What is Past Life Regression?
I get this question from most people who read my profile or get introduced to me as a Past Life Regression Therapist. This question is usually loaded with curiosity, fear or sometimes plain disbelief.
Matter vs Energy:
Before I explain Past Lives (PL) or Past Life Regression Therapy (PLRT) let me first explain the logic behind this modality. Basically, we are not just our physical body. Physical body or Annamaya kosha is matter – consists of cells, nerves, tissues, organs etc and can be destroyed. However, we do have other bodies like Astral Body, Causal Body, Etheric body etc. In Yogic terms these are Pranamaya kosha, Manomaya kosha, Vijnanamaya kosha and Anandmaya kosha. Except the physical body, the other bodies are subtle and energetic. They are not physical and not matter. Hence, while our physical body dies and gets destroyed upon burial or cremation, our energy bodies do not get destroyed but merely get transformed (E=mc2). They continue to take on other physical bodies but do carry the imprints/memories of the lives that have been lived. Also, emotions are energy – every emotion, positive or negative has an energetic vibration or frequency. These emotions that are experienced during a lifetime are also stored/imprinted in the energy body of the person who has experienced those – esp. the really strong ones that are associated with trauma or death.
Energetic Imprints:
Now when the energy body takes on a physical form the imprints of the earlier lives are there, but deep inside the primitive mind or unconscious mind. These are not required in the daily functioning of the new body but do influence the behavior of the person in the form of instinctual responses. Upon an appropriate trigger these old emotional or visual files buried deep inside can open up causing strong physical or emotional responses from the person. These responses cannot be understood from current life context as these files are not from the current life memories, but have opened from the deep recesses of the unconscious where the past life memories are stored! Here is how certain phobias manifest and this is also how child prodigies are formed – due to the previous life experiences and memories affecting the current life. Feeling of Déjà vu, birth marks, unexplained aches or pains, phobias or fears that have no current life context, recurrent visions, sudden familiarity with people or places that you have never visited before or patterns in behavior or relationships etc are all signs of a past life file having opened up!
Regression:
Regression is going back in time. We regress each time we recollect something from the past – be it 5 hrs ago or 5 days ago or something that happened 5 yrs back! Regression helps us to understand the root cause or the beginning of the issue or problem at hand that we are trying to understand and resolve. We use Regression as a therapy to either understand the problem that may have roots in the current life (Current life Regression/Age Regression/Inner Child Regression) or a past life/lives (Past Life Regression). Regression therapy is crucial to unveiling the cause or beginning of a problem – be it fear, phobia, pain, relationship gone wrong or a toxic belief system, a physical deformity or emotional imbalance. In Regression therapy we not only go back to understand the roots of the problem, but pull them out, heal and transform the experience and memory so that it stops being a problem in the client’s life. Regression therapy has to include Transformation techniques that not only help us understand the origin of the problem but help us heal it and integrate the learning and healing into the present life
Past Life Regression Therapy:
In this modality, we go back in time to recollect memories of a life lived much before this lifetime. Just like we can go back in time to our childhood memories we can do the same for past lives. For many it feels like they are making up a story and for many others it feels surreal. Many experience it in complete totality, and at times start speaking in the language of that past also! Just like each one of us can remember our childhood in different ways (visual, auditory, kinaesthetic) and in varying degrees (some remember vividly and some barely have any memories) in similar way a past life can be experienced differently by different people. Many times after the session the logical mind of the client will question the experience and claim that it was a story made up based on a movie that they recently saw or a book they had read! We try and avoid interpreting these subconscious mind experiences with the logical mind.
Past Life Regression (PLR) session:
A typical PLR session starts by explaining the concept and the process to the client and dispelling all fears and apprehensions that the client may have (most common one being – “will I be able to come back after going into a past life?” or “will this affect my present life relationships in a negative way?” or “Will I remember everything that I say or do in the session?”). Then the client is put in a relaxed meditative like state (also called trance state) so that the logical, conscious, judgmental and over analytical mind is put to rest and subconscious mind (that is a storehouse of all files of our memories and experiences in the form of images, sensations, feelings etc and is not logical). Depending upon the therapist and clients problem, either a guided imagery is used to explore a past life, or a strong emotion or physical sensation is used a link/hook/bridge to access a past life. Both methods work well. After exploring the past life, the connections to the current life or problem at hand are established, required healing and transformation is done so that the impact of that past life on current life is reduced or nullified. Sometimes getting a different understanding of the issue or the trauma can also help. Body memories are released. Connections to current life relationships if any, are understood. Finally, the session is closed after integrating all the understanding and healing into the current life and future pacing the client with positive understanding and insights
For those who don’t believe in Past Lives or Reincarnation:
We can still do the session, but we don’t label the experiences as a past life – it be understood as a metaphor that the sub conscious mind has created for the purpose of healing. Many times client like to believe they were telling a story – and that is also fine as long as the experience in the session results in some kind of healing or transformation. We don’t need to label it as a Past Life!!
So all those who are curious about this phenomenon and want to try it out, do book your session now!!
Those who wish to learn this modality, do write to us as we regularly conduct trainings in Regression and Hypnotherapy.
Riri G Trivedi
Image: Bhul Bhulaiya, Lucknow.
