Hi woodwytch,

I was until, what 3 years ago, a total sceptic, skeptic and cynic about all things paranormal. Even now I believe that there, as many loony notions as there are people willing to invent them and fleece the gullible.

But that said there have been oddities over my life I have dismissed as very faint memories but I would love to scoff at any of this paranormal bunkum. My ex was a little more enlightened and her sister was well into witchy stuff and spells. Oh how I would mock her little bag of protective objects and spells.

Then a series of life events, a slightly more inquisitive but more open mind and now I find I can accept some of what I once considered unacceptable and loony. I am not saying that I totally consider every new age notion or ancient belief system to be “The truth”…but maybe, just maybe there is more going on than I once believed.

What sparked me off here is the word “cuneform” in the post by Enthralled Fan.

At this crisis time of my life I was not sleeping and started to meditate to compensate…what I found was that when I meditated or did actually get some sleep that I started to hear voices, talking as if in headphones and I started seeing things stone faces, butterflies…vivid motion pictures…and dreams…ah what dreams.

I found when I was at a state of balance between sleep and not sleep images were in my mind. I had the image of a clay tablet in front of my eyes. I really thought my eyes were open and with a start went to grab the tablet and whoosh back into consciousness and a weird feeling of where did that go?

I had a “companion” for some time I called flash or sparky. It would jump in front of my vision when I meditated, like a naughty child. It started to manifest during the day, I would be talking to clients and my eyes would suddenly dart to the right. I had my eyes checked out by a few eye specialist types. Told them the symptoms but they saw nothing untoward. So I put up with it. It eventually phased out of my life but it has been back at times of great stress and pain…someone said it was letting me know, I was not alone!!!

My point is, I have encountered a few things that I know have no rational explanation but I have witnessed them. Nothing major, just enough to question.

I believe that there are things occurring that today’s science has not yet explained…doesn’t mean it wont…and it also doesn’t mean that those with the powers of paranormal elitism know all the answers either. One of the biggest problems is that scientists do not seem to witness them!!!

Now, just because I accept there is some funky stuff ahappening, doesn’t mean I fall for the mainstream paranormal bullshine.

This where your PLR interests me. I have been told that I could do with a session or so…as there are many elements of my life that I question, things like why do I do some things or feel a certain way about something. Now I have always been of the belief that what happens in a PLR session, is that a deep-rooted subconscious fear or concern manifests itself in a manner that the subject can handle.

So I held the contention that they are not experiences of a previous life at all but merely a kind of therapeutic role-play. Now, I am not dissing or flaming you, but if you are to be believed about the Cornish Burning then perhaps there is more to it…

I will one day undertake said PLR as a kind of experiment..to see where it leads. Even if it is just a mental healing..can't really loose can I? And if there is more...well who knows where that will lead....

I do so agree with what you say about the charlatans out there...I look at some of the so called "therapies" and shake my head. There are times that I think that "Hey I could do that!!" but I couldn't, my make up won't let me make fools of the gullible. I would rather die financially poor than morally and spiritually poor...Money is now..spirit is forever..well hopefully..

Peace is bad for business.

He said I'm sorry because everybody really wants peace, but the world wasn't ready for it. Killing john was in the best interest of many many wealthy, immature men around the world. The shooter was an under-ling.

John was one of the many people who brought the message, people die, but ideas are eternal.

When we think of the death of john lennon, we shouldn't just be sad for him, but sad for ourselves and everyone in the world, for it a statement that we need to start caring about each other. His death was a perfect poetic end to his life, one that will be remembered. And so perhaps his death had more good then bad, for people will always look at as potential we're all capable of experiencing, and a reminder of our reluctance to change.

Admire the man if we must, but even more so admire the message he represented.

Peace - It has unlimited potential.

I just had to throw that in there, a little off topic, but I think it's important.

Hi Vanitas,

I enjoyed your post ... alternative suggestions put in a polite manner (quite a novelty at ATS) ... thank-you. I'll try to give my response to the points you raised.

1. I can assure you that my conclusions where neither jumped to nor picked out of thin air ... a lot of laborious research was carried-out before I allowed myself to believe that my flashbacks were from another lifetime.

PLR, has become increasingly popular over the last few years, but when I had my experience such things were still unacceptable (work of the devil type stuff), lol, to most people. So it wasn't like I was blindly following the trend of the day ... or jumping on the bandwagon in an effort to make money.

On the contrary, I finished writing 'The Cornish Burning' in 1994, and have never even tried to get it published (although I might get around to it one day), because overall it was written as a private account ... for me to refer to as and when more evidence (for/against) surfaced.

Likewise, it is not for the purpose of promoting my abilities as a PLRT, in an effort to make my fortune ... because my clients pay whatever they can afford ... or what they feel is a fair price for my services.

