Is there life after death? Most of the world’s great religions say yes and affirm the law of karma, i.e. we “reap what we sow.” Throughout history reincarnation was accepted almost universally as the process by which the soul journeys toward eventual union with God. Even today a majority of the world’s population believes in reincarnation. But is belief in an afterlife just wishful thinking or can the scientific method possibly provide an answer? In this book Dr. Richheimer explores the considerable scientific evidence that some children and adults have detailed and verifiable memories of their past lives, and argues that people with exceptional talents and genius may have retained these abilities from previous lives. ESP, out-of-body, near-death, and mystical experiences, as well as numerous other phenomena in which the mind affects the physical body indicate that mind cannot be reduced to brain activity. This is consistent with the idea that we possess a nonphysical aspect of our being (soul) that can survive death. Experiments in quantum physics suggest that consciousness is “king,” not matter, since consciousness is required before a quantum particle can emerge into the physical realm. Reincarnation is consistent with the idea that the ultimate goal of human existence is to attain union with God, since this could take more than one lifetime.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction 1

PART I: THE BACKGROUND 5

1. Reincarnation in the East 7
2. Reincarnation in the Ancient Egyptian
and Greek Religions 13
3. Reincarnation in Judaism 17
4. Reincarnation in Christianity 21
5. The Law of Karma 36

PART II: THE EVIDENCE 47

6. The Studies of Ian Stevenson 52
7. The Work of Jim Tucker 58
8. They Remember their Previous Life 62
9. Prodigies and Geniuses 71
10. The Biology of Reincarnation 76

PART III: THE MIND 87

11. Unity of Self and Memories 91
12. Mind and Body 99
13. Mystical Experience 104
14. Out-of-Body and Near-Death Experiences 114
15. ESP 123
16. The Nonlocality of Quantum Mechanics 140

PART IV: THE PATH 151

17. The History of Unity 155
18. The Importance of Moral Behavior 160
19. The End of Rebirth 168
Notes 178
Index 188