Reincarnation

@James
I'm not going to ignore your question.

There is plenty that can be contemplated in the idea of reincarnation. Not everyone has the privilege of financial ability right now to even get a toothbrush for someone on the street. Just to address a couple of common retorts:

"They have the money for the internet!" Which I'll just say is a better use of their finances atm because that can actually help them get a better paying job, and who knows it might be the only thing keeping their depression at bay.

"This is depressing!" not so much. Knowing that there is something after has been a huge comfort for people... Look at the wild success of so many religions that promise something for the afterlife!

ALL OF THAT SAID! lol, I actually agree with you on "if it exists..."

I've seen some pretty intriguing stories (does not mean I'm sold) on the subject. But I think that we focus too heavily on the past life, rather than the future one. Where Hinduism works to achieve Nirvana or a better next life, I think that with the few intriguing stories I mentioned above, a Jedi might be better served with looking at how they can make this life one that the next life will not be hindered by.

I guess I should explain what I'm talking about. So there was this story of a kid that was believed to be the reincarnation of a WWII pilot. The pilot had some unfinished business and even plagued the poor kid with previous memories. Now, we're not going to get into whether or not the case is true- but instead talk about it as if it IS true, so that I can get my point across.

If it was true that this past life was real, then something I can take away from his experience is that what I (as in Alethea Thompson) would want to do in this life, is live it so that my next life (whatever name it takes) can have a fresh start, unhindered by the life I (Alethea Thompson) led during some dream sequence or some problem I (Alethea Thompson) think (at the end of Alethea's life) needs to be resolved before I (Alethea) move on. (Grammarly didn't get me on that last sentence...so it's perfectly structured ...maybe).

One of the things I love about Jediism is that there's no insistence upon the importance of an afterlife. Most of the big traditions treat the afterlife as a carrot, but in the Jedi Path the carrot is a better world, one step at a time. I think that takes the pressure off of trying to become something that is perfect, and rather just work on what you can.

@James
I'm not going to ignore your question.

There is plenty that can be contemplated in the idea of reincarnation. Not everyone has the privilege of financial ability right now to even get a toothbrush for someone on the street. Just to address a couple of common retorts:

"They have the money for the internet!" Which I'll just say is a better use of their finances atm because that can actually help them get a better paying job, and who knows it might be the only thing keeping their depression at bay.

Thanks Al, you can't imagine the restless sleep I had last night thinking I'd be ignored on the internet - I've no interest in discussing the wonders of people's personal finances, it was just a throwaway example of "being nice to someone"

"This is depressing!" not so much. Knowing that there is something after has been a huge comfort for people... Look at the wild success of so many religions that promise something for the afterlife!

Ye...ess...which is something we "deal with" in Jediism by saying the Force is everywhere and eternal, and you are with the force regardless of whether or not you still have a heartbeat - moving into *other* answers or solutions to the "mortality is depressing" problem seems like a move away from the basic premise of the Force?

If we're going to say that reincarnation/afterlife is something that could be a thing, I prefer the Nac Mac Feegle Model - Where you are now is the paradise, and if you die (er....) then you just have to use your other life, to re-earn entry to the paradise you are presently in....

The fearlessness of Nac Mac Feegle warriors in combat is derived from their religious belief that they cannot be killed, because they are already dead; they believe that they are in the afterlife, and that any Feegle who is killed has simply been reincarnated into the world where they have already lived before. They reason that Discworld, with the sunshine, flowers, birds, trees, things to steal and people to fight, must be some sort of heaven, because "a world that good couldn't be open to just anybody". They consider it a kind of Valhalla, where brave warriors go when they are dead. So, they reason, they have already been alive somewhere else, and then died and were allowed to come to the Discworld because they have been so good.

I had to ask my husband about this species- that’s interesting. He mentioned the series actually has some hints that it might actually be true in their case.

To me, that’s cool and all, but if all they do is party and engage in battle then I’d say it’s just not a life I could engage in. I prefer working on building a better world for the lives I can touch. This species can have fun in self-indulgment, I’ll be somewhere out in the field trying to repair the broken pieces- because that’s what is what I believe the Jedi should be doing.

Dunno. I have a belief in the afterlife so I can entertain reincarnation.
I tend though to feel the minds power exceeds that needed to make up detail sufficient to be as if it were real..... which makes vetting a requirement before believing it for me. It is a powerful tool of belief for a bit if mental alchemy, a psycho-surgery if you will

I heard a story from a old rabbi that originally there was a set amount of souls that God had created and one day all the souls where used up so an angel had an ingenious idea to split a soul in two . Eventually with the rise in population the number of people living grew to where they had to do it seven times to every soul and that's why there are seven people around the world that looks like you . I think this fits in to this reincarnation subject . Personally I don't hold much truth in this wisetail but food for thought I guess .

