Description
Book Synopsis
Children who claim to remember a previous life have been found in many parts of the world, particularly in the Buddhist and Hindu countries of South Asia, among the Shiite peoples of Lebanon and Turkey, the tribes of West Africa, and the American northwest. Stevenson has collected over 2,600 reported cases of past-life memories of which 65 detailed reports have been published. Specific information from the children's memories has been collected and matched with the data of their claimed former identity, family, residence, and manner of death. Birthmarks or other physiological manifestations have been found to relate to experiences of the remembered past life, particularly violent death. Writing as a specialist in psychiatry and as a world-renowned scientific investigator of reported paranormal events, Stevenson asks us to suspend our Western tendencies to disbelieve in reincarnation and consider the reality of the burgeoning record of cases now available. This book summarizes S
Table of Contents
Preface Introduction Bodily Changes Corresponding to Mental Images in the Person Affected Bodily Changes Corresponding to Another Person's Mental Images Birthmarks Related to Previous Lives without Verification of Possible Corresponding Wounds Birthmarks Corresponding to Wounds Verified by Informants' Memories Birthmarks Corresponding to Wounds Verified by Medical Records Birthmarks Corresponding to Surgical Wounds and Other Skin Lesions on Deceased Persons Birthmarks Corresponding to Other Types of Wounds or Marks on Deceased Persons Nevi Corresponding to Wounds or Other Marks on Deceased Persons The Prediction of Birthmarks Changes in the Appearance and Relative Location of Birthmarks Correspondences of Details between Birthmarks and Related Wounds or Other Marks on Deceased Persons Discrepancies between Birthmarks and the Evidence of Reportedly Corresponding Wounds Some Correlates of Birthmarks Attributed to Previous Lives The Interpretations of Birthmarks Related to Previous Lives Introduction to Cases with Birth Defects Birth Defects of the Extremities Birth Defects of the Head and Neck Birth Defects Involving Two or More Regions of the Body Experimental Birth Defects Internal Diseases Related to Previous Lives Abnormalities of Pigmentation that May Derive from Previous Lives Physiques, Postures, Gestures, and Other Involuntary Movements Related to Previous Lives The Face as a Type of Birthmark or Birth Defect Twins with Memories of Previous Lives General Discussion Sources of Additional Information Index
