Reincarnation - The Gospel Truth

by Andrew Rutajit

When we die, what is it that is gone that was once here?

Call me crazy, but just can't be an atheist...my answer is our spirit…our soul. I think things are a bit over simplified today, however. No one knows what happens when we die, and this black hole in knowledge is often used as a tool by the Church. The concept of sending our souls to a place called Hell (where our darkest nightmares come to fruition for eternity) is an ideal way to train a child to believe in (and fear) God; this concept of hell can also come in handy when converting a guilt ridden "non-believer". While the concept of heaven - the most wonderful place in the universe - strengthens the entire format of the Christian religion with a wonderful reward in the afterlife to all believers. Heaven is the great macrocosm to the yearly "He knows if you've been bad or good" rewards at Christmastime. But these are very simplistic explanations for what may actually be happening on the other side of Life. Reincarnation is widely accepted throughout the major religions on this planet today and throughout the history of religions; Christianity included.

The best way to discuss reincarnation, is to set religion to the side for a moment and step into the realm of science to see what is happening (chemically) when we are born and when we die. By doing this, we can then apply and compare this scientific data to what these major religions tell us about reincarnation. Dr. Rick Strassman, M.D. published a very interesting book that sheds some much needed light on this subject. In his book "DMT – The Spirit Molecule – A Doctor’s Revolutionary Research into the Biology of Near-Death and Mystical Experiences", Dr. Strassman describes, in detail, the chemical link to our spirit.

A summery follows:

Forty-nine days after conception, magic happens. It is on this 49th day when we sexually diversify (becoming either male or female). The embryo technically becomes a "fetus" on this 49th day; forty-nine days after conception, the first signs of the human pineal gland appear (this Pineal gland is our third eye Chakra). The brain is then saturated with the chemicals melatonin, Pinoline, and 5-meo-DMT (5-Methoxy-N,N-Dimethyltryptamine). This DMT can be found in nature and is extremely psychedelic when ingested via smoke or brew; it is more potent than any other psychedelic substance known to man (including LSD), and our brains are literally saturated with it (naturally) when we are babies. It has been suggested that DMT is secreted by our Pineal gland soon after our conception and just at the moment of our death; this is literally the moment when our spirit enters and leaves our body. Could this 49th day be the time when our spirit enters into this host, deciding what sex it will be as the fingers and toes begin to develop, the eyelids begin to form and close, etc? This idea is supported firmly when compared to major religions and what they teach about reincarnation.

The Tibetan Book of the Dead teaches us that the spirit of the recently dead takes forty-nine days to reincarnate. When a loved one dies, the close survivors would read from the Book of the Dead for forty-nine days as the spirit of their loved one travels thru what they call the bardo or the intermediary phase between this life and our next life. According to their belief, forty-nine days after death, magic happens...the birth of our newly reincarnated body occurs.

A Catholic may relate this forty-nine day period to purgatory. Purgatory is, according to Catholic belief, a state in which the souls of those who have died must make amends for their sins. That is what is happening when one passes through the bardo (karma plays a major roll here). Heaven and Hell are only single words to describe a world of experiences that occur during and after reincarnation.

December 25th marks the birth of the deity (for reasons discussed in a another essay); consequently, we must count back 9 months from this date to find the date of the Immaculate Conception. Nine months before December 25th is March 25th. This is the time of year when Christians everywhere celebrate Easter, Pagans are celebrating Ostara, and the spring equinox occurs, marking the birth of all things. Easter is a bit tricky; Christians have trouble accepting that Easter is a pagan holiday but the date that Easter falls on has pagan "DNA" spewed all over it. To find Easter's date without a calendar, you first wait for the Spring Equinox, next you wait for a full moon, then you wait till SUNday and celebrate Easter on that sunrise. These Easter sunrise celebrations happen on different dates each year, but the bottom line is that Easter a springtime celebration that falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon of Spring. But, I digress...Easter (in part) is the celebration of the body (Jesus) defeating what we know as death...by definition, this is reincarnation. Not in the traditional sense of taking on a different body, but in the literal sense of living after dying.

Forty-nine days after Easter, magic happens. Pentecost is 49-days after Easter and Pentecost is the day when the elders in the temple were surprised by a gusting wind when suddenly tongues of fire came down and rested upon their heads. In other words, their crown chakra was illuminated, the pineal gland was functioning, and the spirit came down onto man. This is obviously symbolic for forty-nine days after the literal conception, when the spirit literally descends down onto us and gives us our soul; not to mention the forty-nine day period that the Buddhists say that we endure after we die. The Catholic Church celebrates the "Immaculate Conception" on 8 December, exactly nine months before the official birthday of Mary. However, the Incarnation of Christ is celebrated on 25 March, nine months before Christmas Day. That is why the death and conception of Jesus can happen at the same time, you are conceived just as you die and forty-nine days later, "you" enter that embryo making it a fetus. This is why the shaman will promote the shamanic death experience during Life; the theory is, one must practice for death before dying. The shamanic death and rebirth experience is believed by many to be an integral part of the reincarnation process. After all, one cannot conquer death without practicing for such an event.

Practicing for the death experience is a primary reason for the shamanic use of hallucinogenic plants in such high doses. This would reduce fear and anxiety during actual death and could play a role in reincarnation. I like this theory becayse I believe that at the moment of your death, if you resist or turn back toward your body and long to remain human, you will reincarnate (read my essay about materialism for reasons). This is very similar to the story in the bible of the destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah...

A man named "Lot", as well as his wife and daughters were spared from the destruction of a city. This can be interpreted as the spirit leaving the body at the death experience as the spirit is spared from the destruction of our bodies. Lot and his family represent our spirit that lives inside of our body yet survives its death and destruction. Before they left the city, the Lot Family were instructed to rush to a city that would not be destroyed; they would be safe there. They were also told that once they leave, they were to not look back to their old city. Lot’s wife did turn and look back and she was instantly turned into a pillar of salt.

When our city (our body) is being destroyed, we must not look back and worry about our possessions, or our unfinished business...when our ride is over, we must move on and find a new city.