like to draw, color, or finger-paint? If so, what kinds of things did you draw most often?
6) Did you have any favorite stories? Were there any that you liked to hear over & over again? Did you enjoy reading stories & books on your own? What kind? List any that stand out in particular.
7) Think back to your closest childhood friends. In what ways were these friendships alike? How were they different from each other? Were there any specific activities you most enjoyed doing with certain friends?
8) List any circumstances in your early childhood that you consider especially fortunate.
9) Describe any circumstances from your early life that you feel were particularly unfortunate.
10) Did you have any childhood longings that were
notably strong or persistent? What were they?
11) Briefly, how would you describe your childhood
temperament & personality?
12) Note any additional memories you may have had
or comments you would like to make.
Sincerely,
Laurasia
bravenet.com