Science studies rebirth, Beatles get spiritual

The Beatles; Host dimwitted dotard George Noory, guests Mark Anthony and Joanne DiMaggio, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024; Pfc. Sandoval, Seth Auberon, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Ah, I remember now! How could I have ever forgotten those experiences and relationships?!

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History of Reincarnation/The Beatles

"Psychic Lawyer" Mark Anthony

Mark Anthony, the "Psychic Lawyer" (afterlifefrequency.com), is a medium who specializes in communication with spirits.

He discusses the history of the belief in reincarnation (rebirth), which all religious traditions seem to have believed in at one time -- including early Christianity which mostly removed it from official texts.

Reliving Past Lives: Evidence

Stories of past life regression (by hypnosis and other methods of recall, including spontaneous conscious remembering) are one source of evidence.

But evidence for rebirth is not limited to self-report. If it were, no one would take it seriously because our Western religious traditions have taught us that there is no such thing or else we would have all been reborn as avocados (or some similar nonsense).

Better than subjective reincarnation testimonies are pieces of verifiable pieces of physical evidence that can be investigated objectively. There are also near-death experiences, as well as psychic readings.

• For a comprehensive review of the science up to that time, see the work of Dr. Helen Wambach, Ph.D. in Reliving Past Lives with statistics and a large research sample. If nothing else, this noteworthy book will convince readers this topic can be studied scientifically and in ways no one had thought of before. While she does utilize hypnosis, she does NOT depend on faulty self-report evidence. Instead, she consolidates large data sets, looking for verifiable historical truths of which no individual would have been aware.

Psychologist Dr. Wambach, PhD

Attorney Anthony is not only a practicing lawyer but a practicing psychic reader who communicates with spirits, who frequently assert the reality of past lives.

Anthony speaks of an "electromagnetic soul" as a coherent quantum field that does not dissipate at physical death but transfers from one form to another.

• This is in line with Buddhist teachings though people may not think so. What is actually happening is that an impersonal, disappointing, and impermanent process is continuing but not any of the elements of it. While this is ultimately true, it is not the way it is experienced. We really do seem to go on. In fact, everything we were is falling away at every moment. Imagine the fall of dominoes. Where is "the fall"? It is dynamic becoming, not being, because it is always moving. But is "it" this domino, or that domino, or some future domino, or some past domino, or is "the fall" all the dominoes, or none of the dominoes? Thes questions make little sense when we see what's really going on. Ultimately speaking, there is no permanent self but there is rebirth, there is an empty (impersonal) process carrying on. Death does not stop it.

Who's Edgar Cayce?

Anthony talks about how many religions from India embrace rebirth/reincarnation as a fundamental fact -- that can be verified by anyone and is seen by seers (rishis). The Dalai Lama (who follows a form of Buddhism called Vajrayana that is very much blended with Hinduism) has said reincarnation is not just a Hindu or Buddhist concept.

Rather, it is part of the history of our human origins. Early Christianity threw out references to reincarnation made by Jesus and others, reforming the Bible to align with imperial Roman (Emperor Constantine and a similar Byzantine council that came later) needs to control the population.

Edgar Cayce's 12 Lessons in Personal Spirituality

Fortunately, certain passages like the Transfiguration and the explanation of sin as the cause of a blind man's blindness since birth (as realized by Bible enthusiast and Southern Christian "American sleeping prophet" Edgar Cayce, who also found other instances of imperfect deletions edited out at various councils), have leftover elements of the previous widespread teaching of rebirth in Christianity and Judaism, in addition to their mystical quality.

Currently, 51% of the world's population believes in reincarnation, including 33% of Americans, he cites.

In this interview, Anthony delves into various ways to recall past lives, which include PLR (Past Life Regression) therapy, NDE (near-death experiences), study, research, ego-death producing entheogenic/psychedelic drugs (DMT, Bufo, LSD or "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," MDMA, psilocybin, ketamine, etc.) waking techniques (similar to talking therapy), art, and notes that young children often spontaneously recall specific details of a previous life.

