It is my belief, and my understanding, that you die and go to a "heven or hell" state based on your memories which is ingrained in your soul, then based on that your new lifetime is made to learn more. In this way the soul "evolves." Kind of part of my theory in another post.
It sounds like you are referring to knowledge and memories as something you wish you could 'take with you'. There is a REASON why your memory is (temporarily) erased before living lives. Teachers - for example - don't want you to simply remember your mistakes, they want you to understand. Just as teachers want you to be able to apply your understanding to very different problems(lives).
What if a child committed his arithmetic mistakes to memory; he remembered that 2 + 2 is 4, not 5, he remembered that 2 + 1 is 3, not 7. He would not be able to independently understand and answer eg. 3 + 2, 20 + 20, or 1 + 1. You would just be cluttering your mind with useless information if you try to remember every mistake you make.
You DO 'take with you' things like: your sense of humour, imagination, and intelligence (best defined as the ability to learn).
So, I would hardly call it going 'backwards developmentally' [:)]
I'm sure there may be people who can remember their previous lives, but such knowledge is irrelevant.
I guess what I'm trying to say is this... or sort of..
I have been having many telepathic experiences as of late, I wouldn't call them OBE's or AP's because I am perfectly awake and conscious while it is happening. I can FEEL what my loved ones feel even though we may not be in the same room or even within 1000 miles of each other. I can "transmit" and receive "transmissions" from people I care about and know exactly what they are thinking... if it relates to me. These transmissions are always positive, loving thoughts and sometimes they are even a bit overwhelming and powerful...
I know this is a new learning curve for me and it's not like there are lessons involved. I guess one lesson I am learning is that silence is not necessarily all that quiet. I also know that this is the beginning and my psychic powers will only increase as I grow older. Additionally, because I have had these amazing FEELING experiences, I am now keenly aware that all I really want is to experience Cosmic Unity and am working very hard (if you can call it that) towards this goal.
So, I guess my question revolves around this. Would the level of consciousness I acheive in this lifetime be carried to the next or would I kind of be starting from ground zero. I actually would like to not incarnate anymore, however I believe that we all incarnate until each of us reaches the critical mass of Cosmic Unity.
Thank you
--Kerri
I don't know what you mean by 'Cosmic Unity'. Like I said, you DO take with you everything except knowledge and memories.
The mind that created the universe (god/the great spirit/whatever) had to develop itself from nothing and without ANY help from 'matter' or lives to live and learn from. It created the universe and the life reincarnation 'system' so that we could have the chance to develop at a faster rate than god was able to. We have the benefit of learning from a pre-designed nature and interaction with others. Eventually we will have caught up enough to join god (join, not merge), and thus not need to reincarnate any more. But god would not want unintelligent, unevolved people to be able to join it.
You probably DO have the choice to stop reincarnating, but it would be a silly mistake, as you'd have to develop all on your own...
I guess the fundamental difference in philosophy here is that I believe we are all integral parts OF God, not separate entities. That we have chosen to experience separation in order to learn the opposite of that as our reality. I also believe, that as a part of God, I can not learn faster than God because I am God... I can not learn faster than myself. However, as myself, experiencing this illusion that I am a separate entity from God, will I retain the knowledge that I have gained when I incarnate again?
To understand what I mean by Cosmic Unity, look under Agnosticism and Atheism page 3.
Thank you.
--Kerri
Theories like 'Cosmic Unity' or 'we are all one' make no sense to me.
I am an individual. I want to be an individual. I experience the consequences (good/bad) of all of my actions. I can develop my mind, or regress. This is the reality of the universe.
Or maybe it is an illusion, maybe the universe is actually a big chocolate cake with energy animals dancing around it. Maybe all of this is a dream, for one of us.
I sincerely hope no-one is tricking me with an illusion, since
reality is all I have to go by.
Love is a two-way feeling. God would want to love
and be loved. I don't understand why the universe was created if 'we are all god'. I know that many people misinterpret 'enlightenment' - joining your higher-self. 'Enlightenment' involves acquiring
knowledge of EVERYTHING, and the feeling of being loved, I can see how this can be mistaken for being 'one' with everything.
quote:
I can not learn faster than God because I am God... I can not learn faster than myself
If that is true, you can not learn slower than yourself either. You can not engage in more primitive actions than god. In short, doesn't that mean you can do ANYTHING and there shouldn't be any kind of negative consequences? What is the point of spiritual development?
I base my conclusions on the observable reality of the universe, you base your beliefs on the theory that this reality is an illusion.
With love
Meedan
quote:
Originally posted by Lighthouse
I guess the fundamental difference in philosophy here is that I believe we are all integral parts OF God, not separate entities.
To understand what I mean by Cosmic Unity, look under Agnosticism and Atheism page 3.
Thank you.
--Kerri
quote:
Originally posted by Meedan
Love is a two-way feeling. God would want to love and be loved.
Of course! Which is why it is so important that we love ourselves and each other... treat others with respect. If one feels threatened by the ideas expressed by another, they are seeing something in those ideas that they feels weakens their own position... makes them look foolish or weak.
quote:
-lighthouse
I can not learn faster than God because I am God... I can not learn faster than myself
quote:
-Meedan
If that is true, you can not learn slower than yourself either. You can not engage in more primitive actions than god.
No, but we all have free will and can choose to learn things more slowly than necessary. For example if my neighbor has something to tell me, the fastest way for me to get to my neighbors house it to walk out my door, across the street and to her front door. If, however, I choose to use my free will and go to 7 different places first, then go to my neighbors door, I am then using my free will to delay obtaining the knowledge that she has to share with me. In this way, I can learn at a rate which is slower than my intellectual capacity.
--Kerri
I have been wondering about your opinions on this... when we die and reincarnate, do we start off where we left developmentally or do we regress a bit. I know that nobody can answer this difinitively, however, I have made great strides and plan on continuing to do so until my last day of this lifetime. I suppose we would choose the parents that would teach us the lessons we need to learn in order to continue on our paths. Or it may be sort of a 2 steps forward one step back kind of thing.
I believe in the story of the Dali Lama, as a very young child, he actually remembered things from his previous lifetime. I do not expect to be at the level of the Dali Lama when I die, however, I would like to think that all the work I have done is not in vein. I know this is rediculous as I write this... Why would I choose to be born into circumstances where I go backwards developmentally but I would still like your input.
Thanks
--Kerri