What are the advantages and disadvantages of reincarnation?

Question

Is reincarnation evil or good?

What are your thoughts on this?

What do your holy teachers and holy books say about this?

(Of course, this is another interfaith question. Thanks!)

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/researching-pastlives

At least materially reincarnation is an inconvenience. We have to suffer the discomforts and possibly pains of death. There is not telling if or how much we might suffer after death. Then, when we have to take birth again, we may encounter so much suffering in the womb, so much suffering getting out of the womb, so much suffering being a helpless child and so on.

Our present body is a very real illusion. So, when we reincarnate, we are just entering into another very real illusion. When will we be our true eternal selves?

Answer 1

I believe in reincarnation.

Advantages: You gain as much experience as possible. You have many opportunities. You get to meet tons of other souls and learn to interact with them. You continue until you are the best you can be, instead of just stopping after one life before you got to your full potential. If you screwed up, you can try again, whereas in some religions, if you screwed up, "you are screwed." You will be extremely wise and knowledgeable, righteous, and godly before you actually encounter the Divine yourself. You will be better prepared for that encounter due to the wisdom and experience you've gained.

Disadvantages: It takes work and time. You may get tired of the journey, but in order to reach the end, you still have to continue on. It might be hard dealing with changing attachments to various souls- for instance, will you meet back up with your family again in the next life? Or will you be born with another family so as to learn even more and avoid repetition. More challenging, more learning and growing than just having one shot and calling it quits afterwards. (However, I think all of these "disadvantages" are a good thing and help you grow- builds character so-to-speak).

Answer 2

I think it was in the 1700's that reincarnation was outlawed by the Christian faith. - it took place in Constantinople.

The Church used their doctrine to control their parishoners. I believe in reincarnation - it makes more sense. To come back to Earth, to learn the lessons you did not previously, or to suffer what you did to others. In the Bible it says the sins of the fathers will be visited upon the children. Interpret this, as you create your own sins and so you will suffer. My belief is that Earth is the intermediatary school. You keep coming back until you have learnt your lessons. Go back over the civilisations, and man never seems to learn, hence my theory. Now? Evil is running rampant on a more wide-spread scale only caused by technology. However, the sins of today, were there yesterday, but more confined and restricted due to lack of technology. I hope I don't get reincarnated to somewhere like Palestine, Da Fore (can't spell it) -next time. As you go through life, you will absorb and think things through. Experience will give you the answer to your question.

Answer 3

if the "good" and "real" Christians do not believe in reincarntaion.... how do you justify worshiping a man that rose from the dead, and brought people back from the dead?

Reincarnation is a belief of many Pagan coltures, especially among the Neo-Pagan modern religions.

the belief is that we are on a spiritual journey to learn all that we can.

it is not a game to try to "get it right" even thoes that have gotten it right have been back many times.

the bodies that the sould inhabit do not always remember the past lives,,,because if they could it would create many peoblems,
and would not be a good way to learn.

ever run into a 80 year old man that thinks that he has seen and knows it all...hell i run into teenagers like that. (i was one of them)

well if we remembered all of our past lives, then a soul that had lived 100 times before would become concrete in his knowlege.

basically the "you cant tell me anything i was there" attitude.

so we are re-born without mamories of past lives so that we can experience life from a new perspective every time.

and here again, i do not believe that this is the case for us all.
i am Pagan i know that i have been here bofore and will be here again.

however i still believe that Christians get their heaven when they die.

now this would bring the question, "why would i choose this, multiple lives over an instant path to heaven?"

well i just guess that you would have to be pagan to understand this one.,

Answer 4

I think that people who don't believe in reincarnation are miserable in their current lives so the idea of coming back is an awful idea.
Reincarnation is the only thing that makes sense to me. I don't believe that the soul can die. I have done a couple of past life regressions and what I saw in those life times explained a great deal to me about my current life and the challenges I have had.
There is a lot of information out there to support reincarnation, my most favorite book is "Many lives many masters".

Answer 5

Thats like asking what are the advantages and disadvantages of life. How do you answer a question like that? And what does reincarnation have to do with good or evil?

Answer 6

I don't know what other holy books say but the bible has several references to other lives. No matter, the bible was written by men anyway. I believe that we can live multiple lives if we want. There have been many testimonies of people, especially children, who have known something or someone that died way before they were born. I have read that when we come back we do so with a specific purpose in mind. We come back for the advancement of knowledge to our souls. I like the idea a lot. It makes sense to me.

Answer 7

Life after life or life after death or reincarnation of souls is a well believed faith .We cannot understand it unless we solve the problem"Who I am?" Actually we are diff rent souls in diff rent bodies and go on taking new bodies after the death of old bodies.For want of space I cannot explain it properly,so I suggest to go through WWW.BRAHMAKUMARIS:COM or take a free course of 7hours in7days in any of the 7000 centres near you.

Answer 8

sounds like you'd already know the answer. there is no advantage or disavantage of reincarnation. it's just the way of life. when during the time on earth, we try to better ourselves spiritually and mentally. and the output toward mankind is pure and full of compassion. in the mean time of rid ourselves of evil. then we will be enlighten.

Answer 9

If reincarnation were true, then many people would live their lives living sinfully---AND knowing that they were living sinfully--because they would justify it with "Hey, I'll get it right the next life." Also, murder and especially abortion would be okay because you would just "be sending the person to their next life" and not really ending the one chance at life that person was given. Also, people would look for people who were once famous in their contempories--for example, we might today attempt to locate Adolf Hitler--perhaps this new person would be killed for the crimes of his "former life." Also, if you believe that you can be reincarnated in any form of animal or plant life, our cities would become overrun by rodents and insects--since nobody would want to kill them not knowing "who" they are.

I think there is plethora of reasons why the Devil would want us to believe in reincarnation, not the least of which is that reincarnation means there is no Hell or eternal consequences to the choices we make on Earth.

Thanks for reading. God Bless!

Answer 10

It can't be to make up for previous mistakes because our memories die with us, so essentially we are born again and again and again (if we are in fact reincarnated). You would have to ask someone who is able to recall living a previous life.