M.J. Rose

Welcome back to the Reincarnationist Blog’s series of interviews. Today’s subject is Deepak Chopra. This particular Q&A was previously published on our blog back in ’07, so the questions are slightly different that what we’ve been publishing this past month. Enjoy! (…and stay tuned for the next several months for many, many more Q&As with authors and others whose perspectives you may find very interesting!)

THE QUESTIONS:

Title of your latest book as of Sept 1, 2007 –

Buddha: A Story of Enlightenment, HarperOne, May 2007

Do you believe that reincarnation is possible?

I think consciousness outlives the death of the physical body through which it expresses itself. Also, the universe is constantly recycling itself while evolving to higher levels of creativity. Because we are a part of the universe, we too recycle ourselves and continue to evolve to higher levels of creativity. As a result, there is no such thing as a person. What we call a person is a constantly evolving confluence of memories, desires, imagination, relationships, meanings, contexts, and archetypal stories.

What books on the subject have made an impression on you or do you recommend people who are interested in the subject read?

Life Before Life by Dr. Jim B. Tucker

Life After Death: The Burden of Proof

What is your most marked characteristic that you believe could be a hold over from a past life?

As I mentioned, I do not think of myself as a person. We are wisps of memory, and threads of desire latching on to chunks of consciousness and participating in a cosmic dance. The only solution to all of life’s conundrums is enlightenment – to move to a domain of awareness beyond the personal self to the universal self. Any holdovers that I have from the past are part of my collective karmic inheritance. These include attachment to outcome and need for approval.

What is your principle defect that you believe might be inherited from a previous incarnation?

As I mentioned, I do not think of myself as a person so I am unable to answer the question.

Which of your favorite heroes do you think you actually could have been and why?

I believe that we all have relationships with archetypes but since we do not have a separate self, our heroes are archetypal energies that we karmically resonate with. My heroes include Jesus, Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Mother Teresa, Krishna, amongst others. But I do not believe I was one of them because as I have shared before, there is no such thing as a separate self.

What three people from history would you like to have over to dinner for a discussion about reincarnation?

Jesus Christ, Buddha, Hitler not to discuss reincarnation but to understand what made them who they are.

What do you think happens when we die?

We upgrade or downgrade the illusion that we call reality as a result of the state of consciousness we are in.

When you come back next time, who would you like to be?

Don’t plan to return.

We would love to hear your responses to these questions. Please feel free to copy and paste the Questionnaire with your answers into a Comment for this post.

Introducing Kevin R. Williams, author of NOTHING BETTER THAN DEATH: Insights From 62 Profound Near-Death Experiences…

“Yes, reincarnation is a neglected topic in the West. But it shouldn’t be…”

What is your characteristic that you believe is a hold over from a past life?

My previous life was as my grandmother’s father who killed himself in front of her and her mother.

I took care of my grandmother during the last 7 years of her life.

Because she was in her 90’s, I always considered her more as a daughter than a grandmother.

Toward the very end, she told me the story of her father and how he was an alcoholic and committed suicide.

He was obviously bipolar – as was my beloved grandmother and myself.

While she was telling me about her father, it occurred to me that she was talking about me.

Now I know the reason why I ended up taking care of her.

I was paying the karmic debt for my past life as her father (my great grandfather) for cutting short my life as her father and by depriving her of a father to take care of her.

What is your principle defect that you believe is inherited from a previous incarnation?

My bipolar disorder and alcoholism. But I am taking good care of these problems in this life.

Which of your favorite heroes do you think you could have been and why?

My favorite hero is my father who recently passed away of lymphoma. He was the exact opposite of me; but he was my “Rock of Gibralter” whenever I needed stability in my life. Without my bipolar disorder, I believe I would have been more like my father.

What three people from history would you like to have over to dinner for a discussion about reincarnation?

(1) Jesus. I know in the Bible that he frequently taught the concept of karma – and therefore reincarnation.

(2) John F. Kennedy. On my website, I present overwhelming evidence of his past life as Abraham Lincoln.

(3) Ian Stevenson. I never personally knew the man but I wish I did.

What do you think happens when we die?

According to near-death experiences, we leave our bodies, go through the tunnel, and enter the afterlife realm that we are more comfortable with.

We experience a homecoming with loved ones on the Other Side.

There is no time over there, so we can experience an “eternity of eternities” if we wish.

At some point, we are given “the offer we can’t refuse” in which we leave paradise for another learning experience in Earth’s great “School of Hard Knocks.”

But if we have earned it, there are higher dimensions to go to for more learning.

When you come back next time, who (or what!) would you like to be?

I want to be a husband and a father. Circumstances in my current life have prevented me from being both.

Links

Kevin’s Website:  http://www.near-death.com/

Projects: Kevin is currently collaborating with www.iands.org – the premier near-death organization.

Books: “Nothing Better Than Death: Insights From 62 Profound Near-Death Experiences“

Thank you to Durga Holzhauser, a reader of our blog, and author of Jesus The Book, for answering our Reincarnationist Q&A!

What is your most marked characteristic that you believe could be a hold over from a past life?

Probably the most marked characteristic that could be a hold over from my past lives is that I always believe in the power of love and light.

What is your principle defect that you believe may be inherited from a previous incarnation?

There is a very subtle idea in my mind that I could still be burned for my thoughts and beliefs.

Which of your favorite heroes do you think you could have been and why?

A close friend of Mary Magdalene because I was…
(Historically the name is “Maria of Bethany”).

What three people from history would you like to have over to dinner for a discussion about reincarnation?

The three people that I would like to have over for dinner to discuss reincarnation would be Jesus, the Dalai Lama and the former caretaker of my treasures as a Maharani in my last life in India. Jesus and the Dalai Lama could discuss the different concepts of reincarnation between the Buddhist belief and the Christian belief. The Buddhist leaders like to be recognized in a constant heritage line over the centuries.  In contrast, Jesus was reincarnated only once, as far as we know, with an immense imprint on history and never again since. Discussions with my former caretaker would entail ascertaining what happened to my royal jewelry collection.

What do you think happens when you die?

When one dies, the physical body dissolves and we detach from it. We reawaken our light body and according to the level of our spiritual development, we are able to go on to a light level that corresponds to our own development – where we consciously prepare our next incarnation (or conscious), and we are karmically thrown from one incarnation to another.  The Buddhists train their entire life through meditations, to manage the crossing over. When we are completely “conscious”, we are able to fuse with our blissful soul in heaven and return freely to earth along a path of our choosing.

When you come back next time, who (or what) would you like to be?

Myself. Because wherever or whatever I am, I cannot escape from me.

About Jesus The Book: “Today the heavens open up and solve the mysteries of the forgotten years of Jesus. His teachings, as never told before, arise in the dawn of a new age of light. Your heart will be inspired by his words of truth and love. You will learn about his mysteries and your life may change beyond your wildest dreams.
Now we all are able to join the holy circle connected through His divine light.
It is the time for the prophecies to become reality.”

More about the book can be found here.