Reincarnation is the belief that each of us goes through a series of lifetimes for the purpose of spiritual growth and soul development.
For the 20 years following the first mention of reincarnation in Edgar Cayce’s readings in 1923, the subject of reincarnation appeared nearly 2,000 times. The readings Cayce gave that addressed the subject directly were called “Life readings.” In Life readings, Cayce was asked to look at the reading recipient’s current life and offer insights about its purpose, and this inevitably led to Cayce’s reading of their soul. A typical Life reading would start with something like: “Yes, we have the entity here, and those relations with the universe and universal forces, as are latent and exhibited in the present entity.”
The Cayce approach to reincarnation focused on practical ways of dealing with life in the here and now—by living, growing, and being of service in the present. As Cayce said, it isn’t nearly so important who we have been so much as it is how our past actions affect our present conditions and what opportunities and challenges we face because of it.
In the studies, then, know where ye are going . . . to find that ye only lived, died and were buried under the cherry tree in Grandmother’s garden does not make thee one whit a better neighbor, citizen, mother or father! But to know that ye spoke unkindly and suffered for it and in the present may correct it by being righteous—that is worthwhile!
—Edgar Cayce reading
