Saturday, September 23, 2006
Past Life Memory?
I have never been able to make up my mind about the idea of "past life memories." I simply do not know whether we "remember" things from a distant past which then explain present life conditions, or whether it is the other way around, and we simply "invent" fictitious recollections in order to explain to ourselves why certain things are as they are.
This morning I had a curious "past life recall." I was doing gentle movements standing in front of my Buddhist thongka, enjoying the soft energies flowing throughout, when suddenly (and much to my surprise) a mental image arose of myself as a kind of knight/warrior. His helmet was fitted with the extended nose piece which many such wore in earlier times. An internal voice said (silently), "You wore chain mail." Again, I was quite amazed at this revelation, since, if I think of myself in any past life settings, it would more likely be as a monk (Eastern) or perhaps a non-sexual tantric practitioner living in isolation in the forest, maybe even someone who loved to recite and compose sacred poetry.
Then the inner drama continued. It seemed (according to the unfolding "remembrance") that I possessed lance and shield, and was mounted. What I recalled most vividly was the absolute thrill of excitement as "I" galloped into some unknown battle, along with my equally excited comrades. We loved the energies roused to such a fever pitch. We thought only of our own "battle glory," and gave no thought to the obvious dangers for ourselves and the others.
At some point, I was wounded, and my energy body flew upward. I was left for dead on the battlefield, but somehow survived. I spent my remaining years somewhat incapacited and telling others about the great event I had participated in.
Now, I do have a bit of a problem now and again with one shoulder, for reasons that are not clear. And so it came to me that I had suffered a shoulder wound in this ancient battle, and that explained my current difficulty.
Was this an actual "past life memory"? Was it simply a story I made up as I went along? I have no idea. Mostly, I am just deeply surprised that I would come up with the notion of myself as a warrior/knight, something I have never consciously considered as a possibility.
So--I continue to leave this whole area open, and draw no conclusion one way or another.
But--in terms of kundalini, I continue to wonder if some who have "sudden awakenings," and find themselves possessed of feelings and abilities quite unlike those of the present life, are not indeed connecting with the inner spirit of some past life or lives, rediscovering some personal essence which continues to find expression on this plane and others less visible. The nervous system can now sense and feel in previously unimagined ways. Where does this exquisitely refined system come from? How can it so suddenly appear?
True awakening (in any system) involves deep spiritual transformation on all levels It is a indeed a quantum leap into a new orbit of existence--the self is now unlike the prior being, and ways must be discovered to integrate the "new self" with the old. The notion of being "reborn" is not merely a metaphor, it is a reality, and birth, as always, involves struggle as well as joy.
This morning I had a curious "past life recall." I was doing gentle movements standing in front of my Buddhist thongka, enjoying the soft energies flowing throughout, when suddenly (and much to my surprise) a mental image arose of myself as a kind of knight/warrior. His helmet was fitted with the extended nose piece which many such wore in earlier times. An internal voice said (silently), "You wore chain mail." Again, I was quite amazed at this revelation, since, if I think of myself in any past life settings, it would more likely be as a monk (Eastern) or perhaps a non-sexual tantric practitioner living in isolation in the forest, maybe even someone who loved to recite and compose sacred poetry.
Then the inner drama continued. It seemed (according to the unfolding "remembrance") that I possessed lance and shield, and was mounted. What I recalled most vividly was the absolute thrill of excitement as "I" galloped into some unknown battle, along with my equally excited comrades. We loved the energies roused to such a fever pitch. We thought only of our own "battle glory," and gave no thought to the obvious dangers for ourselves and the others.
At some point, I was wounded, and my energy body flew upward. I was left for dead on the battlefield, but somehow survived. I spent my remaining years somewhat incapacited and telling others about the great event I had participated in.
Now, I do have a bit of a problem now and again with one shoulder, for reasons that are not clear. And so it came to me that I had suffered a shoulder wound in this ancient battle, and that explained my current difficulty.
Was this an actual "past life memory"? Was it simply a story I made up as I went along? I have no idea. Mostly, I am just deeply surprised that I would come up with the notion of myself as a warrior/knight, something I have never consciously considered as a possibility.
So--I continue to leave this whole area open, and draw no conclusion one way or another.
But--in terms of kundalini, I continue to wonder if some who have "sudden awakenings," and find themselves possessed of feelings and abilities quite unlike those of the present life, are not indeed connecting with the inner spirit of some past life or lives, rediscovering some personal essence which continues to find expression on this plane and others less visible. The nervous system can now sense and feel in previously unimagined ways. Where does this exquisitely refined system come from? How can it so suddenly appear?
True awakening (in any system) involves deep spiritual transformation on all levels It is a indeed a quantum leap into a new orbit of existence--the self is now unlike the prior being, and ways must be discovered to integrate the "new self" with the old. The notion of being "reborn" is not merely a metaphor, it is a reality, and birth, as always, involves struggle as well as joy.
