On one of the hypnosis discussion lists I belong to, someone recently posted a query as to what folks views about past life regression hypnosis are. As you know this has been something that’s been discussed quite a bit on various forums of late and I’ve been posting my views here as well.
Of course, the first thing I want to know from someone who posts the question asking folks their views is . . . What are yours? It’s always polite to start such a discussion with some relevant background and insight into one’s own views so others can answer within a context. Otherwise, it seems like a bit of a setup or troll bait. However, as this is a topic of interest to me . . . I once again refresh folks of my experience and views.
There has been quite a bit of discussion of late on this subject at the hypnosis technique exchange list and I’ve posted a few longish posts there so I won’t repeat my views in toto here. I teach workshops on the subject every once in awhile (critical thinking approaches to metaphysical hypnosis and the like), including a comprehensive course this coming February in Taipei.
Personally, I believe in past lives. Reincarnation is part of my personal faith.
However, I would strongly caution anyone from blindly taking what happens in a trance session as proof of reincarnation, even that the particular imagined life is indeed a genuine past life or even that particular client’s pastlife.
It is very important to keep an open mind when doing any sort of hypnosis, but pastlife regression inherently holds some dangers of jumping the gun on the facts, leading rather than guiding, and of coming to erroneous conclusions about what’s phantasy, what’s confabulation, what’s straightforward metaphor, and what may or may not be genuine evidence or reincarnation. This danger of inadvertent or accidental leading is inherently something one should watch out for in all sessions, but most especially in programmed or intentional pastlife regression where the very nature of the directed process implies that the client should find a pastlife which in and of itself is a form of gentle leading.
Here are some essays on critical set pastlife regression that address a number of these issues which you may or may not find interesting:
- Hypnotic Progression, Future Life Progression, and Parallel Life Connection
- Hypnotic Reflections: Past Life Regression as an Agenda
- Past Life Regression
- Past Life Regression (suggested lives?)
- Recorded Past Lives (recoded lives)
I hope this has been helpful to you . . . now that a number of folks have given you their views, perhaps you would be good enough to give your own.
All the best,
Brian
Brian David Phillips, PhD, CH [phillips@nccu.edu.tw]
Certified Hypnotherapist
President, Society of Experiential Trance
Associate Professor, NCCU, Taipei, Taiwan
http://www.briandavidphillips.com
https://briandavidphillips.net/
http://briandavidphillips.libsyn.com
Note: The illustration with this post is of my ancestor Quanah Parker and two of his six wives.
