Payback time - Experiencing past life through meditation

I always wondered if it is possible to experience past life during meditation.  This is a question that have been asked by many.  Below is an interesting true experience of one of my clients who happened to experience past life while she attended a meditation workshop.

It has been a long time since I have shared an interesting session.  I have had very little time during the last year for conducting the PLRT sessions.  There have been couple of interesting ones which unfolded and I will share them some time in the future as I await for client feedback and approval to post the details on this blog.

Many years back, I read a book by Swami Vivekananda and he had mentioned that he was able to recollect his past lives.  He had also mentioned that all of us are capable of recollecting our past lives, once we are able to meditate.  It is said about Gautam Buddha, that, he was able to visualize all his earlier births before he attained enlightenment.  For me, it was impossible to even comprehend that we humans are capable of recollecting our past lives until I read Dr. Brian's book 'Many Lives Many Masters' and interacted with few of the past life regression therapists (PLRT).  It was only after I became a PLR Therapist and came across a couple who recollected a life time where they were together and mentioned the same details during their sessions, that it was clear to me beyond doubt that past lives exist.  

The question which is frequently asked is 'Why do I need to know my past life?  Why can't I just focus on my present and future, while I let go of the past'.  A very valid question.  In my humble opinion, it is great if we can focus on the present and the future, but honestly many of us (including myself) are not able to let go of our past.  We are always guided by our past experiences and this creates the hurdle for moving forward.  We end up repeating the reactions/ mistakes unaware of the repetitive nature of our reactions.  But once we are conscious of the mistake / reaction and understand that we need not repeat it, only then the outcome is going to be different.  The experiences give rise to emotions, our reaction to the emotion is guided by the past and unless we change our reaction, the outcome cannot be different.  The key change which one needs to bring about is the reaction to the emotion which alone can bring about a different outcome.  Recollecting the past makes us aware of the emotions and our reactions, and this is the lesson for us from the past life.  Once we have learnt the lessons, the lesson is done, and we are ready to move ahead to a new learn a new chapter.

I have been trying different meditation techniques with many being guided meditations that are available online and also joined few online classes, but was not able to experience any past life.  This may be due to lack of dedication and sincerity from my end.  The only past life I experienced was during the PLRT workshop where I learnt PLRT from Venu.

About 9 years ago, I had heard of Vipassana meditation from a colleague at Unilever.  It is a 10 day residential Buddhist meditation program as taught by late Mr. S N Goenka.  I wanted to explore this technique but the busy life did not permit.  Finally, in December 2022, I was blessed to attend the course in Bengaluru.  The website is "www.dhama.org". They have many centres across the globe and the course is completely free with food and accommodation.  One needs to book 2-3 months in advance.  It runs on donations and one is free to contribute whatever they can.  During the 10 days, one is fully focused on mediation from 4.30 am in the morning to 9.00 pm in the night, with few breaks in between.  In the evening they play out videos of Mr. S N Goenka, who explains about the Vipassana technique.  Mr. S N Goenka's Vipassana meditation was used by IPS Kiran Bedi to reform the inmates of the notorious Tihar Jail in India. This is one big story of jail inmates reform in India and you can read more about it on the internet.  During the course, the participants are not allowed to speak to each other or their family members.  Mobile phones and other electronic gadgets are strictly not allowed.  The course is quite intense and can work wonders if one is serious.

Personally, for me, the 7th, 8th and 9th days were extremely relaxing and refreshing.  I was suffering from a gum infection a week before the start of the course.  After a course of antibiotics, I was fit just in time for the course.  But, on the 4th day of the course, the gum infection came back with vengeance, and I had no medicines except a pain killer.  The pain killer provided me a temporary relief, but the pain returned again on the 5th night and the swelling of the gums could be felt again.  As I moved ahead with the meditation on the 8th the swelling disappeared and so did the pain.  It has never come back during the last 6 months and I have taken no medicines for this.  I could feel a sense of healing of my body.  There was a sense of calm and peace in me.  I could not however, visit any of my past lives, but just loved the time I had spent with myself.  I shared my experience with few of my clients.  One of them was Nandita (name changed to maintain confidentiality).

Nandita, who was amongst my first few clients, used to have frequent attacks of breathlessness (similar to asthma), I am not familiar with the medical terminology.    During the PLRT session, she had visited a past life, in which she was called Nandini.  She had lived her lifetime in a port town called Thoothukudi (A small town in the South of India).  Nandini had a very abusive and violent husband.  The couple were childless.  Since, he wanted to live with another woman, the husband wanted to get rid of Nandini.  He had mixed rat poison in her food and she had choked to death after consuming that food.  This was the same choking/ breathless feeling Nandita experiences when she gets the attack in this life.  Nandini was supposed to me married to her childhood friend but was forcefully married off by one of her relatives as a conspiracy to a womanizer.  The childhood friend is her husband in this life.  After her PLRT sessions, the attacks had become very rare and she was happy with the healing.

Influenced by my Vipassana experience, Nandita attended the 10 day course in April 2023.  On the 10th day the participants are given back their mobile and other electronic gadgets which they would have deposited before the start of the course.  They are then allowed to use their mobile.  On the 10th day, about 4.30 in the evening, I received a call from Nandita.  She had informed me about her plan to do the course and I was looking forward to hear her experience.  She said she was calling me after speaking to her husband.  The first question she asked me was, "Can we experience past life during meditation?"

