Book Club: Many Lives, Many Masters

This is a book I've been aware of for years but knew little about. I'd always been curious about it, but didn't get motivated to read it until we started a bookclub at my local yoga studio.

Although I've always had an interest in past lives, I felt a lot of resistance upon reading this book. Everything I've learned about healing, through both traditional therapy and metaphysical resources, has emphasized the present moment. In order to find inner peace and happiness, you must release attachments to the past and the future. 

And yet, this book is built around people finding healing by turning to the past. Not only do they find healing, but they find healing for issues they spent years, even decades, trying to resolve. They also found new perspectives on relationships in their lives, particularly contentious ones.

In the end, I enjoyed reading this book, but what really amazed me is what happened after I finished.

I began having dreams of people I know and seeing us together in past lives! I also began applying the principles to my own life, using them to ease my anxiety. When I felt anxiety coming over me without any clear reason I would think, "I'm safe. I'm safe in this life. My traumas are over. I'm safe I'm safe I'm safe." And then I would feel calmer and more present.

There's a lot of reasons to read this book. First and foremost, it's a fascinating exploration of how past life regression therapy actually works (this book is not about past life readings, which are totally different). Then there's the fact that the author was trained at Columbia and Yale. He's a clear minded, grounded, and highly intelligent doctor. He's as skeptical as anyone when it all begins, and because of his background in research and science, there's a level of reassurance to it all. And lastly, it might provide answers to problems, illnesses, and relationships you could never get clarity or healing on.

Have you had any experiences with past lives? Have you read any other books on this subject you think I should know about? And if you've done past life regression therapy, tell me about it in the comments!