My body won’t live forever, it can’t. It’s not made that way. No one can. Life expectancy’s are declining by the day. More and more things are keeping us at a very aware sense of our short span of time here.

Teaching 15

15. Jedi believe in eternal life through the Force. We do not become obsessed in mourning those who pass. We may grieve at their passing but we are content, knowing that they will forever be a part of the Force and so always a part of us.

We do this- but in what way - the practice is strictly a gift to each of us. If you remember - the Force can be our choice. So-in real talk , how we -(some of us) -live forever -can very well be in our own chosen faith or belief. If we choose to live on in our example of our belief and how our faith has helped us grow and change- in the actual world- when gone, we will seem like lights in the sky To others. Many people become the light or a reflection of the light they seek. Many people begin to become “like” or “in the spirit of”.

How will I live on

This is how “I “ will live after I’m gone.
Every word posted here, is here forever. Every word of encouragement, argument, everything it’s on the temple; I will dwell in the archives. I’ve gone into the archives, and have visited old teachers past and learned from them. They, in turn, have lived beyond their time. As will I. As will many after and with me. I am not the only one. (So are you). What I teach, how I teach it, who It reaches will be one of many things I leave behind.
You will find me in the trees I planted and the stuff that grows. You will find me in the library at home. You will find me in the books and information I keep and in the movies I watch. You will find me in the things we share long after I’m gone. Will I live forever - nope- can I live or dwell always - in the Force and in the hearts of many and some in their boots! Lol either way when I’m gone you will know - I was trying to make a few things last a bit - longer.
My hope is every step I leave there’s a drop of grace - mercy - hope - every hand I touch and hold will be a moment shared every back I scratch won’t go un noticed. My hope is every where I go - I can add. Add something - anything better - some times it’s NOT adding that makes things better but that’s how I plan to live forever in the Force - by my actions.
Some day you may see some one and say - that’s just almost like ... ( insert my name) yea - the Force works like that some times. Very “Yoda-esque” some times just familiar - all the time me. One of the Joys of the hero’s journey - same story told in different ways - Force be with us all.

To me, that’s cool and all, but if all they do is party and engage in battle then I’d say it’s just not a life I could engage in. I prefer working on building a better world for the lives I can touch. This species can have fun in self-indulgment, I’ll be somewhere out in the field trying to repair the broken pieces- because that’s what is what I believe the Jedi should be doing.

I always thought the point was less "Hey, you're already dead, see how much coke you can do" but rather "It's a better, healthier mindset to imagine where you are now as the perfect place to be enjoyed and lived in fully rather than always dreaming and striving for the next place to be better."

I entertain the idea of reincarnation. I have like Alethea read some eye brow raising stories but never lived it myself so IDK. However, I am content with 2 types, a "circle of life" idea of reincarnation, and ripple action effect.

A while ago many of us remember a good Jedi that passed. I occasionally revisit his words, does he not reincarnate each time I visit those. Does each ripple of action he made consequences that are continuation/revival of his life?

If my wishes in my will are followed (I'll be dead so meh) my body will be allowed to decompose naturally and used for forensic training. The multitude of life that is forwarded through the energy left via my corpse is a form of reincarnation that through a passage of time will eventually lead back to humans.

This is enough for me. However, a little looking at whether it is possible for full fledged reincarnation can be a good exercise into ones understanding of the physical and spiritual reality.

Much Love,
Kobos

Dakini wrote: Isn't reincarnation separate from legacy?

While I do honor the literary perspective of a person's continuing to live through the work s/he left behind, I would say yes, it certainly is. Legacy referes to our gift; reincarnation refers to us, directly.

If there is reincarnation, that which I will become is not like that which I am. No memories (which are physically present in the brain and may be damaged if the brain is damaged) or even personality traits (these being determined by a combination of genetics and learning from environment) would carry over from me (now) to me (later). In what sense is this "me"? Even if that which makes up my consciousness is transferred from me (n) to me (l) in what sense is it me rather than a recycled thing which is currently part of me?
The Force is, in my view, eternal, boundless, timeless, limitless, and indivisible -- it exists regardless of this experience of "me", even the parts which make up "me" (if any such parts have ontic validity given that the Force is indivisible and these "parts" are arguably divisions). So if that part of "me" is reincarnated, or I am reincarnated through it, has anything changed? Have I actually switched between two states of affairs? Or, rather than "reincarnating", am I "incarnating" continuously?
I do believe in eternal life through the Force, but I am not convinced there is an eternal "TheDude".