I was surprised by the question and asked her what happened and why this question.  She said that during meditation, she felt she had a past life experience but was not sure if it was actually one.  She then went on to narrate the below.

During the last year Nandita (though based in Bengaluru) had been buying some dresses online from a lady (Deepali) based in North India.  Though Nandita and Deepali had only exchanged whatsapp messages and had never spoken to each other, Nandita felt a sisterly connection with Deepali.  She felt nice buying the dresses from her.  Her husband wondered, why Nandita did not buy dresses locally.  Nandita experienced occasional pain on the left side of her head and shoulders.  During the 7th or 8th day of the course, Nandita experienced the same pain.  However, this time it was severe.  During the meditation, one is not allowed to move or open their eyes.  The severe pain brought tears in Nandita's eyes, but she continued to try focus on her meditation.  She saw image of a small hut.  She tried to bring her focus back on meditation but after some time the image of the hut came back.  This time she allowed herself to go with the flow.

Inside the hut, Nandita saw herself as Nandini (same past life she has visited during the PLRT session with me), sitting and worshipping.  Her husband barged into the hut and got furious that she had not yet cooked food for him.  Enraged, he picked up a grinding stone and threw it at Nandini.  During the olden days, the grinding stone was a common household item.  It was used to crush the turmeric, chilies and other spices.  The stone was quite big and had hurt Nandini's head, shoulder and arm.  She screamed in pain and blood was all over the side of her face, shoulder and arm.  She felt some bones had also broken.  She was experiencing the same pain which she had experienced as Nandita at the time of meditation.  Hearing Nandini's scream, the neighbours rushed in.  One of them was Deepavali.  Deepavali scolded Nandini's husband as to how he could just do this because the food was not ready.  The husband rushed out of the house to avoid the neighbours.  Deepavali send her brother across to get the local vaidya (local term for 'doctor').  The doctor crushed few herbs /leaves, gave Nandini the juices to drink.  He also applied the crushed leaves on the injury and tied some sticks, as a few bones had been broken and ordered complete rest for couple of months.  Deepavali saw the worried look on Nandini's face and told her not to worry about cooking and that she would cook for Nandini and her husband too.  Nandini used to call her 'Valli akka'.  'Akka' is the term used to address elder sister.  Till Nandini was fit, Valli supplied the family with food and it was only after few years from then, that Nandini's husband had poisoned her.  Deepavali would bring food everyday till Nandini was sick.  Nandini told Deepavali that she felt gratitude for Deepavali's help and said that she felt sad that she could not do anything for her in return.  To this, Deepavali replied, that she can do it later when time comes.  Deepavali is the same lady, Deepali, in the present life, from who Nandita buys dresses.

Deepavali's brother informed Nandini's relatives about Nandini being hit by her husband, but they were indifferent and said that the husband and wife would resolve the matter amongst themselves.  He then went to the childhood friend of Nandini and informed him about the incident.  Nandini's childhood friend confronted her husband and they both exchanged blows in which the friend's clothes were torn and his chest was visible.  There was a dark scar below the chest of her childhood friend (who is Nandita's husband in the present life).  The friend had warned her husband and let him go after a bashing with a warning.  As she was informed of the incident, Nandini wondered how different life would have been if she was married to her childhood friend instead of the womanizer husband of hers.

Nandita had called her husband when she got back her mobile after the meditation and he had confirmed that there is a light scar below his chest.  It was the same area where the childhood friend had the scar.  Just to remind you, the childhood friend of the past life is Nandita's husband in the present life.

After this past life experience, Nandita told me that she could now connect the dots.  Nandita said the names were also so similar, Deepali and Deepavali.  Before the meditation course, Nandita had exchanged many whatsapp messages with Deepali for buying the dresses and wondered why she was feeling some kind of connection with her, though the two had never met or spoken to each other.  It was as if they were sisters.  Nandita always felt she should help Deepali in her business by buying dresses though she had never known her before.  Nandita now understood the reason for this feeling - this was her way to pay back her 'Vali akka'.

Nandita, called me again few weeks after her return from the meditation and said she had spoken to Deepali and they both had a very warm conversation though they were speaking to each other for the first time.  Nandita shared her past life experience with Deepali.  Deepali is from UP, in North India.  She has never been to South India but is keen to travel to South India and Tamil Nadu in particular.  She also has a liking for the South Indian dishes like idly, dosa and pongal, which is very surprising to her family members.  They do not prepare these dishes at home.  After hearing the past life of Nandita, Deepali was able to understand where here fondness for South India and South Indian food comes from.  

My client had experienced a past life while mediating and this has given me also the confirmation to continue with the meditation technique.  The science is simple in PLRT, we relax the client's body first and then the mind through breathing instructions and this is what is done at the time of meditation, so Nandita's experience is not a surprise.  I am also looking forward to experiencing it some day while meditating without any outside help.

Please feel free to post your comments and questions, and I will try my best to answer them, with my limited knowledge.  Your comments motivate and encourage me to share more experiences with you.  The comments you post would appear after a day or two, as I have set up a spam check.  Thank you.