Reincarnation Reconsidered

As a person leaves an old garment and puts one that Is new,

the Spirit leaves the mortal body, and wanders on to one that is new.

Bhagavad Gita 2:22

Wayne Teasdale, who studied Hinduism deeply, and it was his close second spiritual path, gives this quote some background for our consideration in these words:

“Certain Asian texts such as the Bhagavad Gita, here in passage 2:22, are very specific about reincarnation and how it works. Here the great Hindu Scriptures employ a metaphor of clothing to characterize the role of the body. In the Hindu tradition, the body is not regarded as the person, not the essence of immortal spirit, but simply as a shawl that wears out and then must be discarded.

We find parallels in Plato, who saw the soul as the prisoner of the body; the body, in Plato, is also transitory, but the soul is eternal. Both here in the Gita, and in all the Indian tradition, the soul, Atman, or spirit reincarnates in another body, a cycle that repeats for ages. Although Westerners frequently dismiss reincarnation, we must give time to consider the concept. It really doesn’t matter if the afterlife is heaven or reincarnation and eventual integration with the Absolute. What is important is what we do with this life.”

Much can be said here, and I hope to return to this topic, if I have not already! Teasdale reminds us of the universality of the belief in some kind of reincarnation, be it East or West, and he explains it simply here. What can be emphasized briefly is that it is either a quality of arrogance or ignorance that would quickly dismiss these metaphysical possibilities, and I feel that if you rule them out without a more concerted and careful investigation it is a disservice to your own spiritual development and understanding.

My personal acceptance of reincarnation came to me after my studies in Buddhism and from an investigation into the more responsible side of the Gnostic literature as well as early Greek philosophy that supported my depth study of eschatology where I discovered that the church dismissed and then argued against the concept of reincarnation which was subsequently banned in the 5th century.

From my conclusions, I saw that the possibility of a cyclical soul life was a valid alternative to the awful outcome of tradition Christian thinking that is decided as going to heaven-eternal bliss- or living in Hell-eternal torment and punishment- to be an erroneous construct of early coercive theology designed to keep people fearful, and keep them loyal to the clergy and the church doctrines.

Professionally, I found the belief in an “eternal return” and a progressive refinement of living that principal aim was to learn how to live a more spiritually attuned or aligned life with the Divine to be far more appealing and hopeful personally, and also more comforting whenever I was asked to offer a funeral service or conduct a memorial.

I found it profoundly arid and devoid when asked by an atheist to offer a service, because it was often expressed to me that he/she did not believe in life beyond the grave in any way, shape, or form. I have always found it difficult to offer any sense of hope, but I was confined to offering an honest assessment of the person’s life, and that only memory made that person immortal in any way…

While memory certainly suffices in the short term, and can work well for family and friends, it has little to do with the ultimate destiny of the deceased, and yet if the belief system was that myopic or limited to only what the information the physical senses can provide, then it met the need and was sufficient unto itself.

Teasdale adds that last line of focusing on the impotence of this life-living in the here and now- and I feel he is quite correct in that emphasis. The present is all we have as yesterday is memory and tomorrow is hope. Such an admission works as a corrective against any New Age passivity or expectation of spiritual growth and progress as being without sacrifice or suffering;

As the Buddha put it, “[if you want to know a person’s past, look at his/her present life; If you want to know what the future life could be, look at where and how they are living in this life…right now…]”