• The safest way to recall past lives is through meditation, beginning with calm to purify the mind (mastering the first four absorptions or jhanas and then developing insight through practice of Dependent Origination. Most might think this is a theory, but in fact it is a practice. By seeking the cause of present suffering in a systematic way, as the Ascetic Siddhartha did under the Bodhi tree, the mind eventually finds it in past lives. It is not a belief, not a theory, not a teaching heard by others but rather a personal experience of verifiable memories. The only problem that may arise is the question, How many past lives have there been? There have been so many that one may have trouble integrating them if one clings to the notion that one is all of them, that a permanent "soul" has gone through all of these impermanent experiences, bodies, realms, and lives. The fact is, it is an impersonal process. Clinging even to this life is not wise. Continued practice to see the true nature of all experience (i.e., the Three Universal Marks of Existence and the 31 Planes of Existence) is the wise way to proceed. Finding a Buddhist teacher familiar with these things, while difficult, is far better than seeking Western therapy to make sense of it all. Wisdom Quarterly recommends seeing Pa Auk Sayadaw and/or his accomplished students for reliable guidance.

In this last type, the famous case of James Leininger was brought up. The child had vivid memories of being a WWII pilot -- with extensive details about planes, battles, fellow pilots, all of which could be checked, including details about subjects no child would be familiar with. His parents looked into those details and confirmed the reality of what the child persistently spoke and obsessed about.

"Some people have very clear memories of prior lives," he comments, and "some have a sense of deja vu...phobias with no apparent cause."

More evidence for past lives includes prodigies with natural (innate) talents like young Mozart, who was composing songs at 4-years-old.

During the second hour of the show, Anthony gave readings for callers.

• Mark Anthony mentioned various talks and conferences he will be conducting at various venues, all visible on his website, including Edgar Cayce's A.R.E. and their giant upcoming reincarnation conference.
• DO IT YOURSELF, Doubter: Regression Hypnosis Certificate Training (edgarcayce.org)
• AUDIO: History of Reincarnation/Beatles | Coast to Coast

The Beatles made the West more spiritual

The Beatles and their groupie girlfriends return to their guru in India, Maha-rishi Mahesh Yogi

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Then Joanne DiMaggio, who has been actively involved with Edgar Cayce's Association for Research and Enlightenment (A.R.E.) since 1987, talked about the Beatles.

From 1964 to 1972, she was the president of a Beatles Fan Club. In Part II of the show, DiMaggio talks about her experiences at the Fan Club, the influence of the Beatles' music, and how the band may have planted a seed leading her and many others to pursue deeper beliefs.

Oh my f'n God, I love the Fab Four SO much!!

The Beatles opened up the West to new Eastern ideas, she said, sometimes subliminally in their lyrics.

"I had no idea when I had the Beatles club that so much was being actually said about their spiritual beliefs" [musically until I reflected on it later].

Who's the Fifth Beatle? Pete Best, their Jewish producer, their agent, Ravi Shankar, their guru?

Is this what heaven will be like, guru? Full of dove footed virgins as I play lutes, harps, guitars?

All you wanted were groupies, Paul! - No, John, like George, this has been spiritual for me, particularly after I died in that car crash and was replaced. - Oh, right.

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We were just going home to see our Hindu guru.

She recalls the Beatles' pilgrimage to India and how many fans, including herself, didn't understand it at the time.

George Harrison [who has no comparison] had a particular affinity for the country and felt he lived there in a past life, she claims.

This guy's our rishi (spiritual visionary)

After the trip, the Beatles started practicing TM (transcendental meditation), and their music began changing.

That's when "the depth of that profound spiritual evolution that they were going through was revealed," DiMaggio says.

Who's Sargeant Pepper, John? He's a soda pop.

She says their music inspired her to question some of the beliefs of her Catholic upbringing and re-ignited her interest in metaphysical books that she'd had as an adolescent.

Their music also allowed her to enter a kind of altered state without drugs. "It just set me to a whole different level of understanding of how the universe operated," she mused.

• Events & Programs 🕊️ Edgar Cayce’s A.R.E.