2. If someone was able to provide me with another explanation for my experience, that I could take on board with more conviction than that, that I currently hold (in favour of it being past-life recall) ... I would happily accept that I was wrong. There is absolutely no useful or productive purpose in holding on to an out-moded philosophy or theorem.

I am quite logical person when need be. I studied Natural Earth Sciences at University (quite a while ago admittedly), the point being ... all scientific fields require the ability to amend and re-amend an hypothesis until it becomes a theory ... and a theory until it becomes a factual dynamic ... which of course can still be altered if/when new data is discovered. It's just that I gag and retch at the dogmatism that arises, from die-hard logic (and so avoid it whenever possible ... by choice).

3. 'Assumption' that past-lives exist ? ... you say there is no evidence I beg to differ on that point (but that's just me) I feel there is a multitude of evidence to back-up the high-probability that the human soul/psyche experiences multiple lifetimes in various guises ... certainly on a personal level ... the research that I carried-out points to that being the case.

However, I have entertained the possibilities surrounding 'Ancestoral Memory' and certainly wouldn't rule it out completely. I think it may well be the case in some accounts ... but not all, in fact I'd estimate well below half of cases experienced.

4. I think there might be a little confusion and misconception involved with some of your points in reference to PLRT. I have had many clients who have been sceptical when they come for their session (I think that's a healthy opinion to come into my office with) ... and often remain so after their session (as I said to a previous poster, I'm not in the business of converting folk). But the remarkable element here, is in the fact that believer of not ... the benefits of the excercise are accessible to all.

Those who think the details they have revealed are no-more than a fantasy created by their imagination ... attain the same beneficial results to their problems, as those who believe with certainty, they have lived before in a different time and place.

I think the reason for this is determined by which hemisphere of the brain is most dominant in the individual undertakeing the regression. There doesn't have to be a great divide between believers and non-believers ... the importance lies in benefits received (at least that's what's important to me as a therapist and human-being).

For the moment at least (and for the last 15yrs), nothing has caused me to doubt that my experience was genuine memory from a previous lifetime ... but as I said before, nothing is written in stone and we should maintain flexibity in order to develop and grow.

At the end of your post you seemed to imply that I was shallow/naive enough to pick a conclusion (for my experience), that was attractive to me as an individual (maybe because of current popularity in the subject), and suggested it was not a wise investment.

I thank you for the advise you offered ... but if you knew me, you would understand that you are way off the mark. And as for my personal experience of 'past-life recall' ... my life has improved tenfold in every direction. But if someone were to prove me and my research wrong tomorrow ... yes I would be disappointed ... but I would not have a single regret for myself or the hundreds of people that I've helped via Past-life Regression Therapy, over the previous decade.

I hope this information helps you to understand the perspective I'm coming from ... and why I believe we have experienced numerous other lifetimes besides the one we are experiencing right now. Woody

Honestly, I have NOOOOO friggin' idea. I'm still puzzled myself. I'm not gunna start studying about John Lennon or anything, because if this is genuine (which I believe it is... too many coincidences to go into right here and now), I'm just gunna let it flow and see what comes up. I bought some self hypnosis guides and tapes, so maybe something will come up when I start doing that... but right now I'm reading Whitley Steiber's Communion. I hear people talk smack about him, but that little yellow-beige guy on the front cover... he looks very very familiar.... Sorry a little off topic.

My personal opinion about the man with the rifle was that he was a government agent in charge of making sure Chapman killed Lennon, and if not, I got the impression that he would've just shot everyone there dead, including Chapman... but I guess Chapman went through with it, cuz John's dead, Chapman is alive... and I dunno, man... the memories are coming very slowly... but they really wanted Lennon dead, for whatever reason... prolly cuz he was the single most influential person in the Peace movement....

and really I never saw him as disingenuous, whoever said that... maybe a little removed from reality, being as famous as he was for so long... I dunno.

I can't say for sure.

Originally posted by woodwytch
Hey there indierockalien, that's a very compelling post.

I know precisely what you mean about the emotional aspect. When I got my first set of flashbacks, I had tears streaming down my face. I felt a total idiot because I had no idea - at that time - why these vivid and haunting images in my head had, had such a profound effect on me.

There will always be sceptics who seem to go out of there way to not believe in 'anything' (I always feel sorry for people like that because they miss so much of the good stuff ... and stunt their psychological growth). But when somebody recalls having been somebody famous in a past-life it's like dangling a steak in front of a crazed dog But from the way you write I can tell you're not grabbing for the glory and actually come across as pretty humble about the whole thing.

Thanks for the post I'm sure many will find it intriguing. Have you tried to find out anything about the guy with the rifle who was hiding ? Woody

Hi guys,
I'm kind of tired now but tomorrow I intend to post some of the supporting evidence I turned-up during the research of my Cornish Lifetime.

