Reincarnation - Soul Comfort

 Astro Power - Divine Mechanism for Soul Development

More and more people from diverse religions and cultures believe in reincarnation as a way in which the Individual Soul goes through its "paces". Those who wish to make reincarnation a strictly religious topic may do so, but those who are not bound by strict religious dogma are free to explore this topic as the "divine mechanism for soul development".

The River Lethe - Forgetfulness of the Soul -

The place I will start is with the Greeks. Ah, the Greeks, those ultimately syncretistic peoples who, breathing the Spirit of Democracy were about combining ideas, absorbing ideas and making new ideas, giving them new names and packaging them in Hellenic ways! The Greeks, sitting where they sat in their craggy stony island places, in between the East and the West, are a wonderful source for so many ideas.

Paying the Boatman and Spiritual "Lethargy"

The River Lethe is their name for the process of forgetting - what happens to the Soul when it passes from Death to the Other Side, from the Other Side to Rebirth. The word "Lethe" has the same root word as LETHARGY. We are supposed to be forgetful (sleepy) of our past lives, otherwise how could we live our current lives? The ancient practice of putting coins on top of the eyes of the dead was to "pay the boatman" who took you across that River of Forgetfulness. So they devised Imagery that feels vivid and somewhat like a movie. Greek Mythology was highly picturesque. It all tends to stick in the mind.

"The Uttermost Farthing" -

Christ refers to this in his picture of "agreeing with your adversary quickly, lest you be taken to the uttermost farthing". Most see this as a warning against being overly litigious. It is really most likely Jesus' reference to a judgment phase for the soul. (It has recently been shown through archaeology and history that Jesus was highly Hellenized.) The point here is to appreciate the fact that your Soul is under constant assessment and analysis, and as you pass, you should be in a state of peace, not disputing and struggling with the fingers of judgment that are pointing at you. "Agree with your adversary quickly" says: "Get some perspective. You are in a State of Grace, you are about to go to the Other Side. Don't struggle with the Accuser. It's over for now. Let the process work. Do not exhaust your spiritual resources fighting like a fool for your Virtue."

The Grand Overarching Comfort that Lies in the Concept of Reincarnation -

The point is to get people to think about all of the psychological, emotional and spiritual benefits that can be derived from contemplating this "divine mechanism for soul development". For those of you who might not be aware of it, reincarnation is a concept that spans ages, centuries, and cultures. There is no need to document that here. Of course, culture and history hold LOTS OF OPTIONS for what reincarnation means. I will discuss how I am enlightening movies  the topic, but let me acknowledge here the multiplicity of offerings from around the world on this topic.

You have a background story -

Is there a rationale for your lot in life, the people you have met, the positives and negatives of your fate and your character? Forgetfulness dictates that you do not remember your background story, but the reality of your life - its complexity, apparent contradictions and the mixed-ness of life, make each individual ask - is there a WHY to all of these various factors? If it is random, then you must deal with what that sense of randomness does to you. If you have a "once around" sense, then luck, curses, despair, privilege, blessings and all those words tend to have more power. But if you see the background story as an explanation for your soul development, then you can be transmuting trouble, building on blessings and crushing curses. If you think in good news/bad news terms, its easy to get discouraged with life. If you see your soul as going through a set of experiences that with conscious work will all be beneficial to the eventual further development of your soul, then Life's Lot does not need to be a weighty burden.

You've Gotten Another Chance -

I once told my sister that the fact that she was alive and on the planet was evidence that redemption and salvation were hers. The divine has declared that you can learn more lessons and progress in your spiritual journey. You have a life. That is a positive statement that you are progressing. If you have been "beaten up" in the past, this current life is a declaration that you need not be a victim again. You are not granted another individual existence for failure. You have gotten another chance and that is reason for Joy!