And a few snippets of some of the event that took place during that lifetime.

Woody.

Here a similar story for you all. From as early as I remember, about 3 years old, until I was 12yo or so i had a recurring nightmare.
The dream has stopped now but the memory is burnt into my brain like a video I can recall anytime and still I pickup minor details.
Briefly as possible...
I can see my point of view as I charge into a group of dishevelled brown rag wearing villagers armed with wooden farm tools.
They are standing before small stone and thatch buildings.
They are petrified at the sight of me. I feel and occaisionally see the braided leather thonging that allows my sword to remain attached to my wrist as I swing it above my head like a helicopters blades. Smell the rancid lard that lubricates the leather on the loops on my wrist and the rounded knob end on the sword. I am laughing. A dagger in my other hand (once the sword gets up to speed and I can swing it one-handed) at the ready but not needed. several heads of my victims fly off and for years this is where I woke up horrified.
Sometime later I forced myself to let the dream continue and got a few more seconds for my "video". after the heads fly off I turn to my friends behind me with satisfaction, they are laughing too, then their faces change suddenly and I blackout. Dream ends and never has it gone further.
I presume I have been hit with something from behind.
When I tried to explain this to my family it was dismissed but several other things later made me recall this again and again, gleaning details and going to the library to try and research them.
I found I had almost prior knowledge with all things Nordic, knew of their gods Thor and Loki especially. Somehow already familiar with Runes and some special meanings they held for me(I would tell you these but I think I may start a website and make a buck out of applying this to others when I retire). Then an astounding discovery for me at 12, the Beserker. I had found it and couldnt believe my eyes reading about their fighting methods. It WAS my dream, there in the book!
Blown away I began a lifetime research project and have now found the probable location was Brittany/Normandy in France. Never found the right sword, some close but not quite right.
I have since been to many Viking recreation days but their beserker-types didnt have long enough swords, did'nt have the rounded hilt end (handle) on the end of the sword for the thonging and no concept of the thonging. When I first picked up a sword it felt so natural, the guys at the recreation day could'nt believe I had never picked one up before. They were a little bemused that I wanted a bigger sword as the 4ft was as big as they could fight with, but the beserker was no swordsman in the classic sense of one on one combat.
Shock and awe, almost kamikazi attack was about it.
In my dream I am much bigger physically than my friends and victims.
In real life I am a big guy 6'3" and 20 stone but am a complete pacifist though the very few times I have been had to fight I completely lose it and have gone way too far on all occaisions, breaking arms and legs when I really had won already.
My theory is that I have a genetic memory or something perhaps I didnt die in this experience and the tense situation imprinted somehow I dont know. Interesting though. love to do some PL stuff but I find it very hard to be hypnotised. any comments?

Originally posted by woodwytch

At the end of your post you seemed to imply that I was shallow/naive enough to pick a conclusion (for my experience), that was attractive to me as an individual (maybe because of current popularity in the subject), and suggested it was not a wise investment.

God, no!
That is not AT ALL what I was thinking while writing - and I am truly sorry if it came across that way.

No: I was only listing some of the possibilities. That's all.

"I don't know" is my favourite motto in life.
And I really DO mean it.
Enough said (I hope ; )) .


BTW, I am looking forward to your book. I hope you publish it.
And good luck with it.












[edit on 10-12-2007 by Vanitas]

Well... if sychronicities can be called external verification... here's a few more.... my girlfriend lives on Penny Lane, which I never even paid attention to until one day her street name came up in conversation, I'm a pretty damn good songwriter (sorry I don't wanna boast, but everyone says so...comes easy, as all musical stuff does), lots of people have come up to me lately saying I look like John Lennon (which, to me, is debateable), my cigarette of choice (til I quit) was Winston... my first album I ever bought was a Beatles album when I was 12 (but like I said, I never listened to it... maybe once, but I was young and didn't really care too much), I've always been deathly (pardon my pun) afraid of loud sudden noises....especially gunfire and firecrackers.... oh yeah, the most clear memory I have from elementary school is when we did a school play with a bunch of Beatles songs in it..... and other than that, just a lotta things, like every time I hear the radio, I'll hear a beatles song (don't like the radio much)....
and it's just a gut feeling.
This all started with just this weird gut feeling out of the blue one day, not too long ago...
It's the weirdest thought I think I've ever had.
"Hmmm, ya know, John Lennon sounds about right... WHAT???"
I think I laughed at myself for a few days after that. It's the most rediculous # I've ever heard.... and yet.... I can't shake the feeling...

OH and I also remembered something. I would always fiddle with the piano at my drummer's house, and write songs (never learned piano), and above the piano, there was his sister's portrait of John Lennon (she was spot on, by the way... great artist... looked photographic), and another plaque box thing with Beatles stuff in it...